Ashley POV

I wake up to the smell of sweet syrup in the air. Rising up the white sheet falls from my body as I look out the large window wall to see the ocean. I turn over to see Israel sleeping sound beside me before I throw my legs over and walk to the bathroom. After emptying my bladder I walk out of our room to see a woman chopping up fruit.

"Ooo... I'm sorry if I disturbed you señora. I am your chef Lana." She says with a strong Spanish accent as she sees me walk into the kitchen. Lana was a short woman with dark hair pulled into a low bun. She looked to be around the age 26+ but who knows. Lana was dressed in a white button down with black slacks and black shoes.

"Oh no tienes nada de qué preocuparte. Gracias por estar aquí (you have nothing to worry about. Thank you for being here)" Ashley says with ease as Lanas face lights up.

We begin talking to each other as Lana finishes our meal. She was such a sweet woman. I quickly learned she was widowed with three children under 12. She explained how she was lucky to be able to do what she loved while making a decent living for her family. She even made me some fresh juice to help my Braxton Hicks contractions that I've been having.

"I didn't know you spoke Spanish too" I feel a pair of arm wrap around me breaking Lana and i out of out conversation.

"Sí papi" I tease as Lana lines the plates along the table. She had made them a mexican style breakfast as well as some stuffed french toast because I told her i was craving some. I look over to the counter to see my phone vibrating.

"Oh my goodness look who decided to answer her favorite brothers phone call" Chris' dramatics begin

"boy i was asleep... is that my son? Chris are you in my home?" i look confusingly as i hear commotion in the background.

"dada" Aiden says through the phone

"uncle Chris... say chris" my brother says causing me to shake my head

"well we are about to eat so ill..." i am cut off by sharons voice

"boy get up we need help..." he looks to her pointing to the phone "well sis im going through a tunnel... i cant hear you. What you say?" he says again before hanging up the phone. The hell they doing. I shake everything off and head over to the table before we say our goodbyes to Lana .

"so whats the plans for today papi" i tease popping a piece of mango into my mouth.

"nothing but getting back in that bed if you keep calling me that" he states as i smirk. "a friend of mine is down here with his fiancée, i told him we'd meet them at their resort if you was up to it"

"that's fine i hope they have a spa or sum a girl back is heavy" i state rubbing my neck. "how did it go the other night?" i ask as i dump syrup over the french toast and god it was heavenly. ill make sure we leave her a fat tip.

"it was straight i got two shipments on the way as we speak, shit getting handled back home, and i need you to look at these damn books for me because you can spot shit i cant... but that's not important right now" he says as i just look at him. I was listening to what he was saying but my mind was just so focused on him. I dont know how to describe it but i was just in awe ive felt it before but right now it was stronger than ever.

After eating we begin to get dressed. I wore a short, flowy dress that ended at my thighs. The dress was spaghetti strapped and hung low on my back. I starred in the mirror as i looked how the dress outlined my belly. My hair was pulled into a high bun and some simple tan sandals graced my feet. Of course i packed a bathing suit under it just in case we went to the beach or pool.

As i stuffed my belongings into a large tote, Izzy walks out dressed in a simple tee and some blue shorts looking as fine as ever.

"ready?" he grabs his phone off the night stand and walks over to me helping me off of the bed. As we exit the house we hop back into a new car. This time we are in a jeep with the roof and doors removed.

"nigga you do know im almost 8 months pregnant right?" i state as he helps me into the death trap

"i know what im doing woman" he says buckling me up as i roll my eyes. He just laughs before jogging over to the drivers side and starting the truck up. The ride was about 10 minutes before we pulled up to the large luxury resort. After pulling up to the valet, Izzy helps me from the side of the jeep and we walk through the resort into an outside restaurant.

As we reach the table a older looking white man stands up, he looks to be around 45 at the most. He wasnt bad looking; his brown hair was pulled into a man bun and a full beard graced his face.

