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Andy was preparing dinner when she felt a small body hug her leg and tug on her shirt.
“What is it sweetheart?”
“Ma, how did you and Mom meet?”
Andy and Miranda were two years into their marriage when their little family of five, including Patricia of course, became six. It’s been a few years since then, Cami, now eight, is becoming increasingly curious about well—everything.
“Oh this is gonna be a good one” Cassidy said, passing by Andy in the kitchen.
After finishing university, Cassidy and Caroline moved to London to start their careers. They were in town for the holidays, visiting their mothers.
Andy smiled, “Hmm, why the sudden curiosity?”
“Why nooot Ma? My friends at school were telling stories of how their parents met. I just want to knoow.”
“Pleaase, it’s not like I’m reaching for the stars here.” Cami complained which made Andy snort, vividly remembering where their daughter clearly got that line from.
“Alright, alright, hold your horses.” Andy said, letting out a chuckle.
“I met your mom at work—I used to be her assistant back then.”
Cami listened carefully as she sat between her sisters, paying attention as though it were the most important thing in the world.
“We reconnected quite some time after I left the magazine”
“How long was that?”
“It took them two years.” Caroline replied.
After the two were spotted dining together on the Upper East Side, the papers speculated for months—but neither of them confirmed anything.
They went public a year into their relationship, when Miranda attended the Met Gala that year. The endless camera flashes immortalized the moment, putting the rumors to rest as Andy stepped out of the car in a vintage Chanel gown that perfectly complemented Miranda’s ensemble for the night. Together, they ascended the steps of the MET—Miranda with Andy on her arm.
The reaction was a mix of fascination and disapproval. Half of New York adored them together, while the other half received the news far less warmly. After three divorces, a relationship with a woman was hardly what Miranda’s reputation needed. But she didn’t care.
The Proposal
It was a normal weeknight at the townhouse.
They had just finished tucking the twins into bed. Miranda sat on the living room sofa, working on the book, while Andy occupied the opposite end, typing away on her laptop.
“I’m going to make some tea,” Andy said, standing as she headed toward the kitchen.
Miranda only hummed in response.
The turntable played softly, the room dimly lit—just a single lamp casting a warm glow over Miranda’s workspace.
‘The night we met, I knew I needed you so…’
A moment later, Andy returned.
She set something down on the coffee table. Where Miranda’s tea should have been sat a small velvet box.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Miranda asked, only half-looking up.
“Open it.”
Miranda reached for the box and opened it cautiously. Inside was an emerald cut diamond set on a simple gold band. She looked up at Andy.
“What do you say?” Andy asked nervously, trying to keep her composure.
‘And if I had the chance, I’d never let you go…’
Miranda blinked, still processing the scene before her. “Andrea, I—are you sure? I’ve been divorced three times. I think it’s safe to say marriage isn’t my strong suit.”
‘So won’t you say you love me…’
”Let me finish, baby—hmm?” Andy said gently. She moved closer, lowering herself until she was eye level with Miranda.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Andy said, her voice steady despite the nerves taking over her. “I know I left once—and trust me when I say that was the biggest mistake of my life.”
“But if you’ll have me… I want to spend the rest of my life making up for it. Waking up next to you and watching the twins grow up.”
‘I’ll make you so proud of me…’
Andy swallowed, briefly pausing. “Marry me? Please.”
For once, Miranda didn’t hesitate. She moved abruptly, pulling Andy into her arms.
“Of course, darling,” she said softly, before kissing her. Only then did Andy breathe with a sigh of relief.
‘We’ll make them turn their heads every place we go…’
A few days earlier:
“What do you guys think about me asking your mom to marry me?”
“Are you kidding?” Caroline said, stunned.
Andy froze.
She’d been living with the three of them for almost a year, and she thought she got along with the twins pretty well. The idea that they might not approve—might not want her to marry their mother—hit harder than she expected, leaving her in a sudden sense of defeat.
“We thought you’d never ask!” Cassidy said, excitedly.
“Took you long enough!” Caroline added, grinning. “Oh, this is going to be exciting. Have you picked out a ring yet?”
“How are you going to propose?” Cassidy, leaning forward, eager to hear the rest of what Andy had to say.
They went back and forth, bombarding Andy with a hundred questions and suggestions—insisting on planning an elaborate proposal, with a candle-lit dinner, rose petals, and a handful of other ridiculous ideas.
Andy laughed, trying and failing to keep up.
