Epilogue
Iris
Three Months Later
“You always said you wanted to get married on the farm, surrounded by the animals,” my sister Anna said as we looked out the window at all the people taking their seats. “I’m just happy Auntie hosed them all down and gave them a bath so they didn’t ruin your wedding with their…umm…pleasant smell.”
I laughed. She was correct. Farm animals weren’t exactly known for their fragrant aroma, but they felt like family to me.
Ever since I was a teenage girl living at the O’Hara farm, I always knew the farm was where I wanted to get married. It was a beautiful piece of land and I would be surrounded by family and friends—and yes, that included the animals.
The animals became my sanctuary. Animals didn’t care where you came from or what your past was like. They only cared if you were friendly and kind, so they had been some of the first friends I’d made here, and I wanted them to be a part of the wedding too.
It was the very end of summer, which was the dry season here—as a meteorologist, I had to make sure I didn’t have rain on my wedding day.
So, naturally, I picked the climatologically driest part of the year.
Plus, this was Northern California along the coast, so it never really got too hot here like it did in Vegas.
Hector had proposed only a month after he moved in with me.
“Iris, I’m forty years old,” he said to me after I said yes but questioned whether it was too soon. “I’ve lived through enough to know what feels right and not to waste my time when I find the person I want to spend the rest of my life with.”
“Okay,” I responded with happy tears. “But I want to get married on the farm in the summer.”
“Then call your moms and see if they can get it ready in two months, because I’m not waiting till next year to make you officially mine.”
After we celebrated, with him showing me how much he loved me with his hands and mouth, I called my moms to tell them the great news.
Mom was nervous we wouldn’t have enough time, but Auntie—who was very much a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants woman—assured me everything would be ready and to start telling everyone so they had enough time to plan for traveling.
There was a knock at the door, bringing me back to the present, and Anna opened it.
“Is it okay if Hazel and I come in really quick?” I heard my sister Cora’s voice behind the door.
“It’s fine, Sissy. Let them in,” I told Anna.
“You look beautiful, Iris,” Cora said, smiling.
“You really do look stunning,” Hazel said to me, beaming.
“Thanks, ladies.”
“Gale is keeping an eye on the animals but promised to make an appearance in time for the ceremony,” Hazel said.
Gale—our very own poster child for introverts—did not do large crowds of people, and even though we only had about fifty people in attendance, that was too many for her.
She had already talked with me about it because she was afraid that I would be offended if she wasn’t around much, but I knew her, and I knew things like this were hard for her.
She was in charge of the animals, but she would show up for some of the ceremony, family photos, and a little bit of the reception, and that was perfectly fine with me.
“You ready to get this show on the road?” Anna asked.
“Absolutely,” I responded, staring at myself one last time in the mirror to make sure everything looked as I wanted it.
I had a very simple white dress made of crepe and satin fabrics draped with a little bit of lace. It was a one-shoulder gown that had a high split up to my thigh. The fabric was draped and weaved in a way that highlighted the curves I wanted to show and hid the others.
Hector said he adored my curly hair, especially when it was wild, so I’d left it mostly down, only pinning a few pieces right near my face so they wouldn’t fall into my eyes.
My sisters had all gone in together and gotten me the most beautiful pale-blue undergarments, including custom underwear that said “All for Hector” on the back.
Rita let me borrow her dangly teardrop ruby earrings, which were stunning.
With everything checked and perfected, Anna and I made our way outside for the ceremony. Anna was my matron of honor, and Hector’s father was his best man. Since I didn’t have a dad, both Mom and Auntie were going to walk me down the aisle—each holding one arm.
Hector’s dad also served as our sign language interpreter so that Dani could follow along with everything that was said at the wedding.
Even Sarge was here as our ring bearer, though when he walked down the aisle toward Hector, he kept stopping every five feet to let people pet him.
The music began, and that was my cue.
“Thanks for doing this,” I said to Mom and Auntie as they each latched on to one of my arms.
“Sweetheart, we are honored you would even ask,” Mom said with unshed tears in her eyes.
“Do you need one of us to have the famous ‘honor my daughter or I’ll kill you’ type of dad talks with Hector? Cause I’ll definitely do it,” Auntie offered, and I laughed.
