Five years later...

"Keep your eyes closed and open your mouth." Noa pressed up against my side and slipped a piece of something both creamy and crumbly between my lips.

I couldn't tell what was in the base but the top was obvious. "Honey and milk," I answered with confidence.

Noa's new favourite game in the bakery was to guess the secret ingredient but there was nothing secret about the simple mix of flavours.

"Yes, but think harder. Here, take another bite?"

I took a larger mouthful this time and a burst of strawberry mixed with currant and date filled my mouth. There was only a single piece of fruit resting on that creamy base as I crunched down so there was only one thing it could be.

"Well, that wasn't fair. There wasn't a fig on my first bite."

Noa giggled as I opened my eyes and looked down at the second smallish tart she held in her palm.

"What does it remind you of?"

"Italy. Our honeymoon."

"Yes! They're the same tartelettes as the ones we had on our honeymoon. I started craving them last week, so found a recipe online and practised until they tasted identical to the ones we had on our trip." She sunk her teeth into the dessert and moaned, covering her mouth with her hand. "Mmm, delicious. Oh, I have to make more for the bakery and some to take home."

Before she had a chance to rush into the prep room, I grabbed hold of her elbow and carefully pulled my wife back to my side. "Slow down. You should be resting. That's why we hired a new pastry chef."

"You act like I'm the first woman to ever get pregnant. I can work and carry this baby."

How could I forget? She loved to remind me she could do it all whenever she got the chance. And I never doubted it, just wished she would let others take some of the burden off her. Especially now it was no longer just the two of us.

"Oh, I'm well aware of that. But you're both so precious to me, I can't help fuss over you." I bent down and peppered her rounded belly with kisses before wrapping my arms around her. "I love you and your mummy very much."

When we found out Noa was pregnant, I'd been a mess. Noa was no better. While her previous miscarriage plagued her mind up until the first scan, I was more fearful about the next few weeks. My therapist and I were working through the anxiety I held surrounding the birth and the fear that Noa would meet the same fate as my mother.

I hadn't brought it up with my wife because who wanted to unload that unnecessary worry on an expecting mother, but I knew she wasn't oblivious to it. I saw it each time she squeezed my hand a little tighter after every doctor visit and reminded me they were both healthy. Or when she whispered she'd never leave me just as she was falling asleep. But those promises weren't hers to keep.

Noa playfully swatted my shoulder as I drew circles on her back and kissed my favourite freckle trio on her neck. "Daan, a customer could walk in at any moment." As she said that, the bell above the door chimed. "Or your sister. Oh, and Maggie! Hello there, Sweetheart. How was school? I have your favourite chocolate eclair waiting for you."

"Aunty Noa!" My niece ran into her aunt's open arms and Noa spun her around.

"Be careful, you two!"

"Oh, stop Danny. She won't break." My sister laughed and placed the car seat with my nephew in it on the floor. She unstrapped him and placed him in my arms. "Take this one for a bit. He hasn't stopped crying all day and I'm exhausted." She sat on the sofa we'd added to the tasting area and kicked her shoes off before stretching out. "That's better. My feet are killing me."

I inhaled the top of his head and revelled in that new baby smell. "You don't seem that grouchy now, do you? No, you don't."

"Sod's law now I can palm him off for a few minutes," she joked.

Anika had moved closer to Brighton shortly after Maggie's first birthday. It also coincided with the first anniversary of Gran's death. I'd had a grieving "relapse" as such, which had prompted me to spiral into an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.

Noa stood by my side throughout it and enlisted my sister for support. Anika was already considering the move so we'd live closer and it didn't take much to convince her husband he could commute from his large farmhouse in the countryside up to London instead of staying in their cramped flat.

I hadn't touched a drop of alcohol since, instead seeking support from my loved ones and advice from my therapist instead of the bottom of a whiskey tumbler.

"Just you wait until you have your own. You'll be a walking zombie, just like me." A sparkle of mischief mixed with pride flashed in her eyes. "You're going to be the best dad. Mum would be so proud of you."

My chest expanded with her words and even the commotion in the back room wouldn't wipe the smile off my face.

"Coucou, mes chéris. The grannies are here."

"Oh, thank goodness! Can you believe it, Marie? No one has offered me a cup of tea yet."

"Ah, non. That's no good. Let's make some thé for everyone. Daan? You'll have some too?"

"Yes please, Marie."

"How many times must I tell you? It's Maman now. Okay?"

"Okay..."

"...Maman."

"Okay, Maman."

"That's better. Now, thé."

"What's thé, aunty Noa?" Maggie asked.

"She's asking if he wants tea. You could just say tea, Frenchie, instead of showing off," Noa shouted over to her mum while brushing the wild curls out of Maggie's face.

Noa's mums had also moved back to town, but only recently. Their move was solely driven by the fact their only daughter was about to have their first grandchild and neither one of them could bear to stay away.

Our world of two was getting crowded. Weekends of lazing around the house were slowly transforming into chaotic Sunday lunches shared between the three houses. When our family wasn't around, Harlow, Posie and Selene were never too far to take over. Deep down, we both loved every second.

"I wish you'd let me take you away today," I whispered into my wife's ear as she helped Maggie polish off a second eclair I was pretty sure her mother hadn't agreed on. "I love them but they could have taken over the shop while we enjoyed our anniversary even if it was at home, in bed."

Exactly how we'd spent the first anniversary of what we liked to call "the grand slam". Noa, at home, naked in our bed while I fed her the icing off the cake I'd tried to bake for her. Tried being the keyword. Because I had tried and failed miserably.

I'd snuck out early that morning to pick up the bunch of flowers I'd made Harlow collect the day before. A bouquet of black and purple flowers, similar to the ones in the window of Wickedly Sweet on the day we "slammed" into each other again. The day I'd finally caught my breath because she was back.

Noa waited for me in the conservatory when I walked back into the house with a matching bouquet displayed right there in the middle of my childhood hiding spot.

We laughed that we'd had the same idea and then she told me how she felt sad when she thought of all the men who wouldn't get flowers until their funeral. She didn't want me to miss out on flowers, and love, or even a family now that she was here. I couldn't have loved her more for it.

I placed the bouquet I had for her right next to it and we sat on the floor of that conservatory for a while, heads pressed up against each other. She brought up Madeleine and while she reminisced, all I could think about was our future and how she was the best family I could hope for.

When her stomach growled, I'd jumped up and vowed to make the best cake she'd ever had besides her own. I'd helped her so often now that I was certain I wouldn't fail. Oh, how wrong I'd been and the only part edible that year was the icing. I was getting better every year. Noa kept up her tradition of buying me flowers and I continued to bake her a cake. She'd always eat every last bite, even the burnt edges.

"Grumpy pants. You love it really. We'll be home, tucked up in that bed before you know it. Let's stay a little longer. I have a feeling this baby will be here any day and we'll need their help at the bakery, then."

"Just not tonight, okay? I have plans for just the two of us tonight."

Noa smiled and placed a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth.

Happy endings were not guaranteed. Life would throw more than a handful of obstacles in our way and love wasn't enough to get through all of them. We both knew that, but right now? I was the happiest I could ever be.