Epilogue
Cam
“Third floor, right?” Dad lifts a box out of the trunk.
Mom glances at me as she reaches into the truck to grab something to carry up.
I nod. It’s move-in day. I glance around the parking lot as Adam pulls in with the moving van, followed by Paul driving a car with Naomi and Heather.
Hawk and Damon ride their motorcycles into the parking lot with Evan on the back of Damon’s. They park next to mine.
We spent the summer in a sad little bubble.
Evan went and did her internship, and Damon went off to hockey camp.
He’s going to wait a year before entering the draft as a student with the caveat that he wants to finish his degree before signing.
Hawk and I went to parties, but it wasn’t the same without the two of them. Finally, we’re all back together.
And living together. Which was a whole thing with Coach Mitchell, but Damon finally convinced him that while the hockey house might work for some, it wouldn’t work for him. Not if he couldn’t be with us.
We aren’t the only ones moving in today. There’s a group of five guys unloading a truck. They’re all tall and fit like athletes. An older woman with brown hair, probably one of their moms, stands in the truck directing them.
Evan comes over to me and hugs me. “I’m so excited.”
I wrap my arms around her and press a kiss to her blond hair. “I can’t wait to wake up to you every morning.”
That was a discussion that took days to resolve. One big bed? Multiple king-size beds? Swapping beds? Do we all want to sleep together every night? Do we want our own space? The apartment is big enough, but we decided the one big bed would work and we have a guest bedroom if someone needs space.
Evan beams up at me before heading to the truck where her mom is helping Adam. Damon and Hawk join me. Damon is eyeing the group of guys.
“Football players?” he asks with a suspicious look.
“Maybe.” I glance at him. “You worried?”
“If they hit on Evan, we’re going to have problems.”
Hawk nods. “Better than a bunch of girls trying to pick us off.”
We’ve had enough with other people trying to come between us. That won’t be happening here. And if someone tries, our girl is real handy with a knife.
A young woman comes out of the apartment building. She’s average height with long brown hair up in a ponytail and brown eyes. She smiles at the group of guys. The biggest guy stalks over and picks her up. She laughs and kisses him before he puts her down.
Another dark haired boy picks her up and kisses her.
“Put me down, Jack!”
But he carries her over to the others.
“Probably won’t be an issue,” I say and shake my head. “And here I thought we’d be the talk of campus, sharing our girl.”
Damon follows after Evan. Hawk punches me in the arm and takes off to join them. This isn’t what I thought my first day of college would look like a year ago. Mom and Dad would have moved me into a dorm. If Dad had his way, it would have been Yale, though he’s happy I’m at Crowne Mawr.
I would have tried to make friends with some guys on my floor, but it wouldn’t have been the same as Hawk and Damon.
And there wouldn’t have been Evan.
She turns. “Come on, Cam. We need your help.”
Fuck it. I can’t wait to see how this year goes. I join my girl and my brothers. Our family helps us take things up to our apartment. Occasionally we’ll pass the other group moving in. I give the guys a short nod, but now isn’t the time for introductions.
It’s a long day of hauling things up and unpacking.
Made a little faster with all the help of six parents.
My mom orders pizzas and we sit at the table and stools on the island to eat.
The apartment is large enough for four people.
There’s a gym for residents on the first floor, but Damon will have access to the athlete’s gym at school for most of his workouts.
Hawk tried out for the team and got on, but I decided against it. I spent most of last year building a portfolio and working with the art teachers at Anteros to get into the art program here at Crowne Mawr.
We set up one of the extra bedrooms as a creative space for Evan and me. The other one has four desks for when we need to get schoolwork done.
After dinner, our parents say goodbye. They checked into a hotel nearby and will head home in the morning. After hugs from everyone and tears from our moms, they leave and we’re alone.
“Did you see that girl and her guys?” Evan leans against the counter in the open kitchen. Her feet are bare and there’s dust on her pants. “Five guys. Every one of them kissed her too.”
“I caught a couple of them making out with her in the stairwell,” Hawk says.
“Don’t get any ideas, little devil.” Damon narrows his eyes on her. “You’re stuck with just three.”
Evan laughs and holds up her hands. “I’m good with you guys. I can’t imagine that many guys.”
Her eyes look off into the distance like she’s trying to imagine it. Her fingers wiggle.
I shake my head. “That’s enough of that.”
I lift her against me and she wraps her legs around my waist, focusing on me. Her hands grab the back of my neck.
