Epilogue Delia
A Year Later
The sun beamed down on us through a soft veil of clouds, clouds that seemed to keep the stifling heat at bay for my special day. It felt like the kind of day someone would write about in a fairy tale—clear, calm, and perfect.
I stood in front of the full-length mirror, adjusting the lace on my wedding dress as my heart thudded with a rhythm that felt entirely foreign.
Behind me, Kassandra fussed with my veil. “I swear, Delia, if you cry and mess up all the hard work I’ve done on your makeup, I’m making you do it over yourself.”
“I’m not crying,” I replied, but my voice betrayed me with its slight tremble. My reflection didn’t lie, either. My eyes glistened, ready to spill over at any second.
Kassandra snorted. “Uh-huh. Sure, you’re not. You look like a walking Hallmark commercial. Honestly, I’ve never seen you this happy.”
Her words made me pause. I stared at myself a little longer, taking it all in. The woman in the mirror didn’t look like the version of me I’d seen just over a year ago.
Back then, I’d been lost, unsure of myself, carrying so much weight I didn’t even know how to name it. Now, my skin glowed, my smile was easy, and my posture was upright.
I didn’t look like I was bracing for the world to knock me down anymore.
“You’re right,” I whispered. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.”
Kassandra grinned, satisfied. “Good. You deserve it. And you look stunning , by the way.”
She stood back, admiring the dress one last time. It was soft ivory and classic silk with buttons that trickled down the bodice and sleeves, fitted just enough to show the curve of my waist. And my ass. That part was for Robert. I’d never felt more beautiful.
“I want to wear this everywhere. I wish I never had to take it off.”
“The makeup looks good, too, right,” Kassandra asked, with a wink, fishing for compliments.
“Oh, of course. The makeup is the star of the show. Thanks, Kassie,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Don’t thank me,” she shot back with a smirk. “Thank Robert. He’s the one who insisted on the custom dress. Honestly, the man has better taste than I do, and that’s saying something.”
At the mention of Robert, my heart gave a little flutter. Robert. My fiancé, about to be my husband. The man who had saved me in more ways than I could count – figuratively and literally. The man who had somehow loved me through every messy piece of the past year.
I thought about how far we’d come, from our rocky start to this day, where nothing felt uncertain anymore.
Kassandra checked her phone and said, “Okay, it’s almost time. Tyler’s probably pacing outside like a lunatic waiting to walk you down the aisle.”
My brother had been my rock through so much of my life, and I knew walking me down the aisle was as big for him as it was for me. I’d agonized over the decision to ask him, knowing that I had planned to ask my dad to come to the wedding.
At different times, I’d considered not asking my dad at all, then asking him to walk me down the aisle. Finally, when I’d made the decision to send him the invitation, I knew the truth of who deserved to hold my arm in that moment. When I asked Tyler, he’d told me, “I don’t care how old we are. You’ll always be my baby sister.”
A knock sounded at the door, and then my mother stepped in. Her expression softened the moment she saw me.
“Oh, Delia,” she breathed, bringing her hand up to her mouth as her eyes welled with tears. “You look beautiful.”
“Mom,” I said, moving toward her as she embraced me.
Her hug lingered longer than usual, and I could feel the unspoken words in her touch. My mother had changed over the past year. She showed up more. She tried harder. She smiled more. And she loved my babies with a fierceness I hadn’t expected from her.
“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered in my ear. “I really am. Look at everything you’ve done. Your family. Your life.”
“Thank you,” I whispered back, tears finally breaking free and slipping down my cheeks.
When she pulled away, she gave me a soft smile. “And don’t cry. You’re going to ruin that makeup.”
I laughed, wiping my tears carefully as Kassandra threw up her hands in mock exasperation.
The music started not long after that. I stood at the entrance to the outdoor aisle, my hand in Tyler’s as the guests rose to their feet. I glanced at him, and he gave me a crooked smile.
“You ready?” he asked, his voice low and steady.
I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Yeah. I’m ready.”
We stepped forward together, and as I looked out at the crowd gathered on the lush, green lawn, my heart swelled.
There were Robert’s friends - veterans from his volunteer groups, men and women who had become like family to him over the years at the courses he taught and the business he ran.
There were students and faculty from my graduate program, people who’d supported me through some of my darkest days.
There was my family: my mom, Tyler, even my father, who’d shown up for the first time in years. I wasn’t sure how I felt about him being there, but for today, I let it be enough.
And at the end of the aisle, there were Robert and Corinne. I’d made her the ring bearer, and now she stood behind Robert, already twelve years old and in middle school, about to become a teenager, which seemed impossible. She held the hands of the twins proudly, taking her job seriously.
Beside her, Amara, named after the ‘eternal love’ that Robert and I shared, wriggled out of her grasp, but Corinne caught her by the hem of her dress, bringing uproarious laughter from the guests.
