My Dreamy Old Husband

Bailey stared at the three apricot kernels that adorned his bracelet; there was more to those kernels than met the eye. The bracelet was a valuable gift, and it meant a lot to Bailey, which explained why he wore it all the time.

Dana, on the other hand, reached out and ruffled Carmen’s hair. What a delightful little girl, he thought affectionately. He couldn’t help but think about what could have been if he and Lucy had a child of their own; the child might have even been older than Carmen was right now. But it’s all too late now, he lamented. Dana knew he couldn’t turn back time.

When all this ended, he would be ready to start a family with Lucy, and seeing as they could have no children of their own, they would have to adopt. They’d made arrangements with Nicole’s orphanage, and once everything was set, they would head over to adopt a child. While gently rubbing Carmen’s head, Dana turned to look around, and his gaze softened when he saw Lucy playing mahjong with Sophia not too far away.

Just then, Michael emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron, and he sauntered over to the mahjong table to check up on Sophia, who was engrossed in the game. Upon seeing Michael, Sophia shoved a handful of snacks into his mouth despite being busy with her mahjong tiles.

Michael chewed happily and placed an appreciative kiss on Sophia’s cheek, leaving crumbs on her face. Unfazed, Sophia merely wiped those away with a piece of tissue, and when she found a larger crumb, she popped it into her mouth.

At this, everyone cringed in disgust, rendered speechless by Sophia’s gesture. She remained oblivious to the apprehension of others; after all, how else was a married couple supposed to behave?

Now that everyone had arrived, save for Cooper, who had escaped—or rather, strategically retreated—Michael began making a headcount. When he was done, he announced, “Everyone please stop what you’re doing and get ready to take a group photo!”

Hearing this, the crowd made their way out, chattering along the way. It was bright, seeing as the lights had been switched on. Once everyone had gathered before the camera and a photo had been taken, reunion dinner commenced.

The reunion dinner featured a homemade feast, which consisted of food that were either grown on the farm or shipped over from the south. Even though it was the men in the family who had been in charge of the cooking, everyone enjoyed the dishes nonetheless. It was probably because no one here had ever celebrated New Year’s Day with a reunion dinner like this one.

of crates of them for his proposal to Anna, but Jordaine had interfered along the way, and the fireworks had somehow ended up as a surprise feature during Lucy’s engagement party instead. They hadn’t used up all the fireworks, however, and more than half of

year. After she’d gotten engaged to her former pig-headed fiancé, she’d worked on a project with him, but she’d called off the engagement as soon

had only ever truly loved was Dana. She would be with Dana when the time was right. Regardless of what others might say, and even if the whole world

fireworks seemed to dwarf those that were being set off in the nearby city. Everyone watched with awe as the fireworks lit up the night sky with festive, brilliant colors. The look on everyone’s

and capable. They couldn’t be more different, but as they stood

kid that’s as cute as Carmen, or a

maybe we could

leave nothing behind. There was no point in reminiscing on the fireworks that had already been set off when one could look forward to the next round. After

to have the world

Stanley. They weren’t a couple, but at least they were staying together, and it was more than enough for him to be able to see the latter

was a card that could only be dealt by fate and

up as the fireworks blossomed over the countryscape. The

He thought of all the times he’d been determined to leave her—to pack up all the love he had for her so that he could spare her the agony

that could be more beautiful than Sophia. He could spend his whole