I struggled to find the words.“I—I love you too Vincent, and I think I do want a family, but I don’t know yet. Things have just been so crazy, we should take some time and think about it in case either of us changes our minds.”
He gave me his hand, wrapped in medical bandages and I latched onto it. “I won’t change my mind Kristen, but you’re right. We’ll talk about it later. All I care about right now is that you’re okay.”
I pursed my lips. He was going to make me cry again. “I’m glad you’re okay too, Vincent. I thought I was going to lose you.”
Vincent let out a deep breath and chuckled. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”
His expression turned serious again. “I’m sorry about all of this Kristen. This was all my fault. Earlier today, when we were interrupted in the office, it was Kurt and Bernie. They had come to tell me that they lost track of Marty. I should have realized that he was more dangerous than he seemed.”
“No Vincent, you didn’t know. How could you have known that Marty would react that way? I didn’t even know. I thought he had changed and got the help he needed and was recovering. I was wrong about him too.”
Vincent growled, “Guys like that don’t learn their lesson until you bury them under six feet of concrete.”
“I wouldn’t have wanted you to do that Vincent. That wouldn’t have been right. Marty is sick.”
He let out a long sigh, “It doesn’t matter anymore. Now you’re safe and you won’t ever have to be afraid of him ever again.”
“If you hadn’t met me, if I hadn’t dragged you into my problems, none of this would’ve happened. Your hands . . .”
“Don’t you dare say that Kristen. If I hadn’t met you, my life wouldn’t have been whole. I don’t regret a single moment I’ve spent with you. I’d gladly trade my thumbs, my hands or any parts of my body for you Kristen. You’re everything to me.”
“Did you really mean it when you said you wanted to start a family?”
“I know we haven’t been dating for that long Kristen, and I don’t know what the future holds, but I know how I feel about you.”
“What about your company?”
“They don’t need me there all the time. I’ll take more time off to be with you. You’re more important to me.”
“What if . . . what if it doesn’t work out?”
“We can’t live life based on ‘what ifs’ Kristen. We’ll make it work.”
Vincent looked around the ambulance and then raised an eyebrow at me, it looked almost comical on his swollen face. “So . . . ‘waddles’ was your phone password huh?”
I half-laughed half-sobbed in relief and held on more tightly to his hand. No matter what happened next, we would work through our issues together.
Epilogue
“Ouch.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” I said.
“It’s fine. Just try not to put too much pressure there,” Vincent said.
He moved his arm out from under me and I stroked it lightly. The cast had come off a month ago, but sometimes it was still sore for him. In addition to breaking his thumbs, Vincent had also fractured his forearm in the fight with Marty.
Marty was prosecuted and locked up. Even though he needed serious help, it was because of his ill-guided actions that Vincent and I were closer together. I wasn’t happy about what happened to Marty, but I knew that he would finally be able to get the help he needed in prison.
Sunlight drifted in through the translucent blinds, illuminating small specks of dust floating in the air. Vincent beamed at me, his eyes still squinty from sleep. We were in his New York penthouse. Though I would have preferred the tranquility of his island, Vincent insisted on being in Manhattan so that we could be close to the New York Presbyterian Hospital. He told me that it had the best neonatal care unit in the world.
I snapped back to the present and Vincent was looking at me with a suggestive look on his face. His c**k was out and he was nudging at my entrance.
“Wait, aren’t you missing something?” I teased him.
He nuzzled his chin against the side of my face. “Like what?”
The light fuzz on his chin rubbing against me made it difficult not to giggle. “Like a condom. That’s how we got here in the first place.”
Vincent had proposed to me as soon as we had gotten out of the hospital. We had many serious talks while we were both recovering. Somehow, despite it being against hospital policy, Vincent had gotten us placed in the same recovery room. After the events we had been through, it was pretty clear that we both wanted to raise a child together.
Giselle had visited us a few times with Brady and Rob. She gave me a few tips on making the pregnancy go more smoothly and I appreciated the time I spent with her. She wanted to know the sex of the baby, but we didn’t even know—we wanted it to be a surprise. I was looking forward to calling Giselle my sister-in-law.
Vincent lifted his head up and smiled down at me.
“But I like where we are now.”
“You’re not worried about how our lives will change with a baby in the picture?”
He propped his head up with his other arm, his expression turning serious. “I’m excited. In fact, I’m going to come inside you and we’re going to make twins.”
I laughed. “I hate to burst your bubble but that’s not how it works.”
“It might be improbable but we’ve beaten the odds before.” Vincent kissed my round belly before laying the side of his head against my chest.
“So you’re going to break the rules of biology now?”
I pushed myself up until I was propped against the headboard. Vincent shifted and grimaced as he put his weight on his injured arm.
“Maybe when I get my full strength back, we’ll give it a shot.”
After we had talked in the hospital, we decided that it would be best if I left my job at Waterbridge-Howser and helped Vincent manage his wealth until I gave birth. With the way things had been going at Waterbridge-Howser, I would’ve been forced out sooner or later, and I would always have to sleep with one eye open, knowing that Richard had it out for me.
Our plan was that Vincent would help me establish my own wealth management firm afterward. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but he’d convinced me that I had all the skills I needed and he had the connections to get me up on my feet. Vincent started delegating a lot of his work in order to spend more time with me, and in preparation for taking care of the baby. He also cut out the riskier aspects of his love of extreme sports, though he still enjoyed surfing occasionally.