Kendall
The day of the wedding and everything goes wrong.
It’s raining and Elora is late and I don’t know if I can go through with this.
She finally shows up and her hair looks mussed and I groan.
“I know you’ve got a man, you should just tell me,” I say, and she laughs.
“Absolutely not. I just overslept. I’ve been single and with me, myself, and I,” she insists. “I’m so sorry, Kendall.”
I haven’t seen Camden in three days and I miss him so much. We’ve been living together but I’ve been staying with my father for the last two days according to tradition.
“I feel like I’m too pregnant for this dress,” I say.
“You look beautiful. Camden is going to lose it the second he sees you,” she insists.
True to her words, when I walk down the aisle with Papa, Camden has a tear running down his cheek.
“This dress is perfect, you are perfect,” he murmurs to me, and it reminds me of that first night, the first night he really noticed me in that dress, and I can’t help but smile, happy tears pricking at the backs of my eyes.
I’m just about eight months pregnant and I feel like I’m about to burst out of the seams of the dress I’m in, but if Camden thinks I look perfect, then I feel perfect.
I barely listen as the priest says we can do our own vows, and I fumble when I take the notes I wrote from Elora .
“Camden,” I start, and then I just hand the notes back to her. “I wrote so many beautiful words about how much I love you and how grateful I am that you’re with me and our baby, but it seems like too little. I’ve been in love with you for as long as I can remember, and I’m just so happy that you chose me.”
“I’ll keep choosing you,” he says. “Every day, for the rest of our lives.” He takes in a shaky breath. “Kendall. Principessa. I can’t believe that I’ve known you for so long and for some crazy reason, I never realized how amazing you are. You’ve got such a big heart and soul, and all I can say is that I’m so happy that you chose me. You could have anyone you want, with that big heart and that perfect face of yours, and you chose me all those years ago. I’m sorry it took me so long to notice.”
I’m crying in earnest now, and he takes my hand, slides the ring on it.
“Will you say I do, principessa, and believe me when I say that I love you? When I say that you’re beautiful? Will you say that you’ll be with me forever?”
“I’m yours, Camden,” I tell him. “I’ve always been yours.”
I shakily slide the ring on his finger and he leans down to kiss me before the priest says that he can kiss the bride.
He grins sheepishly when he looks back up, and Elora laughs.
I’m the one that kisses him when the priest finally says it, and everyone in audience cheers.
Dante and Mia hold the reception at their place, and it’s beautiful, flowers everywhere.
Elora comes up to me with a glass of champagne and hugs me tightly.
“You looked amazing up there,” she says, and I smile at her, patting her back. “We’ve been through so much but you handled it with such grace.”
“So, now can I be mad at you for getting me into that situation?” I ask with a laugh to let her know I’m not serious.
“Absolutely not,” she says. “That’s how my stupid brother fell in love with you.”
I blink at her, knowing that she’s right. That is how Camden and I fell in love.
“I guess you’re right. Thank you for almost getting me killed,” I joke, and Elora cackles like a damn hyena and hugs me again.
We’re cutting the cake when my stomach begins to cramp.
“I think I ate too many crab cakes,” I mutter.
“Are you okay, principessa?” Camden asks with a concerned look, and I nod slowly, straightening up.
When I do, it’s like pain tears across my stomach and I let out a little scream.
Mia hands off their baby girl to Dante and rushes toward me.
“Is it like there’s a vice around your stomach?” she asks, and I nod. Her face pales and she looks over at Dante.
“We’re going to the hospital,” she says, and Camden blanches.
“What? Why? It’s not time. It’s too early,” he insists.
“Babies don’t care if it’s too early,” Mia insists. “We have to go. Now.”
The pain gets worse and worse and then at the hospital, my wedding dress soaks with blood at the crotch, and the doctors wheel me to the delivery room.
They can’t find the baby’s heartbeat and my heart is in my chest. Camden’s right next to me, clutching my hand.
“The baby’s in distress,” the doctor says quickly. “We have to do a c-section. Right now.”
“What? Not now,” I plead. “He’s not big enough. He’s not ready.”
“We don’t have a choice,” the doctor insists, and Camden looks down at me.
“It’s going to be okay, principessa,” he says, but his face is pale and drawn.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” I whisper shakily. “What if something’s wrong? Really wrong?”
“He’s going to be fine,” he insists, as if convincing himself. “And you’re going to be fine and we’re going to be happy.”
I swallow and then the doctor’s give me some kind of drug to calm me down and everything seems floaty. I only feel pressure when they take out the baby but Camden gasps, tears streaming down his face.
“What does he look like?” I ask, and Camden’s voice shakes when he answers.
“Perfect,” he says. “He looks perfect, principessa. You did such a good job.” He leans down to kiss me.