“Your turn,” Hazel said, letting me know to start walking down the aisle.
I walked around the giant plants that were being used to hide us—as well as they could on an open farm—and walked under the flower arch covered in irises.
It matched the bouquet of blue and purple irises in my hand. Was it cheesy? Yes. Did I care? No.
My parents had only ever given me one thing that I loved, and that was my name, so I leaned into it and had irises all over the ceremony and even the reception tables.
I looked up and stared right at Hector as I walked down the aisle. God, he was a five-alarm fire in his three-piece suit. It was a dark cream that showed off his tanned skin and dark hair. He had on a periwinkle dress shirt to match my flowers.
I couldn’t believe this was the man I was about to marry.
He was sexy as hell, yes, but he was also humble, loyal, protective, and treated me like I was the best thing to ever happen in his life.
Everyone needed a partner like that in their life.
Someone who supported you in every facet of your journey.
His gaze was on me the entire time I walked, and for the 4,973rd time, I wished I knew what he was thinking. I may not know his exact thoughts, but I saw the happiness mixed with lust in his eyes.
When we made it to the front, he walked down to take my hand from Mom and Auntie.
“Congratulations, and welcome to the family,” Mom whispered to him.
“You hurt her, I’ll kill you in your sleep,” Auntie also whispered but with a smile on her face as she gave him my hand.
Hector snorted as he thanked Mom and then moved to Auntie. “You have my permission.”
He then leaned down to kiss my cheek and whisper in my ear. “You look absolutely stunning, and sexy, and all mine.”
I smiled at him as we made our way to the front.
I looked out at all the people who had come to celebrate our special day and smiled.
My sisters, foster mothers, my coworkers, as well as all of Hector’s friends and family.
Ann and Steve had also come to the wedding—as a couple. Hector thought I was a little crazy for inviting them, but I simply reminded him that we wouldn’t be able to have this moment without them. If they hadn’t come to my rescue, I may not have been here today. He’d quickly relented.
I may not have a biological family, but my found family was better than I could have ever imagined.
An hour later, I was staring out at the valley in the distance as the dusk light started to spread beautiful colors everywhere. We had just finished with our pictures, and I was enjoying the moment and the views.
“Hello, wife,” Hector’s voice sounded behind me just as he wrapped his arms around my waist.
His body heat felt like a blanket at my back, and his warm breath and beard tickled my cheek.
“Hello, husband,” I responded as he nuzzled into my neck, peppering me with kisses.
“I can’t wait to take this dress off with my teeth.”
Shivers rolled through my body, and I knew he felt it too.
“Hmm…You like that idea, don’t you?”
“Do you think we could just sneak away and leave now and no one would notice?” I asked as I turned to face him.
He leaned down, putting his forehead against mine. “I like where your mind is headed, sweetheart, but I’m starving, and I need you to have energy for later—lots of energy.”
He tilted my head back, and his mouth found mine with desperate need.
I had no idea how much time passed, but eventually we came up for air, my mind dizzy from his kiss, along with my labored breathing.
“Let’s go feed you, wife,” he said to me, smiling. “I also want to dance with you and enjoy you in public for a bit before I take you back to the hotel and keep you there, possibly for twenty-four hours straight while I ravish your body from top to bottom.”
There were those damn shivers again.
I joined my hand with his, and we made our way to the reception tent, but it was the promise of what was to come that had me most excited.
Eight Months Later
It was moving day today.
We were all set to move into our new home not far from where Hector’s old cabin had been, but this one would be ours.
We’d played a role in the design of the home from the very beginning, and I couldn’t be happier with how it had turned out.
It still had the cabin aesthetic, with a stone fireplace, natural wood elements throughout, and rustic touches right alongside modern features. I loved it.
The best part was the wraparound porch that had views similar to the old cabin, so we could sit out and enjoy many nights and mornings together when the sun wasn’t too intense.
The house had four bedrooms instead of three like the last one, because we wanted one extra in case my family wanted to come visit their grandchildren or nieces and nephews in the future.
