Page 81 of That Feeling

“Something bothering you?”

“A woman.” He sighs. “Amelia Blanc of Blanc Wineries.”

“I know the Blancs, though I’m not familiar with Amelia.”

“She’s a royal pain in my ass right now. Get this shit, she wants to bring her winery out here. Apparently, she’s set up a tasting room in Fort Collins but plans to expand to open more full-scale wineries in Colorado.”

I look at him, confused. “And? What’s that got to do with us?”

“Are you kidding me? First of all, this is our territory. She knows that we’ve talked about getting into the wine scene.”

“Our territory?” I laugh. “Aren’t you being a little dramatic? We don’t do wine. Yes, it’s been talked about, but it’s always been voted against in the board meetings, and for good reason. We don’t need to diversify that much.”

“Yeah, but I’d like to keep that option open for future endeavors. And also, her family are a bunch of fucking sellouts! They sold their name to some parent company that owns strip mall wineries and shit. We keep our name in the family; we source everything locally and build relationships in the community. The last thing we need is some money-hungry company from the West Coast coming in here and pissing everyone off again and causing problems.”

He’s heated and it makes me chuckle. “Sounds like this Amelia lady is really under your skin.”

“Don’t do that. Don’t act like it’s a crush. This is serious shit, and even Dad is concerned.”

I raise my hands. “I didn’t say it. We’ll talk about it with him, so don’t worry, I’m not trying to brush off your concerns. I don’t love the idea of chain wineries around here either, but we also can’t control what comes in and out of this town.” He gives me a sideways glance. “No, Trent, we’re not going to do that. We’re not going to be a family that runs others out of town, especially after what happened with our ancestors.”

Brooklyn will be homein a few minutes. I let the filet mignon rest as I plate up the roasted potatoes and side salad. The chocolate cheesecake she loves is in the fridge. I step back and give the table a once-over. Lit candles, check. Her favorite meal, check. I grab the remote for the stereo and turn on a soft jazz playlist just as I hear the front door open.

I made sure to sprinkle rose petals from the front door all the way up the stairs to our master bedroom.

I hear her heels clicking as she walks toward the kitchen. I nervously lean against the doorway. She rounds the corner, and the moment she sees me, her face softens and her bottom lip begins to quiver.

“Sweetie.” I open my arms and she steps into them and starts to cry. “It’s okay.” I rub her back for a few minutes.

“I’m sorry,” she says through her tears.

“No, you don’t need to be. I’m the one who needs to apologize. I was selfish and didn’t think about the change this means for you and your body and your work schedule.”

I hold her face in my hands. “Is that steak I smell?” she asks.

I laugh. “It is. I made your favorite dinner and there’s even chocolate cheesecake in the fridge.”

“You’re about to make this baby and me very happy.”

I feel a flutter when she mentions our baby, but I don’t want to draw too much attention to it just yet. I know she’s probably still in shock, and I have a happy surprise for her later.

“I’m so full.”She walks slowly up the stairs to our bedroom.

“Here,” I say, scooping her up and carrying her the rest of the way. I place her on her feet and guide her into our master bathroom. I’ve lit about two dozen candles and placed them around the room. The tub is filled with water and more rose petals.

“Oh my God, that looks so amazing.”

“And I double-checked that this water temperature is fine while you’re pregnant.”

We strip down and gently lower ourselves into the warm water. I keep my jeans close by so I can reach into the pocket once I’m settled behind her.

“This is so wonderful. Thank you, baby.” She leans back against my chest.

“I have something I want to say to you. I’m sorry again about how I acted earlier. You have every right to be scared and feel like you’re not ready. I should have supported you better.”

I grab the ring from my jeans without her noticing and slowly bring it around in front of her. I reach into the water and pull her hand out, sliding the ring onto her finger.

“I’m not doing this because of the baby. I waited too damn long to do it in the first place, but I want you to know that I promise to be by your side every single day for the rest of our lives—loving and supporting you no matter what life throws our way.”

The room is dead silent for a few seconds. Brooklyn’s shoulders begin to tremble and I hear her let out a shaky breath. She spins around, water sloshing with the movement as she throws her arms around my neck and begins to cry.

“Are they happy tears?”

She nods her head against my neck. “Yes and no.” She wipes at her eyes furiously before saying, “I feel like such an asshole.”

“What? Why, baby? I was the asshole, not you.”

“It’s just that I finally have my dream job and my dream man, and then I’m blessed with a baby and I just ruin it. All I was focused on was the fear. I’m just worried that it’ll put so much stress on us that you’ll resent me.”

I lift her chin up. “Look at me, Brooklyn. I will never resent you. You and this baby are my entire world. No matter what happens, we’ve got each other. Forever.”

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