Epilogue
One Year Later
MIA
As I push through our front door, arms laden with bags, I can't help but marvel at how far we've come. A year ago, I was guarding Evan's life while hiding our son's existence. Now, here we are, married and expecting our second child. The journey hasn't been easy, but every struggle was worth it to get to this moment
Julia is laughing with Mallory, her best friend, and Brent’s sister, but her attention falls onto me immediately. “Mia, you could’ve asked for help,” she says with a chuckle while making her way over to me.
I drop the bags onto the floor, then walk toward our kitchen and place the large cake on the counter. “It isn’t a big deal. I’m pregnant, and a few bags won’t hurt me.”
Mallory scoffs. “I think it would do you good to make sure your husbands know that.”
Unfortunately, I have to agree with her. Brent and Evan are amazing but entirely too protective of me and Julia. As soon as Evan found out we were expecting a baby, which wasn’t long after our impromptu wedding, he scolded me for trying to climb a ladder.
Luckily, I’ve got Julia who shares in my pain.
When we announced our pregnancy to the band, which Evan had enthusiastically rejoined following Mack's arrest, Julia clapped excitedly before announcing their own pregnancy.
It’s been a whirlwind, to say the least.
Since the stalker situation, it feels like a lifetime has passed us by. We’ve grown not only as individuals but as a couple as well, and I couldn’t be happier.
Liam’s tiny footsteps echo through the room as he rushes down the hallway, smiling brightly at me. “Mommy, can we have the cake yet?”
I roll my eyes and chuckle, then bend down. “Not yet, little man, where’s your dad?”
Just as I ask the question, Evan strolls in through the back door. He scoops Liam up with a big grin that our son mimics immediately.
“Hey, buddy,” he says while holding him close. “You ready to find out if you’re going to have a brother or sister?”
Liam nods excitedly. “I hope it’s both. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”
Evan chuckles, flashing me an amused glance. “Yeah, buddy, it would.”
We both know there’s no possible way for it to be both, but Liam doesn’t need to know that just yet — he’ll find out soon enough.
As Evan carries Liam out the back door, our son giggling along the way, I place a hand over my heart with a small smile. Their bond never fails to warm my heart, and it’s only going to intensify once we have our new bundle of joy.
Today, we get to find out what we are having right alongside Brent and Julia, and I’m nervous.
Yes, I’m one of those women who looked up every old wives' tale known to man and have come to the conclusion that we’re having another boy. Not that I wouldn’t mind another one. Liam is the best, but a little girl running around wouldn’t be so bad, either.
Julia places a hand on my shoulder and smiles. “Why don’t we get everything else set up?”
At the last second, I realized that I never got decorations for the big day, so I had to rush to the store for supplies this morning.
As I set up the gender reveal decorations, I catch Evan's eye across the yard. He winks at me, and I'm instantly transported back to that first day on tour when he tried to charm his way past my professional barriers. If only we knew then where we'd end up.
Mallory grabs a few bags and starts carrying them out the back door. Although she’s Julia’s best friend, she and I have had a few conversations along the way, and I can tell how much she loves her brother. She seems to be more excited about being an aunt, which has been fun to watch.
She knows the gender of Julia’s baby, while Kenzie is holding my results close to her chest.
I’ve tried my hardest to get the results out of her, but her lips are sealed and there hasn’t been a single emotion in her eyes that would clue me into the results.
I’m eager to know.
When Julia and I get outside, the guys look at the bounce house—which Liam convinced Evan we needed for the event—with frowns on their faces as it deflates to the ground. Evan shakes his head, listening to something Brent says, and Ryker saunters up to them with a smile.Donny joins them, drumsticks twirling in his hands as he surveys the deflating bounce house. His easy grin suggests he's already formulating a solution to the problem
The last time I saw anything about Ryker was when he left the band, and he’s been staying in Arizona with his wife, Wren. They arrived a couple of days ago after receiving an invitation from us for the party, and I can tell how excited Evan is to have him here.
A groan beside me catches my attention and Mallory is rolling her eyes at something Jace says as he walks past her. I’m not sure what’s going on with those two, but I can see the way he looks at her when she’s not looking.
He either really wants to get her in his bed, or he’s smitten with our dear friend.