By the time Miranda got home, the television was still on. The three of them had clearly fallen asleep hours ago, sprawled on the living room sofa.
Miranda paused in the doorway smiling. Quietly, she crossed the room, turned off the television, and draped a blanket over them.
The Wedding
They got married not long after same sex marriage was legalized in New York. The wedding was held in the New York Botanical Garden, an intimate ceremony, with only their closest friends and family in attendance. The venue was warmly lit with candles and adorned with hundreds of various flowers.
Andy wore a satin Vivienne Westwood gown with a chiffon cape overlay, carrying a bouquet of amaranths and calla lilies, while Miranda donned a white Schiaparelli suit.
“Shall we?” Andy turned to Miranda and asked.
She was guiding Miranda towards the center, when the music started playing.
‘At last. My love has come along.’
Andy took Miranda’s hand in hers and put them over her shoulders. She took a step towards Miranda, closing distance between them and settled her hands on Miranda’s waist.
‘My lonely days are over’
“You’re doing it again.” Miranda said while Andy stared at her.
“I’ll keep doing it for the rest of my life.” Andy replied and Miranda let out a quiet laughter, nestling her head on the crook of Andy’s neck.
They stayed like that—holding each other close, lingering even after the song had ended.
Caroline and Cassidy first called Andy “Ma” just hours after she married their mother. They had decided it was only right—she knew them better than their own father ever had, and she loved them more than anything. And they had only been waiting for the perfect moment.
“Hello, we’re Caroline and Cassidy Priestly—but you already knew that, considering we look identical and all.”
“When we first met Andy, we got her in trouble,” Caroline said.
“Big trouble,” Cassidy added, widening her eyes.
“Sorry, Andy,” they said in unison.
“You three spend so much time together, your humor is rubbing off on them,” Miranda whispered to Andy, seated beside her.
“We thought she was the coolest person in the world—not because she got us the next unreleased Harry Potter book,” Cassidy said.
Caroline shot her sister a look. Really?
“Okay, maybe greatly because of that,” Cassidy corrected, earning a wave of laughter from the room.
“But honestly,” Caroline continued, “we think she’s the coolest person in the world because of how she loves Mom. She knows every little thing about her—how to calm her down, what makes her tick, and all the things the rest of the world doesn’t see.”
“And somehow, with the million things she has to worry about, she still finds time to hang out with us, help us with homework, come to our soccer matches, and make pancakes on Sunday mornings.”
“And she can tell us apart,” Cassidy added, grinning, making Andy laugh.
“We couldn’t be happier to officially have you as part of our family” They looked at each other before saying “We love you, Ma.”
“Congratulations to you both.”
Andy tried so hard not to cry—but hearing them call her Ma when she had not expected it at all, seeing that they truly saw her as their parent, undid her completely. Miranda wrapped her arm around Andy’s shoulder reassuringly and smiled.
After several other speeches from close family and friends. It was Miranda’s turn to speak.
Andy kissed Miranda’s hand before letting her walk to the front, smiling at her.
It was a rare sight—to see Miranda with such softness and unmistakable adoration in her eyes. For as long as anyone had known her, she had been the dragon lady who ruled Runway with an iron fist; who commanded the fashion industry without having to utter a single word. The so-called snow queen who froze hell over and drove all three of her husbands away.
Miranda Priestly did not bend to anyone or anything.
And yet—
“To Andrea, my darling wife,” she began, her voice steady, composed. “After three failed marriages, I never imagined I would find myself here again. One would think I’d have learned by now.”
A soft chuckle escaped her, echoed by quiet laughter from the guests surrounding them.
“Yet here we are,”
A pause.
“So I’d like to thank you for seeing me—beyond everything else that I am. For seeing the truth in me, despite the walls I have so carefully built.”
She took a moment, composing herself.
“Your patience, and your rather unconventional sense of humor, never cease to amaze me. You ground me.” Her gaze softened, ever so slightly.
“You are, quite inconveniently, the sun.”
She drew a small breath, looking at Andy.
“And I find that I do not mind orbiting you. Thank you for allowing me to bask in your warmth.”
Another pause.
“I love you, darling.”
As if Caroline and Cassidy’s speech wasn’t enough, Miranda had to make her cry even more than she already was. Her makeup must be ruined at this point.
The night carried on with laughter, dancing, and a great deal of drinking.
Soon, it was time for them to cut the cake. On the table sat a two-tiered cerulean cake that tasted faintly of limoncello tiramisu.