“Maybe we should remind you how well you take the three of us.” I carry her back to the bedroom.
She sighs dramatically. “If you insist.”
When I drop her on the bed, she giggles. I can’t believe we got here. That I’m living with my girl and my best friends for the next four years and foreseeable future. About to start our lives in college. When Evan reaches for my pants, I stop thinking.
APPROXIMATELY 13 YEARS LATER
EVANANN
My plane landed earlier than I expected, which means I get to surprise the guys for a change. I sneak into the back of the hockey rink and take a seat in the stands. There are six people on the ice.
Cam, Hawk, and Damon are taller than the other three, but that’s not surprising.
“I want to be goalie.” Beth whines as she skates circles around her brothers. Her blond hair is tucked under her helmet. Of the three of them, she took to the ice the most. She’s still tiny, but fierce with a stick.
“I just started,” Keats says and looks to Damon. “Dad?”
Damon shakes his head at Beth, who gives him a pout he’s never been able to resist. “Keats is goalie for now. You can be goalie next time.”
“We barely have a team.” Beth skates to a halt in front of Hawk and narrows her eyes on him. “When are you going to give us more babies?”
Grey’s baby laughs fill the rink as Cam holds his hands, slowly guiding the toddler around the rink. He has another year before the guys will put skates on him. Grey’s more interested in watching his older brother and sister, anyway. Eight, five, and two.
When Keats was born, it was a big mess trying to figure out how to manage four careers and a baby.
It’s easier when it’s off season for Damon. This is his tenth year with the Colorado Titans and probably his last. Coach Mitchell is looking to retire and wants Damon to take over for him at Crowne Mawr. We’ve been talking about it.
I’m usually home between projects, and the kids always visit me on sets when we’re filming.
Of course, Cam and Hawk have done the brunt of raising the kids.
Cam works from home most days. His work in animation means he can do a lot from home, but can’t always split his focus between work and the kids, so Hawk only goes into work a couple days a week and works from home too.
He’s a senior associate at the law firm and going for partner next year if Damon retires.
I lean back in my chair and breathe, because this is what I need. I still love being on set. Acting or directing or both, but there are more moments when I’m away that I wish I was here with them.
“Mom!”
Busted. Beth skates to the door in the boards after she spotted me and pulls it open. Keats gives up his goalie position to come over as I make my way down from the back.
Cam lifts Grey to bring him to me as he starts bouncing his knees and calling mommy. Keats removes his helmet and his dark hair spills out of it. I tug on the ends. He keeps saying he wants to cut it, but never does.
His green eyes study me intently. Even at eight he’s gotten tall. Soon he’ll be taller than me.
“Mom, did you see my goal?” Beth scrambles to be in front of Keats.
I meet her blue eyes and shake my head. “Must have been before I got here.”
Cam leans over them to kiss me.
“Kiss, kiss. My turn. Kiss.” Grey reaches for me and I take him into my arms. He peppers my jaw and mouth with kisses. His little hands hold my face.
Cam laughs. Hawk has skated over behind the kids. Damon picks up some of the cones they had out on the ice.
“Grey’s greedy.” Cam reaches for him, but Grey wraps his arms around my neck and buries his head against me.
“Does this mean ice time is over?” Beth looks disappointed. Keats shrugs and heads over to help Damon pick up. “But we just got here.”
“We’ve been here for an hour.” Hawk chucks Beth under the chin. “You’re as bad as Dad when it comes to the ice.”
She smirks and straightens with pride. “I know.”
She leans in and kisses me before racing around the edge of the ice.
“If we weren’t sure on genetics, I’m confident we’d know whose kid she is.” Hawk chuckles and kisses me. Grey touches Hawk’s cheek.
We both look down at his large brown eyes, and he giggles at us.
“There’s not a lot of doubt about these ones.” I smile. My trip was quick to do some pickups, so I was only gone a couple days. I sniff Grey’s head as he snuggles into me.
“You good with Grey, while we get the others changed?” Hawk asks.
“You want to stay with mommy or go with papa?” I ask.
“I stay with Mommy.” Grey clings a little tighter, and Hawk laughs.
“That one though.” He shakes his head. “If Cam and Damon could have a kid...”
“My body would be grateful.” I arch an eyebrow.
He kisses me again. “Be right back, Annie.”
Cam watches him go before stepping in close. “You still feeling sick?”
“No, I feel better.” I shake my head. I had some nausea before leaving for this trip.