Page 78 of Fixed Up Ever After

“I’m twelve weeks today. Still early on, but the doctor said the baby is healthy and that—” But she didn’t get to finish. Javi was out of his chair and pulling Lola out of hers too, kissing the words out of her.

Her body sagged in relief against his. Javi cradled her face between his hands as he pulled back to look at her—all of her, stopping at her belly. “Lola, you’ve just made me the happiest man in the world.”

“Really?” She was on the verge of becoming a puddle of tears but was trying desperately to keep herself together for just a moment longer.

“Really. You have given me the best gift I could have asked for.”

“I…I guess you can finally add on to the house like…like you’ve been trying to…do,” she said in between sobs.

Javi laughed, leaning down to kiss her tears away. From the corner of her eye, she saw Camilia move closer and wrap her small arms around Lola. “No crying, Mamá Lola. Not good for the baby,” she muttered, causing an unexpected laugh to burst through her.

“Exactly, mi amor, no crying allowed.” Javi wiped his own eyes dry and pulled Camilia closer to them, squishing both Camilia and Lola into a family hug. “My girls, you make me so happy. How did I get so lucky?”

“Remember this feeling when we are waking up at three in the morning to soothe a crying baby and changing messy diapers.” Lola laughed.

“I can’t wait.” The sincerity in Javi’s voice made the butterflies return tenfold. The nerves from earlier disappeared. They would come back once she was closer to giving birth and things wouldn’t always be easy.

But she learned long ago that sometimes doing the hard things produced the best outcomes. And she wouldn’t be doing this alone and neither would Javi this time. They would have each other and Camilia.

It was all she would ever need.

The End