Page 41 of Baby for the Professor
“Of course.” I leaned in to kiss his lips, making Aiden giggle.
Chapter 23
Sabrina
I was studying for my final exam in my bedroom, but the aroma of the roasting turkey made it impossible for me to concentrate, not to mention the constant laughter in the living room. Jackson was joining us for the Thanksgiving dinner, and my mom was making a big fuss. Besides turkey, she had baked beef casserole and three different pies.
I was pulling my hair with frustration when the door opened. “Dinner is ready,” Jackson said as he held my shoulders from behind and kissed my head.
“Good.” I quickly closed my textbook and stood up. “I’m hungry.”
“Are you done with the assignment?” he asked, flipping me to face him.
I rolled my eyes. “How is it possible? Do you realize how long the study guide is? A hundred questions?”
He smiled sheepishly. “I wanted my students to be fully prepared for the final exam.”
“I know. But I don’t think I can join you guys for hiking tomorrow. You’ll go with Aiden and my parents, and I’ll stay home alone to study,” I said resentfully.
“Oh, come on.” He pulled me to him and kissed me on the cheek. “I’ll help you with your study, and you’ll go hiking with us.”
I raised my eyebrows. “What do you mean byhelp? Are you going to do the assignment for me?”
“No, but I’ll be your personal tutor.”
I grinned. “How much do I have to pay you?”
“That depends,” he said, his lips moving to my neck and hands stroking my back under my sweater.
That got me all turned on. I giggled and struggled free. “Stop it. Let’s go eat.”
The dining table is crowded with food enough to feed an army. The turkey, glazed, lacquered, and surrounded by golden brown potatoes and carrots, was mouthwatering. My dad opened a ten-year cabernet sauvignon from his vintage collection.
We sat down on each side of Aiden, across the table from my parents. The turkey was tender, juicy, and tasty. Jackson kept complimenting her on it, which flattered my mom very much. “My mom used to air-fried small turkeys for the two of us. It took less than an hour, but the meat wasn’t as tasty as this.”
Jackson often told me about his childhood. The fact that he grew up in a single-parent family and yet was determined to be a responsible dad to Aiden made me appreciate him more.
My parents had both accepted Jackson as a member of our family. He had been having dinner with us on weekends quite often in the past weeks.
We were having wine when Aiden climbed onto his daddy’s lap. “Daddy, when are you going to buy a house?”
“Soon,” Jackson said, peppering Aiden’s cheeks with kisses.
We had been going to open houses often lately but hadn’t found the right one. We both wished to live on the Westside, but homes were expensive over there.
“You should probably get one east of LA,” my mom said. “You can carpool.”
While I cringed at the thought of fighting the rush hour traffic from east to west every day, my dad objected to the idea. “That's bad advice. Just keep looking. I’m sure you’ll find a good one. In the meantime, you can rent a place and live together on the Westside.”
I blinked at my dad’s suggestion. “Are you kicking us out, Dad?” I said with a gasp.
My dad shrugged. “It’s about time. And I don’t see the point of you wasting time and gas on the freeways in order to be together.”
I glanced at Jackson, who was grinning from ear to ear. “Thank you, Peter. That’s what I have in mind. But before that, I have one thing to take care of first,” he said while putting Aiden down and fumbling in his pants pocket for a minute.
As I wondered what he was doing, he went down on one knee in front of me. My heart fluttered as I realized what he was about to do. Oh my God. He’s going to propose! I hadn’t foreseen this, although it had been going great between us. I was only grateful that Aiden and Jackson were getting along.
Tears filled my eyes when Jackson took a deep breath and spoke. “Sabrina, I….” He was so emotional he had to pause to breathe again, before he could continue his sentence. “I can’t tell you enough how thankful I am to have met you by chance five years ago. Buying you a drink was the best move I had made in my life. You are the kindest and most beautiful woman I’ve met. And you’ve made me the luckiest man on earth. Will you marry me and let me take care of you and our children?”
