Page 35 of The Marriage Sham
Epilogue
Five Years Later
“Janie!” I holler up the stairs, in a hurry to get to Lover’s Landing to meet up with the other moms in our little play group. Fen is at work, having been gone for several days at the fire line, but expected home tonight. I have five thousand things to get done today before he comes home, and waiting on our three-year-old to pick out a jacket is not one of them.
She finally barrels down the stairs we had carpeted when we found out I was pregnant. Grandaddy’s house is an amazing place to raise a family, but after he passed away two years ago, we did some major remodeling to bring it up to current times.
“Careful, sweetie.”
“I’m cawful, mama.” She gives me a toothy grin and slows down to a crawl, finding it super fun to tease me.
“Janie…” I shake my head at her but can’t seem to hide the grin. She’s everything I never knew I wanted. How could I be mad at her?
We finally make it to Lover’s Landing and spend a couple hours with the other moms while our kids play. I didn’t think I wanted to live in a small town, but time—and Fen—proved me wrong. Through pregnancy classes and toddler programs, I’ve met some wonderful women who’ve not only become my friends, but my support system.
Betty and Harold sit with us, leaving the heavy lifting of running a coffee shop to the employees they hired not too long ago when it just got to be too much for them. They can’t seem to stay away, so they supervise and socialize instead.
I’m the first mom to gather up our things and head out. Janie isn’t happy at all about that, but what she doesn’t know is that Mama has a big surprise for Daddy, and I need to prepare. That, and I have two clients to call while she naps today.
Owning and running my event management business has been remarkably easy from here in Love, Georgia. As unpleasant as Colette was to work with all those years ago, she gave me one heck of a referral, and my business exploded after that. I’ve been able to pick and choose my clients, only working events that fit my schedule and allow me to be a somewhat stay-at-home-working mama.
When Janie finally goes down for a nap, I hightail it to my closet, pulling down the Amazon box I hid way in the back when UPS delivered yesterday. Pulling out the soft cotton, I grab my shovel and head to the backyard where I bury it in a box, only the shovel in the ground marking my treasure.
Janie doesn’t nap long, and I wonder if this is a sign of what’s to come. I remember taking naps all the way through kindergarten, but apparently loads of kids don’t make it that long. Makes me tired just thinking of the day she gives them up entirely.
She’s in the playroom gluing noodles to a poster board, but I’m sure something else will get glued that isn’t supposed to. Hopefully it won’t be her auburn hair, since Fen loves it so much. He calls her my “mini me,” but other than the hair color, I think she’s all Fen.
The timer dings, and I’m pulling the homemade lasagna out of the oven when I hear the garage door open. Janie comes running down the hallway, her little legs pumping, pigtails flying. When Fen comes through the door, she’s already mid-air with a perfectly timed jump, ready for him to catch her like they always do.
“How’s my best girl?” Fen hugs her tight and strokes her hair, spinning to find me, a grin spreading across his face when he does. All the jagged edges of my heart, left over from the break when Granddaddy passed, smooth over at the sight of the two of them together. My whole world in one hug.
“Whada ‘bout Mama?” Janie asks Fen with a coy smile.
Fen’s eyes heat behind his glasses as he stalks over to me, Janie’s little arms still wrapped around his neck. His rough hand cups my face and he simply gazes at me for a few beats, love radiating out from his big frame.
“She’s my queen.” He kisses me softly, stirring up those butterflies in my stomach even after five years of wedded bliss. Wild clapping from the tiny human between us breaks us apart, laughter quick to form, like always.
“Alright, you little monkey! Let Daddy get cleaned up, and then we’ll have his favorite meal.” I pull her out of Fen’s arms and dance her across the kitchen, her initial protest dissolving into giggles the more I spin her around.
When we finally get seated around the supper table, Fen digs in, hungry from several days spent working and subsisting on meager rations. He’s always starving when he comes home from out in the field, so I figured making him his favorite meal would be a good way to start the celebration he doesn’t know about yet.
Dishes done and Janie bathed and put to bed with a bedtime story, Fen and I finally make it to the family room to collapse on the couch together for some alone time.
“You’ve been quiet tonight, Francie,” Fen whispers. His arm slides around my shoulders, and he pulls me in tight so my head rests on his chest. I love the solid warmth of him. The knowledge there’s one person on this green earth who loves me no matter what. Who knows I love him right back just as much. And my announcement won’t change that. It’ll only amplify it.
Taking a deep breath, I pull out of his arms and stand up, offering my hand to him. He looks at me questioningly but takes my hand and follows me, trusting me implicitly.
I lead him out the back door and into the yard, coming to stand in front of the shovel. He narrows his eyes on the new tool, probably wondering if I’ve lost my mind, but remains quiet, waiting for me to explain in my own time.
“I, um, wanted to surprise you. So I hid it.” I’m wringing my hands, knowing I’m not describing this well.
Fen quirks an eyebrow. “You got dirty and dug a hole to surprise me?”
I guffaw, the nerves leaving me with his teasing. “Yeah. Kinda funny, right? But I figured it was worth getting dirty. Figured my archeologist would want to find buried treasure.”
He grabs the handle of the shovel. “May I?”
I gesture with my hands. “Please, have at it.”
