EPILOGUE
Two years later
“I will not be bested by someone who can’t even walk unassisted,” Cassidy grumbled as she snatched up the colorful building block and stacked it in her pile.
Our baby girl, Kayleigh, grinned a toothless smile at her aunt, who immediately dropped the building blocks and scooped up her niece for the tightest, most adorable hug.
“What am I talking about?” Cassidy cooed. “I can never be mad at this face. Here, you can have all the blocks. I don’t need them. I’ll just sit here and watch you build the tallest, leanest, most unstable tower ever.”
Then she proceeded to set Kayleigh down and piled every single tiny, colorful building block on top of her.
Confused, my sixteen-month-old wiggled her way free of the pile, and stare at her aunt in utter confusion, before shakily getting to her feet and waddling over to her cousin, Cairan, who was busy holding his own court with a bubble making toy, with a look of pure bliss on his face.
“Well, then,” Cassidy grumbled, “I know how to take a hint.” Then she pushed herself up from the floor and sauntered over to the couch, where she carefully flung herself down and promptly started to caress my newly pregnant belly.
“Now, I love my brother,” she started, “but he needs to get off of you. Melz, how are you pregnant again, and so soon after giving birth to Kayleigh? Couldn’t he have waited a couple more months? It’s like he was raised by animals.”
“And if he was, then what were you?” Oona, Declan’s mother, asked in that thick Irish accent, shuffling into the room with a giant platter of fruits and cheese. “Here you go, dear. I made sure there were no blueberries. Declan reminded me you are allergic.”
She handed me the plate and settled on the lounge chair across from us, gathering her long hair—that was undoubtedly once as bright as her children’s but was now dull with age—and wrapping it up into a messy bun on top of her head; a smile on her wrinkled, yet pretty, face.
I smiled back at her. “Thank you, but you didn’t have to do this.”
She waved me off. “You're pregnant, love. It’s our job to take care of you.”
“Not when you’re on vacation,” I protested, and she simply waved me off again, admiring her grandchildren across the room chasing bubbles.
“You didn’t take care of me when I was pregnant,” Cassidy grumbled.
“That’s because your ex-husband was a dick, dear. Your father wanted to murder him every time they were in the same room, so it was best I kept them away from each other.” She said this with a straight face, never once looking away from her grandkids.
Cassidy winced. “Yeah, that’s fair.”
“What’s fair?” Ronan, Declan’s father, asked, walking into the room with my husband and Orla in tow. The first-grader then immediately broke off from her tiny squad and rushed over to play with her brother and baby cousin.
Ronan McKenna was an older version of his son.
He wasn’t as tall as Declan—aging did that to a person—but he was equally handsome and just as kindhearted.
He didn’t have as many tattoos as Declan either, but what he had was especially impressive.
I think I even spotted a Púca on his upper arm, which was a mythical creature in Irish lore that was said to bring either good or bad fortune.
And considering what his position in the mob was, I could see the significance.
“Me trying to prevent you from murdering Cassidy’s ex-husband,” Oona answered sagely.
“It's not from a lack of trying. He’s a slippery bastard,” Ronan declared, and Cassidy glowered at her father.
His accent was so thick that I sometimes struggled to make out his words. However, having made out each word of that last sentence, I chuckled, throwing a hand up to hide my smile.
Cassidy turned her glower to me, opened her mouth to speak, then immediately broke out into giggles. “You know what, Dad, have at it. If he wants to disappear so badly, I’m sure you can make his wishes come through.”
And Ronan beamed at her.
A year ago, Cassidy had hired a private investigator to help track down her now ex-husband, so he could sign the divorce and custody papers.
It took the investigator a month to track him down.
Turned out he was holed up in a cabin in the woods that once belonged to a distant relative of his.
Even so, what was surprising was his signing the papers without protest. His only request was that Cassidy never come looking for him again, and for the investigator to get off his porch.
And just like that, Cassidy was divorced with sole custody of her kids.
She was still unsure of what caused this sudden change in the personality of the man she once loved, and she might never know.
Her ex was an only child, and his parents had long passed before he and Cassidy got together, so no one reported him missing during the months Cassidy was unable to find him.
There was quite literally no one to turn to for answers.
“Thank you, my darling daughter. You’ve made my week,” Ronan replied.
Cassidy pouted. “Just your week?”
“Unfortunately, your brother has brought some urgent matters to my attention that must be handled before I go traipsing after your no-good ex-husband. I never liked that bastard.”
“You know, Father, you never did explain why that was,” Declan chimed in with a grin.
“He’s short,” Ronan replied simply, and the room went silent—save for the three kids playing across the floor—waiting for him to elaborate.
When he didn’t say more, Declan rasped, “That’s it?”
“Yes!” both Ronan and Oona answered at the same time, shooting each other loving looks from across the room.
Cassidy glanced back and forth between the two, who were still locked in that loving gaze.
“There’s something wrong with this family,” Cassidy declared.
“I second that,” her twin concurred, and I lost my battle with the overwhelming giggles and simply laughed out loud.
I loved having Declan’s parents around. They were a breath of fresh air.
I’d met them for the first time shortly after Declan proposed, when they traveled across an entire ocean to give us their blessings in person.
Turned out, Declan had been talking about me a lot to his parents.
And by the time we met, his parents embraced and welcomed me like family.
Since then, his mom and dad have come back to visit for every occasion.
They were even in the hospital waiting room with my mom while I gave birth to Kayleigh.
Declan’s parents and my mom had hit it off the moment they met.
And they even made a chat group with just the three of them, where they jokingly talk trash about their kids daily.
Our wedding ceremony was truly amazing and took place three months after Declan proposed.
He didn’t want to wait to be married to me, and I wanted to be able to fit into a dress when I walked down the aisle.
