Love, accidentally

Chapter 54

"Come on, mommy. We're going to be late!" Dani called from downstairs.

Always the late one, Nora. Now, I'm being scolded by my daughter.

How she knew we were being late without knowing our destination was a mystery to me, but she was just too excited.

"Just a minute!" I called from upstairs, rechecking my bag for the third time. The last time. Hopefully.

Tissues...check.
Wet wipes...check.
Yellow lollipops...check.
Lip gloss...check.
Oreos...check.

"That's it, I guess?" I nodded to myself.

I had no idea where Tristan was taking us at 5:00 am in the morning, but I sucked it up for the sake of some quality time with my family.

When I got downstairs, he was tying little yellow bows on each of her piggy tails.

"You ready, little one?" He placed his hands on her shoulders, grinning at her.

She nodded vigorously and he didn't waste any time before picking her up from the kitchen counter, looking me up with his brows raised.

"Mamma looks ready." He said, his lips twitching up.

He had that confident look on his face, the one that made me confident in my own skin. His eyes took every inch of me, the sheer attraction there filling me up.

I smiled, my ears reddening like a little girl as I looked down at the yellow sundress I was wearing. It had small daisies all over it, the hem reaching just above my knees.

"So pretty, right daddy?" Dani smiled at me, patting her father's shoulder.

"The prettiest." He replied, striding to me before giving me a peck on the lips, warming me up immediately.

"You look so beautiful too, patatino." I kissed my daughter's cheeks, looking down at the little white linen dress I helped her get in an hour ago. This was my second time that I told her she looked beautiful, and I'd say it a hundred times more.

Tristan cupped my cheek, his thumb going back and forth naturally as he stared at us with glossy eyes.

"You're going to make me all mushy." He waved us away playfully, wiping his eyes.

We all laughed.

God, I loved life right then.

And I loved it even more when I realized where Tristan was taking us.

"You've got to be kidding me." I gasped, turning with my whole body to look at him as he slowed down to park the car.

"Daddy!" Dani clapped in my lap, turning to the window and watching the place with big wild eyes.

"You sneaky little–" I stopped short, courtesy to our little one, "Disneyland?"

I don't think my smile has stretched this far before (except for seeing Dani smile for the first time).

"You love it, don't you?" He swallowed a smile, his own joy evident of his face.

I looked into his eyes, our silent communication brewing as we both remembered that one conversation we once had.

I told him I always dreamed of going to Disneyland growing up as a kid. That I never once voiced my wish to my parents because it was too much to ask back then. That I then felt undeserving of something like this even if it appeared silly. Because I had other priorities and wanted to fix what I'd broken.

I remember him telling me how he would buy me a Disneyland one day. Us laughing at how silly that sounded. Him telling me he was serious. Me telling him I wasn't that mean to take that joy from all the kids and the ones like me. Him kissing me and telling me how much of a good person I was. Him kissing my bump and telling me that we'd go there. With our little girl.

We are.

"I want cotton candy, the big ones that feel too heavy to hold. Oh, and popcorn. Lots of them."

"Lollipops too. I want to go on the dangerous rides, but you have to hold my hands." She looked at us seriously.

"Deal." We shake her hand.

I loved Dani in every single second of every day. If it wasn't obvious at this point. Dani in Disneyland? I'm absolutely obsessed. How she sequels when the rides are fun. How she jumps when she wins something. Her mouth in a big 'O' when she sees the entertainers roaming around.

This isn't what I dreamed of growing up. It's so so much better.

"We're growing old with this one, Vera." Tristan wrapped his arms around my shoulders, pulling me into him as we watched our daughter play a dancing game with other kids.

The reality of that was hitting too hard right now. We were getting married after all. She was like a miracle pulling me back for the dead when I had been breathing. He reminded me of how to live life and feel utter happiness. He and I survived so much, and were going to survive even more growing up together. Always together.

"You make my heart happy." I told him our own kind of 'i love you', looking up at him like he's the light.

The one who made me realize that living and being alive are two different things, and he...he makes me so so much alive.

"You make mine the happiest." He said.

Just then, I didn't think of a single thought. Not our family. Not my work. Nothing.

Just him. And her.