PRINCESS | c.evans [2]

forty six.

real life.

AFTER A RATHER large family breakfast, Chris had errands to run and took Bridget along with him, claiming to want father-daughter time and to want his mother to bond with his fiancée. No one opposed, and so the morning was set in busy motion.

Chris left after bidding both Carmen and his mother goodbye. And without Chris and Bridget home, the house was sent into silence, something rare nowadays. Carmen sighed softly and looked around the messy kitchen.

"I guess we oughta clean this mess up," she muttered and shook her head.

"You know, the rule in my house was you couldn't get mad at a messy kitchen. A messy kitchen meant the kids were fed and full." Lisa mentioned as they got up and collected all the dishes. "Knowing all four of the kids were fed and happy made it a little harder to get mad."

Carmen smiled towards her mother-in-law as she filled the sink with hot soapy water. "I'll have to remember that." She nodded, "Especially if we have the house full like Chris wants."

Lisa laughed, and put up all the leftovers into bowls and placed them neatly into the fridge. They fell into a causal chatter as they tidied the kitchen; washing the dishes, running a hot rag over the counters and placing ingredients back in their places. Carmen may or may not have also fed the rest of the bacon to the dogs to get rid of it.

It took the remainder of the morning to finish cleaning the kitchen. Once done, Carmen sat down and released a breath, being pregnant took a lot of energy from her. Lisa sat a glass of water in front of her and leaned over the island counter.

"It's the baby, huh?" Lisa asked softly.

Carmen nodded, "Yeah. It's been over sixteen years since I've been pregnant, and our peanut is just like their father, restless and rambunctious."

"I wish I could say it'll get easier," Lisa sighed and shook her head, "But unfortunately, I cannot. It takes a lot of energy."

Carmen agreed, and took a sip of the cold water before her. She closed her eyes for a moment and relished in the quiet, then the next moment, it was loud again as Chris and Bridget entered through the door. Carmen sighed softly, and Lisa could only laugh.

Chris was quick to come into the kitchen and greet his fiancée in a sickening sweet way. He hugged her tight, and gently kissed her cheek and told he loved her. Something that Carmen could never get tired of hearing, quite honestly. Then he happily greeted his mother, telling two of his favorite people how his morning went with their daughter (which also included a phone call from their lawyer, but that's another conversation for later). After a few minutes, Lisa mentioned something about talking with Bridget and went to leave the kitchen, but not before Carmen caught her attention.

"Hey, thanks for earlier." Carmen whispered, "You're the mother I wish I had, and I'm grateful."

Lisa chuckled, "I'm a mom, it's my job." She winked, "And now you're my daughter, in-law or not. You're an Evans now."

And with that, she left the kitchen and left the other two alone. Chris pushed himself off the counter and walked around the kitchen towards Carmen. He leaned against the counter and smiled as he kissed her.

"I see you and mom had a good morning." Chris muttered, and pressed another kiss to Carmen's lips. "She adores you, ya know."

She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I know, babe. I'm lucky that I'm marrying a great man, and I'm marrying into a great family."

"I f*cking love you, Mrs. Evans." He whispered, holding her close to his body and humming softly into her neck.

"Just a few more months, my love." She reminded him. She grinned, "A few more months and everything will fall into place."

Chris quietly agreed, "The love of my life and the mother of my children," he murmured softly, and grinned like an idiot, loving the way his statement sounded.

Though things were crazy, with the baby and the wedding and the baby-daddy drama, but things were falling into place. They were falling fast, but with the way everything was going, Chris couldn't wait much longer. Everything he'd ever dream of was right before his eyes, and god, was he the happiest man on earth.

• • • •

whoa, I'm really back y'all. I have three days left of my senior year, then my entire summer break before college starts! also, this book should be finished by august or September (that's the hope anyway) and I'll be releasing details about the third book soon!