Epilogue II
“The picnic is ready, Nobi,” Chris said, giving her a kiss on the cheek and a gentle rub on her belly. He squeezed her close. “I have a little treat for you, my treasure.” He pulled a petit four from the palm of his hand and let her take a bite.
“Delicious,” she moaned.
“Shall we go see your family or sneak up to our room?”
“Or shall we take to the fields again?” she winked at him.
It was a beautiful summer afternoon, the wind was a soft breeze through the trees while the sun shone enough to warm the skin but not scorch it. It was a perfect day.
She gave into his kiss for a lingering minute and then playfully swatted his hands away. “As much as I’d like for you to take me today—again—I think we should visit with family. Especially since they all made the effort to be here.”
He chuckled and laced his fingers into hers. “Let’s go.”
Together they traversed down into the garden where everyone was waiting.
The happy chatter reached their ears. Talk of memories filtered the air.
“How was the one-month-turned-several-months trip around the continent?” James jokingly asked the hosts.
“It was,” Nobi gazed up at Chris and took a breath, “exceptional.”
“This one here would have kept traveling, but I had to remind her that we had family back home that we should probably see.” Chris nudged her in the ribs.
“Yes, I probably could have stayed a little bit longer, at least for that first trip, but I’m more than happy to be home. Now I know that we can travel whenever we want to.”
“Yes,” Chris placed a kiss on her cheek, “and we will. We might even take a trip with your father who’s still gallivanting about.”
“He’s always somewhere,” she laughed. “And I think he wouldn’t mind the company once in a while.”
“But now that we’re home, I’m happy to be here.”
“Well, we’re glad you invited us for the day,” Wes said. “We owe you two so much.”
“Yes, you two and the duke dare,” James whistled, “we all owe everything to the duke dare.”
“The duke dare?” Chris raised his eyebrows. “What’s the duke dare?”
Wes, Sam, and James all three exchanged a curious glance and Nobi felt a nervous flutter in her stomach.
“You know,” Mimi waved her hand in the air as if that explained everything, “the duke dare.”
“No, I don’t know the duke dare.”
“Ooh,” Mimi threw a hand over her eyes.
Joan sucked in a breath and Bodi closed her eyes in a long, slow blink.
“Oh…um…yes, the duke dare, well, you know, nothing really to say about that.” Nobi picked up a piece of bread and added some cheese to it before she popped it into her mouth—or was that a biscuit?
It didn’t matter. At least her mouth was busy, as she made the world’s worst attempt at explaining something she didn’t want to unpack. “Mhmmfmmp…wmmmfpw.”
“Nobi, I can wait until you’ve finished your biscuit and cheese combination.” He stood with his hands on his hips. She hadn’t seen him look that severe in a while. Sometimes in the bedroom he adopted an authoritative role. Her cheeks flushed. Now was clearly not the time for those thoughts.
Or was it?
She swallowed the lump of food she had chewed and reached for Chris. Whispering in his ear, she said, “I think I’d like to take you up on that offer now to roll around in the grass.”
Loudly, Chris answered, “Oh no, you don’t. There’s something you’re all not telling me.” He pointed his finger around the group as they all simultaneously sipped their drinks. “What is this duke dare business all about?”
Aside, Mimi whispered to Nobi, “You never told him?”
“I thought I did…but I guess I didn’t. And then I just never thought about it again.”
“Oh my,” Joan said, shaking her head.
“Well, you see…” Nobi nibbled on her bottom lip. “You know I love you dear.”
“Yes, yes. Get on with it.” He made a rolling gesture with his hand. After that signal, Nobi wasn’t sure if she preferred his hands on his hips or not.
“Well…all right…you know I love you. I always have.” She rushed to continue so that he wouldn’t interrupt. “And I just, well, I didn’t want to lose you as a friend, but I was too…”
“Shy?”
“Fearful?”
“Cowardly?”
All her sisters supplied those answers. And though it probably didn’t matter, the order of the corresponding sisters was: Joan, Bodi, and then Mimi.
“Yes, that.” She glared at them. “Thank you, for that.” She cleared her throat. “Well, apparently I needed a little bit of a push, some motivation so to speak, so that I would finally make a move with you.”
“We all dared each other to snag a duke,” Mimi said, triumphantly. “And then we all did. With”—she pointed her finger in the air—“true love.” Then she bowed. “Thank you very much.”
“So I’m a dare then, am I?” Chris narrowed his eyes at her.
“Well, yes, but no. Oh, what a mess.” Chris stalked toward her and she slowly backed up with each step he took.
“Nobi,” his voice was low and rumbling as he took another step.
“It was never a dare to go after you. That was all my heart telling me what to do. I love you—”
“I know.”
“And well, I would have told you—wait, what?”
“I know you love me.” His eyes softened and his hands slipped around her waist. “And I knew about the duke dare.”
Her eyes flew wide. “You did?”
When he laughed, she cupped his jaw. “The men told me all about it.”
“They did?”
“And it wasn’t a big deal at all. That’s why I never brought it up.”
“What a joke to play on a pregnant lady.” She swatted his shoulder.
“Yipes!” he said, feigning injury.
“Pregnant?” Mimi shrieked and jumped up running to her sister. “Ah, you’re pregnant.”
Nobi’s face beamed. “We were going to tell you all this afternoon.”
All of her sisters surrounded her with an embrace. The men congratulated Chris.
“Nobi, I’m so excited for you. How far along are you?” Bodi asked, her cheeks red.
“I think I’m about twelve weeks, but I’m not sure.”
Wes stepped up behind Bodi and wrapped his arms around her. His nose nuzzled into her neck, and he placed a kiss on her throat and then whispered something in her ear.
“We weren’t going to say anything for a few more weeks…but…we’re about nine weeks along,” Bodi announced.
“What?” Nobi squealed in disbelief. “You’re pregnant, too?” A tear threatened to spill over her eyes. She wasn’t losing her sisters, they were growing their families. Together.
Mimi and Sam were in a back to chest embrace as well, when he kissed her temple.
“Don’t forget about us!” Mimi shouted amidst the ongoing congratulations. “We’re about ten weeks along.”
“Oh all right,” Joan mumbled after a nudge from James.
“She’s got a bun in the oven, too!” James shouted.
Joan blushed. “Yes, we’re going to have a baby. We’re about ten weeks along.”
“Oh my heavens!” Nobi cried. “This is the absolute best news I have ever heard. We’re all going to be mothers together.”
The sisters were all in tears, no one knew whose handkerchief belonged to whom anymore. Joy filled their hearts and love abounded.
“I see how it is, last to wed but first to father. Well, done, Duke.”
Nobi let the moment wash over her. She never would have believed she could be so happy.
There was a time when she thought that the best life she could have was with Chris as her friend.
Now he was her husband and he was going to be a father.
The father of her child. Life was full of passion, loyalty, and intimacy.
They were committed to each other forever.
She couldn’t imagine any greater joy. No greater purpose than to love and love some more.
Love greatly, love deeply, love recklessly, above all.
This was what life was about. Four sisters who dared each other to be brave enough and to dream big enough. To settle for nothing less than love and their best possible lives. And of course, she couldn’t not mention those four betting buddies, who never saw it coming.