Quilting 101

"I don't have one of those, but I can promise I'll be more careful," she told him.

Nick came up from behind her and put his arms around her and said, "That works."

For all her shyness, Tiffany had always enjoyed lovemaking, and for the first time since her husband was alive, her body ached to be loved. As Nick wrapped his arms around her, she wanted to raise his hands and offer herself to him, but knew that would have to wait. But when he spoke to her, she wasn't sure if she could.

"Do you know how beautiful you are?" he whispered in her ear.

Tiffany sighed and placed her arms over his.

"No, but I do know how handsome you are," she said as he rested his cheek against hers from behind.

"Trust me. You are very beautiful," he told her as he kissed her neck.

Tiffany was suddenly aware of a wetness she hadn't experienced from a man's touch in...a very long time. Had Nick so much as touched her breast she'd have given in right then and there. But to her surprise—and some amount of disappointment—he was a perfect gentleman and slowly let go of her.

"So I guess I'll follow you this time?" he suggested.

"Oh. Right. Yes. I do have to stop at my sister's house first, though," she told him.

She turned around then said, "If you come in to meet her, just be warned, she didn't get any of my shyness, okay?"

Nick laughed and told her that was fine.

"No, I'm serious, Nick. She may say some things that, well, I may blush. Again."

"I love when you blush," he told her as he moved closer again.

"I feel like a little girl when I do," she told him.

"That's all right. You can be my little girl."

She smiled, nodded and said, "Okay."

Nick followed her and went inside to meet Grace, who, just as Tiffany had said, made several comments. Nick took them each in stride and kidded back, something Grace very much liked.

"Oh, this one's a keeper," Grace said to her sister while staring at Nick.

Ella was listening to the exchange, and while most of it went over her head, she knew her aunt was flirting with him. The one thing she did catch was the word 'keeper'.

"Can we keep him, Mom?" she asked with that simple innocence of a child.

"He's not a pet, honey," her mom told her.

"Oh, he could pet me anytime!" Grace said.

Tiffany's eyes shot open wide as her cheeks flamed on.

"Oh, my God! Grace! What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing. Nothing at all. In fact, every part of me works just fine," she said.

Nick knew it was all harmless, and he tried not to laugh, but Grace was a handful and a force to be reckoned with.

"I'm just saying all the things my sister, my younger, baby sister, wants to tell you but won't," Grace said, causing a deeper shade of crimson to appear in her sister's face and neck.

"I think we should be going now," Tiffany said as she tried to compose herself.

"It was nice meeting you, Nick," Grace said in an overly flirty way.

Nick laughed as Tiffany shook her head and grabbed Ella's hand.

"Tell your crazy aunt goodbye, Ella."

"Bye crazy aunt!" she said with a smile.

"Bye, honey. And keep an eye on your mom, okay?"

"Why? Is she sick?" Ella asked.

"Well, yes. Kind of," Grace said as Tiffany rolled her eyes. "The word is...love-sick, sweetie. Your mom is lovesick."

"Goodbye, Grace!" Tiffany said as she pulled Ella out the door.

"Bye! And don't do anything I'd do if I could!" she called out. "No. Actually DO do everything I'd do if I could!"

Tiffany shook her head and didn't look back or respond.

Nick went out last, and he turned and waved to her before he closed the door. As he was doing so, Grace called out, "She really likes you, Nick."

He glanced back and said, "And I really like her."

Tiffany managed to make dinner without injuring herself, and the three of them had an amazingly good time talking and laughing. When dinner was over they watched another comedy together then put Ella to bed.

Once she was sound asleep, the happy new couple was sitting on the couch together when Nick leaned over to kiss her. She pulled away and put a hand on his chest.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"Yes. Everything is...perfect," she told him.

"I thought you made me promise to hug and kiss you a lot."

"I did," Tiffany told him. "But I thought I should warn you that if you kiss me even one more time, I won't be able to resist taking you to my room."

There was no sign of blushing, but there was a very strong sign of need and desire in her eyes.

"I see," Nick said very seriously. "Have I been a bad boy who needs to go to your room?"

Tiffany giggled with happiness and told him, "No, but if you do go to my bedroom, I expect you to be a very bad boy."

"I can do that," Nick said very seriously.

When he did, Tiffany quietly squealed with happiness and jumped onto his lap.

"Then what are we waiting for?" she asked as she put her arms around his neck.

When Nick effortlessly picked her up and carried her to her room, she knew he was in excellent shape. But when she pulled his shirt off and over his shoulders and let it fall to the floor, she gasped.

"Oh, my...goodness. You're...you're gorgeous," she said as her eyes took in his upper body.

Even with the extra weight he'd gained, Nick still had a very tight 'six pack', thick pecs, and huge traps and shoulders that looked like they had softballs attached to them.

The closest thing Tiffany had ever come to seeing a man like that was in a fireman's calendar she'd bought two years ago. It would be along time before she'd admit it, but she'd pleasured herself to mental images of Mr. November many a time. And now she had her own Mr. November right here in front of her.

She was equally happy when she removed his jeans and finally his boxers. Tiffany had only ever been with her husband, so he really had no idea whether or not 'size mattered.' But after making love with Nick twice that night, she knew it did. It was way, way down her list of priorities, but bigger was most definitely better, and Nick Kellner was very well proportioned in every area of his body.

He left a little after 1am, and the two of them had talked constantly when they weren't making love. By the time he left, Tiffany'd lost count of the number of things they had in common, and the age difference which had loomed so large now made very little difference to her.

As Nick drove home, his mind was reeling with the way this woman made him feel. She was nowhere near the most beautiful woman he'd ever been with, but she was by far the most desirable, and he knew that if nothing changed, he would ask her to marry him one day.

