Epilogue
McKenna
“Stop squirming, or I’m going to stab you in the eye with this mascara wand,” Mercy warned, her face scrunched in concentration as she worked to get my makeup perfect.
“I’m sorry! I can’t help it.” I winced. “They’re kicking me like crazy today.”
My hand went to my baby bump, feeling the flutter of movement beneath my palm.
Mercy stepped back to inspect her work. “There. Now stop touching your face, or you’ll ruin it.”
My lips tipped up as I turned toward the full-length mirror.
“Holy shit,” I whispered.
I couldn’t believe my reflection.
The ivory satin dress had a delicate empire waist that flowed perfectly over my baby bump. The tiny pearl beading caught the light as I moved, and the soft layers of the skirt made me feel like I was floating.
Demi appeared behind me in her blush pink bridesmaid dress, carefully adjusting my veil. “You look like a fairy princess.”
I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face or the happy tears that were threatening to ruin Mercy’s perfect makeup job.
“Don’t you dare cry,” Demi laughed, grabbing a handful of tissues off the table and dabbing at the corner of my eye with a tissue. “We just got you all put together.”
“I can’t help it,” I sniffled. “Pregnancy hormones are a bitch.”
The past few months had been a whirlwind.
Diana had been sentenced to ten years for attempted murder after her breakdown at the house. Pee Wee’s divorce had been finalized in record time, and he’d proposed to me the very same day, insisting that he didn’t want to wait to get married.
While I was pregnant, I would not agree to a shotgun wedding. Over my dead body.
He’d grumbled and fussed that there was nothing shotgun about it.
He was wrong, of course, but we came to a compromise.
I got to plan the wedding that I wanted as long as we were married before the babies came.
Yes, babies.
As in plural.
We were having twin girls, and I still couldn’t believe it.
Neither could Pee Wee. He was already grumbling about our girls not dating until they were thirty, and how boys only had one thing on their minds.
I tried pointing out that we had two teenage boys still at home, thinking they’d back me up.
Not so much.
They agreed with their father that boys were dirty dogs.
I was living in Crazytown, and I couldn’t be happier.
“Here,” Angel handed me a glass of sparkling cider. “To calm your nerves.”
“I’m not nervous,” I said, taking a sip as Pinky waddled over with her newborn son Rowdy cradled against her chest.
“Girl, you are glowing. Pregnancy looks good on you.”
I reached out to stroke Rowdy’s dark tuft of hair. “He has Rambler’s eyes.”
“He’s the spitting image,” Pinky agreed, her eyes soft as she looked at her son like he was her own slice of heaven.
The door to the bridal suite flew open, and Cleo burst in. “Everything’s ready,” she announced, a wide grin on her face. “But we need to get this show on the road. Your man has been stomping around like a bear with a sore ass for the last twenty minutes, and he’s driving everyone crazy.”
I laughed, rolling my eyes. “How am I not even surprised?”
“That’s your man,” Demi teased, adjusting my veil one last time.
Cleo opened the door wider, and that’s when I saw him.
Gasping, I pressed my hand over my mouth.
Standing in the doorway, wearing a perfectly tailored black suit and tie, was Jaxon.
My brother, who was supposed to still be behind bars .
“Am I dreaming?” I whispered to Demi, unable to tear my eyes away.
Demi sniffled next to me. “No, sweetie. He’s really here.”
It took a second for my brain to catch up, but then I was moving as fast as my baby bump would allow, throwing myself into my brother’s arms.
“Oh my God!” Angel cried out, coming up beside me, and wrapping her arms around him, too.
“Easy,” he laughed, holding both of us tight against him. “Don’t mess up those fancy dresses.”
“How? When? I don’t understand—” The words tumbled out of me in a rush.
“Why did you call us? We would have picked you up,” Angel said, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
Jaxon pulled back, looking down at me with the same eyes I saw in the mirror every day. “Your man pulled some strings. The appeal was granted, and he got some people to expedite my release so I could be here today to walk you down the aisle.”
My eyes went wide. “Pee Wee did this and didn’t tell me about it?”
Jaxon grinned that cocky grin that always had girls chasing after him. “He wanted it to be a surprise, and if it fell through, he didn’t want you to be disappointed.”
Tears welled up again, and this time I didn’t try to stop them. Eight years I’d fought to get my brother out of prison, and Pee Wee had made it happen just in time for our wedding day.
“Oh my God! You guys haven’t met.” I turned to my friends, wiping at my tears. “This is my brother, Jaxon. Jax, this is Mercy, Cleo, and Pinky with baby Rowdy.”
“Ladies,” Jaxon nodded.
Pinky waved at him, then glanced at the clock on the wall. “Not to rush this reunion, but it’s time to get hitched. You’ve got a man waiting to make an honest woman out of you.”
I laughed, linking my arm through Jaxon’s. “Right. Come on, big brother. Walk me down the aisle to my man.”
Jaxon’s face grew serious. “I’m thankful for all he’s done for me, but if he hurts you, I’ll end him.”
I rolled my eyes. “He’s not going to hurt me.”
“Still.” Jaxon looked down at me. “Just saying.”
