Epilogue
EPILOGUE
AIDEN
“For the last time, you can’t dare your brother to go down the fuckin’ pole!”
Yeah, this isn’t my proudest dad moment. But Nova dropped the kids off at the station about three hours ago and they’re hyped up on sugar. You’d think they would run out of energy at some point.
Carl, my oldest, hunches his shoulders. “Sorry, Dad.”
“Daddy!” Lee, my four-year-old, calls out for me.
I pinch the bridge of my nose. Once again, he got on the pole because his brother dared him. But he only ever manages to cling to it, too scared to go down. I’ve tried to explain to Carl that his brother is smaller, and the world feels scarier. “What were you thinking? He could break his arm up there.”
Lee starts sobbing then. “I don’t want a broken arm!”
“I got a cool cast when mine broke,” Carl yells up. Of course, Carl broke his arm. He’s my daredevil. Nothing scares this kid which scares the shit out of me. If I bald early, it will definitely be Carl’s fault.
“Nothing is going to get broken. Dad’s coming,” I yell. “Just hold on right there.”
I start climbing the pole as Carl begins shoving a handful of gummy worms in his mouth. I’m going to have a talk with Nova about limiting his sugar intake.
Having three kids under the age of eight is great. Most of the time I love their energy and enthusiasm. Getting to raise them is my second greatest blessing. The first is being married to my best friend.
“Dad has you,” I reassure Lee as I slide down the pole with him. I set him on his feet and drop to my knees so he can see my face. “You’re alright. See? No broken bones.”
Lee is my cautious overthinker. He’s the one it took two hours to convince he was not in fact dying from a spider bite last week. Meanwhile, his brother was encouraging him to give his toys away since he couldn’t take them to heaven. I let Nova handle that one.
He sniffs. “It’s scary up there.”
“You were really brave today,” I reassure him. “One day, it won’t be so scary. You’ll be able to do it easily.”
Carl opens his mouth to make a smart-ass comeback and I shoot him a look, warning him to button up.
“Hey, Dad,” Ben calls from out front. “Your daughter is pissing on a fire hydrant.”
“What the actual fuck?” I mutter. I didn’t swear this much until I had kids. No amount of marriage and parenting books prepared me for this life. The life I love. Sometimes.
I hurry out front to find that Sasha, my two-year-old, is indeed attempting to piss on a fire hydrant since apparently her brothers can do it. That was a great call to receive from the school earlier this week. Nova let me handle that one.
Sasha is my only girl, and she tries so hard to keep up with her brothers. But at the current moment, she’s pissing herself instead of the hydrant.
It takes me a good twenty minutes, but I finally get Sasha cleaned up, suspend Carl’s gummy worm consumption, and reassure Lee one more time that none of his bones are broken.
By the time Nova shows up, Daddy needs a drink. She laughs when she sees me and smooths my hair down from where I’ve been running my fingers through it. “Did you have a rough day?”
“Did you get your errands done?” I grumble. That’s why she dropped off the kids with me in the first place. She was cryptic about the whole thing.
She beams at me. “I helped Everly with some research for her upcoming documentary.”
Everly, or Goldilocks as most of the family calls her, makes amazing documentaries. She won an award for the one she did on orphan diseases and how long patients often go undiagnosed.
“She was very grateful,” Nova says as she buckles Lee into his seat. He wants her to inspect his arm for broken bones too. She does that, endlessly patient with our kids, before she closes the door.
I let out a breath once they’re all buckled up and we’re standing outside the SUV. I wrap my hands around her generous hips, pulling her close. It’s been years and her body still delights me. I love these curves, especially as they’ve grown more pronounced thanks to three pregnancies.
“You look beautiful today.” I pay her a compliment every day. I want her to always know that I don’t just love her, I appreciate her. Hell, I treasure the woman in my arms.
The horn sounds causing us to spring apart, and I glare at Carl who is in the front seat. He laughs despite the look I’m shooting his way.
Nova squeezes my hand. “I forgot to mention the best part. Everly was so thankful for my help that she said she’d take the kids for the night.”
