Page 87 of Mating of Convenience

“Absolutely not.” The sharp way he said that had me believing he actually meant it. “Our son is not getting inked as a teenager as long as I have any say in it.”

“Wow, I didn’t think you’d take that stance.”

Raph gave me a small smile. “You underestimate me, turtle. I think getting a tattoo is something you need to think long and hard about. It’s a pretty permanent thing and when you choose something you need to be sure it’s something you can live with for the rest of your life.”

For some reason, hearing him say that almost made me crack up.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“Oh, I don’t know... it’s just...” And then I realized why it was so funny. “It’s like you think longer about getting a tattoo than you think about proposing to someone,” I said, remembering the way my mate had asked me to marry him totally out of the blue.

“Oh... well...” For a second there, Raphael didn’t seem to know what to say, but then, stepping up to me, he recovered his wits. “I guess sometimes the right choice to make is pretty obvious.”

“No regrets, huh?”

“Nope, none at all.” He grinned and leaned in to kiss me, careful not to squish the baby between us. “Honestly, being married to you... sometimes it’s so amazing I worry it’s all a dream.”

I had to laugh at that and pull him closer. “I can assure you it’s not.”

How I knew? Because I’d had a lot of dreams, most of them revolving around Raph, but this? Living with him, raising our son together...

It was better than any dream could ever be.

The End.