I laughed. I had no doubt he meant every word. My brother had always been protective of Angel and me.
Through the door, I could hear Shania Twain’s voice starting to croon a softer version of “You’re Still The One.”
That was my cue.
Taking a deep breath, I clutched Jaxon’s arm tighter. “Let’s do this. ”
The double doors to the chapel swung open, and my heart lodged in my throat.
Everyone stood, turning to look at me, but I only had eyes for the big man standing at the altar.
Pee Wee was breathtaking in his black suit, his blonde hair combed back from his face, his mossy green eyes finding mine across the room. The moment our gazes locked, his entire face transformed, softening with a smile that made my knees weak.
“Ready?” Jaxon whispered.
I nodded, unable to find my voice as we started down the aisle.
The faces on either side of me blurred as we passed—Klutch and Beast looking uncomfortable in their suits, Brody and Bentley grinning at me from their places as groomsmen, Angel holding baby Matthew in the front row, all the club members and their old ladies watching with smiles.
All I could focus on was Pee Wee, standing tall and proud, watching me march towards him like he thought I was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
When we reached the altar, Jaxon placed my hand in Pee Wee’s, his expression serious.
“Take care of her,” he said quietly, a hint of warning in his tone.
Pee Wee met his eyes steadily. “With my life. ”
Jaxon nodded, satisfied, and took his seat beside Angel in the front row.
Denali stood before us in his full club regalia, looking surprisingly official as he began the ceremony.
“Family isn’t always what we’re born into,” he started, his voice carrying through the chapel. “Sometimes it’s what we build together, through love and commitment and choosing each other every damn day.”
I squeezed Pee Wee’s hand, fighting back another wave of tears.
“These two have already built something beautiful together,” Denali continued, a soft look on his face as he looked between us. “A home. A family. A bond that’s unbreakable. Today, we’re just making it official.”
A few cheers rang out.
“Pee Wee and McKenna have written their own vows.” Denali turned to Pee Wee and nodded for him to start.
“McKenna,” he began, his voice rough with emotion.
“For so long, I thought I didn’t deserve anything more than what I had.
” He took a deep breath. “Then you walked into my life with your smart mouth and those damn finger guns.” He smiled as everyone laughed.
“I knew at that moment that you were going to change my life.”
A tear escaped, trailing down my cheek.
“You showed me what real love is,” he continued. “You gave me hope when I’d forgotten what it felt like. You’re giving me daughters.” His hand moved briefly to my belly. “You’ve loved my sons like they were your own from day one.”
I nodded, tears trickling down my cheeks. “They were a part of the man who owned my heart, how could I not?”
Clearing his throat, he wiped the moisture from his eyes and continued making me fall even more in love with him.
“I promise to choose you and our children every day,” Pee Wee’s voice broke on the last word as he lifted my hand.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my love.” He slid the ring on my ring finger, and I had to fight not to completely lose it.
Denali then turned to me and nodded.
Pulling in a deep breath, I smiled at the handsome man standing in front of me.
“Brock Reid,” I started, using his real name.
“You stormed into my life like a tornado, and I’ve never been happier for it.
” That earned a few chuckles from the crowd.
“You’re grumpy and bossy, and overprotective, and you drive me crazy.
I’m pretty sure it’s a biker thing.” The old ladies in the room all chorused an AMEN, making everyone laugh.
And the man who held my whole heart was just smiling. He knew it was true.
“But I love every single thing about you. I know I drive you crazy sometimes,” I continued, sorta rambling, but my man knew that’s how it went with me.
He nodded. “You do.”
I stuck my tongue out at him, but kept on trucking along.
“And I promise that will never change.” More laughter rippled through the audience.
“But I also promise to love you fiercely, to stand by you through whatever life throws at us, to be the best mother I can be to our children, and to never let you forget how lucky you are to have me.”
Pee Wee’s chest rumbled with laughter, and I saw the love shining in his eyes.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my love.”
Denali stuck two fingers in his mouth and whistled long and loud.
“Hell yeah! That’s what I’m talkin’ about. Now, by the power invested in me by www.anyonecanbeordained.com, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”
Pee Wee didn’t waste a single second.
Pulling me close, he dipped me back and kissed the daylights out of me.
It was hours later, and my husband was whirling me around the dance floor. My feet were killing me, but I didn’t care. I never wanted this night to end.
Pee Wee pulled me closer, his big hand spread protectively over my lower back.
“Are you happy, my wife?” he asked, his eyes locked on mine.
“The happiest woman in the world, my husband,” I confirmed, stretching up to kiss him.
Pee Wee’s eyes lifted and locked on something over my shoulder. “Who’s the dark-haired woman with Denali?”
Glancing back, I grinned. Mercy in all her badass glory was posted up at the bar with Denali seated beside her.
“That’s Mercy. She owns Shear Madness where Pinky works. She did my hair for the wedding.”
Pee Wee watched the interaction with interest. “Denali looks like he just got struck by Cupid’s arrow.”
I laughed. “I think you’re right.”
Pulling me back into his arms, we swayed together, surrounded by the people we loved, with our daughters nestled safely between us.
Life was good.
I had Pee Wee and the family we were building.
And that was all I’d ever need.
THE END