Epilogue
Kristie
I laugh as Milly throws herself into my arms when we arrive at the Austin airport.
“Kris!” she squeals with excitement.
“I’m so glad you’re back! OMG, it’s been so long.”
“Careful,” my handsome boyfriend warns, frowning at his sister as we hug enthusiastically.
“Kris is pregnant again, and we don’t want to hurt the baby.”
Milly merely rolls her eyes while bouncing up and down on her toes.
“Of course I wouldn’t hurt the baby because I’m beyond excited to become an aunt again! I never even knew I was an aunt to begin with,” she says while cooing at the child in Nick’s arms. “Oh my god, I can’t believe I missed the first year of your life! Come here, Riley. Come to Auntie Milly. Goodness, you look just like your dad, don’t you?”
I laugh because with every passing day, Riley resembles his father more.
Not only do they have the same dark hair and blue eyes, but Riley grows more mischievous by the hour, and sure enough, with an impish look, he begins tugging at Milly’s hair with a chubby baby fist.
“Ouch!” she squeals in mock outrage before pressing a kiss to his downy head.
“Oh my gosh, are you flirting with me, Riles? Are you flirting with your aunt? Don’t worry, because I love you just the same,” she coos.
“You are the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen!”
I laugh.
“Well, he’s eighteen months now, so he should know better than to pull hair.”
“Eighteen months is nothing!” Milly coos again while bobbling Riley in her arms. “You’re a pretty-witty little thing, aren’t you, Riley? Auntie Milly loves you.”
I share an indulgent smile with Nick because this is the happy family that we want.
After our talk that day, our lives took a decided turn.
I’m not saying that there will never be any misunderstandings going forwards, or that everything will always be perfect, but we’ve made a commitment to work things out together.
Neither Nick nor I will let a wrong word or gesture derail us for years.
Instead, we’ve pledged to nip any misunderstandings in the bud because the repercussions aren’t worth it.
Besides, now I’m pregnant with our second child.
It was to be expected.
My reunion with my handsome stepbrother was glorious and impassioned, and he decided to stay in Vegas for the time being.
“But who will run your medical device company?” I asked curiously.
“You are the CEO, after all.”
Nick shrugged his broad shoulders before pulling me close.
“They’ll be fine for on their own for a while. I have good people working for me, and they know what to do. Besides, I’ve been working too hard anyways, and I want to take some time to get to know you and the baby. You two are my first priority, Kristie.”
The sincerity and depth in his eyes touched me, and I threw myself in his arms again.
“Thank you,” I breathed.
“For holding space for us. For making sure that we’re seen and heard, and not just add-ons to your existence. You’ve made me so happy and grateful,” I add with tears springing to my eyes.
Nick stared at me, his azure gaze stormy.
“You would never be an add-on, sweetheart,” he replied in a rough voice.
“You and the baby mean everything to me, and I never want to go back to the way we were.”
As a result, Nick rented an apartment in the nicest part of Vegas, and gradually integrated himself into our child’s life.
At first, it was just being present for a few hours at a time, but it soon moved to staying over and helping with night feedings, changing dirty diapers, giving Riley baths, and taking the tot on park excursions while feeding him lunch and snacks.
My boyfriend loves spending time with his son, and Riley adores the huge alpha male as well.
Plus, I’ve never been so happy and content before.
Nick has been the missing piece of life for as long as I remember, and finally being together is a blessing.
But he did say that his company will need him at some point, and as a result, we’ve moved back to Austin for good.
I’m glad actually. The City of Sin is a fun place for singles, but it’s not so great when it comes to raising a family.
Now, the live music capital of the world beckons as my handsome boyfriend picks up our luggage.
“Let’s go, sweetheart,” Nick smiles.
“The car’s waiting at the curb.”
I nod, with Milly and Riley trailing behind me.
“It is nice to be back in Texas,” I sigh as we step outside into sunny weather.
“I’ve missed Austin. Oh, and I want to catch up with my friend, Angela, because I haven’t seen that girl in so long!”
Nick nods as the driver takes the luggage from his hands.
“Angela is your bestie, right? I don’t think I’ve ever met her.”
“No, because we met randomly at a fitness class. We bonded because we were the only two curvy girls in a class of skinny minnies, but she’s amazing, and her life’s looking up. Her husband passed away a year or so ago, and she was devastated, in addition to being left destitute. Well, I don’t think she was destitute ,” I correct.
“But the insurance money was running out.”
Nick’s black brows rise as he opens the car door.
“So is your friend going back to work?”
“Yes!” I say with a happy smile.
“Angela just landed a job as a housekeeper for a billionaire, and I’m so happy for her!”
Nick looks up sharply.
“A billionaire in Austin? Do I know him?”
I shrug before taking the baby from Milly and buckling him into a car seat.
“I don’t know. I think his name is Dominic? Something like that. He just moved to the Austin area, so Angela interviewed and she was hired! But it’s weird because she’s only been working a couple months, and he already wants her to come to New York with him. For a business trip, of course.”
To my surprise, my boyfriend doesn’t look surprised.
“Yeah, that can happen.”
I stare at Nick.
“Wait, this isn’t weird to you? Do billionaires usually bring housekeepers on their business trips?”
Nick merely grins at me, incredibly handsome with his blue eyes and white smile.
“ I don’t, but some rich dudes do. These guys have households all over the world: New York, London, Paris, Tokyo, you name it. Of course, they have staff at every location, but sometimes there will be a special event, and they’ll bring people they know to make sure it goes off without a hitch.”
I’m still confused and my forehead scrunches.
“But he can’t just hire an event planner in New York?”
My boyfriend shrugs while shooting me another grin.
“I’m sure he can, but it sounds like he wants his Austin housekeeper on the ground for some reason or another. I don’t know.”
I nod, mulling things over in my mind.
Goodness, does Angela’s new employer have an ulterior motive by inviting her to New York?
She hasn’t told me much about him, except that he’s remote, forbidding, and very, very wealthy.
She didn’t say if he was single, but if he were married, wouldn’t he leave such preparations to his wife?
My spidey sense goes off, and I wonder I should say something to my friend in warning.
But I put it out of my mind for the moment because right now, I just want to go home with my boyfriend and my baby.
My hand slips over my slightly bulging belly as the car pulls away from the curb, and Nick smiles when he sees my gesture.
Then, he slips his big hand over mine before leaning over to whisper, “Thank you, Kristie. For giving me a wonderful son, and for the second child on the way too. You are everything to me, my love.”
I turn to him, the sincerity in my eyes so bright that it makes his breath hitch.
“Thank you , Nick,” I murmur, my heart overflowing.
“And just so you know, you’re my obsession, just as I am yours.”
Then, we begin our trip home to a shining future filled with laughter, love, babies .
.. and everything a woman could dream of.
THE END
BUT WAIT, IT’S NOT OVER YET!
Watch as Nick proposes to Kristie in a sweet yet spicy bonus scene.
Best of all, he has a gorgeous heirloom ring in his pocket that he’s been saving for the right girl at the right moment.