Going Deep Bonus Content

Giselle

“Mom! Are you home?”

“Yes, sweetie, I’m in the bathroom.”

I walk through the cottage that my mom stays in and stop in the bathroom, where she’s curling her hair in front of the mirror. She’s dressed in a pretty floral dress with white sandals and her makeup is done.

“Do you have an appointment today?”

We keep a schedule of her appointments, and I don’t remember it being on there. Two days a week, she meets with the therapist alone and once a week, I meet her as well.

Things aren’t perfect, but we’ve come a long way since the day I found her on the floor unconscious. And with Killian and me expecting a baby, it’s important that I work on becoming the best version of myself. Not just for Killian and our baby but for me as well.

“I’m going to dinner,” Mom says with a smile.

“What? With who?”

“Just a friend.” She waves me off. “But speaking of which, I met a gentleman in town today while I was getting lunch.” She smiles. “I was wearing that shirt you gave me … the one with Killian’s number on the back, and he mentioned he also likes the Brewers.”

“Did you tell him you know Killian?” I ask cautiously. It’s not that I want to think the worst in people but …

“Of course not.” Mom laughs. “After I told him I actually didn’t know much about football but that my daughter gave me the shirt, he insisted we have lunch together so he could teach me about football.” She grins happily and my heart swells in my chest. I love seeing her happy.

“After we finished our lunch, he asked if he could take me to dinner … and I said yes. We’re going out tomorrow night.”

I want to ask her if she’s sure she’s ready for that, but I refrain so I won’t ruin the moment. One thing I’ve learned from going to therapy is that I need to trust that my mom can handle herself. So instead, I say, “I’m happy for you, Mom. You deserve to have fun.”

“Thank you.” She gives me a hug.

Then I remember she said she was going out tonight with a friend. “Who are you going out with tonight?”

“Corrine,” she says, surprising me.

“Olivia’s stepmom?” I knew they exchanged numbers when they met, but I didn’t know they had been talking.

“Yes, she’s very nice.”

“That’s good,” I tell her, happy she’s made a friend.

“What are you up to tonight?” Mom asks.

“I’m actually not sure.” It’s Friday night, so Killian and I usually go to dinner, but I haven’t heard from him all afternoon.

As if he can sense me thinking about him, Killian sends me a text message.

Killian: There’s a box on the bed for you. Be ready at 6:00.

Me: How very cryptic of you.

Killian: See you soon.

After wishing my mom a good night and making her promise to call or text if she needs anything, I head back to the house.

Sure enough, in our bedroom, on the bed, is a big black box. I open it up and find the most gorgeous rose pink off-the-shoulder evening gown, along with a beautiful pair of heels.

I don’t know what Killian has planned, but this dress is giving off princess vibes, which means I need to do my hair and makeup because there’s no way I’m going out in this dress without looking the part.

At exactly six o’clock on the dot, the doorbell rings, and with one last look in the mirror, I go to the front door to meet my crazy husband, who’s standing on the front doorstep, dressed in a tux.

“You look handsome,” I say, running my fingers along the lapel of his jacket.

“And you look like mine.” He wraps his arm around me and pulls me into him for a kiss so passionate that if I wasn’t already pregnant, would have my ovaries bursting.

“Your chariot awaits.” He moves slightly so I can see the road.

It takes me a second to take in what I’m looking at, but once I do, tears prick my eyes because parked on the edge of our driveaway is a horse-drawn carriage, like the shit you see in fairy tales.

“Killian,” I whisper, my thoughts going back to months ago, while we sat at the coffee shop, people watching, and I told him how romantic the horse-drawn carriage was.

He takes my hand in his and guides us over to the beautiful carriage that looks like it was plucked straight out of a Cinderella storybook. He helps me into it and just like the one we saw back then, there are blankets for us to use since it’s a cool night.

“What is all this for?” I ask as the carriage starts to move forward, the horse click-clacking along the road.

“Can’t I spend a romantic evening with my wife?” Killian asks with a smirk that tells me there’s definitely more to this.

But before I can call him out on it, he adds, “How are you feeling today?” He reaches down and rubs my belly, and butterflies attack my chest.

“I’m feeling good.” After I recovered from surgery, I started back at work and thankfully, aside from a bout of nausea here and there, I don’t feel too sick.

I’m not sure where we’re going, and I have a feeling Killian isn’t going to tell me, so rather than ask, I cuddle up into his side and enjoy our ride.

We recently moved and we’re still learning the area, so I check out all the shops and restaurants as we head down the main street that takes us through the town.

When we stop in front of a well-known restaurant, Killian helps me out, and I’m assuming we’re going to dinner, until we step foot inside and I find all of our friends and family standing there waiting for us, including my mom, who smiles knowingly at me.

“What’s all this?” I ask in happy confusion.

“Your wedding reception,” Olivia says. “I told you we would be celebrating your wedding.”

Since they’ve rented the restaurant out for the night, it’s only us. But before we have a seat at the tables that are lined up together, we walk out onto the beautiful terrace that overlooks the botanical garden.

There’s music playing and after Olivia and Nick give toasts to us, the DJ tells Killian and me to step forward so we can have our first dance.

“Thank you,” I tell him as we sway back and forth to the song. “This is amazing.”

“The dinner was Olivia’s idea,” he says, leaning over and giving me a kiss. “But the carriage was mine.”

“You’re too good to me,” I choke out, wondering how I went from struggling to get by every day to being loved by this man.

“I disagree,” Killian murmurs. “You deserve so much more and I’m going to spend my life giving it to you.”

Check out the next book in the Imperfect Love series: On the Surface