15-05-2021-052358It-Ends-with-Us

for both of us to sit on the bed. After I hand her to him, I lay my head
on his shoulder and we just can’t stop staring at her.
“Lily,” he whispers. “Naked truth?”
I nod.
“She’s so much prettier than Marshall and Allysa’s baby.”
I laugh and elbow him.
“I’m kidding,” he whispers.
I know exactly what he means, though. Rylee is a gorgeous baby,
but no one will ever hold a candle to our own daughter.
“What should we name her?” he asks. We didn’t have the typical
relationship during this pregnancy, so the baby’s name hasn’t been
something we’ve discussed yet.
“I’d like to name her after your sister,” I say, glancing at him. “Or
maybe your brother?”
I’m not sure what he thinks of that. I personally think naming our
daughter after his brother could be somewhat healing for him, but he
may not see it that way.
He glances over at me, not expecting that answer. “Emerson?” he
says. “That’s kind of cute for a girl name. We could call her Emma. Or
Emmy.” He smiles proudly and looks down at her. “It’s perfect,
actually.” He leans down and kisses Emerson on her forehead.
After a while, I pull away from his shoulder so I can watch him hold
her. It’s a beautiful thing, seeing him interact with her like this. I can
already see how much love he has for her just from the little time he’s
known her. I can see that he would do anything to protect her.
Anything in the world.
It isn’t until this moment that I finally make a decision about him.
About us.
About what’s best for our family.
Ryle is amazing in so many ways. He’s compassionate. He’s caring.
He’s smart. He’s charismatic. He’s driven.
My father was some of these things, too. He wasn’t very
compassionate toward others, but there were times we spent together
that I knew he loved me. He was smart. He was charismatic. He was
driven. But I hated him so much more than I loved him. I was blinded
to all the best things about him thanks to all the glimpses I got of him