Baggar Vince

"Oh, wow. I uh, I love you, too, buddy," he told the boy who was looking at him like he was the only person on earth.

It wasn't until later that Vince looked back and realized that was the moment when he knew he wanted to be this boy's father. He was well aware that would never be true biologically, but that made no difference to him at all.

The connection between them had been as strong and as immediate as it had between him and his mother, and that connection grew even stronger as they sat and talked to nearly two in the morning.

That weekend, the three of them watched the first of many movies together, and in the middle of September, they drove to Orlando and spent their first weekend together seeing the Magic Kingdom and The Epcot Center. In between those two events, Maren asked the younger man she was falling in love with to stay with her after Jayden fell asleep, and she told Vince that didn't mean just to talk.

A few days after that, Jayden turned five, and the biggest (and best) gift he received was a huge replica of the Starship Enterprise, something Jayden wanted right next to his bed every night from then on.

As the weeks flew by, Maren saw Vince in many different situations, and each time she found herself loving him even more. He was absolutely wonderful with her son, and her sister Millie told Maren that if she didn't marry this guy, she would.

Maren laughed and reminded her she was already married, but Millie said Vince was the kind of guy she'd consider leaving her husband for. It wasn't true in the least, but Maren understood what her sister meant, because Vince was all that and more.

The biggest fear she had melted away when she brought Jayden to meet Vince's mother and father. She, of course, remembered the nice man who'd helped them, and the way his wife, Denise, doted on the little boy as well as the way she treated Maren herself, made her realize she would finally find the love she'd always craved as a part of this family.

By then, Maren was nearly out of money, and neither of them had any significant amount of it, but that wasn't nearly as important as just spending time together. That was the only thing that mattered to them. They enjoyed sitting in the living room playing a board game as much as going out to dinner or seeing a movie.

And it was that kind of thing that Maren had missed so much and wondered if she'd ever experience again. But each time Vince took her hand as they sat next to one another or whenever he smiled at her or told her how beautiful she was, something he did quite often, she was as happy as she'd ever been. Life with Len had been wonderful, and she missed him dearly. But she knew he'd want her to be happy, and Vince Barrow did that in so many ways.

Not long after the new year began, Maren started looking for a job, and when Vince suggested Publix, she gave him a funny look. But when he reminded her how well that chain took care of its employees, she told him that might not be such a bad idea.

A week later, she was working four hours a day, five days a week, bagging groceries while her handsome boyfriend in the hairnet helped manage the produce section. Each day, she would go look him up before leaving to get Jayden from Kindergarten, and without fail, she would kiss him goodbye no matter who was watching.

By early March those kisses continued but they were also followed with, "I love you," and by the end of April, Vince asked her to marry him one evening after having dinner at his parents' house with Millie and her husband, Carl, there with them.

Jayden, along with everyone but Maren, was let in on the surprise just before it happened, and somehow he managed not to spill the beans until Vince asked him if he was ready a few minutes later.

"Ready for what?" Maren asked, knowing something was going on.

Millie was all smiles as were Vince's parents, and when Jayden said, "Do I give it to her now, Vince?" she knew.

Vince and Jayden walked over to her together, and when Vince got on one knee, Maren started crying.

"Don't be sad, Mommy," Jayden told her. "Vince loves you and so do I!"

"I know, honey," she said, her voice ragged with emotion as her son handed Vince a little box.

"We both love you, Maren. And well, Jayden and I would like us to become a family. So..."

He opened the box, but before he could say another word, Maren, who was now crying openly, reached out and pulled both of them onto the couch with her.

"But Mommy! You have to wear the ring!" Jayden told her as she held the two men she loved the most as close as she could.

"You wanna help me, buddy?" Vince asked as his mom held out a trembling hand while covering her mouth with the other.

He nodded really big as Vince got the ring out and let the boy help him slide on his mother's finger. Once it was in place, she kissed her son then grabbed Vince and kissed him full on in front of everyone.

Millie and Vince's mom were both crying and the guys were both smiling and enjoying the situation greatly.

A year to the day from when Maren's car died, she married the handsome younger man who came to her rescue that day in the house where Vince grew up. The man who'd also helped her was his son's best man, and her sister was thrilled to be Maren's Maid of Honor.

Somehow, Charlie found a way to get them both a week off with pay and also collected enough money to let them spend four days and three nights in Niagara Falls on a honeymoon. And just as Wayne Barrow had said, Denise was beyond thrilled to watch her new grandson she loved almost as much as did his parents.

By the time Maren found out that her honeymoon had resulted in some very good news, Charlie found a manager's job for Vince who was now in charge of the dairy section of the store. With his raise in salary, Maren was able to stay home again and be a full-time mom, something she loved almost as much as being Mrs. Maren Barrow who'd fallen in love with a man who'd once been little more than the cute guy who bagged her groceries.

Within three months of their marriage, Vince's request to adopt Jayden was approved, and his name was formally changed to Jayden Manning Barrow with the former middle name of Kyle he'd never liked getting dropped, thus making everyone happy.

One evening, just days before their little girl was born, Maren took her husband's hand as they sat on the couch watching a family movie with Jayden and said, "They should make a movie about us."

Vince laughed and told her he thought that was a great idea.

"Or we should at least be on Dr. Phil, right?" he said with a chuckle.

"What? No! We're not dysfunctional. I'm just..."

"Older?" her husband teased.

"Well, okay. Yes. I am that," she admitted. "I was going to say 'huge', but okay. Older works."

"So what would they call this movie?" her husband asked.

"What else? Bagger Vince, of course," his beautiful wife told him with a laugh.

Vince put his arm around her and told he loved her, and even though she was nine months pregnant, he told her again just how beautiful she was.

And it was true. He still thought Maren Barrow was the most beautiful woman on earth, and that he was the luckiest man alive. After all, he now had a son he dearly loved, a daughter on the way, and a job he really enjoyed. Most of all, he was married to the gorgeous, older blonde he'd met while bagging her groceries, so life was indeed very, very good for 'Bagger Vince'.