Page 63 of Love You Still

Then the elderly man grasps the handles of the wheelchair and heads toward the baggage claim.

“What was that about?” I ask Vance as he leads me toward the airport exit.

“We met at Crawdaddy’s today when I was on my way out of town.”

“Out of town? Where were you going? How long did you plan on being gone? What about…” Vance chuckles softly as he places his hand over my mouth.

“I was heading to Magnolia for a job we just bid on. Not for long, just to do some preliminary work before Connor and the crew arrived later in the week. But that man gave me the little push I needed to come get what I wanted. To prove to you that I was willing to do anything for us to be together.”

“It seems like we both needed a little push in the right direction.”

Vance and I will go through our ups and downs as we try to find our footing with each other once again, but there is one thing I know for certain: Sometimes a do-over is all you need.

Epilogue

Selina

When Vance and I returned to Tyson’s Creek about a month ago, it seemed as if nothing had changed, but I was different. The idea of settling down once again in my small town didn’t feel as suffocating.

Vance insisted we spend some time together, just the two of us, before announcing our relationship to the world, and I agreed wholeheartedly. After being apart for those few days, I was starved for his love and attention. We spent an entire week holed up in his large farmhouse, only leaving for food, reconnecting with our bodies and our souls.

To say I’m still apprehensive about how fast things are going with him would be an understatement. Vance and I have gone from barely saying two words to each other to being in a full-blown relationship in a matter of a few months. I’m sure there are people out there who would say things were moving fast, but this is the perfect speed for the two of us. After spending so many years away from each other, why wait any longer to start our lives together?

Couple that with my recent surprise, and panic isn’t a strong enough word to describe how I’m feeling. Yep, I’m pregnant. I guess I shouldn’t really be surprised, given the number of timesVance and I have spent enjoying each other’s bodies since that first night we spent together. We haven’t talked about having children just yet, but Vance has made no secret of how badly he wants to have a ring on my finger and my belly round with his child.

It seems surreal that I’m finally able to have everything that I’ve ever wanted—Vance, a chance to have a career that I love in dance, and now, raising a family in the dream home the love of my life built for me. I used to believe that there was no way I could be happy in my small hometown on the Tennessee-Alabama border, but here I am. I guess someone really can have their cake and eat it, too, as the saying goes.

The sad part is that I’ve only had about twenty-four hours to get used to the idea of being a mother. Noticing the warning signs, Bristol encouraged me to take a test yesterday morning. Two pink lines showed up in no time, and I had no idea how to feel until the panic set in. Bristol did her best to keep me calm, calling in reinforcements from Audrey and Leia, but it seems my niece or nephew decided that was the perfect time to make an appearance.

Bristol’s water broke right there in my parents’ kitchen. After that, it was nothing but frantic phone calls to all the rest of our friends, and we rushed to the hospital. Rebekah was born a few hours ago, weighing in at seven pounds, twelve ounces.

“She’s beautiful,” I say as I look down at the precious little girl in my arms.

“I agree with you, but I’m a little biased.”

I lift my head and notice the content smile on Bristol’s face. If I didn’t know for a fact that she’d spent the last twelve hours in labor, I would have had no idea. Bristol looks the exact opposite of tired, with her red hair tied in a messy bun on top of her head.

“When are you going to tell him?” she asks as I place little Rebekah back in her arms and take a seat in the chair beside her bed.

“Soon,” is the only answer I can come up with. The events of yesterday are still a blur in my mind. “I know he’ll be ecstatic about having a baby, but are we ready?”

“Ready? There is no ready, Seli. Look at me.” Bristol gives me a reassuring smile. “I never wanted to be a single mother, but life had other plans. Now, I just want to make sure I’m the best mother I can be to my little girl.”

“Have you thought about telling Seth?” I probe gently at the sensitive subject.

Bristol was beyond secretive about the name of her baby’s father until a few weeks ago. Overcome with the panic of being a single mother, Bristol finally confided in Leia and me. It seems she wanted to keep it a secret in case he came back into town, not wanting him to find out from someone else he was going to be a father, but when she never received any contact from him, she decided to never speak of it again. No matter who helped Bristol bring Rebekah into this world, we would all be there for her, ensuring that she was the most spoiled little girl in all of Tyson’s Creek, that is, until our little one arrives in about eight months, give or take a few weeks.

“Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. I made the mistake of telling him it was a one-time thing. Who would have thought that the one time I tried to do something reckless, it would turn out like this?” Bristol stares out the window, lost in thought.

I give her time to collect her thoughts before breaking the silence. “Do you want to find him?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why don’t you contact Brady? You said they were in the same unit, right? Leia was talking about him coming home soon when I came in.”

Talk about a small town. Brady is the only son of the town’s midwife. He also happens to be friends with Seth, Rebekah’s father. Through a series of events, Bristol and Seth hooked up and created this miracle, but he has no idea.

“Maybe,” Bristol says before quickly changing the subject. “You need to tell Vance sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the harder it will be.”

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