All You Need Is Love

Chapter 34

"At least now I know who walked in on us last night." I say in a completely monotone voice before turning to exit the room.

I hear him call out my name, but I ignore him.

I rush out into the hallway and make a beeline for the sliding glass doors leading outside.

As soon as they open I feel the brisk fresh air I've sought for after being cooped up inside all these days on my tear-stained face.

This is when it hits me; I have one less person in my life.

I can forgive my father, but I can't ever trust him again. And if there's one thing I know about him, he's relentless and manipulative. Him writing me that letter is another one of his foul schemes to guilt me into giving him another chance and making it seem like I have a choice.

I don't.

I know him; I will gain absolutely nothing from having him in my life instead of Michael.

And he won't ever see our baby- thank God he doesn't know.

"Ma'am?" I hear a voice behind me say.

I turn around to see one of the nurses from inside. "Your fiancé wanted me to find you and see if everything's alright. He also wanted me to make sure I used the word 'fiancé' when referring to him; he said it was important I do that." She says.

I laugh and wipe the tears from my cheeks; he can even make me smile when he's not here.

I nod my head. "You can tell him I'm fine, just needed some fresh air is all."

And I stood there for a few moments staring at the sunrise, and for a brief moment, I felt like I was doing better than I ever was with who and what I had.

- One Month Later -

*Michael's POV*

"Well, tomorrow is the day!" Nicole says while plopping down on the bed and covering her face with a pillow.

I laugh and pull my suit jacket off, before walking over to the closet to hang it up.
"Yup!" I say as I make my way over to the bed and settle in next to her.

"Hey!" she says while taking the pillow off her face. "What are you doing? I thought we agreed you weren't sleeping here tonight- get your butt to the hotel I booked you!" she says with a laugh.

I groan. "Do I have to? Why can't I just sleep in the living room?"

She scoffs at me. "Michael, the whole point of you leaving is so you don't see me tomorrow before the ceremony, not for you just to avoid me for tonight. You'd better get going before it gets too late."

I sigh and rub my face with my hands. "Fine, but not before you give me a kiss." I say while scooting closer to her.

She playfully rolls her eyes before scooting closer to me and lightly pecking my lips.

"Aw, come on, Nicole! Give me a real kiss!" I say while moving even closer to her.

She smiles shyly before kissing me again, this time, holding it for a few seconds longer before pulling away.

"Are you excited?" I whisper against her lips.

She smiles. "Probably not as excited as you are to be going to Disneyland afterwards."

"And you're not? It's the happiest place on Earth!" I say.

"Well, anywhere is the happiest place on Earth with you." she says while poking my cheek.

I turn away with a huge smile on my face, slightly embarrassed, and we both stared at the ceiling for what seems like forever. The sunset visible from our window begins to fade behind the mountains in the distance, making the room darker with each passing moment.

I decide to break the silence and say what's on my mind.

"I never apologized to you." I say while stroking her arm.

She turns around and looks at me confused. "For what?"

"Almost hitting you." I say. "Back at the hospital when you came to see me after my surgery, you apologized to me, but I was way too out of it to say what I wanted. And I didn't think of it until now, but you should've never apologized to me." I pull her closer to my body. "You're the only one who deserves an apology. I was so, so wrong. You were right to say those things to me. You made me realize the person I was turning into. I would never hurt you, okay? I don't ever want you to look at me and be afraid. I don't ever want you to think anything you're father wrote in that letter is true. I'm supposed to be your safe space and you're supposed to be mine." I place my hand on her belly. "And we have to be that for this little one too, okay?" I say, feeling myself get choked up.

I look at her gleaming brown eyes under the amber colored sunlight and I can tell she's fighting the same will to cry as well.

She shakes her head "I wasn't right." she says. "The things I said- they were out of line. Even at your worst, you couldn't be my father. And there isn't a single bit inside you that's ugly. That's what made me fall in love with you- how sweet you are."

I feel her hand go over mine and our fingers intertwine and the silence grows inside the room once again.

A few moments pass before she decides to speak again.

"Are you sure you don't want to invite them- your family?" She asks me.

I sigh. "No, Nicole." I answer, slightly frustrated at the fact she's asking me this for the hundredth time. "I told you I don't speak to them anymore, there's no sense in trying to fix what's already broken, okay?"

"Okay, okay- I get it." She sighs and puts the pillow back over her face. "I'm sorry, I just love you so much and I want to make sure you're happy." She says.

I laugh and pull her closer. "Not as much as I love you- and you! I say while leaning down to kiss her stomach. I look up and see that she's laying stiff as a board. "Are you tired?" I ask, even though I already know the answer.

She groans and turns on her side.

"Alright, I guess I should get going then." I say before kissing her hand and standing up from the bed. "I love you." I say.

"Love you more." She says tiredly.

I laugh and make my way to the doorway, but not before turning around and taking one last look at her before she becomes my wife.