Worth the Risk (11 page)
“I know. I missed you too, honey. We’ll take it one step at a time.” He smiled, and inclined his head in for yet one more heated embrace. “I’m looking forward to playing house with you this summer.”
She laughed, swatted his ass, and gave him one last quick smooch. Then she ran to her car and jumped in before she changed
her
mind about him visiting his parents.
The trip home was the opposite from her drive to the park on Friday. Instead of visits down memory lane, she dreamed of bright possibilities ahead. Caught up in blissful happiness, she sang along with the radio on the way home, her smile honest and true for the first time in years.
Epilogue
Five Years Later
“Come on, Molly, we need to get on the road. I’d like to be there before the burgers are cold and beer is warm.” Tanner’s favorite pastime these days—teasing his slow-moving wife. She ambled over, her smile radiant, her hands hugging her swollen belly. Pregnant with their second child, she remained the most stunning woman he had ever laid eyes on, and he loved her more each day.
Their daughter, Ava, clinging to the hem of Molly’s blouse, toddled along beside her.
“
I’m
ready to go. I was waiting for your daughter to take a final potty break before we put her in the car. It’s a long drive to the park for a two-year-old.”
He laughed. Ava released her hold on Molly and ran toward him, her chubby little legs churning and sporting an ear-to-ear grin. Her eyes went big and round as she pulled her arms back, elbows pointed, hands curled into tiny fists. He was familiar with that look and recognized the signs.
Tanner bent down low, ready to catch her. Ava came in at full tilt, leaping as only a spirited two-year-old could. In one fluid motion, he grabbed his daughter around the waist and stood, swinging her high in the air, eliciting screams of little-girl pleasure, before he turned to settle her into the car seat, and buckle her in. Leaning inside the vehicle he kissed her on the forehead. She rewarded him with a pat on the cheek, and she giggled when he closed the door and then pressed his face against the glass.
Molly got in and secured her own seat belt. He gave his wife a resounding smooch on the lips before closing her car door and then walking around to climb in on the driver’s side.
“Go park, Daddy, go park.” Ava clapped her little hands, delighted to go on an adventure.
They were off for their annual May Two-Four weekend. Now, however, it was more of a family get-together. Sam and Olivia would be there with their twins, as would Colleen and Steve, who married not long after Ava’s birth. They lived in Ottawa now—eagerly expecting their first child in October, right around Thanksgiving.
Brad and his new wife would be there too, and Matt and Violet, who eventually hooked up—to the surprise of everyone but Molly. Wedding bells were in the future for those two. Seeing his friends happy and settled in their lives went a long way in making up for the time he lost with them.
With the help of a therapist, he and Molly had worked through their past. He had spent time discussing his feelings about the baby and a sense of loss for something he had known nothing about. Thankfully, Molly’s other pregnancies had been normal.
After six months of renovations and then decorating, they’d opened their restaurant, and even with a small handful of hiccups, it had turned into a wise and successful business venture.
Life was better than good. He and Molly had found their way back to each other, proving in life, and in love, some risks were worth taking.
~ About the Author ~
While embarking on a career as a romance author, Anne Lange juggles a full time job and a family. She grew up in Southern Ontario, Canada, but now makes her home in a small town in Eastern Ontario where she lives with her husband, three children, and Rocky, the bearded dragon.
Find out more about Anne Lange here
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http://authorannelange.com
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