Epilogue Part 1
EPILOGUE: PART 1
LYLA
One year late r
Please, for the love of all things holy, not now.
An intense wave of nausea falls like a thick veil over my mind as I enter Buttercream Dreams. The harsh scent of tequila fills my nostrils and nearly sends me to my knees. Kennedy notices and rushes to my side, concern etched all over her flushed face.
“Tiny! Are you okay?” The calm cadence of her words is soothing enough that I’m able to suck in several deep breaths and let the wave pass. I was so happy when Copeland met her last year, and now that they’re together, she’s become one of my best friends. She also owns Buttercream Dreams, so that makes my current situation slightly less awful.
Doing my best to breathe through my mouth, I manage a wobbly smile. “Sorry, I’m alright now. I had a stomach bug a couple of weeks ago, and I’ve had issues with strong scents ever since.”
Her mouth pulls into a grimace. “I’m testing out a margarita cupcake this week, and working t equila into the frosting is harder than I thought it would be.”
I snort and immediately regret it when I get a fresh waft of pungent liquor. Slapping a hand over my mouth, I sprint to the tiny bathroom at the back of the shop and make it just in time to heave over the toilet. The meager contents of my stomach make a reappearance just as a cold rag is placed against my forehead.
Kennedy’s lemon and sugar perfume fills the tiny room, masking the scent of alcohol and settling my stomach. “That’s it, let it all out. Poor tiny,” she coos, patting my head. I would laugh if I weren’t still trying to get my gag reflex under control.
Gathering the remaining shreds of my dignity, I sit up and offer my own grimace as I take the cloth from her outstretched hand to wipe my mouth. “I’m okay. God, I’m so embarrassed. This is like the third place I’ve thrown up that wasn’t home this week. Every time I think this damn bug is gone, I get hit with another round.”
My friend’s critical gaze tracks over my face before trailing pointedly down to my midsection. “Lyla… when was the last time you had your period?”
My brows furrow. “Well, that seems kind of invas… oh my god .”
Kennedy watches my eyes widen with barely contained excitement. She knows Aidan and I have been trying to have a baby for over a year now, but she also knows we haven’t been successful. Panic fills my chest where air should be, and it must be obvious because her gaze hardens on mine.
She points a stern finger in my direction as her lips set in a determined line. “You march your cute ass across the street and get a few pregnancy tests, and then go home and take them.” Her eyes soften as she helps me up off the floor. Without letting go of my hands, Kennedy holds my attention.
“I’m not good at the whole pep talk thing, so I don’t have any words of wisdom for you. But I do know you have a husband and a little boy at home who would be nothing short of thrilled if you turn out to be pregnant. And if you aren’t, then you’ll keep trying.”
I take a deep breath, holding it for a count of five, and release it, along with some of the tension in my shoulders.
“Okay. Okay, I’m going.”
“ OH , wait!”
Kennedy runs back out, taking a left into the front of the bakery, and I follow. Curiosity eats at me as she digs around the fridge, sticking things into a box so fast I can’t make out what she’s found.
She turns around with a triumphant grin, thrusting the small yellow box in my direction. “I did cupcakes for a baby shower yesterday and had tons of leftover decorations. So just in case there’s a plus sign…”
My eyes water when I see three different cupcakes nestled inside with tiny words spelled out on top of the frosting. One for each member of my little family.
There’s a cappuccino chocolate chip cupcake with espresso frosting, the word “Daddy” spelled out across the top. Next to that is a Fruity Pebbles cupcake with strawberry frosting that says “Big Brother.” And the last is a dark chocolate cherry cupcake with the frosting rolled in mini chocolate chips, just the way I like it. The word “Mommy” is spelled out on that one, and it takes a considerable effort to dam the tears back. My eyes lift to meet Kennedy’s. “Thanks, Ken. ”
Her own eyes are glassy, but she waves me off. “Get out of here. And text me later!”
It only takes me ten minutes to secure the tests and make the drive home, only when I reach the end of our street, I see Aidan’s truck in the driveway.
Shit.
If Aidan is home, there’s no way he won’t realize something is up, and I really want to surprise him. I see Copeland’s SUV parked in his driveway and send a thank you to the universe. I can take the tests at his house. He’s just as nosy as my husband, but at least Cope can keep his mouth shut.
With the tests and cupcakes in hand, I park my SUV and rush next door, texting Aidan a little white lie about dropping something off for Kennedy.
My hands are full, so I use my elbow to hit the doorbell, giggling when the device plays a doorbell version of What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction.
Rhodes sneakily installed the song after seeing the video of Copeland dancing for me in the hospital. Cope acts like he hates it, which means we all use it as often as possible.
He opens the door with a scowl on his handsome face, but I meet it with a beaming grin and push past him into the house. “Sorry, need your bathroom!”
I hear his heavy footsteps following me, only stopping when I shut the bathroom door in his confused face. “Are you okay? Are you sick? Do you need ginger ale?”
A smile finds my mouth in spite of my nerves. My grumpy best friend is secretly a little mother hen, and me being sick the last couple of weeks has tu rned him into a hoverer. “I’m okay, Cope.” But now that he’s said it, I could go for some ginger ale. “But I wouldn’t say no to the soda!”
“You got it, tiny.”
The second his footsteps recede I tear open the box and carefully read the instructions on the little pamphlet as if I don’t already have them memorized from the last year’s worth of negative tests.
After peeing on the test, I flip it upside down and set it off to the side while I wash my hands. All the while, my mind runs like a freight train after midnight. I want the test to be positive so bad, but what if I’m a terrible mother? What if my lack of maternal influence renders me incapable of connecting with this baby?
