EPILOGUE
Levi
FOUR YEARS LATER
“H alo Landry! You leave your brother alone!” I yell across the backyard, as I watch our six-year-old daughter taunt her four-year-old brother, as he decides if he wants to jump off the diving board.
“But Daddy,” she whines as she tries to play off the fact that she was about to push him in. Ginger is waiting at the top of the steps as my son takes his sweet time.
Even though Ryan has the day off, he offered to take the kids swimming for a few hours to give us a chance to pack our bags.
He has truly been one of the best employees that we’ve got, besides Mitch and Tina of course.
We’ve blurred the lines a long time ago and now our children think of him as an Uncle just like Linc and Reid.
In fact, Ryan and Reid have to compete for time when the weekends come.
A lot has changed since we renewed our vows four years ago.
First off, we welcomed our perfect baby boy who came into the world screaming like a banshee, four months after our ceremony.
He was just beautiful and the entire birthing was an amazing experience.
I had missed Halo’s birth and had the worst guilt in the days leading up to the due date.
Of course, Saylor wouldn’t let me dwell on it for too long but I did lay there almost every night by Halo’s bedside, and promise to never miss another important milestone of her life ever again. And I haven’t.
Kason Axel Thorne came into the world. He was wrinkly and red but perfect in every way. I was in love the moment the doctor pulled him from Saylor. I knew that nothing in the world would separate us and that our family was whole again.
Saylor had asked for a paternity test as soon as she was settled into our hospital suite, but I said no.
It didn’t matter whose DNA he had. He was mine.
But like most of the time, Saylor won. We had Kason’s mouth swabbed and blood drawn, then mine as we waited twenty-four hours for the lab to run the test. We were getting ready to leave the hospital when the doctor came in with the results.
We both stared at the envelope, for what seemed like forever, when Ryan and Mitch came in to carry our bags down to the car.
“Either open it or trash it, but either way we have a very hungry little monster, down with Tina, wanting her brother and wanting to eat.” Ryan nudged us both before they both left us and a sleeping newborn alone.
“Do we need to know?” I asked. “We could just put it in the safe for later.”
“No, I need to know. We need to know for health reasons and to sleep better at night,” Saylor stated. I know that she’s the one who needs this.
“Okay.”
I reached down and pulled the tab on the back, then reached in and grabbed the single paper.
Los Angeles Hospital Paternity Labs
It is concluded that the sample given of Patient A (Kason Axel Thorne) and the sample given from Patient B (Levi Thorne) have been tested and the results are as follows.
Patient A (Kason Axel Thorne) and Patient B (Levi Thorne) are 99.99%…
My heart stops beating and I crumple the paper. Tears flood my eyes. I wasn’t expecting this to have such impact on me. I already claimed him as mine either way, but to know that both of my children share mine and Saylor’s DNA is something unexpected.
Saylor grabs both of my arms and must think I’m upset, but it is further from the truth.
“Oh God, Levi, I’m sorry—” She starts to wail, then wraps her arms around her body, retreating within herself. “Why was I so stupid? How could I have let him manipulate me so easily?”
“Saylor, baby—”
“I understand if this changes things for you and you want to leave. Have nothing to do with my baby—”
“SAYLOR!” I scream to get her attention and in doing so, I wake Kason.
We both hurry over to him in his carrier but I almost shove her out of the way, forgetting that she had just given birth not so long ago. Carefully, like Saylor and the nurses have shown me, I cradle him against my chest.
“He’s mine,” I say to her, and hum in his ear to soothe him back to sleep.
“I know you said that it didn’t matter about DNA but after seeing your reaction, you don’t have to if you don’t want to Levi. There is still time to have the birth certificate changed.”
“Saylor, you’re not listening. He. Is. Mine.” I lean over the bed and pick up the crumpled piece of paper handing it to her.
Her eyes scan over the words several times, as if not believing what she’s reading.
“He’s yours,” she says in disbelief.
“He’s mine,” I proudly say and pat his little back.
“I was so worried…”
“I told you I had awesome swimmers!”
