Following Daniel's arrival, the rest of the guests began to arrive, and Tessa had to wonder, what was the purpose of so many people at a 1-year-old's birthday bash? The birthday girl, herself, was sound asleep upstairs.

 Regardless, she interacted with most of the people, chuckling and laughing along with them as she explained her relation to the Robertson's and they did the same.

Every now and again, her gaze would drift off to Daniel, who looked absolutely ravishing in the black dress pants and a button-up, the whole aura he radiated having her heart flutter inside her chest as she tried to calm down by chugging down glass after glass of orange juice. Every now and again, he would even notice her watching him and take a sip from his glass before looking at her from the corner of his eyes and poking out his tongue to lick his lips. Her face growing furiously red before she diverted her eyes.

So she tried to resume talking to the guests, her cheeks still a bright pink as she tried to settle the blush.

"Tessa!" Delilah's voice called out to her as she looked away from the guests, nodding to the mother of the birthday girls and allowing her to take her towards the kitchen.

"What's up?"

"I am so sorry," She spoke quietly as the younger girl looked at her in confusion. "I know that things are really tense between you and Daniel and we invited you thinking that he was too busy to show up – but honestly, that's our bad judgment – and I am so sorry that you have to go through this, I know how uncomfortable it is and I really just felt bad, especially with the looks that Daniel has been giving you, you don't deserve that and-"

Delilah kept speaking about it as Tessa looked up, straightening to find Daniel standing with his side facing her and her eyes sparkled as she watched him scratch his ear: their signal. The other girl's words got drowned out in her mind as she watched her boyfriend give the other man a smile and patted his shoulder, excusing himself before walking towards the guest bedroom.

"-So I hope that everything is alright and I'm really sorry,"

"It's alright," Tessa assured with a dismissive wave, putting her glass down on the counter before moving away. "Now if you'll excuse me," She sighed and walked away, making her way down the hall and looking back at the guests mingling before slipping into the guest bedroom.

The door closed before she could do it, and found herself caged by Daniel's looming figure.

"So fucking gorgeous," He groaned before leaning down and lifting her up, pressing his lips to hers, devouring her fervently as Tessa let out a breathless chuckle and kissed back with just as much vigor. Gasping into his mouth when he hitched her white floral skirt higher up and caressed her thighs.

"Oh," She bit her lip from moaning at his ministrations as his other hand moved to the back of the full-sleeved lace top she had on. "Stop, stop," Tessa heaved breathlessly, Daniel pulling back to look at her with slowly laboring breaths.

"What?"

"Listen," She pointed to the door she was pressed against. Falling quiet, they listened to the sound of distant chatter and footsteps shuffling before Nathan's words reached them.

"Oh, Mel is awake," They heard him say as they could hear the baby cooing. "Great, I'll go get the gifts from the guest bedroom,"

"Shit," Daniel hissed and put Tessa down, the girl freaking out and looking around her as to where they could hide. "Here," He pulled her with him as they both squeezed into the little wardrobe, closing the door just as the bedroom door swung open.

"Has anyone seen Danny?" Lucas's voice penetrated the wooden panel of the wardrobe.

"Probably out the back and smoking," Nathan's voice responded. "You know how much mom hates his habit, so he does it out of her sight."

"True," His brother spoke as both Daniel and Tessa held their breath, waiting for the two to leave and finally exhaling when the door closed behind the two brothers. Both of them waiting for a minute before he pushed open the closet door, slowly peeking out and sighing when the coast was clear.

"Come on," He stepped out and helped Tessa out as well, looking at her wide eyes and disheveled expression as he couldn't help but snort at how ridiculous she looked and burst into laughter, trying to stifle it behind his hand as she couldn't help but chuckle along with him at the absurdity of it all. "Oh! What an experience," He spoke quietly and sat back on the bed, grabbing hold of Tessa's wrists and pulling her to stand between his legs.

"A funny story to share in the later years," She giggled and combed her fingers through his hair, both of them slowly calming down as Daniel wrapped his arms around her petite waist and pulled her to him, hugging her close with his forehead against the base of her breasts. "What's the matter?"

"Hmm?" He hummed at the question.

"What's wrong?"

"Well, my mom has invited these family friends of ours," Daniel pulled back to look up at her. "And the last time they were here, their daughter had this massive crush on me,"

"Mhmm..." Tessa waited for him to continue.

"And...well...mom has looked at her as a possible match for me..."

"For marriage?" She pulled away, suddenly realizing what he was talking about. "Your mom has invited your future fiancée?!"

"No, baby," Daniel calmed her by grabbing her hand and squeezing it. "You're my future fiancée, you and I both know that,"

"But this girl-!"