The timer sounds on my phone, and at the same time, a firm knock lands on the door, startling me out of the panic spiral. I contemplate not opening the door, but I could really use a pep talk right about now, so I open it and come face to face with a worried Copeland.
“Tiny, are you sure you’re…” he trails off, his eyes widening when he spots the pregnancy test on his counter. “Holy shit. Is that… are you?”
I shake my head, only mildly surprised when my eyes fill with tears. “I don’t know. I’ve been sick for weeks and thought it was just a bug, but I went to see Kennedy at the shop today, and the smell made me sick again, so she convinced me.”
He nods, grimacing in sympathy. “I told her not to use actual tequila, but the stubborn little terror rarely listens to me. So, why are you taking the test in my bathroom and not one of the four you have at home?”
“Kenny gave me some cupcakes to surprise Aidan with if it was positive, but I just… I d on’t know if I can handle the disappointment I’ll see on his face if it’s another negative. I want to know, but I can’t find the bravery to look.”
Copeland sighs, pulling me into a tight hug. “Tiny, I know how much you and Aidan want this, and I know it’s been hard, but you’re one of the bravest women I know. How about this? You and I will look together. And then, as soon as you know, you can go home and tell Aid.”
Releasing a shaky breath, I nod and pick up the test, keeping it face down.
“Plus,” he continues. “If it’s positive, I can hold it over his head that I knew about his baby before he did. Payback for the stunt he pulled with Kennedy last year.”
That has me giggling. “You had your head so far up your ass you never would’ve seen the light of day if he didn’t set her up on that date, and you know it.”
He shrugs. “Don’t care.”
Boys.
“Okay.” Taking a deep breath, I flip the test over. “Oh my god.”
“Holy shit, you’re gonna have a baby. I’m gonna be an uncle again!”
I’m going to have a baby .
“Crew is going to be a big brother. Oh my god, I’m going to have two kids. I think I might throw up.”
A small cup of ginger ale is thrust into my hand, and I sip it gratefully. From the corner of my eye, I see Cope watching me warily, but the excitement in his eyes is impossible to miss. My phone dings with an incoming text on the counter, and I snap into action.
Handing the cup back to my friend, I beam at him. “I’ve gotta go!”
I barely m anage to hear his call of good luck before I’m rushing out the front door, test and cupcakes safely in my bag. One perk about Copeland’s new house is that it’s literally only steps from ours, so I’m in our garage in under a minute.
The sound of The Princess and The Frog , Crew’s current movie fixation, greets me as I come through the door into the kitchen. Ignoring the anxiety thrumming through my veins, I grab one of our cute serving trays and carefully set the cupcakes out on the island. When they’re all set out, I yell for Aidan.
He strides into the kitchen with a huge grin on his face and immediately sweeps me up into a hug. “Hi, angel. I missed you,” he murmurs, planting kisses all over my face.
“I was only gone an hour!”
His grin is charming as always, temporarily distracting me from the reason I called him in here. “An hour is way too long without my girl.”
I see the cupcakes out of the corner of my eye, and my heart starts racing. “I got us cupcakes,” I blurt.
Aidan raises a single brow but perks up when he sees the treats on the counter. With each step closer to the island, my heart climbs higher in my throat. He’s only a few steps away when his whole body freezes. “Lyla Taylor Black, what is this?”
He whips around, and I almost laugh when I see the shock on his face. I can’t resist messing with him. Just a little. “They’re cupcakes, Aidan Jasper Black. Did you take a ball to the head recently that I don’t know about?”
He stalks toward me, backing me into the wall. When my back meets the plaster, one of his big hands curls around my throat just under my jaw, tilting my face up to meet his. “You know damned well that was n’t what I meant, angel. Is this a joke? ‘Cause if it is, you’re being meaner than a starving cat outside a fishstick factory.”
I can’t hold back my snicker. I’ve been in this state for two years, and I’m still not used to all the weird colloquialisms they’ve got.
Seeing the desperation in his eyes has me sobering up fast, and the earlier tears spring to the surface again as I hold up the test. “It’s real, Aid. We’re going to have a baby.”
His icy blue eyes dart between mine and the test for a full minute before he whoops in glee, picking me up and spinning us both around. “Holy shit, you’re having my baby. We’re gonna be parents again!”
Crew comes barreling in the kitchen, drawn in by his father’s exuberance. “Why are you yelling, Dad?”
Aidan’s eyes find mine, a question clear in their depths. When I nod, he beams, turning to our son and dropping to sit in a chair so they’re at eye level. “Come here, raptor.”
Our boy looks wary but moves to stand in front of his dad.
“You remember when you were asking for a baby brother for your birthday?”
It takes a second to click, but Crew is smart as a whip and immediately catches on, turning to me with a beaming grin. “Am I getting a baby brother, Mom?”
My smile is watery at best. “Well, we don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl yet, but yeah, Crew-bug. We’re gonna have a baby.”
He screams, sprinting around the kitchen in excitement and shouting all the things he’s going to teach the baby.
Aidan stan ds up, moving so that he’s standing at my back, and wraps me up in his strong arms. “You’ve been pretty quiet. Are you happy, angel?”
I turn in his arms, landing a kiss on his stupidly perfect mouth. “I’m scared, but I’m also so happy.”
His smile softens. I’ve talked about my fears of being a mother with him, and he says the same thing every time. “You’re already the best mother in the world, and just because you’re making this one from scratch doesn’t mean the way you love our babies is going to change.”
I release a heavy sigh, the tension from the day draining and leaving me emotionally wrung out. “Love you, Daddy.”
He smirks, pulling me in for a chaste kiss so we don’t traumatize Crew. “Love you more, angel. Always.”