Page 51 of Never Say Yes To Your Boss

“You’ve given me the world,” Darius whispers in my ear, kissing my temple. “The world a thousand times over. My grandma would be so happy.”

“I wonder if she thought about how much sex putting the baby clause into her will would entail.”

Darius gags. “Probably. Dear lord, she was obsessed with smutty romance books. The naughtier, the better. Did you know she used to use words like railed?”

“Oh my god!” I slap a hand over my mouth before I let out a squeal and wake up the baby. “She did not!”

“She did.” He nods solemnly. “You would have loved my grandma. She was a riot.”

We have a few seconds of silence with our hands linked together, our fingers twisted, and our breaths coming slower as we think about the people who won’t get to meet Nick. Both sets of our grandparents, Darius’ dad, my dad… He might have been a shit parent for most of my life, but of course, part of me still wishes he was here and that things could have been different.

Regardless, I know the people Nick does have in his life will love him so much extra.

We let that moment pass over us, and then Darius nuzzles my ear while my family continues to croon over the world’s mostperfect, sleeping baby. “Do you really hate my beast, or was that just heated, passionate, in-the-moment talk?”

I bite down on another burst of laughter and turn to whisper back, “No, sweetheart, I love your beast. I’m sorry. I don’t hate him at all. I don’t hate any of you. You might not be perfect, but you’re perfect for me.”

Cue the gagging at the token mush, but Darius likes it. I like it. I’m all hormonal and sappy, so mush like that is perfectly acceptable.

“You’re perfect for me too, Ev. I’m pretty sure I’m going to get the award for being the happiest person on the planet.”

“And the hottest DILF.”

“Aaaarh,” he gasps. I do laugh this time, a soft, low sound that carries through the room. Nick stirs in my mom’s arms but doesn’t wake up. There’s a collective sigh over how cute he is when he moves even a fraction of an inch and how adorable his little lips, his cheeks, and how long and thick his eyelashes are. He’s got a little wisp of dark hair under that tiny blue baby cap, and it’s dark like his dad’s. He’s got his dad’s eyes too.

“I get the award for the most perfectly imperfect life.”

Cue more gagging. I swear I’m done with the clichés for a bit. This time, when Darius sighs, Nick wakes up. He lets out a little whimper, and Hans offers to take him, which surprises all of us. He rocks Nick gently with one big hand curled around the blue hat, careful with his head. Hans looks enthralled by the tiny human in that little fuzzy blue onesie that his auntie bought for him.

Heather and Hans’ eyes meet over Nick’s tiny sleeping body when Hans looks up, and she gives him the softest smile. It’s not a flirty smile, but anI already know youkind of smile. I’m not sure what that means. I’m really not sure, but my big sister senses are going haywire. Hans is a good man, but I’m an overprotective big sister, especially since Heather lives in Phillymost of the time. Still, if things are meant to be, then I’m sure they’ll find a way of working out.

Things worked out for Darius and me. We might have had a bait-and-switch of a wedding, and I might have been kind of tricked into marrying him. He might still hate traveling in vehicles, but he has now worked his way up to ten-minute rides. There might have been one crazy granny with one crazy will, and none of this was supposed to happen like this, but it did. We haven’t felt the need to redo our wedding, but one day, we’ll probably renew our vows. And this time, I’ll be standing across from the man I love—the right Bradford. We did go away for a little honeymoon because when you have a private jet, why not? We waited until we were kind of dating, and I use the word kind of because we were living together and technically married for a year before we went. There may have been an incident with a jar of peanut butter and some fulfilled promises, and by the time we got back to Chicago, it wasn’t just us anymore.

I was pregnant with Nick.

It was a happy accident. We were ready, and yeah, okay, the will was still kind of hanging over us. If we weren’t going to break up, then we needed to try to have a family or proof of one. Yeah, I still can’t believe the will said that. Anyway, we didn’t feel rushed or that we had to have a baby to keep the companies together or anything. We loved each other, and it had been a year at that point, so it felt like a good time to start trying to have the family we’d both dreamed about and wanted.

“You guys,” Heather croons as Nick yawns and nestles into Hans’ huge arms. He actually goes back to sleep instead of waking up and letting out some real hunger cries. “He’s so gorgeous and perfect. I’m the happiest auntie in the world. Welcome to being parents. You’re going to be the best ones.”

Did I say I was done with being gushy and sappy? Well, I lied. Happy tears streak down my face, and I clutch Darius’ hand in my own. I’m so in love with this man that I can’t not tell him.

“You’re beautiful, you know that?” he whispers in my ear. “The love of my life and mother of my son. My partner, my wife, my forever.”

“You’re pretty sexy, too,” I respond, leaning into his strength and his warmth a little more. I ignore the soreness and the exhaustion creeping up in favor of the joy I feel right now. But I’m pretty sure there’s still a bit of a shock and adrenaline going on. “You’re also the love of my life. My peanut-butter-and-jelly-sandwich-loving sidekick and my daring late-night kitchen escapade partner. My husband, my love, my always.”

“I should have thrown in the peanut butter thing. I didn’t think of that.”

“Wait until we get home. You can make me all the sandwiches you want.”

He kisses me thoroughly, and then Hans walks over and gently places Nick in my arms because, okay, I guess we’re doing family photos right now. I probably look like a hot mess, but I don’t care one bit. I’m loved, and this is a moment I’m going to cherish for the rest of my life. I don’t need to be made up or not wearing an ugly hospital gown. It’s all good. I’m surrounded by the people I love and people who love me like crazy. We’re all healthy, and at this moment, we’re all insanely happy.

What could make for a better photo to cherish for the rest of our days than that?

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