Page 62 of Future Like This

I enjoy it for a while longer before slowly breaking our kiss. Amelia smiles up at me when I do, gently tousling my hair. “Good Valentine’s Day present, then?”

“You are the best Valentine’s present I ever could’ve asked for.” Pushing myself upright, I stand and grab my phone, holding my other hand out to her. “Dance with me?”

She allows me to pull her up, then dreamily says, “Yes, please.”

I put on a playlist of songs I made that remind me of her and us. I started it when I was still at school and she was here in Ida. I told myself not to about a hundred times, then finally gave up when I kept hearing songs that made me think of her and wanted to save them. Now it’s the music of our love story.

“What song is this?” she asks when we’re several songs into our slow dance.

“Dance With Me by Phillip Phillips. I’d never heard it until a few months ago. It came up as a recommended song for me, and I listened to it. When I did, you were all I could think of.”

“It’s beautiful,” she whispers. “The idea of just wanting one more dance, one more quiet moment with the person you love… it reminds me of my parents in the best way.”

“Would your dad have liked me?” I ask. Maybe it’s stupid, but I’d like to think her dad is happy with where she is right now.

“Are you kidding?” she asks with a huge smile. “He would have loved you. Like so much that he might’ve let you teach him about baseball. He was never much of a sports guy. Sometimes soccer or football. No, he would’ve been your biggest fan because you give me everything I deserve and a whole lot more. And you make me stupidly happy. That was always the most important thing to him. He loved to see me smile.”

I brush my thumb over her bottom lip. “Your smile is luminescent. I love it, too.”

“I love you,” she whispers, leaning up to kiss me.

“Back at you.” I pull her close again as the song ends, bleeding into the next as we dance like time is standing still just for us.

Of course, it isn’t, and Emmie knows that.

Like clockwork, a few minutes before midnight, she wakes up screaming.

“Looks like our carriage has turned back into a pumpkin,” Amelia says with a little laugh, but I shake my head.

“No. We’re still living our fairytale.” Her eyes light up and she looks at me the way I’ve seen Rae look at Aaron more times than I can count. How Sarah looks at Joel. She looks like she’s melting on the spot. I give her a quick kiss. “Go feed our girl. I’ll bring some chocolate tart and feed you.” She melts a little more.

She nods, then turns and walks down the hallway, disappearing into our bedroom. A moment later, Emmie stops crying, and I smile to myself.

Walking over to the fridge, I pull out the tart and cut another large piece, then top it with some whipped cream. I grab her water bottle and the plate and head for the bedroom. When I get there, Amelia is snuggled in a nest of pillows and stroking Emmie’s head as she nurses.

My superwoman and my baby girl.

I join them on the bed, resting one hand on Emmie’s back, and feeding Amelia with the other.

This is probably not every guy’s idea of a perfect night, but it’s mine. Snuggled in bed with the girls I adore, taking care of Amelia while she takes care of Emmie.

There is nothing better than this.

Actually, that’s not true. Calling Amelia my wife will make these moments even better.

I keep feeding my girl so she can feed our girl, dreaming of how I might propose to her as I do.

Chapter ten

Everyone Stay Calm

Amelia

“Do it. Do it. Do it,” Miles whisper chants as he strokes Emmie’s back, sitting next to me on the couch.

I bite my lip, staring at the final page of the online law school application. “Are you sure now is the right time? I can wait—”

He turns to me as Emmie paws at his face. He moves her hands and changes her position as he looks at me. “You are done deferring your dreams. If this is what you want to do, then sign the form and click the damn button because you deserve this. Do you want to do this?”

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