Everlyn Epilogue- One Year Later
It was hard to believe that it had been over a year since I first met Zephyr. And tonight had been one year since we exchanged our swords and arm rings and consummated our wedding night as only a Viking would.
There have been many moments of joy and some of fear over the past year.
Aksel was still a sword that hung over us.
No matter our battles, he was still out there.
Each time we interacted with him and his people, we chipped away at them.
The truth was that war had been declared, and the future was unknown.
However, despite that, happiness outweighed the ugliness.
Zephyr and I were legally married, though we counted our betrothal as the start of our marriage.
I proudly wore both my traditional ring and my arm ring, and so did he.
During this turbulent year, another Prowler found his shieldmaiden.
And that proved that redemption and making others immortal held true.
The club continued to run its legal and illegal businesses successfully. I stayed out of the illegal parts. I was too busy running Moore Enterprises. Allegra was even more of a member of the Prowler family than she had been a year ago. Her design studio was thriving.
The whole family celebrated our second Christmas together a few days ago.
The Prowlers got into the spirit of it more than last year.
However, everyone had gone their separate ways a while ago.
Zephyr and I were at home, snuggled in bed after renewing our wedding night, as he called it.
I was curled up with my head on his shoulder. I traced one of his tats, then a scar.
“Leif, I have another present to give you. I thought it would be fun to wait until after all the others were given. I hope that’s alright,” I said softly.
“Evie, you already got me more than enough. I loved everything. Okay, what else do I have to be thankful for?” he asked, smiling.
“Well, it’s kind of a gift from both of us, not just for you and me, but the club as well.”
He frowned. “Huh? I don’t understand.”
I took his hand that rubbed along my side and slipped it down and around until it rested on my lower stomach. I pressed it there.
“It seems the other part of the curse’s redemption is true, too. With forgiveness and love comes not just immortality, but…children.”
He froze. I mean, he froze. His eyes went wide, and his mouth opened. It took him several moments to speak.
“Did you say children?” he croaked.
“Yes, I said children. I’m pregnant. I confirmed it yesterday. I have to go back to see how far along I am, but I think I’m somewhere around six weeks. If I’m close, that puts my due date in the first week or so of August.”
Suddenly, he let out a loud whoop that first startled me, then made me laugh as he rolled me onto my back. He gazed down at me in wonder. His hand rubbed gently back and forth over my stomach.
“A baby? Are you sure?” he asked hoarsely.
“Yes, I’m sure. I had the blood test done to verify. I know the club will want to hear this, but I wanted you to know first and for us to have time to celebrate it, just the two of us.”
“A baby. By the gods, you don’t know what this means. I never dared to hope, not even after you told me the other part of what Sokanon passed to her descendants. I kept telling myself there was no way I could be that lucky twice. Getting to spend eternity with you was more than enough.”
By the end of his speech, he was crying and too choked up to speak. He buried his face into my shoulder and cried as I rubbed his arm. I knew it would take him a little while to believe it. Maybe by the time he saw the baby on an ultrasound, he’d believe it.
As for me, I knew Sokanon had somehow guided me to find the man who saved her life and made me possible. The gods had definitely been at work. There was no one else who was my true match. And all it took to make my forever and our baby possible was Zephyr's pardon.