17. Extended Epilogue Chapter Three
EXTENDED EPILOGUE: CHAPTER THREE
N uala was still buzzing by the time they got home, which was no mean feat since it took about two hours to get back to Mountain Lakes from Hive. Mostly she liked that Thistledon wasn’t super close to Clover City because it had meant her mother-in-law hadn’t dropped by unannounced when they were here like she had when she and Cabot were in town, and it had a quiet, woodsy vibe that you just didn’t get in the suburbs. But sometimes she wished the club and her friends were closer.
They could’ve stayed over with Tamsyn and the twins—they had an open invitation—but Remy had wanted to come back tonight and she was happy to oblige. He was a homebody for sure, and she thought he still didn’t trust Lowell entirely. Even though she did, she couldn’t blame her Daddy. Lowell could come across as sketchy as hell, and Remy was just trying to protect her.
She wouldn’t have been asleep by now anyway even if they’d stayed with the Foster-Webb trio. Often after they went to Hive, her Daddy would bundle her into the car and then have to carry her inside and tuck her into bed because she’d pass out during the ride. Remy liked to put her through her paces at the club which was just fine with her. They’d played a little tonight but mostly it had been about the book. Her book.
“I think I have to practice my signature,” she mused, as they walked up the stairs from the garage. “Is that really egotistical?”
“That just sounds smart to me,” her Daddy said with a shrug and then let them into the mud room. “You had to sign like fifty books tonight with your pen name, and you’re just going to be signing more in the future. Might as well make it easier on yourself. You can use your new notebook.”
After her Daddy hung up her coat and took off her shoes, Nuala squealed and bounced just thinking about it. She’d gone through several since that first one Daddy had bought for her, and it had become a tradition of sorts for him to get her a new one when she’d filled one up. The newest one was black and fuzzy and had ears and whiskers like a cat, with blue eyes, just like hers! She loved it.
“Good idea! I only have a few pages left in the old one and I got some ideas tonight I wanted to write down before I go to bed.”
Remy took care of his own coat and shoes and then steered her into the house and pulled out a chair at the counter where she liked to do a lot of her writing and where her notebook was already waiting for her. Once she was sitting, he kissed her cheek.
“It’s a good idea to write them down before you forget, but just notes. I know you feel invincible right now, but I’m guessing underneath all the excitement is a really tired Little girl so you need to get some sleep.”
“Okay, Daddy,” she chirped.
Getting Nuala ready for bed was one of his favorite times of the day. Well, pretty much anytime he was with her was his favorite. But there was something special about how sweet and Little she was around bedtime. He didn’t want her to be exhausted or worn out, but a snuggly, sleepy Little girl? Yes, please.
“Okay, Nono. I think that’s enough notes for now,” he told her, squeezing her shoulder and pressing a kiss to her cheek.
She pinched her lips together, and looked up at him and then back at her notebook. She’d managed to scrawl a couple pages’ worth of information down, and he was impressed. It never ceased to amaze him what a spring of creativity she was. Remy could appreciate his own talents, and sure, voice acting required some imagination and definitely artistry. But it just wasn’t the same as being able to pull entire characters and plot lines and sex scenes out of your head.
His Little girl was a damn genius, and he was grateful for about the millionth time that Cabot had gone and yeeted himself out of the picture so that Nuala could flourish and bloom and now even the world could enjoy her endlessly inventive mind. Grateful too to all the people who had helped make that happen—everyone at Hive, but especially Hux and Tamsyn, and yes, he had to admit, begrudgingly, Lowell.
“Nono,” he said in that slightly warning tone that seemed to give her a little charge, and slipped a hand around the back of her neck which never failed to make her shiver in a way she assured him was delicious.
“Sorry, Daddy,” she said, closing her notebook and shifting on the stool to give him a big smile. “I just wanted to make sure I got everything. Can I keep it on my bedside table in case I forgot something but I remember it in the middle of the night?”
“You know the rules. It can stay on my bedside table and you need to wake me up to ask for it. I’m not going to have my busy little hummingbird up all night.”
“I am a very good rule follower,” she told him, nodding and giving him those serious blue eyes.
“That you are,” he said, unable to suppress the smile curling his lips. “You’re Daddy’s good girl, aren’t you?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
“Then let’s get my good girl ready for bed.”
Nuala yawned as if on cue, and then giggled. “I might be a little sleepy?”
“I bet. You want a piggyback to the bedroom?”
“Yes, please!”
He turned so she could climb onto his back—clutching her precious notebook of course—and then they were on their way. His Little girl was tired, and she rested her head on top of his shoulder as he climbed the stairs. Sometimes when he gave her a piggyback, he’d horse around and make her laugh but he didn’t want her to get all riled up again so a steady gait to the master suite would do just fine. Warm and snuggly, she was the best backpack he could imagine.
Remy had gotten her upstairs just in time because Nuala was practically asleep on her feet by the time he’d changed her into a cute little pajama set— a puffy, cap-sleeved cotton crop top that had a hummingbird garden print all over it with matching bloomers. He led her to the bathroom, and it was a good thing it was like half the size of his whole house because there was a comfy vanity chair he could set her on while he wiped off her makeup and brushed her teeth.
“I’m so tired, Daddy,” she told him, her eyes already closed.
“I know, Duchess. Come on,” he said, as he scooped her up to carry her out to the big bed they shared almost every night now—except for when they slept at his place which Nono liked to do sometimes. “Daddy’s going to tuck you in and then huggle you until you’re asleep.”