So, three months later, Declan and I got married in a beautiful beach ceremony in the Caribbean with all of our friends and family present.
Initially, I was worried about the cost and unsure if we’d be able to pull it off in such a short time, but it was amazing what you could accomplish when you had money like Declan’s. He’d taken care of everything.
Also, remember that one jab I made about billionaires spending money on stupid shit like helicopters? Well, the joke was on me when Declan flew all our wedding guests to the Caribbean in his private jets.
Yes, jets!
As in, multiple.
Apparently, McKenna Enterprises also included a private jet chartering company.
I honestly had no frame of reference when it came to Declan’s wealth, and I was fine with that.
Declan loved me and treated me like I was the most precious thing on this earth.
I truly didn’t care about his wealth. The fact was, even if he wasn’t wealthy, I was confident he would still treat me the same way.
And in the end, that was all that mattered.
“Hey, love,” Declan said softly, leaning over to brush a kiss on the side of my head. “Can I talk to you in the kitchen for a second?”
I looked up, trying to read his expression. Though his words were calm, there was something about them that had me on instant alert.
“Sure,” I said.
He helped me stand with a steadying hand at my lower back since my center of gravity was off, and ushered me to the kitchen. I was a little over six months pregnant, but our little boy was a lot bigger than his sister was at this stage, and it reflected in the size of my belly.
As my doctor had predicted, I’d lost the extra weight I’d gained from the medication and was back to my typical body type.
Even with the two pregnancies, I still hadn’t gained the weight back.
Declan hadn’t batted an eye regarding the weight loss.
And when I brought it up, he had simply kissed my forehead and reminded me that he loved me for me, and not for how much I weighed.
Given how much I’d lost, I saw now that it wasn’t a lot, despite how Seth had made me feel.
He made it seem like I’d turned into a baby dinosaur when, realistically, I’d put on only twelve pounds.
Maybe fifteen if I was on my period that particular week.
Though, if I was honest, some days I missed the extra few pounds.
It made me look grown—like a woman, and not like a teenager playing at being an adult.
Perhaps after this pregnancy, which Declan and I both agreed was the last one, I could look into some kind of nutrition plan that would give me a happy medium.
My husband would love me either way. So as long as I was happy, I could gain or lose as much weight as I wanted.
“What’s going on?” I asked as he settled me on a stool at the kitchen island and poured me a glass of water.
He was always doing that—randomly bringing me water, tea, or juice. Of which I was extremely grateful. No one prepared me for how much pregnancy made me thirsty all the time.
Declan stood in front of me, tattooed arms folded across his impressive chest. He was wearing his customary fitness tank and jeans.
I’d asked him once why he only wore gym tanks around the apartment, and he’d simply explained that he ran hot.
And hot he was, bulging biceps and sculpted chest peeking out from behind the sparse fabric of his shirt.
I swear to all that is holy, if I wasn’t already pregnant…
“So, my dad and I were talking about your book signing this weekend,” Declan started.
“Since the threat of Seth’s crazy family is still out there, Dad suggested hiring private security to keep you safe during the event.
You can’t move as swiftly as you normally would with your pregnant belly.
So I was thinking of getting you a personal bodyguard who will stay with you at all times, while the rest of your guards spread out amongst the crowd.
That way you’ll be safe while still interacting with your fans. ”
I sighed.
Seth’s mother had engaged in violent behavior directed at me twice already.
Once at school, while I was in the parking lot greeting my students, she tried to run me over with her car.
And another time, while Cassidy and I were out shopping for baby clothes.
Declan had told me that the women in the mafia were mostly treated as arm candy, but that wasn’t the case that day when Cassidy knocked her out with one solid punch.
The restraining order I had against her and the rest of her family clearly did not deter her.
And both times after each incident, when the police went looking for her, she was conveniently out of town with witnesses to back her up.
After the parking lot incident, I resigned from the elementary school, because I didn’t want to put the kids in danger.
I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if something happened to my students because of me.
“Do you really think she’d show up to the signing?” I asked, hoping for an answer that would help me protest the bodyguards.
I was already the wife of a renowned billionaire with a recent multimillion-dollar book deal with a well-established publishing house, who was also in negotiations with two streaming services for the possibility of some type of book adaptation.
I didn’t need to rub my success in people’s faces by having personal guards.
Declan exhaled slowly, cupping my face in his hands.
“I don’t know, love. But it’s better to be safe than sorry.
I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to you.
Honestly, I’d probably rejoin the mob so I could kill them all.
” He brushed a quick kiss to my lips. “I just need you to be safe, that’s all.
The crowd prediction is expected to be in the hundreds.
Especially since your first novel has rejoined your second one on the bestseller list for the last couple of weeks.
People are going to be flocking to meet you and have their copies signed.
And since I can’t be there myself, I need someone looking out for you while you focus on connecting with your readers. Fair?”
I nodded, knowing that there was no way out of this until Maria was behind bars.
“Great,” Declan exhaled, and I could hear the relief in his voice.
“Thank you for agreeing. I’ll make the arrangements, and Steven and my dad will coordinate with the guards for the event.
Your mom is also flying in for the signing.
I’ll make arrangements for her travels as well.
Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything. ”
I smiled. “I know you will.”
He leaned in for a quick kiss that immediately turned passionate, and I lingered in his sweet embrace.
The gentle tapping of tiny feet on the hardwood floor caught my attention, and I broke our kiss to watch Kayleigh waddling into the room on unsteady legs.
She looked between her dad and me, smiled that toothless smile I loved so much, drool dripping down her chin like a leaking faucet, before throwing her arms in the air and demanding, “Up!”
Declan grinned and rushed over to pick her up, kissing her chubby cheeks, then whispering, “As you wish, a ghrá mo chroí.”