“Here,” Andy said softly, stepping closer. “Let me,”
She slipped her hand over Miranda’s, guiding it. Together, they pressed the knife into the cake, cutting the first slice.
They each took a small piece with their forks. Andy lifted hers toward Miranda’s mouth.
Miranda raised an eyebrow.
Andy grinned. “What? We’re supposed to feed each other our first bite, you know.”
“This is the first time I’m doing this,” Miranda replied dryly. “Albeit my previous nuptials.”
“Well,” Andy said, tilting her head, “there’s a first time for everything.”
Miranda studied her for a moment—clearly suspicious.
And then Andy, entirely without warning, dabbed a small smear of icing onto the tip of Miranda’s nose.
Miranda blinked.
Andy barely had time to react before Miranda retaliated—far more precise, a light streak of icing along Andy’s cheek.
“Miranda!”
They both paused, then Miranda’s face finally cracked into a wide grin.
They both laughed.
Really laughed.
Still smiling like children, they lifted their forks and fed each other a bite of cake, a little less gracefully than intended.
Around them, the room erupted into cheers.
That moment, they looked less like the most intimidating woman in fashion and her irrepressible bride,
and more like two people, entirely undone by joy.
Miranda heard laughter echoing through the corridors as she unlocked the front door.
“Moooom!” Cami ran toward her, her sisters following close behind.
Miranda bent down just in time to catch her in a hug. “Well, hello to you too.”
“Hello, Bobbseys. Where’s your mother?” Miranda asked, pressing a kiss to each of their cheeks.
“Ma’s in the kitchen—we just finished setting the table.” Caroline said, helping their mother out of her coat.
The four of them moved further into the house, where they found Andy hovering over the sink.
“Hello, darling,” Miranda said, stepping in to press a soft kiss to Andy’s cheek.
“Hi. You’re early,” Andy smiled, turning and pulling her into a proper kiss.
“Eww!” Cami complained, covering her eyes with both hands.
“What have you girls been up to, hmm?” Miranda asked curious
“Cams was asking Ma about how you two met,” Cassidy answered.
“Did she also tell you how much groveling she had to do for me to take her back?” Miranda deadpanned, making the twins laugh.
“We just got to the wedding part!” Cami added eagerly.
“Alright, calm down, young lady. Your Ma can carry on after we’re through with dinner.”
Miranda turned to Andy, lowering her voice just slightly. “I do hope you kept the details of the honeymoon to yourself, darling,” she whispered jokingly before sitting down.
The Honeymoon
“Really, Andréa? Paris?” Miranda asked, unimpressed.
Andy glanced at her. “Wow. We’ve been married for, what, twenty-four hours, and I’m already back to Andrea? Last time I checked I was ‘darling’ to you”
Miranda didn’t look up. “Oh don’t be dramatic.” wrapping her arms around her wife’s waist.
Andy softened, just slightly. “We never really got to see it, at least not properly.”
Every time Miranda was in the city her schedule was packed morning to night with work meetings, dinners, and benefits. She had very little to no time to actually see it, and she honestly never really bothered to.
“And I thought it was finally time we replaced some of the less… pleasant memories.”
Miranda paused, studying her for a moment.
“Very well,” she said.
They left New York the day after the wedding and flew to Paris for their honeymoon.
After a few days in the city, they decided to leave for a chateau in the French countryside—somewhere quieter, far from the city. Something that offered the kind of peace and stillness they both very much needed.
A break away from their fast-paced and demanding careers.
It was one of those late nights again when Andy joined Miranda.
Like most nights they had some record playing—but this time, there was an actual cup of tea waiting on the table.
“Happy Anniversary, darling.”
‘And I love you so…The people ask me how…’
“Dance with me?”
”Always.” Miranda stood, taking Andy’s hand without hesitation.
‘How I've lived 'til now…I tell them I don't know…’
Ten years and three children together.
‘I guess they understand…How lonely life has been…’
“I say that celebrations are in order,” Miranda murmured into Andy's ear.
“Mm-hmm.” Andy leaned in, brushing a kiss against her lips. “You already know.”
‘But life began again…The day you took my hand’
Cami descended from the staircase, sleep still in her eyes. She paused in the doorway, unnoticed, watching her mothers sway to the music—holding each other, fitting together like puzzle pieces.
The chorus faded into the background.
And at eight years old, she was certain,
That was what love looked like.