Washington, D.C. Date Night #4
“There would be no this without us,” she said, “but there would be no us without Gene. He fixed you enough to give you a fighting chance, because Fate needed time. It needed time to assemble the family we would be. When people ask how we can love so many people, and did we really believe you could have more than one soulmate, we tell them yes because we learned we could.”
Gene loved his family.
He loved it so much.
As this woman held his and Ethan’s daughter, she cuddled Willa like she was born from her own body. She loved endlessly, so those around her could feel whole.
“I was here for the beginning of OUR story, the middle of it, and the present. I got to meet Gene at our wedding,” she said, being honest. “And I knew then the way he looked at you.”
Ethan let her talk.
“When we married on the reservation, and this bear of a man lumbered up to us, I could tell that there was something there that I wasn’t privy to. A woman knows when her husband loves someone else, still, and I knew that you and Gene had a past. I just waited for you to tell me about it.”
Both men were aware.
Showing up at Ethan’s wedding had been the hardest thing he’d ever had to do. Only, he needed to see if they were really done.
And they had been.
“In that moment, Ethan moved on for survival, but I could tell that there were always those ties to Gene. For we all have that first love in our life. I had mine, and Ethan had his.”
Ethan hadn’t been honest then, because he couldn’t be. He kept so many secrets over their marriage, and raged at her when she’d done the same.
He’d made her work for it, and she’d still stayed and fought. That’s why he loved her. Gene may have created the man he was, but Elizabeth sustained it.
“We moved through our life, but there was always a hole in you. When Gene came back, I was grateful. There has never been jealousy in our relationship. When you love more than one person, you see that the more love you give, the more you get back. I was there for your journey apart,” she said.
Then, she focused on Gene.
“I was there at the beginning for you, too. Only, we were co-workers and friends. We worked together on a few cases, and I learned the kind of man you were. You, Gene Cantrell, are a good, kind man, and I’m grateful you and Ethan found yourselves again.
I was there through the Preston years, and then the ones that followed,” she said, not mentioning the man’s name.
That wasn’t happening on their day.
Tommy was still a dirty word.
“I was there when Preston died, and when Ethan rushed to your side, I knew you’d be back. The man you’d given your heart to after Ethan was a placeholder until Fate could give you back to your love.”
Gene was so grateful that Elizabeth had been part of his life throughout it as a Fed, and a Hunter.
Another person stood.
“And we were there at the beginning, and we’d love to be there for this part too,” the voice said, and it caught Gene off guard.
It took him back.
When he turned, he saw a very familiar face.
Two of them.
“We’re Gene’s brothers. We were part of his world at the beginning, and we always knew he was different. When we would go off to football, and chase some cheerleaders, he would partake in the game, and then bail.”
Gene stood there.
It was clear this blindsided him.
He’d not seen his brothers since the days when he and Ethan had been a couple. He’d come out, and they’d turned their backs on him.
“We abandoned you when we met Ethan. You brought him home, claiming the real you, and we weren’t the kind of people we’re proud of. For that, we’re both sorry,” the one brother admitted.
Gene looked over at Ethan.
“How?”
Blackhawk glanced back at Elizabeth.
“She loves a wedding,” he said.
Jesus.
Gene couldn’t believe this.
She’d done something he’d never believed would happen. She made a miracle by getting his brothers to come here.
His parents were dead, but he’d missed this. For the longest time, he was alone. Yes, he had this family, but Ethan always had Callen, and Elizabeth had Duke.
He and Chris were alone.
“We let you down,” his one brother said. “And for that, we’re sorry. We missed the middle part of your story, Gene, but we’d love to be here for this part.”
Ethan set his hand free, and just nodded.
The choice was his.
And like normal, Gene didn’t let them down. He had a streak of compassion a mile wide, and he didn’t hold a grudge.
Instead of having every right to be hurt, the big man headed toward the two men who looked so much like him.
“We missed you,” Benjamin Cantrell said. “We’d like to have a chance to make up for it.”
Gene hugged his brother, and then his other brother spoke.
“We did you wrong, Gene, and we can only hope that now that you’ve found your path, and family, that you’ll let us back into your life,” Mattias admitted.
Gene hugged him, too.
“You’re both my brothers,” he said. “That has never changed. Blood is blood.”
