This Girl: A Novel

second to share my sweet.” He turns to Eddie, seated next to him, and he clears his throat. Eddie smiles up at him and he presses his hand to his heart. “My sweet is that the woman I love, as of last night, has agreed to become my wife.”
    As soon as the word wife leaves his mouth, Kiersten and Lake are making high-pitched noises and hugging Eddie and jumping up and down. Eddie takes a ring out of her pocket and puts it on her finger to show the girls. Lake says something about this being her sweet and Eddie agrees, but Gavin has sat back down and all the boys are now eating while the girls are still squealing.
    I look over at Lake and she’s turning Eddie’s hand back and forth in the light, admiring her ring. She’s smiling. She looks so happy. Eddie is happy, too. The boys, aside from learning what you do during your honeymoon, are smiling. Gavin is watching Eddie and looks genuinely happy. I can’t help but think back on these past two years and all we’ve been through. The heartache we had to endure to get here and the tears we’ve all shed in the process. I don’t know how one minute, a person can think his life is nothing more than a barren valley with nothing left to look forward to. Then, in the blink of an eye, someone can come along and change it with a simple smile.
    Lake looks at me and catches me smiling at her. She grins and leans against me as I wrap my arm around her. “You want to know my sweet?” I ask her.
    She nods.
    I kiss her on the forehead. “You. Always you.”
    The End.

epilogue
    “GIVE HER SOME medicine!” Gavin yells at the nurse. He’s pacing back and forth. Beads of sweat have pooled on his forehead and he lifts a hand to wipe them away. “Look at her! She’s in pain, just look at her! Give her something!” His face is pale and he’s gesturing toward the hospital bed. Eddie rolls her eyes and stands up, taking Gavin by the shoulders and shoving him toward the door.
    “Sorry, Will. You would think he would take it better since I’m not the one in labor this time. If I don’t get him out of here he’ll pass out like he did when Katie was born.”
    I nod, but can’t find it in me to laugh. Seeing Lake on that bed in as much pain as she’s in has me feeling completely helpless. She’s refusing medicine, but I’m about to go grab a damn needle and give her some myself.
    I walk to the head of her bed and as soon as the contraction passes, the tension eases slightly from her face and she looks up at me. I take the wet rag and press it against her cheek to cool her off. “Water. I want water,” she grumbles.
    This is the tenth time she’s asked for water in the past hour, and the tenth time I’ll have to tell her no. I don’t want to see the anger in her face again, so I just lie. “I’ll go ask the nurse.” I quickly walk out of the room and take a few steps past the doorway, then collapse against the wall with no intention of looking for a nurse. I slide to the floor and drop my face into my hands and try to focus on the fact that this is really happening. Any minute now, I’ll become a dad.
    I don’t think I’m ready for this.
    At least if Kel and Caulder turn out horrible, we can still blame mine and Lake’s parents. This is a completely different ballgame. This baby is our responsibility.
    Oh, God.
    “Hey.” Kel drops down beside me and kicks his legs out in front of him. “How is she?”
    “Mean,” I answer truthfully.
    He laughs.
    It’s been three years since Lake and I married, and three years since Kel moved in with me. I know that technically I’m becoming a dad for the first time today, and in so many ways it’s so different, but I can’t imagine loving Kel any more if he really were my own. I can honestly say when my parents died, I felt cursed that my life had to change course like it did. But now, looking back, I know I’ve been blessed. I couldn’t imagine things any differently.
    “So,” Kel says. He pulls his leg up and ties his shoe, then straightens it back out again. “My mom? She left me something I’m supposed to give to you today.”
    I glance at him and, without having to ask, know immediately what it is. I hold out my hand and he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a star. “It was in one of the gifts she left me for my birthday last year, along with a note. In fact, she left eight of them. One for each kid y’all might have. Four blue ones and four pink ones.”
    I fist the star in my palm and laugh.