Epilogue
Kade
Seven Years Sober
“You’re going to be a dad.” I clap Gavin on the back. “To a girl.”
Gavin chuckles, but I don’t miss the warm smile tugging at the corner of his lips as he watches a very pregnant Blake in the distance. She’s serving up the pink cake that revealed the gender of their baby to some of the partygoers while chatting with her mom and Jake.
“You’ll have to give me some tips,” he says, taking a sip of his soda.
A smile of my own graces my lips as I think of my little family. I’ve been with Presley for just about seven years now. After three years, we got married, then two years ago, we had a new little life grace us with her presence. While it was unexpected, James Hope Presley, who we affectionately call “Jamie,” has been the best thing to happen to us.
As if on cue, a blonde head zooms past Gavin, and then little hands are tugging at my jeans. “Daddy, up!”
My smile widens as I bend down to pick up my giggling toddler. The pigtail braids I put in her short blonde hair are falling out from all the running around she’s been doing, and her face is covered in what looks like frosting.
“You’re a mess, baby girl. ”
“Auntie Blake give Jamie cake!”
“I can see that.” Jamie gives me a toothy grin and lays a wet, sticky raspberry on my cheek before dissolving into giggles. I cringe at the mess now transferred onto my stubble but give my kid a well-deserved raspberry on her tummy in return.
“Daddy, no!” She squirms, her little legs kicking me. I give her another raspberry then tickle her sides. She dissolves into more giggles and squeals, “Uncle Gav, help!”
“I don’t know, Jamie. You did get frosting on your daddy’s pretty face.” He laughs.
She giggles louder, her little cheeks turning pink as I tickle her again.
“Don’t tickle her too long, Kade—you know what happens,” Presley says, arriving out of nowhere with a smirk on her face and a wet wipe in her hand.
“Yeah, Daddy! Don’t make me-a-pee,” Jamie insists through her hiccups of laughter. “I’m a big girl.”
Gavin snickers as I stop my onslaught. “She’s definitely your kid.”
I beam at that. My kid is cute and hilarious, so I take that as a compliment as Jamie lays another messy raspberry on my cheek.
“Thanks for that, baby girl.”
“Welcome,” she says. Her tone is so serious that we all laugh. “Down, please.”
“Since you asked so nicely,” I tease, kissing the crown of her head before setting her on her feet.
Just as she’s about to run away, my wife stops her. “Let me wipe your face, Jamie,” she says, bending down to clean the mess from her lips and cheeks. The moment she’s finished, Jaime takes off running in Blake’s direction, probably to try to con her into giving her another slice of cake.
Presley stands and smiles at me, tucking a piece of freshly dyed pink hair behind her ear. She wanted a change from her usual purple, and Jamie got to pick the color. It’s taken me a bit to get used to it, but my wife looks hot no matter what color her hair is.
After Presley cleans my cheek off with the wipe, I pull her into my side, stroking her hip. She leans her head against my shoulder.
“You tired, Lemon darlin’?” I ask.
She chuckles. “I’m in my thirties. I’m always tired.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Gavin adds.
“I wouldn’t know,” I tease. “I’m still young, unlike all of you folks.”
Presley hip-checks me. “Yeah, yeah. You won’t be able to rub that in much longer—you’re turning thirty soon.” She turns to my brother. “And just you wait, Gavin. You think you’re tired now? You don’t know tired until you’re up with a newborn every couple of hours.”
Gavin doesn’t balk, he just smiles. “Looking forward to it.”
“He says that now.” I think of the sleepless nights with Jamie when she was born. “Soon, he’ll be showing up at our door begging us to babysit.”
“Like you didn’t do that?” Gavin asks.
I give him a sheepish grin. “Okay, guilty. But to be fair, I only did that when my beautiful wife left me alone with a colicky baby so she could go be a country star.”
Presley blushes. “A, it was one night, Kade. For one gig. And B, I’m not a country star.”
“Says the woman who just played sold-out shows back-to-back at the Grand Ole Opry,” Gavin says.
