Second Chance by Fate (Fated Apex Mates #3)

Epilogue

VIOLET

One Year Later

M y eyes flutter open at the subtle twitter of a bird. Blinking, I take in the crow perched on the balcony through the open French doors, the bird cocking its head toward me.

“Hello,” I murmur, my voice thick with sleep. “Any messages today?”

As if on cue to my question, a wail bursts out through the baby monitor from the bedside table, and I roll over to answer it.

“I got it,” Jax mumbles, his eyes still closed as he stumbles automatically out of bed.

“No, darling, I’ll go,” I tell him, shooing him back into bed with the others. “I’m already awake.”

He yawns and looks at me. “Are you sure?”

I grin at him.

“Of course.” I slip out of the California king bed to tend to the crying infant in the next room.

Jax falls back onto the mattress, and I find my robe hanging behind the bedroom door before ambling into the nursery. The nanny leans over Kian’s crib when I enter. She smiles at me.

“I’ve got him, Luna,” she offers, but I wave her back.

“It’s all right. If he’s awake, the other two will be up soon enough. I’ll take him for now.” I scoop up my wailing son, and he immediately relaxes in my arms, his vivid silver eyes unblinking as he stares back. “Good morning,” I coo. “Did you have sweet dreams?”

No sooner do I settle in the rocker to nurse than his middle brother begins to fuss, their youngest brother behind them. The nanny collects the other two babies, and soon, they are all settled and eating.

One by one, the Alphas saunter into the nursery, pausing in the doorway to take in the scene with affection.

Steele takes his son from the nanny, placing the boy on his chest as Enzo reaches for the youngest triplet.

“What should we do today?” Enzo asks the baby. “Should we learn about pack dynamics?”

I chuckle.

“Isn’t he the fun dad?” Jax jokes, extending his arms toward Kian for me to hand off the child. I give my son to him and take it all in with love.

“I don’t need to be fun,” Enzo reminds him. “I need to be present. That’s what these kids need, so they aren’t blindsided by our pasts when they grow up.”

My heart pangs as I realize he’s still affected by what happened with the dark coven, even though we don’t talk much about it.

“They are loved,” I promise him, rising from the chair to join his side. “And they know we are nothing if not unified always.”

I share a look with my Alphas, a heartbeat passing between us, the electric pulse of our matehood still palpable, as if the bond had only just been forged. It grows stronger every day, just like the love I have for my children.

The door to the nursery flies open, and Bitsy stands at the threshold, her face alight with excitement.

“Sorry to interrupt!” she gasps. “But you have to come and see this!”

My best friend leads the way down the hall, the hem of her nightgown swirling at her ankles as she races down the winding double staircase. In the sitting room, she waves us toward the open computer where she was clearly getting a jump on work already. She takes her PR position very seriously since we moved her here from Miami, even though I keep telling her she doesn’t need to work so hard.

“Look!”

I peer at the laptop as my mates look over the sofa behind her.

“Is that…?” Steele asks in disbelief.

“Yep!” Bitsy announces proudly. “The approval ratings of all the Apex Alphas in the country. And who is number one?”

I glance back at my partners, still holding our sons.

“I’m not surprised in the least,” I tell them. “You are the best.”

“Considering a year ago we had no respect in these parts at all, I’m stunned,” Enzo blurts out, and I laugh.

“You’ve earned it.” I stand straighter as Kian begins to stir again, kicking in his father’s arms.

“We earned it,” Jax corrects me, brushing a kiss across my lips.

“We need to announce this at the full moon party tonight,” Bitsy declares, clapping her hands together. “Everyone in Arizona needs to know that they’re reigned by the most powerful Alphas in the country.”

In unison, the triplets wail, and we burst out laughing.

“Leave it to me,” my friend urges, shooing us away.

We retreat to the nursery to leave the babies with the nanny and head to our room to dress for the day.

“Jax is right,” Enzo tells me, sidling up behind me in the full-length mirror.

He brushes the hair away from my neck and kisses me gently.

“About what?” I ask.

“We couldn’t have done it without you. You’re the reason we’ve come so far, Violet.”

Steele and Jax appear on either side of me, and I stare at their handsome faces in the glass, my heart swelling with happiness. We join hands and turn to leave the room together, just as we belong.