25. Epilogue
Kaison
Three months later…
“Knock, knock,” Cora calls out before stepping into her father’s room. The door was already open. He’s on a locked floor for people with Alzheimers and Dementia, so even if he walks around, he won’t actually get out or into anything dangerous. May go into other people’s rooms and piss them off though. Actually, he does that often.
“Who the hell are you?” Calvin barks at her, then when he sees me, he grins.
“Hey, Jack! Long time no see. Who’s this? Your new girl?”
Cora raises a brow at me, huffing. I always feel bad when we come here, and he recognizes me as my father but doesn’t recognize his daughter at all. When he did this a few months back, I had to explain it to her because I never did it after that first time. She pouted, which was fucking adorable, but now it’s a joke. Hopefully it stays that way, and she doesn’t actually get upset over it. I’d feel awful if she did.
Seems her father knew mine back in the day, though Cora swears he had nothing to do with the club. Said he was just friends with some of the guys. Makes sense, though, since the club members knew just about everyone in town. Her father and mine are about the same age, so it’s possible they went to school together or something. Who knows?
“Yeah, that’s my girl,” I say.
“She’s a pretty one,” he answers.
“Damn right she is.”
Cora looks at me, rolling her eyes. I kiss her on the head.
“We brought you a new plant,” Cora says, going over to the windowsill to put the succulent next to the other two. Cora was surprised when the nursing staff told her that her father loved the gardening classes they did. It’s something that he keeps focus on, so we bring him a new plant now and then to add to his collection. Soon enough, it’ll be a jungle in here.
“We have some news,” I say to her father, knowing Cora likely won’t be the one to bring it up.
“News? Good, I hope,” he chuckles.
“Fantastic,” I say, looking at Cora.
She grins, but I see the nervousness on her face. Sometimes she still worries we’re moving too fast, and I can see why, but fuck that. I know what I want in life, and it’s her and our family .
“We’re having a baby,” she announces, and I put my hand on her belly. I’ve never felt happier in my entire life than when she told me she was pregnant. It was the best news I’ve ever gotten.
“Well, hot damn, congratulations!” Calvin says, getting to his feet and walking over to us to hug us both. “You’ll make great parents.”
Cora’s eyes water, which happens all the time these days, but there is more reason for it now. She’s happy her father thinks she’ll be a good mother. Of course that’s a reason to be emotional. There’s another knock at the door, and Sheila walks in. She’s one of the nurses here, and very nice.
“Mr. Davies, I see your family is here. Did you remember you had something for them?” she asks, and I hide my smirk with my hand.
“He has something for us?” Cora asks with a bright smile. She loves when her father gives us stuff, even if he doesn’t realize why or remember what it is. But this thing? It’s super special.
Calvin shrugs. “Guess so.”
The nurse goes to his dresser, pulling open the top drawer. Calvin meets her there. She points to something.
“This?” he asks, lifting it up.
“That’s the one,” Sheila says, winking at me and stepping back.
Calvin turns to us. “Don’t know what it is, but I guess it’s for you.”
He offers us the small box. Cora looks at me and I shrug, hoping it comes across that I don’t know what this is all about, even though I’m the one who planted it there and talked to the staff about it.
Cora takes the box and flips it open. She looks at her dad, and while she’s facing away from me, I drop to one knee. And in just enough time, because she turns back, about to say something, but snaps her mouth shut when she sees where I am. She gasps, covering her hand with her mouth.
“Kaison…” The faucet opens, and tears pour down her cheeks. I can’t help but laugh.
I take the box from her hand and hold it up for her to get a better look at the ring. It’s simple. A thin band with a diamond that shines as bright as her eyes.
“I know it hasn’t been long, but I know what I want in this life. And Cora, what I want is you. Us. Our life. Our family. Our baby. Forever. Will you marry me?”
She’s sobbing, her face pink, and it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. “Of course I will!”
I take the ring out and put it on her finger as I get to my feet. She lunges for me, hugging me tightly.
“I can’t believe you did this here, with my dad, and in front of all the nurses. Here I am, crying like a baby.” She’s rambling on about all of this so quickly it has me laughing.
“Well, you’ll be even more upset to learn they took video of the whole thing,” I tell her quietly.
“What?” She cries louder, slapping my chest. “No!”
“Yes, sweetheart. I wanted to remember this forever. And you will too. ”
She sobs harder, hiding her face against my chest.
