A Surprise Visit (Ethan x f!MC)
Book: Open Heart
Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x Natalie Cusack
Special Appearances: The Ramsack Kids
Word count: 998
Summary: Ethan gets a surprise for Father’s Day.
Rating: T
Category: Fluff. Nothing but fluff.
Author’s Note: So, I realize Father’s Day is not until Sunday but I will be out of town for a memorial and without wifi so I’m posting this now. Happy early Father’s Day to all dads, step-dads, grandads, and father figures out there! You are appreciated and loved! 💙
A few weeks later...
Ethan looked up from his paperwork at the sound of his phone ringing. Rolling out his neck, he picked up the receiver and clicked “Answer.”
“Hello?”
“Hi Daddy!”
Ethan grinned at the sound of his youngest daughter’s voice. “Hi, baby.”
“Happy Father’s Day!” Lydia exclaimed.
“Thank you, honey.”
“Are you doing anything fun?”
Ethan chuckled and shook his head. “No. Your mother is taking me out to dinner, I think. But we’re keeping it low-key.”
“You‘ve always been the party animal of the family,” Lydia joked. “Is Evie going with you to dinner?”
Ethan shrugged. “I’m not sure. Last I spoke to her, she said she was really busy with work so I don’t know if she’ll be joining us.”
“Mm,” Lydia replied. “Well, I’m sorry I can’t be there. But I’m sending you lots of love vibes!”
“Your vibes are felt and appreciated,” Ethan said, smiling. “You doing okay?”
“Yeah, just busy. You know how it is.”
“I do,” he replied, nodding. “Just make sure you carve out some time for yourself, okay? Don’t be like your old man and make work your whole life.”
“I won’t, I promise,” Lydia said. “I gotta go though. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay, baby. Thank you for calling.”
“Of course! Love you! And give mom my love too!”
“Will do, honey. Love you.”
Ethan hung up the phone and smiled. Father’s Day looked different now that all of his kids had grown and moved out. But his heart swelled every time they called and he heard their voices. There was a time he never thought he would be a husband, or a father. Now, he doesn’t know what he would do without the little family he and Nat created.
There was a soft knock at the door and his wife popped her head through. “Hey you,” she said.
“Hey,” he replied, smiling. “Lydia called. She sends her love.”
Natalie smiled and entered the room fully, walking up to his desk. “I send my love back.” She leaned across the desk and kissed Ethan softly. “Happy Father’s Day, my love.”
“Thank you, love.”
“You should get ready to go, babe. Dinner’s in a little over an hour.”
Ethan nodded and stood from the desk. “Let me get cleaned up.”
He placed another soft kiss on Nat’s lips before walking ahead of her to leave the room. Natalie smirked behind his back and slapped his rear end as he walked by, causing Ethan to jump. He turned around and raised an eyebrow at her, but she feigned ignorance.
“What?” She asked, her eyes wide but shining with mischief.
“So that’s how you want to play it, huh?”
“Play what— oh shit!” She began to laugh as Ethan swooped down and picked Natalie up, throwing her over his shoulder! “Ethan! Put me down!”
“Oh, I will,” he replied, smirking. He walked them into the bedroom, Natalie laughing the entire way, before he dropped her onto the bed and he crawled over her, peppering her face with kisses.
“Mm, Ethan,” Nat said, in between kisses. “Baby, we’re short on time.”
“Then I’ll be sure to be quick,” he murmured. Natalie didn’t argue as his hands and lips began to explore her body.
---------------------------------
An hour later, Nat and Ethan walked through the doors of the restaurant, right on time for their reservation. Natalie gave their name to the maître d’ and took Ethan’s hand in hers as they walked to their table.
As soon as their table was in their line of sight, Ethan stopped short, his jaw dropping. Sitting at their table, was all three of his children, chatting and laughing as they awaited their parents’ arrival. Natalie looked at Ethan and gave him a smile. “Happy Father’s Day.”
Ethan looked at her in awe. “You knew?”
“Of course I did,” she replied. “It was Evie’s idea but I helped organize everything. And I picked up Lydia from the airport earlier in the week.”
Ethan’s eyes welled with tears and he blinked them back as he pulled Natalie in close, kissing her temple. “Thank you, my love.”
Nat grinned up at him and bumped her hip with his. “Well, go on. They’re waiting for you.”
He wiped his eyes and made his way over the table, his smile widening into a grin as all three kids stood up and wrapped their father into a tight group hug. Ethan kissed the tops of all three of their heads and squeezed them tightly in his embrace. Natalie walked up to the group and joined the hug before they all split and sat back down at the table.
Dinner was a lively and happy affair, with conversation flowing easily. Ethan couldn’t help but grin as he looked at his family, his heart swelling. Suddenly, a vision flashed before his eyes, and he was a younger man, no gray hairs or wrinkles in sight. Natalie, next to him, looking radiant, as always, and their three children sitting before them at the dining table, all young and boisterous, with cherubic cheeks and eyes full of wonder, the sound of their giggles filling his ears.
The vision passed just as quickly as it appeared, and Ethan was back in the present, at dinner with his three adult children and his wife, now with a few gray hairs and some laugh lines, but still breathtakingly beautiful. He reached over and took Natalie’s hand in his, rubbing his thumb along her wedding band.
She smiled at him. “You okay?” She asked.
He leaned over and kissed her temple. “I’ve never been better.”
Noah cleared his throat and raised his wine glass. “I propose a toast!” He gestures towards his father with his glass. “To the best dad in the world. Happy Father’s Day!”
“Happy Father’s Day!” His family echoed, clinking their glasses together.
Ethan smiled. He knew he’d be wrong in the future, because something better always came along, but in this moment, he knew: he had never been happier.
Bonus:
A/N: Tagging separately.