Ronan, our ‘little seal’, tried to help his twin in mischief, pulling at Corinne’s death grasp until Kassandra came up and helped by pulling him away to stand back with her.
When we found Ronan’s name, Robert and I had fallen all over ourselves laughing that he’d be our ‘little seal’ until Robert had looked at me seriously and said, “But he can never go into the military,” and I had said, “Do you want to make a little seal of it?” offering him my pinkie finger.
Now, those moments seemed so far away. They weren’t just sleepy lumps in my arms, gnawing at my nipples from time to time. They were toddling and chewing on things, constantly moving and somehow slippery, so wiggly they were like cats. Time was moving too fast.
Robert stood tall, his dark hair neatly combed, his green eyes locked onto mine with a look that made everything else fade away.
When we reached the altar, Tyler kissed my cheek and stepped back, leaving me with Robert.
“You’re breathtaking,” Robert whispered, his voice thick with emotion as he took my hands.
“You are,” I teased back, though my voice wavered.
The ceremony was a blur of emotions. I barely heard the officiant’s words, though I knew I’d remember the vows we shared forever.
“I promise to stand beside you, through everything life throws our way,” Robert said, his voice wavering. He looked at me with a fierceness that made my knees weak. “I promise to love you, protect you, and build a life with you. You and our children are my only priority, my first and last thought. I promise to see you in every choice I make and see your face in the love we have for our family. I’ve said it before, Delia, but my little family wasn’t complete yet, and I didn’t see that until you were there. So more than anything, I promise to always be grateful for all the ways you made our lives infinitely better just by being here and being you. Because you are enough.”
When it was my turn, I said, “I promise to love you for everything you are. I promise to love your strength and guard your weakness. I promise to be with you to steer the ship when it’s crashing, to guide us back on course. I promise to believe in us, to be on your team, even when life is hard, and to stand by your side as we grow. I promise to be the best mother I can be to your children, all of them.” I looked down at Corinne and winked. I was surprised to see that her brown eyes swam with tears. “I promise to love the parts of your daughter that are Quinn’s and to make sure you give yourself credit for the parts that are you – like her empathy. Most of all, I promise to be a safe space because you—” My voice cracked, and I took a moment to compose myself, closing my eyes and breathing, “You have given me a home in your heart that I didn’t know how desperately I was looking for.”
When the officiant pronounced us husband and wife, Robert kissed me with a tenderness that made my heart soar. He grabbed my hand and threw our arms up over our heads as Corinne did the same with the fat little hand of Amara and Kassandra with Ronan, pushing him delicately forward to stand with Corinne again.
The reception was lively and warm. The twins—now just over a year old—were passed around between my mom, Tyler, and Kassandra, all of whom fussed over them like they were the most precious beings on the planet.
I watched Robert twirl Corinne around the dance floor, her laughter ringing out like a bell as he smiled wider than I’d ever seen him.
“Happy?” Kassandra asked, handing me a glass of wine, which I happily drank, no longer pregnant or breastfeeding, free to celebrate with alcohol for the first time in almost two years. It felt like a small miracle in itself.
I looked out at my family, Robert, Corinne, our twins, and everyone who had come together to celebrate with us, and smiled.
My father caught my eye from across the room, where he chatted with my mom and poked the chubby cheeks of Ronan, and nodded. It was small, but it was something. It was more than I’d had in years.
“Yeah,” I said softly. “I really am.”
The End.
Did you like this book? Then you’ll LOVE my other book “Baby For My Dad's SEAL Best Friend”, another steamy age gap forced proximity billionaire romance, in the same series “Billionaire Silver Foxes' Club”, available to read for FREE on Kindle Unlimited HERE .
Here is a short description of what “Baby For My Dad's SEAL Best Friend” is all about:
I betrayed my best friend by savagely devouring his luscious daughter. Now… she’s pregnant with my baby.
I’ve been haunted by the trauma from my SEAL days… and the mess my ex-wife left for me and my daughter.
Then Madeline Carter showed up. My best friend’s daughter I hadn’t seen in years.
Two decades younger than me and every man’s dirty fantasy, she’s now the lead architect in my home make-over project.
I hated how in her presence, I always felt the Empire State Building tenting in my pants. But out of respect for her father, I vowed to stay away.
When she faced danger, though, I offered her my place for protection. That’s when she admitted her feelings for me, and I lost all control.
I needed to taste her… to show her how a real man treats a woman’s body. Now she’s the only woman to fill the deep void in my and my daughter’s life.
Her father would kill me for just looking at her. But now that she’s pregnant with my baby, I will make her mine, no matter the cost.
***
“Baby For My Dad’s SEAL Best Friend” is a scorching age gap, forced proximity, Single dad, billionaire romance in the Billionaire Silver Foxes’ Club Series. Please note there are a few mentions of PTSD panic attacks. Each book is a complete stand-alone with no cliffhangers and a satisfying happy ever after.