Presley blushes further at my brother’s praise. “I wasn’t the star. I was the fiddle player for the country star.”
Gavin and I both give her matching looks that say, Stop being so humble, but I know she won’t. That’s just how Presley is. In the last five years, I’ve watched her go from playing in a small-town band and recording an album to playing gigs on her own—and then, in the last two years, getting asked to play with the biggest names in country music. But no matter who she plays with or what stages she plays on, she acts as if it isn’t that big of a deal.
“In all seriousness,” Presley continues, “if you or Blake ever need a babysitter, we’ll be happy to help. Jamie is excited about her baby cousin and can’t wait to take care of her.”
I smile at that. Ever since she found out Auntie Blake had a baby in her tummy, it’s all she can talk about.
“We appreciate it. Speaking of,” Gavin’s voice turns more serious. “We can take Jamie tonight if you both want. I know today is a big day for you, Kade.”
Presley squeezes me around the middle, and I press a soft kiss to her head. I’m seven years sober today. When Blake realized her baby shower was the same day, she offered to move it, but I told her that was silly. Yes, it’s important that I honor my milestones, but it’s also important to me that my family celebrates theirs and that life goes on as normal. Because while I still have hard days sometimes, I’m okay. I’m better than okay. And I have a family who loves and supports me when I feel like I may not be.
“That would be nice, actually,” Presley says to Gavin before I can answer. “Unless you want to spend time with Jamie?” She looks up knowingly at me.
My heart warms. My wife knows that I’d rather be with both my girls on days like today. It’s funny when I think about how much I’ve changed since the day I met Presley. Now, I’d rather be on the couch watching a movie with my family than go out. But alone time with Presley is always something I want and crave, especially when we don’t have to worry about Jamie running into the room while we’re trying to have sex. Let’s just say my ropes haven’t come out to play in quite awhile.
My heart rate picks up at the image of my wife’s pliant body bound and at my mercy. I shift on my feet, the crotch of my jeans suddenly feeling too tight and my clothes itchy against my skin.
“I think we should take my big brother up on his offer,” I respond, my voice a bit deeper than normal. Presley’s blue eyes dart to mine, and then she blushes. My wife knows what I’m thinking. Then I lean my head down to kiss her, and Gavin clears his throat awkwardly just as our lips touch.
“Alright, maybe I should go check on Blake.” He rubs the back of his neck.
I chuckle and pull away from my wife’s very kissable lips. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something quickly. Walk with me?”
Gavin’s green eyes turn serious. Ever since the day we walked around the property and talked the week after my breakdown, it’s kind of become our thing—when we need to work something out between us, we go for a walk or to Devil’s Rock like we did with Dad.
But that’s when we have time, which doesn’t happen often these days. I work with a sober-living center in the city a few days a week, something I started doing last year to give back. I still travel with Presley, taking care of Jamie when we go on the road. Amidst that, I also help with our family’s booming dude ranch operation, which was just featured in a bunch of magazines’ “Best Southern Vacation Ideas” for the third straight year in a row. That means we’re all about to get even busier, especially with Gavin and Blake’s baby on the way.
“Yeah, of course,” Gavin answers.
I turn to Presley. “We’ll be back in a bit.”
“Take your time. I have to go stop Jamie from getting Blake to give in to her. That girl does not need another slice of cake—she’ll be up past her bedtime.”
“I don’t know. If Gavin’s taking care of her, he can deal with the sugar high and the inevitable sugar-crash meltdown.” I smirk, and Presley taps her chin.
“Good point. Blake!” she yells over to her. Blake looks up from our daughter with an amused smile. “Jamie can have another slice.”
Gavin groans as Presley and I laugh.
“You said you’d take her,” I remind him .
“Just remember,” Gavin shoots back. “Payback is a bitch.”
This time, Presley and I are groaning. Something tells me my brother’s kid is going to be stubborn as hell. But I smile at the image of our kids playing together, a new generation of Montgomerys—but girls this time. It’s going to be wonderful and frightening all at once, but I can’t wait for it. I know Gran and Momma are excited, too. They love having Jamie around because it “keeps them young,” and they can’t wait for a second granddaughter.