I shrug, looking at Calvin, who seems a little concerned. Like maybe my soon-to-be wife is a little nuts. It’s funny as hell.
“At least she said yes,” I say with a chuckle.
“Yeah, at least she did,” he agrees.
Cora
One year later…
Kaison and I have been together for over a year now and this club life stuff still isn’t sticking with me. I mean, I get it, but I also don’t get it. Thankfully, I don’t have to be involved the way he is. I stop at the clubhouse now and then, especially to take Cecilia because all those big scary guys love a little baby. And there’s no place she’s safer than around all those guys. It’s funny how they turn from scary wolves into little bunnies when she’s around. She’s a lucky girl, having so many people looking out for her. Even more lucky because she has the best father ever. Well, her and I because my dad is pretty amazing too. Kaison reminds me of him so much with how he treats our daughter, and I couldn’t be happier.
“Are you ready yet?” Fia shouts from the other room.
“Almost!” I call back .
I’m getting married today. Finally . I wanted to do it right away, and we almost did, but then I decided I wanted to wait until I could fit into a dress better and drink to celebrate. I was already three months pregnant when Kaison proposed, so I was starting to show a little. We rushed through everything else in our relationship, why not this too? Some say waiting only a year is rushing, but not when it comes to us. Still, I’m happy with how things have turned out. My life is amazing, and I owe my sanity all to Kaison.
“Okay, I’m ready!” I finally shout as I get to my feet and look myself over in the full mirror.
That night my house caught fire, it destroyed it and most of the things in it. I thanked the club a million times for going in there and saving everything they could. It wasn’t a lot compared to what was lost, but to me, it was everything.
Since Kaison and I were starting a new life together, it seemed fitting to knock the house down. We were going to rebuild on the property because Kaison didn’t want us to live in his house either. It took a long time for him to tell me why. Once he did, I didn’t want to be there either.
That house has since burned down, and he swears he doesn’t know how it happened, but I see the glint in his eye. The one that tells me he knows, and he doesn’t want to lie to me, but you know… brother stuff.
So, with all the chaos of burning houses, Kaison and I decided to build our own. There was a plot of land for sale by the lake he likes to fish on. Had a dock and everything. It was perfect. So that’s what we did. Once the house was done, we moved in right away and soon after, Cecilia came, making everything in our lives perfect. Well, almost. We still had to get married, and we do plan on having more kids.
It was about a week after she was born that I decided what I wanted to do with my father’s land. It was still sitting there, with nothing on it. But it’s a beautiful piece of land, on a small pond. It was perfect for a park. Something the community can use for events. We put a statue up for my father, built a playground for the kids, and there’s even a gazebo for—you guessed it. Weddings. Or any kind of ceremony, I suppose. Now that I’m all dressed and ready to go, we can head over there.
Fia pulls the door open of her bedroom and gasps when she sees me.
“Good Lord in heaven, Cora, I wanna eat you myself!”
I giggle, looking at myself in the mirror again. I went with a simple dress, because I don’t want anything extravagant, and Kaison of course loves me in anything. Said he’d be fine to get married naked, but then no one could attend because he’d have to kill all the guys who saw me. I laughed, but I’m pretty sure he was serious.
“Shark is going to lose his mind when he sees you,” she says, grabbing my shoulders and making me spin so she can see the back.
“Hopefully not, because we have a baby to take care of.” I press my hand to my stomach, because there’s still some baby weight there. Fia slaps it away .
“Knock it off. You’re sexy as hell. Now let’s go before that man comes looking for you. We’re going to be late.”
“Why the hell are we even here?” my father grumbles as Irene fixes his tie.
“Your daughter is getting married, Calvin,” Irene says, giving me a little wave.
I wave back.
“Who, her?” My father points at me. He looks at me for a second before shaking his head. “No, I don’t have a daughter.”
It still hurts to hear that, but I try not to take offense. He hasn’t remembered me since that last night on the swing. The night before the fire.
I swear he’s still alive because he wants to be. After the Dementia, the heart attack, and the fire, the man is still here. He wants to be in my life, even if he doesn’t realize it or isn’t conscious of it. Deep down, I believe he’s still looking out for me. I love him for that. And even though he doesn’t recognize his granddaughter as his granddaughter, he gets so happy to see her. She makes him light up, and he talks to her like he used to talk to me when I was little. I love that and take as many pictures as I can, because once she’s older, I’m going to tell her all about her grandfather and how amazing and loving he was .