"-Shh," He shushed her and stood up, placing a gentle kiss to her lips to appease her worries. "There is no one else for me than you, you know I love you, Tessa,"

"This girl-"

"-Means nothing to me,"

"Are you sure?" She chewed at her lip in her anxiety. "What if she is prettier? What if she's taller and more charismatic? What if she's perfect?-"

"-She's not, she's not," Daniel shook his head at her questions. "She's ugly, and fat, and short, and very dull. You have nothing to worry about,"

"Are you sure?" Tessa looked up at him with her eyes shining with uncertainly, biting her lip with all the worry that gnawed away at her insides.

"Positive," He assured and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"That bitch!" Tessa found herself exclaiming out loud as the final guests – Daniel's possible wife – arrived with her parents and brother, completely oblivious to the reaction Anthony had beside her at her swearing.

She wanted to swear at Daniel and strangle him to see he had lied to her. The girl before her was a goddess. Wearing a sheath crew, open back, long sleeved short white lace dress with nude stilettoes. Standing at 5'10 with the 4-inch heels and smiling charmingly at the people she greeted. Her golden hair tied into a ponytail with s few strands faming her face as her makeup was exquisite and enhanced her features.

"Daniel!" She watched the girl exclaim in a voice as soft as honey as her startling hazel eyes lighted with delight and made her way over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and placing a kiss on his cheek, uncomfortably close to his lips. "Here is my future fiancé," She batted her eyelashes at him as Tessa resisted the urge to push the girl off him, watching Daniel give her a curt smile before trying to distance himself from her.

His eyes roaming up at the faces before he caught the hurt and anger on his girlfriend's face, watching her grab her clutch from the counter and made her way out the back door, rushing to the forest as fast as she could.

"Excuse me, I have to attend this call," Daniel excused himself as he took out his phone and pulled away from the girl before making his way out the back door and towards where Tessa had run off to.

"Tessa," He called out after her.

"You liar!" She shrieked at him in anger when he finally came into ear shot of her. "You told me she was fat! Ugly! Dull! Short!-" She hit his chest with every word, the jealousy and rage simply burning inside her.

"-Tessa-"

"-She is a fucking goddess!" Her voice rose to a shrill shriek. "You lied-!"

"-She is nothing!" Daniel grabbed hold of her wrist before she could hit him again. "She means nothing to me, baby, please,"

"You lied to me," The tears chocked her throat as the anxiety of losing this amazing man to that goddess had overwhelmed her. "You told me, you told me she was fat and ugly and dull and she's not-"

"-Would you have felt better if I told you she was the reincarnated version of Aphrodite, huh?" Daniel cupped her face into his hands, his gaze softening to see her eyes moist with tears. "Baby, she is literally external beauty and is rotten to the core, believe me. I told mom not to invite them and I told her I don't want to marry that girl, and she said that since I wasn't coming she could invite whomever she wanted."

"This is Melanie's first birthday!" Tessa sniffled. "What does a goddess have to do here?"

"Shh..." Daniel soothed her, pulling her towards him and hugging her close. "She may look beautiful on the outside, but she is ugly from the inside, you can ask any one of my brothers. She means nothing to me, baby, I just want you for the rest of my life, darling, not her."

Cupping her face into his hands, he wiped away the tears that leaked down her cheek as she looked at him with a frown, the fear far too great in her mind.

"Baby, you're the Meredith to my Derek, you're the Rachel to my Ross, you're the love my life, you're the person I can't stop thinking about," Daniel rubbed his thumb over her cheekbone, Tessa sniffling and looking up at him when he made the references to the shows she forced him to binge watch with her. "The only one I can see a future with, you're my best friend, the one I love talking to, and the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, you're the one I'm meant to be with. You're the one I always come back to, you're the air that I breathe, you're the reason I keep smiling, you're the reason I believe in love, you're the person I can always count on. You're my person, my lobster, Bambi, you are my everything." Daniel chuckled at her hysteria, pushing a strand of her hair back and simply admiring the beauty of the woman before him.

"And I can't stand seeing you like this, baby," He gave her a gentle smile. "Come on, give me a smile. Give me a quick smile. One quick smile, and then we have to go back into that cacophony of middle-aged crises on a 1-year-olds birthday."

His words had Tessa let out a choked laugh, Daniel grinning in triumph as she wiped her nose with the back of her hand, shaking her head at his antics and laughing.

"There is my Bambi," He cooed and hugged her close, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "I am yours, Bambi, always will be, I promise,"

Her heart swelled in her chest at his words and Tessa looked up at him adoringly, placing a hand against his cheek and about to kiss him when a voice called out to them.

"Daniel?" Her smooth silken voice called from the edge of the forest as he groaned and pulled away. "Daniel!"

"Coming!" He responded from his place in the middle of the trees before turning back to Tessa. "See you inside?"

"Hmm," She nodded and let him walk away, taking a moment to recompose herself before she went inside to deal with everything. "Daniel," She stopped him before he could disappear, watching him turn back around with a questioning gaze.

"I love you," Tessa called out to him, watching a wide grin spread across Daniel's lips.

"I love you, too." He blew a kiss her way as she chuckled at him, knowing that this idiot was hers for the rest of her life. 

And that she wouldn't have wanted it any other way.