He looked at her with such joy in his eyes. His whole face had lit up with love for this woman.
"Are you serious?" he said. He still could not quite believe it.
"Listen, give me an answer before I get up from here and go screaming to my room," she said, giggling.
"Yes, yes, of course, yes," he said, picking her up so he could kiss her. He looked into her eyes as he gave her a kiss. Their kiss deepened, their tongues wound around each other's. As he pulled away and looked with her with shining eyes, "We're getting married, baby. Oh, gosh, I love you so much."
"I am happy that you are so happy. I am sorry but I don't have a ring to give to you," she said. "I know that is traditional but this was a spur of the moment question."
"Wait here," he shouted, as he ran up the stairs to their bedroom. He went straight to his sock drawer and pulled out the small, black velvet box, that was tucked all of the way inside. He opened the box and stared at the ring that he had purchased months before. It was now time. He ran back down the stairs and handed her the ring.
"Open it," he commanded. She did as she was told and gasped at the sight of the gorgeous princess-cut ring.
"This diamond is huge," she said.
"Well, only the best for my baby. The main diamond is three carats and the two small diamonds on either side are one carat each," he said, beaming. He took the ring out of the box and placed it on her ring finger. "Perfect fit."
"Wow," she said. "I've never had a piece of jewelry like this before. How long have you had this?"
"I bought it before Elyse was born and I would have asked you to marry me, right after her birth but you kept saying that you weren't ready. I was terribly disappointed but I think it worked out better in the end. You asked me to marry you. That means you're ready for the next step," he said.
"I guess I am," she said, smiling at the ring and then up at him and then back at the ring.
"I can't wait to tell the kids," he said. "They're going to flip. Maybe we can use Matt as a ring-bearer and Leah as the flower girl."
"Whoa, hold on there, mister," she said. "You're already thinking about the wedding. I am still absorbing the size of this ring."
"We'll tell them at breakfast," Owen said. "Can we go upstairs now and celebrate?"
"What do you have in mind, Mr. Hunt?" she asked, laughing.
"Come and see, the future Mrs. Hunt," he said. He pulled on her hand and they both ran up the stairs to their bedroom and started stripping off their clothes as soon as they got into the bedroom. For the next hour, there was a lot of giggling, moaning, groaning and dirty talk emanating from that bedroom. It was a good thing that their children were asleep.
The next morning, as she got ready for work, she slipped on the ring on her hand. She had to get used to having such a huge ring on her hand. She had already woken up the children and they had headed downstairs to get breakfast from Owen. By the time she got there, they were already diving into their eggs, sausages and toast.
"Hey, babies," she said. "Daddy treating you right this morning?"
"Yup, mommy," Matt said, his mouth full of food.
"Don't speak with your mouth full, Matty," Cristina said. "You will get stuff everywhere." Matt swallowed before he spoke again.
"You look real pretty, mommy," he said.
"Thank you, Matt. There is a reason why," she said. She beckoned Owen over and they held hands as she spoke.
"Daddy and I have decided to get married," Cristina said. The two children looked at her with strange expressions on their faces.
"What does that mean?" Leah asked, her brows were knitted together. Owen smiled when he saw it because Cristina had the same expression, when she was perplexed.
"We're going to legally become a family," Owen said.
"I thought we were already a family," Matt said, confused. "What does legally mean?"
"Yes, we are a family," Owen said. He knew he was confusing the children. "Right now, while we know we are already a family, we're going to get a piece of paper from the government that says that they recognize us a family."
"Oh," Matt said. "Is that all?"
"Well, we are going to have a wedding," Cristina said. "A big party and you and Leah can be part of the party, too."
"Ooh, a wedding! I know what a wedding is," Leah said. "That's when the lady wears the big, white dress and the man is in the suit and they walk up the middle of the church. I went to two weddings before."
"Yes, that is it, Leah," Cristina said. "You went to Aunty Laura and Uncle Michael's wedding."
"Yup, yup, yup and there is a big party, afterwards with dancing and lots of eating and a very tall cake," Leah said.
"Yay, party," Matt said. He always enjoyed a good party.
"So it's a good thing, right?" Owen said.
"Yes," the two children shouted.
Just then, Sharon and Lyle came into the kitchen. "What's all the excitement about?" Lyle asked, ruffling his grandson's hair.
"Mommy and Daddy are getting married," Matt shouted.
Sharon and Lyle looked at each other, before they offered their congratulations. "That is fabulous news," Sharon said, giving both Owen and Cristina a kiss on the cheek. "We wish you both the very best."
Lyle slapped Owen on the back and gave Cristina a hug. "Good on you, Owen. You popped the question."
"Well, actually, it was Cristina who asked me to get married," Owen said. "But I had the ring for a while, now, waiting for the right time. Little did I know she would be the one doing the proposing."
"Good for you, Cristina," Sharon said. "Let me see the ring." Cristina showed off her dazzling diamond.
"My word, Owen, that is a gorgeous ring," Sharon said. "I always said you had impeccable taste."
"Thank you, Sharon," he said. "I trust you will be able to make it to the wedding."
"Just send us the invitation and we will be there," Lyle said. "This is such great news."
"Thank you, Lyle. It means a lot to me," Owen said.
