I had swum with great white sharks.
Free-dived with blue sharks.
Helped rescue an entangled shark.
None of that compared to the nerves I felt when I walked downstairs that morning.
Paisley was already in the kitchen making breakfast.
She looked up and smiled.
She poured me a cup of coffee before I even had to ask.
I kissed her on the forehead.
She smiled into her coffee.
“My parents are coming today.”
I nearly choked on my drink.
She looked at me, trying not to laugh.
“You didn’t tell me it was today.”
“But I knew you’d overthink it.”
Before I could answer, Nick walked into the kitchen.
“What are we talking about?”
“My parents are coming over today.”
Chris slowly turned toward me with the biggest grin on his face.
“This is going to be fun.”
Chris was laying on the guest bedroom bed watching me.
“They’re all blue shirts.”
“They’re different blue shirts.”
Chris buried his face in a pillow.
Nick leaned against the doorway.
“You literally swam with Deep Blue.”
“But meeting Paisley’s parents has you changing outfits every ten minutes?”
“Deep Blue can’t judge me.”
Chris laughed so hard he nearly fell off the bed.
“I’ve never heard anything more Matt than that.”
By the time we got downstairs, Paisley was already outside with Roo.
A car slowly pulled into the driveway.
Paisley’s smile instantly grew.
Before anyone could move…
He sprinted across the yard as fast as his little legs would carry him.
A woman stepped out first.
The second she saw Roo, she laughed and knelt down.
Roo practically launched himself into her arms.
A man climbed out of the driver’s side, laughing as Roo immediately ran over to him next.
She hugged her mom first before wrapping her dad in a tight hug.
Watching her with them made me smile.
When she looked back at us, she motioned us over.
“It’s really nice to meet you.”
Her dad offered his hand.
“It’s nice to finally meet you too.”
“We’ve heard so much about you.”
Before I could answer, Paisley introduced the others.
“And these are Nick and Chris.”
Chris waved enthusiastically.
“It’s nice to meet you both.”
“So you’re the funny one.”
Chris gasped dramatically.
The nerves started disappearing.
We spent the afternoon outside around the picnic table overlooking the ocean.
But the conversation never stopped.
Paisley’s dad looked at the three of us.
“Whose idea was it to swim with great white sharks?”
Chris immediately pointed at Matt.
“It was technically all of ours.”
“I still can’t believe you all willingly got in the water.”
“It sounded like a great idea at the time.”
“You boys are crazier than I expected.”
“We’ve been told that before.”
After lunch, the conversation shifted to sharks.
Paisley’s mom smiled at her daughter.
“You’ve been obsessed with sharks since you were little.”
“She carried a stuffed great white shark everywhere.”
Paisley covered her face.
“If anyone asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up…”
I looked over at Paisley.
“She even corrected her second-grade teacher when she called sharks ‘fish with bad attitudes.’”
“I cannot believe you’re telling these stories.”
“I’m absolutely writing these down.”
Later that afternoon, Paisley’s dad stood up.
“Would you mind giving me a hand carrying something from the truck?”
We walked to the truck together.
For a minute, neither of us said anything.
Then he closed the tailgate and leaned against it.
“You care about my daughter.”
It wasn’t really a question.
He looked back toward the cottage where Paisley was laughing with her mom.
“She’s had people disappoint her before.”
“And she’s always been the kind of person who gives people the benefit of the doubt.”
He turned back toward me.
“When she told us about you…”
“But then we started watching your videos.”
“The way you look at her.”
“The way you encourage her.”
“The way you make sure she’s included.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Just keep treating her the way you have been.”
I didn’t even have to think about my answer.
“That’s all I needed to hear.”
Back at the cottage, Paisley’s mom had pulled her into a hug.
“I have to tell you something.”
“I haven’t seen you smile this much in years.”
As the afternoon came to an end, it was time for her parents to head home.
Her mom hugged Paisley tightly.
Then, to my surprise, she hugged me too.
“It was wonderful finally meeting you.”
Paisley’s dad shook each of our hands.
Before getting into the car, he looked at the three of us.
“For looking after our daughter.”
“You’ll never have to worry about that.”
“And now I guess you two are family too.”
“We were hoping you’d say that.”
As they drove away, Paisley slipped her hand into mine.
She smiled, watching her parents’ car disappear down the road.
“I think they liked Nick and Chris more.”
He shrugged dramatically.
Paisley laughed, the sound carrying across the beach with the evening breeze.
I looked at her, smiling brighter than I’d ever seen.
Seeing the people who mattered most to her accept us so effortlessly made something clear.
This wasn’t just a relationship anymore.
It was becoming a family.
And standing there with Paisley beside me, Nick and Chris joking in the background, and Roo happily chasing a seagull across the sand…
I couldn’t imagine wanting to be anywhere else.