“Well, you’re going to walk her down the aisle, Calvin,” Irene says. “And you’re going to be on your best behavior.”
He blinks lazily, staring ahead. That happens more often than not. His violent outbursts have dwindled, so I’ll take it as a win. The home he lives in has worked out wonderfully. The nurses and aides and doctors there take such good care of him, and the routine they keep with him really helps with his mental state. Today may be a little tough, though, because he doesn’t enjoy being out and about. But I’ll take whatever mood he’s in, because I want my father at my wedding.
“Oh alright,” he grumbles.
At least today is a somewhat good day.
With the way this park is set up, there isn’t really anywhere to hide, so Kaison doesn’t see me yet. Should have thought about that when designing this place, but we’ve made it work by standing behind a group of trees off to the side.
Once the music starts playing, I walk up to my father, who’s standing just a few feet away.
“You ready?” I ask him. He doesn’t answer. I hook my arm in his. “Just walk with me, okay?”
Again, he doesn’t answer.
“See you soon,” Fia whispers as she walks around the trees to meet Kolton so they can walk up there together.
Fia and I have gotten much closer over the last year, and we hang out outside of work now. Well, not that I work anymore because I don’t. Just kind of happened that way. But the club still owns the diner, so I go there often enough.
Kolton and I aren’t close, but he and Kaison hang out often enough. He’s polite to me now, which is a step in the right direction. And he’s adorable with Cecilia.
“I’m going to take my seat,” Irene says quietly, sneaking around toward the chairs to sit.
“Let’s walk, Dad,” I say, when I see Fia and Kolton have made their way up and are standing beside Kaison, who looks hotter than hell in his suit. I’ve never seen him in a suit before, and I need to make sure I see him in one again. Because what a wonderful site that is—damn.
In the front row, sits Grizz, the biggest guy in the club, holding Cecilia. She’s drooling all over him, but he doesn’t care. Says he’s had worse bodily fluids on him. Not surprised by that. He’s a strange guy.
Dad and I step around the trees, and thankfully, he walks by my side the whole way. When he sees the empty chair beside Irene, though, he tries to sit in it. I smile and tug him with me, and he keeps going. Once we reach the front, Coyote comes over to lead him off to the side to sit with the guys. He’s always at ease with them. It stings that I’m the only one he seems to not remember, but as long as he’s happy, I’m happy.
Now that he’s sitting, I can finally look up at my future husband. The look he is giving me… well, it could set something on fire. His eyes blaze with love and lust and I just know he’s holding himself back from lunging for me. I step to him as he comes to me, taking my hand and kissing my cheek.
“Fuck, you look so good I could eat you.”
I stifle a laugh. “Not in front of everyone.”
“Don’t care. I’ll do it.”
“Behave,” I warn as we step up to our places.
Of course, one of the guys in the club is ordained—why wouldn’t they be? And of course he has to be Spam, because again, why wouldn’t it be?
I hardly listen to what he’s saying because all I can do is stare at Kaison. Each day I’m still amazed at what a wonderful life he has given me… what a wonderful life he has shown me. I didn’t know things could be this good.
Our daughter is babbling, which catches my attention. We both look over and smile at her, but she’s too busy looking at her hands to notice us. She’s beautiful in her little white dress, but of course she’s beautiful all the time.
Kaison holds the ring to my finger, and I stare down at the beautiful white-gold band. I can’t believe this is actually happening… but I’ve never wanted something so badly in my life.
“Kaison Christopher Rivers, do you take Cora Lynn Davies to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?”
“Oh, I fucking do,” Kaison says and there are a lot of chuckles from the crowd. This man and his mouth. Pretty sure fuck is going to be Cecilia’s first word .
Spam repeats the vows to me as I hold the black band to Kaison’s finger, and I give a very polite, “Of course, I do,” then slide the ring on his finger.
“By the power invested in me in the state—”
Kaison does not wait for Spam to say he can kiss me or that we are officially pronounced husband and wife. He dives in, sweeping me back and kissing me silly. Everyone around us claps and shouts. Spam chuckles, and for the record, continues to make things “official.”
Kaison gave me so many things in this life. A family, friends, a better relationship with my father. A child. A husband. The list goes on and on. But the best thing of all that he gave me is love.