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“Okay.” She nods, looking up at us like a little adult.

Clearing my throat, I take the lead. “Dove, you love Daddy, right?” She nods emphatically, and I keep going. “I love Daddy, too. So we were thinking, well, we decided…” I hesitate, and Taron steps in.

“Mommy said she would marry me. She’s going to be my wife, and we’re all going to live together like a family. Is that okay?”

She doesn’t immediately react, and my nerves kick in. “Dove? Is that okay?”

Her bright eyes blink quickly, and her little chin quivers. Taron and I both react at once. “Honey, what’s wrong?” I take her hand, putting my other on her shoulder.

“Does this mean Daddy’s going to take us away? I’ll never get to see Uncle Sawyer or Uncle Leon or Boo or Akela anymore?”

“No!” A lump is in my throat and I almost cry. “No, baby, it doesn’t mean any of that!”

“Dove,” Taron’s voice is gentle. “I love it here. I would never take you away from your family.”

“Daddy’s becoming a part of our family now. For real.”

As we speak her expression changes. She starts to smile, and even though a little tear escapes, she jumps up on the couch and waves her hands. “It’s going to be a wedding! Just like at the end of The Little Mermaid, and we’ll have rainbows and music, and can I wear a fancy dress like yours, Mamma?”

Sniffing back my tears, I start to laugh, pulling her into a hug. “Of course, you can.”

Taron surrounds us both with his strong arms, but we can only hold our little munchkin a second before she’s off the couch and dancing around the room.

“A wedding! And nothing’s going to change!” She hops, lifting her leg behind her and doing her Angelina dance moves.

“Well, one thing will have to change.” Taron’s low voice makes us both pause. We look at him with wide eyes, wondering. “You’re going to have to start sleeping in your bedroom upstairs.”

My lips press together, fighting a grin, and Dove frowns. “You don’t want to sleep with me?”

“Only on special occasions. We need our special time, too.”

I’m surprised how worried I am about her reaction. Her big eyes move to the side, and she seems to think. “Can Akela sleep with me?”

“Yes!” Her dad and I both answer at once.

“Woo hoo!” Her hands go up, and she starts dancing again with Akela on the couch watching. I’m pretty sure she’s smiling.

Later that night, when the party clothes are off, and Dove is sound asleep in my bed, I slip out the window and run down to the cottage. Taron is at the door when I get there.

“I was just coming to see you.” He grins, looking down at me.

I step forward and put my arms around him. Just as fast, he wraps me in his strong arms. We hold each other a long moment, and I listen to his breath moving in and out. I listen to his heart beating. I feel the strength of his body against mine.

“Thank you for coming back.”

He leans up, sliding his thumbs across my cheeks. “Thank you for waiting for me.”

“Thank you for loving me.”

His arms tighten, and he tucks my head under his chin. “I’ll never stop.”

Lifting my chin, I seek out his lips. He covers my mouth with his, and it doesn’t take much for us to be in his bed. He’s between my legs, and we take the time to be completely united, bodies covered in sweat, breathing heavily when we’re done.

His arms are around me, and I’m so grateful for the roots that were too deep to be destroyed. I think about our future and the road ahead. I know it won’t be without its bumps and valleys, but after all we’ve been through, I’m confident we can face whatever challenges might come.

I’ve learned love is a tornado, destructive and fierce and powerful. It’s also a butterfly, soft, gentle, beautiful. But to get to the butterfly, you must go through the tornado. Love has to change you. You have to grow, and it’s difficult and life-altering and scary and lonely… but coming out on the other side, we’ve spread our wings.

We traded the pain and the loss for something far more beautiful and valuable and lasting. We’ve created something original and new.