"Israel my man" he says as he daps izzy up and the woman who im guessing is his fiancé stands up. She is a shorter black woman who seems to be at least 22 years old. Her hair was in knotless braids and she wore a short sundress.

"Hey girl, i'm Chanel its nice to meet you" she says hugging me

"its nice meeting you too, Ashley" i smile before releasing.

"Ash this is Clay and his fiancée Chanel, this is my girl Ashley" Izzy introduces like Chanel and i didn't just introduce ourselves. The guys walk away to go talk or something i dont really mind.

"Oh my goodness how far along are you?" Chanel asks as i take a seat.

"i will be 8 months as of next week and god am I ready to have this child out of me " i laugh as izzy places his hand onto my stomach before whispering that they'll be back and to enjoy myself. I peck his lips and he walks towards Clay.

"i cant wait to have more children... but right now im fine with the four we have" she looks down before placing a broken smile on her face. I barely know her so i didn't want to pry so much.

"four girl? Im struggling with the one we already have at home" i laugh trying to lighten the mood

"oh girl no" she laughs "three of them are from his previous marriage. London, our child actually just turned one." she smiles before shooting a look of concern as another Braxton Hicks hits me and i scrunch up my face

"Are you okay girl??" She asks me

"Yes I'm fine just Braxton Hicks" I state as it goes away "if you dont mind me asking, how is it? you know dealing with other children?" i ask respectfully changing the subject

"honey it was terrible at first. The only one who gave me a chance was his youngest whose 6, tyler. But the other two are teenagers so they were not open to a 23 year old ex-stripper at the time being their 41 year old dads girlfriend." she starts "and their mother is such a bitch she puts all types of evil things in their heads especially his daughter emma, im convinced she would kill me if she could. But his oldest, Trevor never really had a motherly relationship with her so i just started showing him love and affection now no one couldnt tell me he isn't mine. He doesn't even go to her house unless we force him. Im sorry for rambling i dont have many friends" she takes a sip of her drink.

"i understand... i barely have any either. But that seems like a lot to go through, im glad it all worked out"i state

"enough of me. now tell me about you ashley.." She says to me as our appetizers come to the table.

"there's not much to tell my life is pretty boring honestly. Other than raising our son, Aiden i dont get out much. I worked at Emory as a nurse anesthetist but decided to stay home after my maternity leave " I say truthfully. Other than being a mother i dont usually do anything.

"well girl once you drop that baby im taking you out and we are going to have some fun!" she says making me laugh "Clay told me that we are the same age so maybe we have some of the same interest"

The men ended up texting us and letting us know that they had something to do so we took off in the resort and ended up in the spa. I ended up getting the best pregnancy massage while Chanel got a full body.

"Girl i could spend my entire life in there" i say as we walk out noticing that it was getting late.

"Honestly now i can do anything" she says as we walk back to her suite so she can charge her phone. The suite was a large room that looked like a apartment. I took a seat on then couch before dialing my mothers number.

"hey baby" she says out of breath. "let me call you back" she hangs up abruptly. Damn i just wanted to see my baby. So i call Alek.

"hello" he says as i hear commotion in the background.

"damn you arent excited to hear from your favorite cousin?" i ask

"yes, now what is it that you need i am busy" he states

"i know your at my house where's my child" i state before he rolls his eyes and walks upstairs

"i was eating you're so inconsiderate" he is so dramatic as he huffs up the stairs.

"where's ma? I called her but she told me she would call me back and hung up" I ask him

"Ma not here. She left like 4 hours ago she said something about being tired... i think she has boyfriend" He states as he walks into Aidens room

"Why is it so loud there? i ask as i hear sharon yelling at Chris.

"no reason... here he is." He turns the camera to Aiden playing with Bri and Paris.

"is that my best friend??" bri snatches the phone from him.

"oh my goodness you are glowing! Are you having fun?" she says

"yes i am but im confused as to why all of yall are at my house" i state as she hands the phone to Paris.

