A/N: Thanks for reading. Enjoy!
"I have to say I saw Christian coming home early a mile away.", Mia giggles. She picks up a large mixing bowl and inspects it before placing it in her shopping cart. I walk beside her, pushing Oliver's stroller. We're at Seattle Restaurant Supply to pick up bowls and utensils Mia's going to need for her food truck business.
"Why do you say that?", I ask.
"Because his life is no longer centered on work. Do you know how many dinners and family things he used to bail on due to having to work?" I shake my head. "I don't either since it was so many."
"I don't think work is entirely to blame for those cancellations. Christian was internally wrestling with himself, thinking he wasn't deserving of being part of the family." Mia stops walking and peers down at the floor. "The good news is he now sees that he's loved and can return that love." She brinsg her eyes back up and sighs.
"It's still hard to think about. I hate that my brother went through of that turmoil.", she says.
"I do too, but he's happy now. Back to your work in progress. With us picking out things for the food truck, does it mean it's closer to opening?"
"It might be closer than I thought it would be.", she grins. "Nicholas's friend who's doing the work on the vehicle is ahead of schedule. I went yesterday to see it. Ana, when I walked into the garage, it felt like I was in the middle of a dream. In front of me was something I had wanted for so long."
"You were standing in front of your dream come true. Just like Ethan's studio, your food truck is going to thrive. People will know your name everywhere you go."
"It's kind of cool and kind of scary." She watches as I fix Oliver's tiny red baseball hat. "I can't believe he's still wearing that."
"Although he wasn't too enthused at first, he appears to be ok with it for now." My words have barely rolled out of my mouth when Oliver starts fussing and pulls his hat off.
"What were you saying?", Sawyer chuckles from behind us. I toss him a glare over my shoulder.
"You're going to be in the very same spot soon.", I smirk.
"Sawyer, how has Olivia been feeling?", Mia asks. Sawyer moves up to my right side and starts walking with us.
"She's been feeling great. I called Ethan yesterday and asked if he'd take some maternity shots for us soon. He said he'd love to."
"He did an amazing job with our maternity shots.", I say.
"I know. He said he's had several appointments scheduled since opening the other day."
"These are perfect!", Mia shrieks. I spin around and see her holding two oversized navy blue plastic forks.
"Aren't those a little too big to use?", I ask.
"Because they're not for eating. They're for decorationg. I can hang these inside the van. It'll look great with the forks that have been painted on the outside."
"To keep with the Fork in the Road theme. What else do you need?" Mia stares down at the cart which is flowing with supplies including bowls, utensils, and napkin dispensers.
"I believe I have all I need for now. The grill, fridge, and drink machine have already been bought and are waiting to be installed. How about we go and check out?"
"All right."
"Did Mia get a lot for the food truck?", Christian asks me. He slices into his baked chicken and takes a bite. He was running late tonight so he basically tossed his suit jacket off and headed to the dinner table as soon as he arrived home from work.
"She got a lot. She's hoping to be up and running in a couple of weeks. Exciting, huh?"
"Very." He glances over at Oliver who's sitting in his seat which is between us. "And how was the little man today?"
"He was good.", I giggle. "He enjoyed us spending time with Aunt MIa. How was the corporate world?"
"I had a conference call with Stan Hunt who I met at the conference. He and I spent almost an hour talking about possibly teaming up on a project in the future. We're not sure of the specifics but are going to continue keeping in touch."
"I knew the conference would be a good thing."
"Even if it meant being away from you and Oliver.", he murmurs.
"You weren't away as long as you had planned.", I smile. We go back to eating but stop when the doorbell rings.
"I'll get it." Christian stands and goes to answer the door while I make faces at a giggling Oliver. His laughter stops when he looks towards the doorway. My mom's standing there with a red eyes.
"Mom, what's wrong?" I get out of my chair and scurry to her. Behind her I see my dad standing with equally red eyes. "The two of you are freaking me out."
"We didn't mean to upset you.", my mom stammers. "Nothing is wrong."
"Your eyes beg to differ.", Christian tells them while picking Oliver up.
"We have some news to share with you.", my dad says. He moves to my mom's side and picks her left hand up, bringing it up. On her ring finger is a ring which looks a lot like an engagement ring. "Ana, your mom and I were apart for so long. Even though I didn't see it, I was missing her, and she was missing me. Once we reunited, I knew deep in my heart it would be for good."
"I realize my marriage from Bob hasn't been over long, and this might seem sudden.", my mom adds. "But time doesn't hold a candle to the love between your father and I. We've been through so much whether it's been good or bad. It's been thanks to those events that we've come to see how great life is. It's not to be taken for granted. When your father proposed to me tonight, he told me to think about it if I needed to. No thinking was needed. I said the first word that came to my mind. Yes." I look back and forth at my parents who are both happier than I've ever seen them.
"I've only got one thing to say.", I sigh, stepping towards them. "Congratulations." The two of them embrace me into hug that's full of emotion. In the corner of my eye, I see Christian on the verge of crying.
"Christian, why don't you and Oliver join in?", my mom asks. Christian grins and steps into the large hug. "Isn't this nice?"
"It sure is.", Christian answers.
"Last night really happened. My parents really are getting remarried.", I say while Christian and I lay in bed the following morning. "I had this worry of waking up and finding out it was an illusion."
"It wasn't. Your dad really proposed to your mom who really said yes." Christian brushes his hand underneath my chin.
"Life is so good right now." Christian's phone unfortunately breaks the moment. "Go on and answer it. We need to get up anyway. Christian growls and rolls out of bed to answer the phone.
"Hello. Hey.", he says. "What? How?" He looks at me and tries to smile. "Ok. Thanks for calling." He ends the call and places the phone back down on the dresser.
"Is there a problem at the office?", I ask.
"Not at the office." He pads back over to the bed and sits down. "That was Olivia. Sawyer's parents left early this morning for a getaway that Sawye'r dad arranged. It was going to be their first trip since his cancer diagnosis. About an hour into their trip, their car was sideswiped by another car. Sawyer's mom is in the ICU where she's suffering from a concussion, broken wrist, and several bruises."
"And his dad?"
"His dad's injuries were more severe. The medics worked on him at the scene and got him in the ambulance, but he flatlined when they got to the hospital. They tried to revive him." Christian pauses and turns to me. "They lost him."
"I can't believe it.", I say. "He'd been doing so well with his treatments. He was going to be a grandfather."
"I know. Why bad things happen to good people is a mystery."