I was standing in the doorway of one of those spare bedrooms when Hector came up behind me and hugged his arms around me. I smelled his freshly washed hair and soapy scent wrap around me and sighed.
“You thinking about what you want in this space?” he asked, noting that I had just been standing in the doorway staring.
That was because I had a secret. A secret I’d only found out about yesterday, but had been too busy to tell him because of all the last-minute packing and such.
I turned in his arms, wanting to keep his arms around me but needing to face him.
“Do you want to paint it blue or pink, or should we go with a more neutral color?” I asked, smirking at him.
He stared down at me with that impassive, silent-as-snowfall facial expression.
“You don’t need to decide right now,” I told him, smiling even bigger. “You’ve got about six more months to figure it out.”
Still silent, but his eyes got bigger, and I could feel his heart racing faster now.
“You’re pregnant?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
I nodded. “I just went to the doctor yesterday and got it confirmed.”
“Is it a boy or a girl?” he asked and then quickly waved his hand. “Never mind. Don’t care.”
He smiled down at me, and I was so happy that he was just as excited as I was.
“A baby…really?” he asked again, as if he couldn’t believe it.
I nodded and kissed him gently on the lips before pulling back. “You okay with this?”
“I know this is kind of fast, but I’m happy about that,” he responded. “I’m already in my forties, and I don’t want to be a super old dad.”
“You’re not old, but I get it,” I told him.
“No, but I don’t want to be fifty and still having kids, so you better get used to being pregnant, because I’m gonna keep giving you more babies until either you hit a number you’re happy with, or I hit fifty—whichever happens first.”
I laughed. “Two or three is fine with me.”
“I’m happy with that too,” he said, leaning down to kiss me, more intensely this time.
“You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Iris, and I will spend every day of the rest of my life showing you how much I love you.”
He started right then and there—lifting me and carrying me back to the bedroom so we could break in the new bed in the new house, followed by the couch, and then the shower. It took a lot longer to unpack the boxes, but it was totally worth it in the end.
Four Weeks Later
“Can you hear that?” our cheerful ultrasound technician said. “That’s baby’s heartbeat. It’s a little fast but sounds strong.”
Hector was next to me, holding my hand as she moved the wand over my growing belly.
“Now, let’s see if baby wants to cooperate so we can get some good pictures,” she added. “Do you want to know the sex?”
“Yes, please,” I told her.
Hector didn’t care, but I did. I was a planner and needed to know for planning purposes.
She moved her wand back and forth, taking a few pictures here and there, but mostly remained silent as Hector and I just watched her, fascinated by everything.
Then I noticed the puzzled look on her face, and I began to get worried.
“Is everything okay?” I finally worked up the nerve to ask her.
“Yes, everything is fine,” she started, but there was a hesitation in her voice. “I’m just trying to check something, and baby is not cooperating.”
I knew I just needed to trust her for now and let her do her thing, but Hector obviously sensed my nerves and began to stroke my hand and arm, and then he leaned down and kissed me on my forehead. This man was my rock—my everything.
“Aha!” the tech called out. “I had a feeling because of the super-fast heartbeat. Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Madeira. You are having twins.”
My mouth dropped open as I stared at her in awe, trying to process what she had just announced.
“What did you say?” Hector asked before my own mouth could form words.
“Oh…wait…nope…sorry,” she apologized, and I about died from having held my breath for so long. “Okay, I was wrong. It’s not two heartbeats…I think…yep…There’s the third set of legs. Congrats! You’re having triplets!”
I didn’t think my mouth could have opened any bigger.
“Excuse me?” Hector choked out, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Triplets,” she repeated. “That would explain why the heartbeat was so fast. It was actually just more than one heartbeat. But everything looks great—six arms, six legs, everything is exactly as it should be.”
“I guess you’re getting your wish after all,” I turned to tell Hector.
“What?” he looked at me, still a bit dazed from the news.
“You didn’t want to be an old dad, so I guess we’re just going to get them all at once and then be done,” I reminded him.
He chuckled nervously and then turned back to me and smiled. “I guess all my wishes came true. Thank you, Iris, for giving me everything I could have ever wanted—a beautiful, smart, and caring wife and now a family of our own.”
THE END