Mallory insists that it’s nothing like that, though, so I’ve kept my mouth shut. Although, judging by the way she narrowed her eyes on more than one occasion when a woman approached him, I’m willing to bet she’s full of herself.
Evan lets the others figure out what’s going on with the bounce house as he makes his way over to me with a small smile. He tugs me against his side, his lips lingering over mine. “You ready to find out, darlin’?”
I nod excitedly just as Kenzie scurries across the lawn and sets up our reveal in the middle of it.
She loves to torture me.
“How much longer?”
Evan chuckles but glances at his watch. “Not for another hour.”
“God, I’m going to go insane. Can’t we just do it now and get it out of the way?”
Julia gasps. “No way!”
If it weren’t her first kid, she’d understand the pain I feel right now. Once you have a son, you can’t help but hope that the next one will be a little girl.
My husband is convinced pink confetti will come out of the cannons Kenzie got for us, but the old wives' tales have proved me otherwise.
“Maybe I should take you inside and release some of that tension,” Evan whispers into my ear, making sure no one else can hear him.
I shiver in response, then step away from him. “Uh uh, Goldie.”
He winks before tugging me back against him, his eyes following Liam’s frame around the yard as he runs around excitedly. “He’s thrilled to be a big brother.”
That is an understatement.
When I bought the crib for the baby, Liam frowned at it and asked, But how will I fit in there, too?
My heart burst with happiness, but I quickly explained that he wouldn’t be able to sleep with his brother or sister for quite some time. He didn’t appreciate that and has been begging me to get a bigger bed for him to fit into it.
I can’t wait to watch him with the new baby.
***
EVAN
As soon as Mia comes up to my side an hour later, on the dot, I chuckle as she tugs me in the direction of Kenzie standing on the far side of the lawn. Julia is calmly walking with Brent, a hand placed over her growing belly with a smile on her face, and I can’t help but smile at the image.
A year ago, I never would’ve expected to be here.
I also hadn’t expected to be shot.
Finding out Mack, our former manager, was stalking me is something I still haven’t been able to get over. Mia does her best to help me through the tough times. I find her hand and give it a squeeze, even though she’s acting like this gender reveal is a life-or-death situation.
That’s what I love about her, though.
While I was recovering in the hospital, I told my mom what my plan was, and she was over the moon about it. She knew that I’d eventually find someone to love, even if it wasn’t in the time frame she had hoped, and she was more than eager to provide input to me as I shopped for rings online.
A few months later, Mia and I got married on the beach outside my vacation home with only my parents, Liam and Kenzie in attendance.
Today, though, we’ve invited all of our friends and family along.
My mother is sitting in a chair closer to our section, where the cannons are resting on a small table in front of a pink and blue banner, and she chuckles as Mia rushes past her. She knows as well as I do how eager Mia has been to know the gender of our baby.
When we finally come to a stop in front of the cannons, I have to keep a strong hold on Mia so she doesn’t get any bright ideas to set one of them off before Kenzie gives her the go-ahead. Liam is bouncing happily next to us, his eyes shining with nothing but love for his baby sibling, and my heart warms at the sight.
This is everything I could’ve ever wanted and more.
With Mia’s security firm taking off and Raising Havoc touring less frequently, we’ve created a balance that works well for our family. It hasn’t been an easy road, but seeing Liam’s eyes brighten when he watches me get up on stage and being home for dinner most nights makes it all worthwhile.
Julia and Brent finally get to their section, where they will be popping balloons, and that’s when Mallory nods toward Kenzie.
Kenzie sighs, then looks at Mia and winks. “Well, what are you waiting for?”
Mia snatches one of the cannons and eagerly waits for me to pick up my own. She doesn’t know that my mother walked up to me a few days ago and swore that Mia is having a girl. I’m not sure how she knows, but I’ve learned to trust her instincts, and I know my wife is going to be happy when pink confetti falls around us.
“Ready, darlin’?”
“Three,” the crowd hollers around us, and I tighten my hold at the bottom of my cannon. “Two.”
“One!”
I look at Mia, a bright smile on my face, and we shoot off our cannons at the exact same moment without looking away from each other. It takes a few moments, but as soon as she sees the pink falling around us, she jumps up and down, clapping.