"i miss you ash. Cant wait for you to get back Aiden is fine see" she turns the camera to his

"i know that but-" i get cut off

"okay byeeee" she says before hanging up. They better clean my house up i know that.

"okay mama i got my portable charger you ready or you wanna stay up here for a bit?" Chanel asks me

"if you dont mind lets stay here for a bit my feet hurt a bit" I state sliding off my sandals and rubbing my feet. Chanel goes into the bathroom for a second before returning with two warm rags and places them on my feet.

"i know i used to like this so maybe itll help you" She says

"thank you" i smile

"so how long have you and Israel been together?" she asks

"girl officially together? Not even ten months. But honestly it feels like we've never been apart" I say.

"i thought you said you two have a child?" she asks

"we do.. we met at a club and had a one night stand and i ended up getting pregnant. We tried the whole co parenting thing at first because he had a girlfriend but we ended up getting together" i say keeping it short. i dont need anyone to cast their judgement on me.

"that's understandable. Its clear you two love each other and that's all that matters. Time is only a concept." she looks down to her ring finger.

"can i tell you something? i haven't told anyone and i really need to get it off my chest" she asks and i nod my head.

"i recently found out i have a large chance i cant have any more children" she puts her head down. " i thought i was pregnant so i went into my doctor excited but i found out i have an ovarian cyst caused by endometriosis..." my face goes sad as she begins to cry. "they said i was lucky that i even had London" the tears begin to fall harder. I move closer to her, pulling her into a hug.

"I know how bad Clay wants another child and i might not be able to give him one and he swears im pregnant and i keep telling him i dont know... i just want a family ashley ... evertime i get something good going god finds a way to punish me. I dont know what im doing wrong" she says clinging onto my waist.

"Listen to me Chanel... god is not punishing you. This is only a test to question your strength. You are going to get through this doctors told me i wasnt going to be able to carry this baby i have now and look at me. You have a family, you have london, tyler and trevor who loves you like his own mother hell you have your daughter who even though she gives you a hard time im sure she loves you. And you have Clay if you guys love is strong this will not affect your relationship but make it stronger. God isn't punishing you but he has blessed you in so many ways right in front of your eyes." I tell her as her cries die down

"thank you Ashley." He hugs me tight

"Now go get cleaned up your man is waiting on you" I tell her as she gets up and walks towards the bathroom

"Hey baby" I answer the phone to see my fine ass man

"Where y'all at ma ?" He asks

"In their room where you" I ask him

"On the beach. Come down here in like 10 mins. Ima send you my location but don't tell Chanel" he says going over their plan as I smile at how cute it is.

"Okay so I think I'm just gone wear this to meet them for dinner" Chanel comes out the room with some tights and a tee shirt on.

"No ma'am turn around" I say standing up.

"What??" She whines and I push her back into the room because she isn't going to go out looking like that right now.

"Where's your clothes girl?" I state as she points to the Louis Vuitton luggage lying on the bed. I begin to rummage through it until I come across a long white beachy type dress and I knew it was perfect.

"Girl you sure this not too much" she tilts her head looking over her body in the mirror.

"Hell no. You look gorgeous boo now let's go" I state grabbing my phone looking at izzys location.

"Ashley I just want to thank you. I know we have only known each other a day but you have showed me more love than most people." Chanel hugs me

"Its no problem Chanel. You have been such a sweet heart"

"Girl when you get back to the city call me and we can go out to lunch or something because we are friends now" she laughs before she follows me as we travel through the resort and take a golf cart down to the beach. As we get closer we notice twinkling lights lined along the beach leading to a pavilion. Stopping infront, candles and flower petals line the walk way to the pavilion where Clay stands shifting nervously. He was dressed in a simple white button down with linen pants to go along. His hair was let down displaying his long waves. Chanel stood in shock as it all sunk in. I decided to take the other way around and stood beside izzy as she slowly made her way down the eisle.