Nick spent nearly every hour with Tiffany and Ella until the end of Spring Break. He finished the sewing class, and found himself more than a little interested in quilting after taking the introductory class taught by the new love of his life. Yes, it was nice having her there doing the teaching, but Nick genuinely found quilting to be something he might stick with.

He didn't have much time for it once school was back in session as any spare time he had was devoted to the two new girls he cared for more than any other, his mom excluded, of course, but after graduation, he slowly but surely became a very talented quilter and won several competitions at the state level.

Kathy warmed up to the idea of Tiffany being her son's girlfriend fairly quickly, and by the time Nick graduated from college, they'd become best of friends.

That evening he told Tiffany he loved her for the first time as they spent a rare night in a very nice hotel. She'd tried not to cry when he told her, but after believing she'd never love again, it was impossible not to.

"I love you, too," she told him as tears of joy fell from her eyes.

They made love more passionately than they ever had that night, and at one point, Tiffany asked him what his plans were for the future in terms of work.

He rolled over and said, "I was thinking about buying the quilt shop."

"What?" Tiffany asked.

"Not immediately, but maybe down the road."

"Oh, so that way you could be my boss, right?" Tiffany teased.

"No, I was thinking more...equal partners," Nick told her with a smile.

"Equal partners?"

"Well, yes. I mean, isn't that how things work between a husband and a wife?" he said gently and lovingly.

"Wait. Nick. What...what are you saying?" she asked as her heart began to race.

"I'm saying I love you. I'm saying I'm in love with you."

He rolled over, opened the drawer on the nightstand, then rolled back over toward her holding something he'd placed there earlier.

Tiffany saw the small, red box and began to shake.

"I don't know how many men have proposed to the woman they love while they're in bed together, but I thought this would be...."

"YES! YES! Open the box and put the ring on my finger!" Tiffany screamed.

Nick laughed loudly as she shot her left hand out after sitting bolt upright in bed.

"Pushy, eh?" he said as he took the diamond out and slid it on her hand.

"Oh, my goodness! It's so beautiful!"

She held it out and looked at it, then as new tears fell, she said, "I love it, Nick. I love it so much."

She pulled him on top of her then said, "And I love you so much."

"Oh, really?" he teased.

"Uh-huh, and I can prove it," she said with a happy smile as she reached for him.

He was ready for her again, and once he was 'lined up' she said, "What are you waiting for? Get that thing inside me!" causing both of them to laugh happily as they kissed and loved one another.

Nick found a job working for a software developer within a month of graduating, and after three months of living in Tiffany's house, they put it up for sale and bought a place of their own.

Three months after that, Nick married the love of his life in a small ceremony at the quilt shop where'd they'd met. To their surprise, Kathy bought the shop from Sylvia who delayed her next trip to be there for the wedding.

Nick hadn't been with the company long enough to take a vacation, but that didn't matter in the least to Tiffany Kellner who's joy was full in being Nick's wife, Ella's mom, and the manager of the quilt shop her new mother-in-law owned.

The following weekend Nick said to Tiffany, "How would you feel about me adopting Ella?"

"I wasn't going to ask, but I'd love it if you would, and I know Ella would, too. I'm not sure how well she remembers her father, but I do know she considers you to be her father, Nick, and she loves you as much as I do."

"Then we'll go see a lawyer this week," he told her.

"But I have a question for you," Tiffany said.

"Oh? About the shop?" he asked.

"No. About...children."

"Okay. Shoot."

"Well, how would you feel about having...two children?" she asked, her eyes filled with happiness and hope.

Nick sat there then blinked several times before speaking.

"Wait. Seriously? You're pregnant? You're not joking, are you?" Nick asked in rapid-fire.

"No, I'm not kidding. I took a home pregnancy test this morning and it was positive, but I knew a week ago I was because of the subtle changes in my body. I'll see a doctor in a few days, but I know my body, and yes, I'm pregnant."

For the first time since she met him, Tiffany saw her husband's eyes grow wet.

"We uh, we need to get the house checked. There's something wrong with the air in here," he said as he turned and blinked away the tears.

"No, there's nothing wrong with the house, my love. It's just fine," Tiffany told him.

Nick shook his head then smiled at her and said, "Then love must be in the air because something is wreaking havoc with my tear ducts!"

"Come here, you big baby!" she said as she pulled him close. "Come here and kiss me."

"Often?" he teased.

"Yes. Often. And for the rest of my life," she told him.

"I promise," he said as he kissed her softly and told her how much he loved her.

Ella walked in and saw them and giggled.

"You guys are always kissing!" she informed them.

"That's because we love each other," her mom said.

"I know," she said with a happy smile.

"Well, did you know you're going to have a brother or a sister in a few months?"

Ella sucked in a deep breath and said, "Really?"

"Yes, really. And...how would you feel about being Ella Kellner?"

Before her mom could even finish asking, Ella started jumping up and down with happiness and shouting, "Yes!"

"I think that's a 'yes'," Tiffany said to Nick.

"Oh, speaking of my princess," Nick said. He reached behind him and found a very pretty bag and handed it to Ella.

"Go ahead, honey. It's for you."

She opened the bag then sucked in a loud breath as she pulled out the shiny tiara. Her eyes were wide with happiness and surprise as Nick patted his lap to let Ella know to come sit on it. She hopped up and put her arms around his neck and said, "I love you, Daddy."

He placed the tiara on her head and when he did, Nick's eyes got misty again. When they did, he turned to Tiffany and said, "You see. I told you something's wrong with this place."

Tiffany laid her head on his shoulder and put her hand on Ella's back as she said, "Actually, it feels more like everything is perfect around this place."

Nick put his arm around his beautiful wife, pulled both of his girls close and said, "Yes. Yes, it is."