Page 73 of The Surrogate Nanny
“Hell no,” I replied, giving her a taste of her own medicine. She snickered as she flipped open the cover.
“We’ve come a long way since then, huh?”
“We did.” She fell silent when she noticed the first page. “I’ll be honest with you, Simone. Most of the pictures are of you. I didn’t have pictures of Nori from the first year of her life, so I decided to start where it all began.”
I remained silent as Simone flipped through the photos. She was aware of some of them, like when we received confirmation of pregnancy and when we had our private baby shower—just the three of us. She wasn’t aware of others, like when I snapped her chowing down on iced gingerbread cookies that she’d requested when her late-night cravings were hitting hard. Simone continued to flip through photos, finally getting to the pictures of Nori. She found adorable snapshots of the three of us at the zoo and the park and of Nori giving us cuteness overload. Simone gasped when she made it to the last page. A finger traced the diamond ring taped to the center of the page.
“Anthony…what is this?”
“I purchased this ring the same day I purchased the ID bracelets. It wasn’t my intention, but it caught my eye, and I had to have it. I didn’t know when I would propose. I kept telling myself when the time was right or when enough time had passed. But as they say, there’s no time like the present. I’ve never met a more kind, gracious, compassionate, and loving person than you, and I want you…for as long as you’ll have me. We make a great team, and we’re raising a beautiful, growing family together.”
“Growing?” she questioned.
I flipped back to the page where she ate gingerbread cookies and drank chocolate milk with the package resting on her rounded stomach.
“I left the pregnancy test that I bought in the truck. I’m hoping for a boy this time, but I’ll be happy as long as you and the baby are healthy. With that being said, will you marry me, Simone Justine Livingston?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Simone
I blinked several times as two and two started making sense. My eyes were drawn to the photo of me gorging on iced gingerbread cookies while pregnant. They were my heroin, and Anthony was my dealer.
I stood to my feet, and the book fell from my hands. Anthony glanced down at it in concern before looking back up at me. “Simone? Are you okay?” I hurriedly left for the garage, dodging Nori and the ottoman. “So? No to my proposal?”
The pregnancy test sat in a white plastic bag on the front passenger seat. I snatched it up and beelined it to the nearest bathroom, darting past Anthony. I shut the door behind me and locked it. My hands fumbled with the pink package that promised to give me accurate readings in five minutes. “Shit!” I yelled when I accidentally dropped the box on the floor.
Anthony knocked on the door. “Simone? Are you okay? Do you need help?”
I picked up the box while simultaneously sliding my shorts down my legs. “I think I can manage peeing by myself,” I rushed out.
“Okay. Well, I’ll be right here.”
“Okay, Nori,” I taunted.
“That was low,” he said, chuckling through the door.
Nori was at that age where I couldn’t have a moment of privacy. She’d often follow me to the bathroom and stand outside beating on the door if I didn’t give her access.
I tore the applicator out of the package, uncapped it, and sat on the toilet. My feet tapped anxiously against the smooth tile as I waited for a stream. “Come on,” I whispered harshly when nothing came thirty seconds later.
“So…about my proposal.”
“Anthony, get away from the door!”
I probably couldn’t go because he was hovering.
“Okay. Okay. I’m leaving.”
“You’re still there, aren’t you?” I asked several seconds later.
“I’m sorry, Simone, but I can’t help it. I’m rooted in excitement.”
“You’re excited?”
“Hell yeah. I might be having another baby with the most amazing woman in the world.”
Anthony’s kind words not only warmed my heart but triggered my pee.