"So this what pulled you away from me all day" I whisper to Israel as he places his hand on my waist.

"Yes this shit was stressful he could've gave a nigga a heads up" he says kissing my forehead. Chanel is standing infront of Clay by now and they are speaking to one another softly. We stay quiet as the two stand in each other embrace. You could barely hear their conversation as they agreed on getting married right then and there.

"Clay please repeat after me" the reverend starts

"I, Clayton Everett Rivers take you, Chanel Renaé Johnson, to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part." Clay states as he stares at Chanel in awe

"I, Chanel Renaé Johnson, take you, Clayton Everett Rivers to be my lawfully wedded husband to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part." Chanel says as tears cascade down her burgundy cheeks.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife you may kiss your bride" the two embrace in a slow kiss as the two of us cheer them on. I wipe my eyes from the tears that fell and smile.

After we signed there papers as witnesses, we let the couple go celebrate because mama was getting tired and we unfortunately leave in the morning.

I stared into the beach from the bed as I played with Israel's hand allowing him to sleep. I think of the events that took place today. After all Chanel explained what she was going through she got her happy ending. It made me think. After we everything that has happened to my family over the past year and a half I am grateful we are still happy and arent broken apart. I'm grateful god has continued to protect us even considering our lifestyle and ties.

The next morning we left out our small villa a little before noon and which I can only dream to come back to before we said our good byes to Lana. The journey home was short and we arrived to the airport shortly after. We hopped into the g wagon and started our way home. I ended up falling halfway asleep through the ride but I was awoken by the sound of keys being entered. I open my eyes to see familiar gates opening revealing a stone driveway.

"Baby... what are we doing here" I ask as we pull up to the large home I adore. He doesn't say anything but gets out and comes around to open my door. I take in the Cars that aline the driveway as I stare in confusion. We walk up to the large glass doors noticing him pull out his keys and unlock the door.

"Israel no..." I cover my mouth shocked. He smiles before placing they keys in my hand and opening the door. I slowly walk in noticing the once empty home decorated. Every detail that I made note of to him was shown throughout the home and decorated perfectly between the two of us. Pictures of our families hang on the walls as I feel my eyes prick. He guided me upstairs through the bed rooms and everything was so perfect. Aiden had a big boy room and it was amazing. But as we approached the nursery my heart pounded they room was decorated in browns and greys keeping everything neutral. The snoo bassinet was wrapped in a bow because he knows how bad I wanted it for this new baby. He really out did himself today.

"Let's go outside" he says as we travel to the backyard of the house and as soon as we step out I notice everyone standing around with cameras ready. I cover my mouth as I notice the large letters that dressed the fresh lawn.

WILL YOU MARRY ME ?

My feet stood still, restricting my movement as my mother comes behind me and moves me closer. I take in all the faces. From Sharon to Alek and my uncle even Jasmine was there smiling. Chris, ny uncle, Bri, Paris and even Maya stood in support. But what touched me was my father. He stood there seeming more excited than me. That's what made me cry even harder. Never would I have thought my father would be standing here watching me get engaged. Never in a million years did I expect to find him and be here now.

As I reached the top of the trail where some how Israel was now standing before muffling my cries.

"Ashley everyday when I wake up my mind is on you. From the very beginning you have shown me what it is like to be loved. You have pushed me to grow into a better man not only for you but for our children and I thank you for that. Thank you for never giving up on me even when I've given you reasons to. You are the best thing to come into my life and I wouldn't want to live anymore if you weren't in it. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?" Israel ends in kneeling down into one knee. He opens up the black velvet box revealing the most beautiful ring. The same ring I seen in the jewelry store.

"Yes, YES" I scream as he slides the ring onto my finger and comes up to kiss me. I am on a cloud and no one can bring me down right now.

Until I felt a huge trickle down my leg. There is no way I just peed myself.