After Presley leaves to join Blake and Jamie, Gavin and I take off down the path around the property. We’re having an off week for the dude ranch, so there are no guests around, but some of the workers are milling about.
Once we’re out of earshot, Gavin clears his throat. “What did you want to talk to me about?”
I hear the nervousness in his tone, so I clap him on the back. “It’s nothing bad, Gav. Take it easy.”
Gavin releases a breath then cracks a small smile. “Okay. It was just the last time we went on a walk, you told me you wanted to move to Texas again full-time and build a house on the property, so…”
This time, I punch him in the shoulder. “Jackass.”
He chuckles. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. You know I love having you here with us.”
I nod. I do know that. After Presley amicably left the band she met through Jake at Night Hawk, we moved to Nashville for a while since she’d been working there so much. But when she got pregnant, we both decided we wanted to be closer to family so Jamie could grow up like I did. That was important to Presley, especially since she didn’t have parents or extended family who cared about her growing up.
So as soon as it made sense, I asked Gavin if we could build a place on our land. He was shocked to say the least, but it didn’t take a genius to see how happy he was. He also reminded me it was my land, too—a fact that he solidified even more when he added my name to the deed after Jamie was born.
Seven years ago, I didn’t want it, didn’t think I needed it anymore. But I understood why Gavin included me—not only because he knew Dad would’ve wanted it, but also because my child, and now his child, deserve to share in the legacy we all built.
“So what is it?” Gavin asks, breaking me from my thoughts. “Do you want to build a bigger house because Presley is pregnant again?”
I think my eyes turn into saucers. “No, no, nothing like that. I mean, not that I don’t want another Jamie, but not right now. I think my wife is in the same boat. And the house is plenty big as it is.”
Gavin smirks. “Then what is it?”
I look out over our land, the land we’ve all worked so hard to save and build into something truly amazing over the years. “Blake and I talked this morning.”
“About what?”
I stick my hands in my pockets and stop to face my brother. He pauses, staring at me with a curious gaze.
“She mentioned you said something about wanting to name your baby after Dad but you were nervous to ask me about it.”
Gavin’s lips press together. “I’m sorry, Kade. She shouldn’t have said anything.”
I clap my brother on the shoulder and give him a reassuring squeeze. “No, I’m glad she did. I think it’s a great idea.”
He stares at me cautiously, as if he thinks I’m lying. “Really?”
“I mean, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a girl named Emmett before, but I did name my kid James for Presley’s last name, so...”
That has Gavin barking out a laugh. “We’d name her Emmy.”
I grin so wide my cheeks hurt. Blake had already told me, but I couldn’t pass up the chance to tease my brother. “That’s a way better idea. ”
He shakes his head, and we fall in step next to each other again.
“I didn’t know how you’d feel about it,” he says a moment later.
“Truthfully, I was shocked when Blake told me. But I’m not upset. I could’ve named Jamie after him, but I liked the idea of carrying on Presley’s name with her. And you have to admit, my kid looks like a Jamie,” I say proudly.
“Her name suits her.” We walk a bit more before Gavin asks, “Why were you shocked?”
I kick a rock with my boot. “Because I know your relationship with Dad was complicated. And given how he left things when he died, it didn’t even occur to me you’d want to name your baby after him.”
“Both of our relationships with him were complicated,” he volleys.
“I can’t disagree with you there. But why do you want to?”
Gavin hesitates, then he stops walking again and faces me. “Despite my differences with him and everything he did, I realize that he did what he thought he had to do. Was it always right? No. But he was trying to protect his family.”
Before I was sober, Gavin’s words would’ve made me angry, and I would’ve wanted to reach for a drink. But now that I’m a dad and have had therapy where I talked until I was blue in the face about my relationship with my father, I get what Gavin is saying. I know Dad only ever did the best he could to raise us with what he knew, with the tools he had at his disposal. I forgave him for everything he said and did years ago now.