We’re having a girl.
Liam is cheering from between us, his hands in the air, and he does a happy dance that has the guests surrounding us laughing. I lift him into the air, then walk over to Mia and press a chaste kiss against her lips.
“Looks like I’m going to have my work cut out for me,” I say.
She arches her brow. “Is that so?”
“Our little girl is going to be breaking hearts, but I’ll never give anyone the chance of doing the same to her.”
“We’re having a girl,” she whispers before looking down at the pink puddle at our feet. “I thought for sure it was a boy.”
“That’s what you get for going crazy with the old wives' tales.”
Mia swats at me, then tearfully accepts the hugs from our friends and family. Julia and Brent walk over, blue powder caked in their hair from their balloons, and I clap him on the back.
“You ready for this, man?”
Brent scoffs. “Not by a long shot, but I can’t wait to watch her be a mother.”
I can’t help but think the same thing about Mia. Although she already has Liam, I never got to watch her belly grow with him inside or cuddle with him as a baby before she put him down for bed.
This is going to be a new experience for me, and I can’t wait to watch it.
“Are you kidding me?” Mallory grumbles from a few feet away, her eyes narrowing on Jace’s form behind her. “Do you ever give up?”
Jace smirks at her. “Nope. You like that?”
She groans in frustration, then walks up to her best friend and rolls her eyes. “He’s unbelievable.”
Brent eyes Jace curiously, then shrugs his shoulders. “He’s only messing with you, sis.”
I’m sure he’d like to believe that, but I’ve seen Jace looking at her, and there’s no joke in his eyes. He wants Mallory, and he’s not going to stop until he gets what he wants.
A couple of minutes later, I notice Mallory and Jace going at it again by the refreshment table. Their faces are close, tension crackling between them. Suddenly, Mallory laughs at something Jace says, her hand resting on his arm longer than necessary. I smile to myself, sensing something is happening between these two.
Mia is deep in conversation with my mother when I turn around. Tears roll down her cheeks, and she quickly wipes them away when I come to her side.
“What’s going on?”
My wife sniffles, then shakes her head.
“I got a gift for the baby, that’s all,” my mother says with a bright smile. “Your father and I are heading out before traffic gets too bad, but we’ll be in touch.”
As they walk away, I look down at the blanket Mia is holding and smile. My mother got into crocheting a while ago, so it doesn’t surprise me that it’s homemade, but it also includes our daughter's name on it.
Kennedy.
I pull Mia into my arms and hold her for a moment, letting the love I feel for her and the life we’ve created swim through me.
There’s still tears in her eyes when she looks up at me, the blanket clutched in her hands. “Can you believe we made it this far? We’ve been through so much.”
I shake my head, tears clouding my own vision. “It’s only going to go up from here, darlin’.”
She leans into me, and I place my hand gently over her stomach with a smile. “You, me, Liam, and now Kennedy… it’s more than I could’ve ever imagined. Our perfect little family”
Even though there’s people surrounding us, I can't help but tilt Mia’s face up and press my lips against hers. I pour every ounce of love I have for her into the kiss, and we only break apart when Liam squeezes himself between us.
We chuckle, our arms wrapping around him so he can join in on our embrace.
This is the happily ever after that I had patiently been waiting for.
As long as Mia, and our growing family, is by my side I’ve got no doubt it will be beautiful.
As we wave goodbye to our guests, my phone buzzes. I check it, my brow furrowing slightly. "The label wants to discuss a world tour," I murmur to Mia. She squeezes my hand, and I know we'll face this new challenge together, just like we have everything else.
Mia looks up at me, her eyes shining with love and determination. "Whatever comes next, we've got this," she says softly. "You're my rockstar, on and off stage."
I pull her close, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. "And you're my guardian angel, always keeping me safe," I whisper. "I fall in love with you more every day."
Our story is far from over, and as we stand here, surrounded by the echoes of laughter and the promise of our future, I know that every chapter ahead will be an adventure worth living.
"I love you, Evan," Mia murmurs, her hand resting on her belly where our daughter grows.
"I love you too, darlin'," I reply, my heart full. "Always and forever."
The End