Page 91 of Christmas Bubble

Then it’s Riley’s parents, who are so adorably like Riley. I love them both.

“Did you make some more of that pie, son?”

“Sure did, Dad.”

And that’s another thing. They insist on me calling them Mom and Dad. The first time they said it, I cried like a baby and ran out of the room. After clarifying my reaction, they understood how special their request was to me. They’ve been Mom and Dad since.

“Dinner’s ready,” I announce.

Everyone takes their place while I bring all the food to the table.

Before we start filling our plates, Riley looks at me and smiles as he clears his throat.

“Mom, Dad, Juju,” Riley says. “We have some news. If you look under your plates, there’s a small envelope we want you to open.”

They all lift their plates and look at what we left for them.

Riley puts his arm around my shoulders. We watch as the most important people in our lives find out that our family is about to become a little bigger, thanks to our amazing surrogate.

When we had a chance to talk about everything a year ago, Riley told me more about his attempts at having a family with his ex-wife. I know this is a big moment not just for him but for his parents too.

His mom comes around and gives me a tight hug. “My sweet child. Thank you for being everything our Riley needs.”

“Mom, you know I’m not actually pregnant, right?”

They all laugh, and as everyone fills their plates with food, we talk about baby names, nursery decorations, and where the baby will go to school.

Mom and Dad announce they have no excuse not to move to Connecticut now. They visit us often enough, and the subject has come up in conversation. I guess all it took was one grandchild to make up their minds.

I think about my grandmother and smile to myself. I would love to have her with us, but I know she’s around us. After all, she managed to push me toward my coach.

“I wish I’d met her,” Riley says in my ear as if he can read my thoughts.

“Me too.”

So here we are.

A year ago, I was single and pining for a man I thought was straight. Little did I know that all I needed to do was invite him to my Christmas bubble, and he’d be mine forever.

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