“Is there any other reason?” I ask. I have a gut feeling it’s more than that for him.
“He was a good man with a strong work ethic. And despite his mistakes, he loved us. He loved us more than I think we even knew. He made sure we always had each other, Kade. And while his death almost ripped us apart, it brought us back together. This is my way of not only honoring him but also honoring you, honoring our relationship. If my daughter is half the person that you are, that he was—” Gavin clears the emotion in his throat then pauses to gather himself. “There’s one more thing.”
I just nod, unable to trust myself to speak right now. Gavin’s emotion—his words—are affecting me more than I expected but not in a bad way.
“Her middle name is going to be Kade.”
Kade . “Emmy Kade Montgomery.”
Gavin nods.
I tug my brother to me in a long and fierce hug—a hug that you can only share with a brother, a person who’s been by your side as you went to hell and back.
When I pull away, his eyes are teary like they were all those years ago when I first told him I was getting help and that I needed space. This conversation is emotional, too, but for an entirely different reason.
“I’m proud of you, Kade, of the man you’ve become. You make me want to be better every day.”
I squeeze his biceps. “You’re a good man, Gav, the best man. Thank you for even thinking to do that. I—I don’t know what else to say except that I’m honored.”
His next words are almost a whisper. “I can’t wait to meet her.”
“You’re going to be a great dad.”
“You think?”
“I know.”
Before I can say another word, a streak of blonde hair zips between us then starts circling our legs.
“Look! I’m a pony!” Jamie giggles. She makes a nickering noise that has Gavin and I chuckling, then she circles us again and again. Soon, Presley walks over to us with Blake on her tail.
“I’m so sorry. She ran over here so fast.” Presley laughs. “Maybe you’ll get lucky, and she’ll pass out after a bath.”
“If not, we’ll watch a movie,” Blake says as she sidles up to Gavin. She rests her head on his shoulder, and he places his hand on the swell of her belly. My heart warms at the picture they make, and I stare in awe at her stomach. Emmy Kade . A niece named after me and Dad.
Presley tucks into my side, and I snap out of my little trance. When she sees my still-glassy eyes and slightly shocked expression, she frowns a bit.
“You okay, baby?” Her voice is hushed so a still-galloping Jamie doesn’t hear.
I give my attention to Gavin then to Blake. The latter is giving me a look that says she knows what Gavin told me. Her warm brown eyes smile at me, and she places her hand over the one my brother has on her stomach.
With a smile of my own, I gaze down at my wife, the person who means more to me than anything in this world.
“I’m great.” I know she doesn’t completely buy it, but I’ll tell her everything when we’re alone. I tug on a lock of pink hair. “You ready to get out of here, wife?”
She bites her lower lip and stares at my mouth. “If you are.”
“I am.” My body starts to heat as I picture what that smart mouth I love so much can do to me. “Jamie, Mommy and Daddy are going to go now. You’re having a sleepover with Uncle Gavin and Auntie Blake.”
Jamie neighs her agreement, and I shake my head. What a weirdo my beautiful wife and I created.
After Presley and I say our goodbyes to Jamie and the rest of the family scattered around the food area—and Momma reminds us it’s chili night tomorrow while warning us not to be late, I pull my wife into my side, and we walk down the path to the little house we built. It’s just past the barn that has our favorite loft.
When we approach it, I eye the sliding door and grin slyly. “What do you say we make a pit stop?”
She follows my gaze then smirks cheekily. “I’ve actually been a very bad girl.”
My cock jumps. “Oh, yeah? What did you do?”
She leans forward, taking my lip between her teeth then biting down. “I haven’t had sex with my husband today.”
I hiss from the sting then chuckle. “You’re right. That is very bad. I think you need to be spanked. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes, Kade,” she hums.
I growl and smack her butt through her jeans. “Then let me teach you a lesson, Lemon darlin’.”
Presley expels a breathy laugh. Before I can blink, she takes off toward the barn, and I follow—hot on her heels.