I made him sit on the bed while I peed on the stick. After I put the test on the comforter and set the timer on my phone for two minutes, we sat on the bed holding hands and looked at the nursery through the sheers.

“If we’re having a baby,” I whispered, “do you want a boy or a girl?”

“I honestly don’t care, Rose. As long you and the baby are happy and healthy, that’s all I care about.” He took my hand in his and cradled it gently. “How about you?”

I looked up at him and gave him a soft smile. “A girl, I think. So I can give her all the love I always wanted when I was little.” A tear slipped down my cheek. “What if I’m a terrible mother, Mason? What if my little girl or boy feels unloved?”

He shook his head, fierce determination in his eyes. “That will never happen, Rose. How could it?”

“I don’t know.”

“Rose, you bless everyone you meet with love. I can only imagine the love you’ll give our children.”

He kissed me gently, then pulled back to look in my eyes. The love shining through his gaze was almost overwhelming.

“Your mother thinks we’re up here having sex.”

His grin was wicked. “Maybe we should after we find out.”

“Let’s wait and see what it says first.”

As if on cue, the timer dinged and my hands started to shake.

“I love you, Rose Gardner, no matter what that test shows.”

I gave him a quick kiss and picked up the stick off the bed and turned it over.

“One pink line,” Mason said. “What does that mean?”

“It means there’s no baby,” I said quietly.

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me snug against him. “How do you feel about that?”

I looked up at him. “The timing would have been terrible. But while part of me is relieved, there’s a part of me that wants a baby with you and is kind of disappointed. Isn’t that stupid?”

“No,” he said, kissing me gently. “That’s exactly how I feel.”

“So what do we do?” I asked.

He grabbed my hand and held it between both of his. “We haven’t even talked about marriage and I’m not sure either of us are ready for that yet. So having a baby right now would kind of feel like putting the cart before the horse.” He chuckled. “Call me old-fashioned.”

“I agree.”

“Whew.” He looked relieved. “But I do want to marry you someday, Rose. I want to stand at the altar while you walk down the aisle in a beautiful dress. I’ll take you to Italy on our honeymoon, and then we’ll come home and make love every chance we get until you’re pregnant.” He smiled. “And we’ll fill our house with children—as many as you want—and I will be the most blessed man who ever lived. All because you’re mine.”

Tears slid down my cheeks. “I want that too.”

He kissed me and wiped my cheeks. “And we’ll have it all when we’re ready, because I’m not going anywhere, Rose. I’m yours.”

Then we didn’t go downstairs for quite some time.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

We went back downstairs shortly before our guests started to arrive. Maeve had pulled the turkey out of the oven and started the gravy. She was crouched down, feeding scraps of turkey to Muffy, who had made a new best friend.

She smiled when Mason and I entered the kitchen and my cheeks burned with embarrassment.

“We had something we had to take care of.” Mason wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me close. “What can we do to help, Mom?”

She beamed at us. “I’ve got it under control.”

The doorbell rang and I ran to get it. Bruce Wayne, David, Carla, and Jonah all arrived within a matter of minutes, but Violet and the kids still hadn’t shown up by five-twenty when we were ready to sit down for dinner.

I had mixed feelings about her absence. I dreaded seeing her, but I was more upset about her not coming than I’d expected.

Maeve and I were setting the last of the food on the table when the front door burst open and Ashley and Mikey ran through, Ashley carrying a pie.

“Aunt Rose!” they called out. I ran into the living room and dropped to my knees, scooping them into a hug as Maeve retrieved the dessert.

I looked up over Ashley’s shoulder at Violet’s nervous face.

“I wasn’t sure if we were still invited,” she said, juggling two dishes in her arms.

Maeve hurried into the room and grabbed one of the containers from Violet and pulled her into a side hug. “Rose is very happy you’re here, aren’t you, Rose?”

Nodding, I stood. “It wouldn’t be the same without you.” I wanted to ask her about the Christmas trees on the nursery lot, but now didn’t seem like the right time.

Violet was more reserved than usual for most of the evening, but everyone sat around the table eating and laughing. Mason and I exchanged glances several times throughout the dinner, reminding me once again of how blessed I was.

Several hours later everyone left and Mason carried a sleeping Mikey out to Violet’s car, Ashley and Muffy in tow. Violet stopped in the front door, hesitating.

“Rose, we need to talk.”

I took a deep breath. “I agree.”

“Can you come by the shop tomorrow? Say around eleven?”

Now would be a good time to ask about the trees, but I wasn’t up for a fight. One night wouldn’t make a difference. “Sure. I’ll drop by. We need to figure out what to do about the mess anyway.”