Page 52 of Small Town CEO Grump

There was more information I wanted, but I didn’t know how to bring it up. It was something I wanted to know before I put the next part of my plan into action, but I didn’t know if it was my place to ask her the question I was wondering about, and so I just stood there quietly, not knowing what to say or do.

Thankfully, Jenna seemed to know what I was getting at. This didn’t surprise me, because she and I always seem to be on the same wavelength.

“My hope,” she said, looking out at the ocean, “is that one day he will be adopted by a loving father.”

Tears spring to my eyes and I was filled with emotion. This was exactly what I wanted to know, and exactly the response I was hoping for. I didn’t know what to say, so instead, I pulled her into my arms and held her.

***

“Can I get chocolate ice cream too?” Tyler asked.

“Of course you can,” I said.

I had picked Tyler up from school and taken him to get ice cream. He had already asked for a scoop of caramel, but it had taken him a long time to come to his final decision. The only logical choice was for him to get both.

“Thank you!” he said, smiling as he watched the worker pile the ice cream high on his cone.

Once he had his treat, we walked outside and sat at the closest table we could find.

“How is it?” I asked.

“It’s really good,” he said. “How’s yours?”

I took a bite of my chocolate chip. “Really good.”

Tyler nodded then went back to taking care of his ice cream.

“So,” I said, once Tyler had finished eating. “There’s something specific I wanted to talk to you about today.”

“What is it?” Tyler asked.

“You know your mom and I have been dating for a while now, right?” I started, trying to push away the nervousness I felt.

“Duh,” he said.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, okay. That was a silly question. Okay, so here’s the thing that I wanted to talk to you about. I would like to ask your mom to marry me. But I will only do that if you are okay with it.”

Tyler’s eyes widened, and I held my breath, waiting for him to answer.

“You want to marry my mom?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, I do.”

“Would that mean you…” Tyler’s voice trailed off, and he looked down at the ground.

“What is it, Buddy?” I asked.

“Um, so would that mean you would become my dad?” he asked, quietly. He slowly lifted his head and looked at me, and I could see the hope in his eyes. ‘

My eyes filled with tears as I nodded, too overcome with emotion to speak.

“Yes,” I said, finally. “I would become your dad.”

Tyler stood up and came and wrapped his arms around my neck, and I hugged him back.

“Does this mean you are okay with me asking her to marry me?” I said after a minute.

Tyler nodded, and slowly let go of me.

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