The Mixtape by Brittainy C. Cherry
41
EMERY
“When is Mr. Mith going to get back?” Reese groaned as I picked her up from school. Summer had come and gone, and Oliver was back to work with his band, traveling around the US doing interviews for their newest song release. It turned out Alex & Oliver may have come to an end, but Oliver Smith was finding himself day in and day out. Watching him find his footing in a new world without his brother was inspirational and, truthfully, empowering.
I’d missed him a lot during his travels, but our FaceTime calls were enough for me.
Reese, on the other hand? She was missing her best friend.
“He’ll be back next weekend, sweetheart, don’t worry. You’ll be annoying one another again in no time.”
“Good,” she said as we parked the car and headed upstairs to our apartment. Her eyes widened more when we reached our floor and she saw Oliver standing outside my apartment, holding a houseplant in his hand. “Mr. Mith!” she screeched, running in his direction with her backpack on.
I pretty much ran, too, the moment I saw him. “What are you doing here?” I asked, leaning in to kiss him.
“Took an early flight home. Figured I’d stop by to see my girls. Plus, I wanted to get you another houseplant to add to your collection.” I laughed a little but grew silent as I looked down at the plant. Staring back at me was a huge diamond ring.
“Oliver,” I muttered, stunned by what I was seeing.
He got down on one knee in front of me and held the ring in his hand. “I love so many pieces of you, Emery Taylor. I love the quiet parts, and the loud ones too. I love how you give your all to everyone around you, and also save some love for yourself. I love your cooking, and I love your laugh. I love the way you love your daughter. I love her too. I love your daughter. And if you’ll allow it, I’d love to spend the rest of my life being able to shower that love on you both from this point on. Marry me, Emery. Marry me, and I’ll keep you forever,” he swore.
I was stunned, unable to say anything. All I could stare at was the ring, and then I turned around to look at my daughter, who had a devilish smirk on her face as she held up a sign in her hand from her now-opened backpack.
SAY YES, MAMA!
She was in on this, too, the sneak.
I turned back to Oliver and said the word that mattered the most in that very moment. “Yes.” He stood to his feet and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me in close. His lips crashed against mine, and as he slid the ring onto my finger, we both laughed nervously with one another.
Once he’d finished proposing to me, Oliver turned to Reese and got down on one knee in front of her. “I wanted to propose to you, too, kid. Now, I don’t have a ring, but I have this.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a half of a heart necklace. Alex’s heart. “This was my brother’s, and it means the world to me, so I wanted to give it to the little girl who means the world to me too. I wanted you to know that you have half of my heartbeats, and I’d spend forever protecting you if you’ll have me.”
Reese was cheesing so hard, I was almost certain her cheeks were going to pop. “Yes, Mr. Mith! Yes!” she shouted, jumping up and down. He placed the jewelry around her neck and then gave her a tight hug. “Does this mean I can call you ‘Dad’ now?” Reese asked nervously.
“Yes, Reese. If you want to, you can call me ‘Dad.’”
She hugged him tighter. “I love you, Dad,” she cried, breaking and healing my heart all at once.
In that moment, I knew the truth about family. There wasn’t one cookie-cutter way to create love bonds. Families came in all shapes, forms, and sizes. Some were tied together by blood, and others by heartbeats. At the end of the day, it didn’t matter how you came together; it only mattered that you stayed together. That you looked out for one another and loved in an unconditional way.
There were no limitations on my love for Reese and Oliver.
Which was exactly why it was going to last forever. Before, they stamped my heartbeats, and those stamps would last forever.