Epilogue
Sadie
“ N ow the beautiful princess lived in a magical land, the land of sweet treats. She herself made the tastiest donuts in all the kingdom. People far and wide came to eat her donuts because they were that good,” Barrett’s soothing baritone wakes me from my peaceful slumber.
I rub my gritty eyes and glance at the clock, realizing it’s the middle of the night.
His voice continues, crackling through the baby speaker, “One day, the beautiful princess went to see her friend. Her friend was a very special lady who made magical candles that healed people.”
I smile at his story and crawl out of bed, pausing to grab my fuzzy, pink robe as I do. It’s not unusual for Barrett to get up in the middle of the night to feed our six-month-old daughter and tell her bedtime stories.
But this is the first time I’ve heard him tell our story, and I can’t wait to hear it. I pad into the nursery and spot him sitting in the oversized armchair giving Marie a bottle.
Our baby girl looks so tiny in my big, strong cowboy’s arms. “While she was visiting her friend, she was lamenting—that’s a big word, but you’re a smart girl. Lament means to express grief or sadness. See, the beautiful princess did not have any…donuts…of her own.”
I can’t help chuckling at his G-rated version of our fairytale.
In the corner, Coco snores loudly on her doggie bed. Her doggie bed is Skip, who never minds that my little furball loves to sleep curled up next to him. The two of them are the best of friends, and they’re fiercely protective of our little sprinkle.
Barrett glances up. “Did we wake you?”
“Some things are worth losing sleep for,” I answer as I squish into the armchair next to him. I didn’t understand his insistence on getting the huge seat that takes up so much space in Marie’s room until the first night the three of us cuddled together in it. “Hi, Marie. Mommy’s here.”
She holds up a hand as if she’s waving, but really, she’s just trying to touch the bottle.
I smile at her. Every time I see this little girl, I’m reminded that miracles happen every day. That a girl who was once an unwanted loner can build a family of her own and create a beautiful life for herself.
Barrett yawns. He’s been staying up extra late recently to work on restoring the car in his workshop. I’m glad he’s getting back into his hobby. He spends so much time taking care of me and Marie. I want him to have something he loves doing for himself. “Now, where was I?”
“The princess had no…donuts…of her own,” I smirk at him. I love being squished up next to him in this oversized chair. I can’t wait for the day when we have so many babies that we need another big chair.
“Oh, yes. So, while the princess was feeling very sad about having no donuts, something amazing happened. The biggest, handsomest cowboy in all the land—”
I snort.
He glares. “Some even say he was the handsomest cowboy in all the world—”
“Who? Who is this mysterious some ?” I tease.
“People! People all over. Now, do you want to tell it?”
I focus on Marie. “So, there’s something you should know about fairytales—”
“They happen everyday, and in this house, we believe in them.” Barrett sends me a mock glare.
“Your daddy is right. We believe in fairytales,” I finally give up teasing him because I really do want to hear his version of the story.
“So, the cowboy offered to give the beautiful princess donuts if she would only come to his kingdom and be his queen. But the princess was scared because she hadn’t been loved before. She needed to be shown that love is good to you.”
I smile at his words. “Love is always good to you. It means the other person cares more about you than they do themselves.”
Barrett picks up where I left off, “They put you first in everything and always try to look out for your needs. And sometimes, what a girl needs is donuts. Not you. Not ever you. But your mom needs donuts. I mean, the princess. The princess needed donuts.”
He sends me a look like he desperately needs help.
I chuckle and continue the story, “And the handsomest cowboy in all the world gave the princess all the love and donuts she could ever ask for. In fact, she got so many donuts that one magical day, they made little sprinkles together. That was the best day of their life.”
He takes the bottle from Marie who begins wailing. He croons over her, “Oh, now. Don’t cry. Daddy is right here. You can have the bottle back after you give me one big burp. You have one burp in there, don’t you, sprinkle?”
Gently, he puts her on his shoulder and coaxes the burp from her little body. Then he settles her with the bottle. His own shoulders relax now that she’s silent. He gives me a tired smile then frowns. “Wait. Sprinkles. You said we made little sprinkles.”
I give him a sleepy smile. “I did say sprinkles .”
He looks from our quiet, grunting daughter to my tummy. Hope and desire flicker across his face. I know he wants this pregnancy just as much as I do. Marie was a very easy pregnancy, and we both loved the hormonal shifts that made me constantly horny. “Does this mean—”
“It means you knocked up the beautiful princess again,” I reassure him. I hadn’t planned to have kids this close together, but the only thing I felt when I saw the pregnancy test earlier this evening was gratitude and excitement.
He brushes a strand of hair from my face. “Is the princess happy about this?”
“The princess is always happy about more sprinkles. How about the handsomest cowboy in all of the world?”
“The cowboy is blessed beyond measure,” he assures me in a gentle tone. “How have you been feeling?”
“Pretty good.” I take his hand that’s not helping Marie with her bottle and place it on my stomach. “Should we hope for a little cowboy this time?”
“As long as you and little sprinkle are healthy and happy, I’ll be over the moon. Can’t believe you keep giving me babies. I’m the luckiest ducking cowboy on earth,” he tells me. He’s been trying to clean up his language since Marie was born.
She’s finished her bottle, but he makes no move to get up from the chair. Moments like this between us are precious. “You’re an amazing dad. You’re always there for our girl. You’re a great husband.”
“And lover, don’t forget that part.”
I chuckle. He’s very generous in and out of the bedroom. He’s obsessed with taking care of me and doing everything he can to make my life easy. “Actually, I did forget that one. Maybe you could put our girl back in her crib and remind me again.”
“It’d be my honor, princess,” he says as he gets to his feet.
He settles our girl back in her crib, pausing to adjust the lights and sounds just the way she likes. Then he follows me back to our bed where he spends the rest of the night showing me all of the ways he loves me.