I don’t hear our baby crying and I’m panicking, my throat tight, my chest aching as if I can’t get enough oxygen.
“Take deep breaths, Ms. Risi,” the doctor says.
“Andretti,” Camden corrects. “Now it’s Andretti.”
“Mrs. Andretti,” the doctor repeats. “Your oxygen levels are low and we need to take the baby to the NICU.”
“Is he okay?” I ask as the doctors put the oxygen mask over my face.
“He’s okay,” Camden says, but I’m not sure that he knows.
I fade out of consciousness and the next thing I know, Camden is clutching my hand at my bedside.
“Our son,” I ask immediately when I come through. “I need our son to be okay.”
“He’s perfect,” Camden says again, sniffling, and I realize that he’s been crying. “He’s doing fine in the NICU, breathing well. Just not much of a crier, I guess.”
“And me?” I ask, looking down at myself. My stomach aches and I feel sore all over.
“You lost a lot of blood,” he says. “They didn’t know if you would make it, and principessa…” He trails off and chokes out a sob. “I thought I lost you.”
“You didn’t,” I tell him, squeezing his hand. “I’m here.”
I recover in the hospital and get to meet my son.
“What are we going to call him?” I ask, looking down at his little face, at the way he has his father’s nose and chin.
“I thought Aldo was a strong name,” he says, and I smile down at our son.
“Aldo,” I say, liking the sound of it. “I think that’s perfect, Camden.”
“I think you’re perfect,” Camden says, and I can’t believe this is my life. I can’t believe that I have my son and that Camden Andretti is my husband.
It’s all I’ve ever wanted.
After we’re home, our baby finds his voice and screams the night away, but just when I think I’m getting to my breaking point, Camden’s there.
“I’ll take him for a while,” he says, pulling our son out of my arms.
I run a hand through my mussed hair, exhausted. “He was crying all night,” I say.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” he asks, frowning.
“You looked so peaceful,” I tell him. “I didn’t want to disturb you.”
Camden snorts. “Disturb me next time, principessa. I’m his father. I can do a lot of the work.”
I look at him, disbelieving. I can’t believe he’s so involved when at first, I didn’t even know if he’d stick around even if he said he would.
“I’m exhausted,” I admit. “And there’s baby vomit in my hair and I’m pretty sure his diaper is full of the most heinous thing you’ve ever smelled.”
Camden barks out a surprised laugh. “I’m interested in where this is going.”
“But I’m so happy, Camden,” I said, tears running down my face. “I’ve never been so happy in all my life. I didn’t know I could find happiness like this.”
“Me, either,” Camden says, kissing the tip of my nose. “This is everything, and I never knew I wanted any of it.”
Baby Aldo has finally stopped crying and now he’s just looking around as if he hasn’t kept me up all night and driven me crazy.
“And we can do this,” I say, determined.
Camden grins at me. “We can do this, even if I have to bounce this kid around twenty-four hours a day.”
~~~
Sometimes I’m bitchy because Aldo’s been up for hours and I haven’t had anything to eat or any sleep.
On those days, Camden takes over, taking the baby for several hours and sending me to the spa with Elora , who is the world’s best aunt.
I look in the mirror in the mornings and I can’t believe this is my life. I can’t believe I’m so happy.
Camden tells me, every day, that he feels the same way. He never minds reassuring me, never minds telling me over and over that he loves me. Sometimes, when we’re making love, he’ll trail his fingers over the scar on my cheekbone or my c-section scar, and he’ll tell me that everything we’ve been through has been so worth it.
“So worth it, principessa,” he says softly. “Everything has been so worth it, and I love you so fucking much.”
I grin, looking back at him and then looking over at our son in the bassinet next to our bed. He’s only quiet when Camden and I are together, when we’re in the same room, like he knows that we’re all three meant to be together.
“Everything was worth it, but did it have to be so hard?” I ask, and Camden laughs, loud and open.
Most days, I can’t believe it when I wake up next to Camden, our baby crying over the baby monitor or from the bassinet. I can’t believe it, but Camden convinces me, every single day.
I’m Mrs. Andretti, and we have a beautiful baby boy, and Camden Andretti loves me with every cell of his body.
What else could I ever need?
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Hi, my lovely readers!
Tarina here-thank you for joining me on Camden and Kendall’s unforgettable journey!
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But wait… is this really the end? Or just the beginning of something even more thrilling?
And baby Aldo? Oh, my lips are sealed for now-but I promise, you won’t want to miss what’s coming next! Brace yourselves for more surprises, twists, and heart-stopping moments in this special two-in-one book!
Your love and support mean everything to me. Stay tuned-there’s so much more ahead! ^_^