Epilogue
EPILOGUE
Rob
“Holy shit, I have to send back half of this stuff,” Skye exclaimed.
We’d just returned from the ob-gyn, who’d informed us that we were expecting a boy.
On previous screenings, the baby had hidden from us, so it had been impossible to tell.
Skye had insisted her intuition was telling her we’d have a girl, but now, only one week after the wedding, we finally knew.
Skye had jumped right into organization mode.
“Babe, stop. Breathe in.”
She bit her lower lip before smiling. “You’re right. I don’t know why I’m in such a frenzy.”
“Tu es adorable,” I whispered.
“Wait, I know what that means. I’m adorable, right?”
I chuckled. “Yes. You’re a fast learner.” She’d started taking classes recently, wanting to be able to teach our kid a second language.
“To be fair, ‘adorable’ sounds kind of the same in both languages.”
“Skye, this is what we’re going to do today. Relax for a bit, then make a list of all the girl items you bought and decide which to send back.”
“All of them.”
“Maybe our next kid will be a girl.”
Skye threw her head back, laughing. “I like your thinking.”
Gripping her hips, I led her away from the baby’s room.
“Let’s go in the backyard. I want to show you something,” I said, handing her a jacket and taking one myself. It was cold as hell outside.
“What is it?”
“You’ll see.”
I had a little surprise for her, and this morning had been the perfect moment to build it. Skye went into the city early, and I’d met her at the ob-gyn. I led her outside to where I’d installed a double swing.
“When did you have that set up?” she asked with a huge smile. “I love it.”
“I built it,” I said. “With Cole, Ryker, and Hunter, this morning.”
Skye whirled around to look at me. “Wow.”
I nodded, feeling proud. The wooden poles had been easy enough to find, and the swing itself was made from wood too, covered with pillows.
“Looks a lot like the one I told you about from when I was a kid,” I said.
I’d sent a picture to Anne, and she’d agreed with me.
My sister seemed more cheerful lately. She’d even been on a date, though I thought her good mood had more to do with Walter stepping up to the plate, being a dad to Lindsay.
The thought of him still made a vein in my neck pulse, but that didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.
“I love it,” Skye said.
Ever since I’d found out she was pregnant, my view on certain things had shifted.
I couldn’t pinpoint how exactly, but I suddenly found myself having thoughts I hadn’t had before, seeing angles that had been invisible to me before.
I liked our space, and I wanted to bring as many good things as possible in it from my childhood.
Most of all, I liked that we shared every single experience. Pushing her hair to one side and pulling at the collar of her jacket, I kissed my favorite place: the patch of skin between her neck and shoulder. I propped one hand at her side, the other on top of her belly.
“You make me so happy.”
“Glad to hear that,” she whispered.
Finally, I felt her relax in my arms, come off that frenzy she’d worked herself into.
But I’d gotten used to this. It was just how Skye ticked.
She’d spent her first month of pregnancy mapping out a work plan for the other eight and for the first six months after birth.
I’d let her do her thing, because she was more relaxed once she had a plan.
She and Tess had hired a few full-time sales associates, so they were planning to take a huge step back from day-to-day operations in the store.
“Je t’aime.”
“I love you too.”
“I like hugging you like this,” I said.
“It’s the only way you get to hug me these days without my belly getting in the way.”
Laughing, I walked with her to the swing. I sat on it, and Skye rested in my lap.
“I can still keep the indoor swing, right?”
We’d brought it over from her old house. “Sure, babe. I’ve actually started to like it.”
“And to think you fought me about bringing it in here.”
“I didn’t see the point. Now I do.” It was relaxing and a great spot for us to huddle together.
“Ah, keep that in mind.”
“What?”
“That I have good ideas too, even if you don’t agree with them from the start.”
“You don’t plan to throw away anything, do you?”
“Weeeell, you did have a good point about maybe having a girl in the future, so why go through all the hassle of sending it back and then ordering it again? Think of all the packaging and shipping costs we’re saving. And carbon emissions.”
I burst out laughing, moving my hand in circles around her belly. We both stilled when there was a kick from deep within her. I felt it even through her jacket. It got to me every time. Every single time .
“See, the baby agrees with my hoarding tendencies.”
“We’ll see,” I said vaguely. Skye leaned back on me, dangling her feet in the air.
I liked to always move forward at breakneck speed, but these quiet moments with Skye were the best part of every day. Right now they were only semi-quiet, because her phone kept buzzing in her pocket.
“Why is your phone exploding with messages?” I asked.
“The dynamic in the WhatsApp group escalated a little after I told them we’re having a boy.
Ryker and Cole are competing over who will be the good uncle and who will be the reckless one.
Right now, I’m deeming both reckless. On top of that, everyone’s teasing Cole about being next in line to break out of the bachelor pack. ”
“That doesn’t seem likely.”
“I’m with you, but, eh… I was wrong about Ryker too, so I’m going to withhold my opinion for now. He’s up to no good most of the time, but….”
Another kick from deep within followed. I held my breath. So did Skye.
“I think the baby likes the prospect of being up to no good,” she whispered.
“I’m all for that.”
“I think my brothers will have that covered. You can just be the perfect role model. No pressure.” She kissed my cheek.
“I can do that.” I was ready. I’d had excellent role models, and I was looking forward to walking in their footsteps. I was determined to give the baby and Skye the very best of me every day.
She half turned to me, smiling and looking even more irresistible to me than before. Tilting her head to one side, I kissed down her neck. I undid the zipper of her jacket a little, slipping my hand inside—enough to make my intentions clear but not to give the neighbors a show.
“What are you doing?”
“I don’t have to be a role model yet, do I?”
She laughed as I took her hand. Drawing her to her feet, I led her back to the house. “I agree with that 100 percent.”