Her smile could light up a football stadium and that’s how it should be for the rest of our lives. She comes over and hugs me, careful to not wake a now sleeping baby.
“I didn’t think it was possible to love you more Levi, but every day you surprise me and I fall in love even deeper.”
The second thing that has changed for us is that I only work buying and renovating houses for rentals, or flip them.
I’ve hung up my law degree and haven’t looked back.
We live on the ranch and love our little country life.
I still get paid for being a partner at Linc’s law firm but I don’t actively work on cases anymore.
In fact, Linc and I have put the best team in place to help the firm grow and let Olivia, our other partner, run the entire firm.
He mostly goes in and signs off on things in the middle of the week and holds all meetings on those days.
If it can’t be done during those days, then it gets pushed back to the next week.
He worked his ass off getting the firm where it is, so now is the time to reap the spoils of his hard work and enjoy his life with his little family who lives next door to us.
Linc is still the face for the firm but deals with fewer cases.
The best part of all of this is that I love being at home with the kids all day. Yes, there are days when I want to rip my hair out, but nothing is more rewarding than watching them grow up right before your eyes.
So, that brings me to the third thing that has happened in the last four years.
Three months after Kason was born, we found out that Saylor was pregnant again.
Like I said, my swimmers are awesome. Let’s just say that the pull-out method was not in our cards, or I may have stayed in a little longer than necessary, but hey, when a man’s in the moment with his hot wife naked begging him to fuck her harder what’s a man to do?
Nine months later, we welcomed Addison Haley Thorne. She was just as perfect as her brother. She has my beautiful eyes like her older sister and Saylor’s hair color. Her and Halo could be twins in how their features match up. Although, she has my scowl perfectly perfected.
Reid has surprised us all with his settling down.
Never did I think it was in the cards for him but one day he came over with a woman who he’d helped on the side of the road.
She was short with dark hair and glasses, a straight up bookworm like my wife.
It was a huge contrast from his tall, blonde, long-legged women from before.
She was just as cute as a button and apparently perfect for my brother.
They married six months from the time he saved her from the road and are expecting their first baby this spring.
Linc and Everly have two sets of twins. I’m not sure how they manage them all at once, when trying to juggle one at a time is still challenging to me. They have their little compound on the property next door and we see them almost every day. Saylor and Everly have playdates with the kids.
Our grandparents are starting to slow down as more time passes.
They say the kids keep them young, but we can tell by the way they are all traveling less.
Linc and I have hired some help to come in twice a week to do all the menial jobs, so that they can focus on the fun things that they want to do.
Alice works part-time at Linc’s law firm, and has been helping out at our houses with our brood for the last few years.
She’s the best grandmother to our children and couldn’t be more pleased.
Her and Daniel reconciled eighteen months ago.
At first, I wasn’t happy about it and refused to understand why she’d take him back but then Dr. Blake quickly reminded me that even I made a mistake and was forgiven.
Don’t think that it was an easy process, but Saylor was the one who offered the olive branch first. She amazes me at every turn.
I also think that not having either of her parents present in her life had a lot to do with it too.
That doesn’t mean that security leaves the room when our kids hang out over at their house, but we are slowly mending the bridge.
Daniel apologizes every time we see him but I think it’s going to take a long time for all of us to build a relationship, where she feels comfortable with being in the same room alone together.
He is an amazing grandfather to all our kids, but it doesn’t mean all is forgotten.
“Levi? Is that you?” I hear my angel calling from in the walk-in closet.
“Yes, baby.” She’s packing herself a bag even though Tina said she would take care of it.
“I can’t find my pink slippers. Have you seen them?” she calls out.
I look over at the end of the bed and see Zeus hanging his head. It’s like he knows how she gets.
“Have you looked on your feet?” I say sweetly, hoping to ease the blow that’s about to erupt.
“Ugh!” she groans and pops out of the closet. “This is the last time Levi Thorne! No more!”
She is even more beautiful than when I met her all those years ago. Saylor comes barreling out with a rolling suitcase, wearing only panties and a bra. Her nine-month pregnant belly on display, making me harder than ever.