The whole family sat down breakfast, until it was time to get out of the house for the day. Nina had already arrived to take care of baby Elyse. Owen was taking his in-laws to the airport, as well as dropping off Leah and Matt at their school. He dropped off the children at the school before they headed off to the airport.
As he took their luggage out of his trunk, Owen said, "It's been good seeing you, Lyle and Sharon." He kissed Sharon on her cheek and shook Lyle's hand.
"Owen, before we leave, we wanted to apologize for last night, if we came on too strong. We were only worried about Matt's welfare in his new environment," Sharon said.
"Yes, I know that. I know that you love him. But Cristina and I are doing the best we can for him. And I guess I should thank you in a way," he said.
"What? Why?" Lyle said.
"Well, I guess it was your discussion last night that prompted Cristina to propose to me. Without it, I would not be an engaged man, this morning," he said, with a huge grin on his face.
"I am very happy for the two of you," Sharon said.
"Thanks, so we will see you at the wedding," Owen said.
"We wouldn't miss it," Lyle said. Owen hugged his in-laws as they headed in to the airport to check in. He knew they were good people, who only wanted the best for their grandson. He jumped in his car and headed to work.
It was late evening when Cristina heard the doorbell ring. She knew it was Ian, who had come to pick up Leah for the weekend. She had already packed Leah's overnight bag and her school bag which had her homework in it.
She opened the door. "Hey, Cristina," he said, walking in. "I am here to pick up my little pumpkin."
Cristina nodded. "Before I get Leah, I wanted to tell you something," she said. "Owen and I are engaged." She showed him the ring.
"Wow," Ian said. "Hunt put out a handsome sum for that rock. Well, congratulations." He gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Well, I think it is best that I tell you my news, now."
"What news?" Cristina asked, curious and a little apprehensive.
"Well, I have been dating this woman for the past three months and I was waiting for it to be a steady relationship before I introduce her to Leah," Ian said. "I didn't want to introduce her to my baby girl before I was sure that this was going somewhere."
"Oh," Cristina said, suddenly feeling very strangely.
"Yes, her name is Miranda Nicholson. I met her at the grocers. She helped me choose the right pineapple," he said. "I asked her out and we have been going out, ever since. She is a really kind and generous woman, Cristina. I would like to introduce Leah to her, this weekend. Like going to the park or something like that. Don't want to pressure Leah to like her but I hope that she does."
"I guess if she is in your life now, then Leah should be introduced to her," Cristina said, even though she was still feeling strangely about it all.
"I would want to introduce you to her, too, seeing that you are Leah's mom," Ian said.
"Yes, yes, of course," Cristina said.
"Well, it looks like we both have moved on," Ian said, a little wistfully. "You getting engaged and me getting into a new relationship. I never thought it would happen but here we are."
"Yes," Cristina said, quietly.
"You know you will always be my first love," he said. "I still remember the curly-haired girl, running through the quadrangle and knocking me flat on my ass."
Cristina grinned. "Yeah, those were good days. We were so young. Still, as you said, we both have moved on. I hope you're happy."
"Yeah, I am. I never thought I would be again after we split. But I never knew that choosing a pineapple would have led me to Miranda," he said. "I am glad that you are happy, too."
"Thanks," she said. "Will you come to the wedding?"
"Yes," he said. "I will."
"Let me go get that little rascal," Cristina said. She went up to Leah's bedroom and told her that her daddy had come to pick her up. The curly-haired girl ran down the stairs and jumped into her father's arms.
"Hello, Daddy," she screamed. Ian tickled and kissed his little girl.
"Okay, Cristina, I guess we will be on our way," he said, picking up Leah's bags in one hand and carrying Leah in his other arm. As Cristina watched her ex-husband and daughter drive away, she still had this nagging feeling of loss.
She knew that someday, her ex would move on, as she had done with Owen. But she didn't expect that she would feel this way. Yes, Ian was her first love and she knew that he would always own a part of her heart, as her first love and as the father of Leah.
She was still thinking when she was surprised by the two large arms, which wrapped around her.
"Hey, Cristina Yang, the soon to be Mrs. Hunt," he whispered into her ear.
"Hey, Mr. Hunt, soon to be tied to my ball and chain," she chuckled.
"I am willing to be tied to your ball and chain, anytime," he said. "Did Ian come for Leah?"
"Yeah, they're gone. Ian told me that he wanted to introduce Leah to his new girlfriend, Miranda," Cristina said.
"How do you feel about that?" he asked, turning her around to face him.
"I know this is stupid but I felt this feeling of loss, when he told me that he had a girlfriend. I know I have moved on with you. We have a baby together, we're getting married but still," she confessed, sadly.
"Hey, I know you love me. In the same way, Miriam still occupies part of my heart, I know Ian will always have a special place in your heart," he said. "He's the father of your child. I understand that."
"You know, you are a great guy, you're going to make some woman a fantastic husband," she said.
"I know," he said. "That woman is going to be so lucky to have me."
"Yes, she is," she laughed. They hugged each other, tightly.
"I love you, Owen Hunt," she said.
"I love you, Cristina Yang," he said.
A/N: Please don't forget to leave your reviews. Thank you for your thoughts.