I chuckle. “What do you suppose we could do with a night alone?”
“I’m sure we’ll find something fun,” she teases.
The horn beeps again.
“I’m getting a vasectomy,” I insist. It’s what I promise her every time the days with the kids are long. I don’t actually want one. I’d get one if that’s what was best for our family. But I’d like to grow it again at some point.
Something flickers across her face, but it’s gone before I can tell what it is. I make a mental note to talk with her tonight. After we’ve fucked on every available surface. Twice.
We stop by the diner on the way up to my brother’s cabin. We get plenty of food for our family and Owen’s. I figure it’s the least we can do since they’ll be watching our kids for the night.
“I know what this is,” Owen growls when he sees me arrive with our kids and the food. “This is a peace offering because you’re getting laid tonight and I’m not.”
“Sucks to be you,” I mutter, not even a little bit sorry. Alone time with my woman is hard to come by these days. I’ll take it where I can get it. Besides, I’m sure that in a few days the position will be reversed. We’ll be watching my brother’s kids for him.
“They’re on your porch at seven tomorrow morning,” he grunts as he sets the bags of delicious smelling food on the dining room table. My kids have already rushed outside to go play with their cousins.
“Noon,” I argue. I want to have a very lazy morning with my wife. After all, she’ll be exhausted when we get through all the plans I have for the evening.
“What are you, staying at a damn hotel? No, ten is the best you’ll get, and you better remember this when you watch Miracle and the boys.”
“I’ll take it,” I clap him on the back and sarcastically wish him a fun evening before I return to the van where my sleeping wife is waiting for me. I try not to wake her as I drive up the bumpy mountain road. She’s been sleeping a bit more than usual lately.
When we reach our cabin, she stirs. I still remember the day she moved in. The place finally felt like home.
“Come on, sweetheart,” I say as I gather her up in my arms.
I carry her inside and she curls up on the bed. I tell her to nap and get to work making the house neat. We’re a team and we each try to pitch in every day. When I’m done, I take a quick shower before I join her in bed.
I press soft kisses to her neck, waking her slowly. There’s nothing like the feeling of being next to my wife in my bed. Knowing she’s mine and she always will be.
She murmurs sleepily before turning onto her back. She opens her eyes, her gaze glassy. “Were you serious earlier?”
“About what?” I nip at the creamy skin of her neck. Fuck me, her skin still smells good. There’s something about her body. I only grow more enchanted by it with each passing year and every baby.
“About the vasectomy,” she answers. Something is wrong with her tone.
I open my eyes and stop kissing her neck, giving the conversation my complete attention. “Did you want me to be?”
She frowns. “You didn’t answer the question.”
I don’t even hesitate. I already know what I want. “I’d like more kids if you’re open to it. But if you think our family is complete just the way it is, then I’m happy with that too.”
“We always talked about a half dozen,” she reminds me.
I’m more than excited by the prospect. We talked about it years ago but not recently. “Nothing turns me on like seeing you round with my babies in your belly. Do you want to start working on number four tonight?”
She takes my hand and presses it to her stomach. “We already did.”
I can’t help the grin that spreads across my face. “Yeah?”
She nods. “Before I helped Everly, I went to see the doctor for confirmation. We’re about eight weeks along.”
I pull up her shirt and press a gentle kiss to her stomach. My kid is in there, a little piece of the two of us. “I want another daughter to spoil.”
I love my sons with the same fierce intensity that I love my daughter. But something about having Sasha changed me. It’s challenged me in ways I never expected. It’s taught me things I never knew. It’s made me a better man.
“And if it’s a son?” She’s a great mom to all of our kids. She reads them stories before bed, helps them with their homework, and spends hours playing with them. She does all of it with her limitless patience and grace.
“Then we’ll toss him back,” I tease, swirling my tongue around her belly button.
She lets out a soft moan. “But our boys look so much like you. It makes me happy to know little copies of Aiden are walking around in the world.”
Her words warm my heart as I trail kisses down her body. I never imagined that my life would turn out so beautifully. Every day, I’m thankful for this life we live and the storybook ending we’re creating. I couldn’t ask for more.