No, it hadn’t.
“We missed you,” Mattias admitted.
Oh, Gene missed them, too.
When he set them free, he headed back up to his mate to let what was planned play out, but he couldn’t believe it.
“Thank you, Elizabeth,” Gene said, wiping his eyes on his tux sleeve.
She just smiled at him.
“A wise man once said, Love only grows by sharing. You can only have more for yourself by giving it away to others.”
And that was the truth.
When the next person stood, it was Dakota Rakin. He’d spent time with Gene as a Hunter.
“I was part of your time away from Ethan, and man…it wasn’t fun,” he said. “You are a cranky bitch when you’re not with him.”
Gene actually laughed.
“I mean, our job wasn’t fun,” he said, leaving it at that. A day didn’t go by that he didn’t think about how Preston had died in front of him.
To that day, he blamed himself.
Dakota continued.
“When you came into our lives,” he said, pointing at the Hunters who were sitting near him, “you were an annoying homicide captain. You hitched your wagon to a man named Preston, and it was a good run too.”
It had been.
Preston hadn’t been Ethan, but he’d given him what he’d needed.
A chance to heal.
“What I remember most is when Preston died, and we reached you, there was only one person you needed. It wasn’t us, but instead, it was the man you had always loved. You called Ethan and he came in hours. He arrived, and he stayed with you.”
Oh, he remembered.
Ethan had never left his side.
“We are so happy that you’ve found your place, Gene, and while we miss you terribly, we’re glad you found your world. We’re happy for you, and know it’ll only get better.”
From Dakota’s mouth to God’s ears.
That was his hope.
Callen went next.
“I remember my brother getting the call. He always had your name in his phone, and it was always under one thing—a fifty. You didn’t have a name in his phone. It was always that one single number. Later, when you came into our world, I asked him why fifty, and not Gene.”
Gene knew.
“Because half of one hundred is fifty, and I was his other half.”
Callen nodded.
“When he left to see you, we knew things were changing,” he admitted.
“We just didn’t know what was to come. For a good two years, my brother changed, and we all saw that evolution happening.
Whenever he’d go to New Orleans, he’d come back with less of his heart.
As a family, we knew it was only a matter of time. ”
Gene faced Ethan.
That’s when Elizabeth finished.
“We knew that there would be change, and all we could hope and pray was that we all survived it. When you have a marriage that’s open, like ours, you have to prepare for the worst-case scenario.
We believed we lost Ethan, but instead, we gained Gene.
When you broke up with the rebound guy, and we brought you to DC, there was the possibility of losing him to you, but there was also the possibility of gaining you. We loved you, and took a chance.”
And Ethan finished.
“And it paid off,” he admitted. “Out of loss and lesson, there was a moment where I felt the tides change. It was the day I told you that you had to move out of the house because I couldn’t destroy my family.
As soon as I said those words, I did something far worse.
I destroyed me. Losing you has always been a fate worse than death. ”
And it was true.
Gene felt that too.
Blackhawk continued.
“Thanks to the people I love, and how much faith they have always had in me, we were able to find a path. It’s a new one where instead of two, there’s five.
This is our journey, and I want you to be by my side for the rest of it.
Come good, or bad. Come scary, or traumatic.
I want you, Gene Cantrell, to be with us because you’re part of us and always have been. ”
Gene wiped his eyes again.
“So today, in front of our family, I want to make a vow to not only you, but to them. We are the Blackhawks, and no matter what happens, the core isn’t just me and Elizabeth, but all five of us.
This relationship is built on a foundation of love, faith, and strength.
Be part of us until death do us all part. ”
A man began rolling a cart out, and on it, there were five boxes.
It was clear that Ethan had planned for this.
“We’ve got more rings than we know what to do with, so I wanted something special.
I wanted something permanent. So, in each box is a bracelet.
It screws on, and never comes off. It’s a symbol like a ring—round, and endless.
What I’d love more than anything is for you to make the choice to wear one and put the rest of them on the people who are also ours. ”
Gene didn’t hesitate.
Now, he didn’t have to buy rings. This was definitely so much more.
He pulled up his sleeve, and undid his cufflinks. Then, he held out his arm. From the one box, the jeweler removed the bracelet that had been fitted for Gene. They’d used the cuff of one of his custom-made shirts.