Epilogue #2
Devyn nodded and walked toward the table with their wedding cake, accompanied by her mom.
There was another table nearby with Grover and Sierra’s cake.
It felt right sharing this moment with his teammate.
Lucky might not have chosen a huge reception, but it was a small price to pay to see the happiness in Devyn’s eyes.
Life wasn’t all sunshine and roses, but moments like this, spent with loved ones, somehow made the bad stuff fade. Lucky couldn’t wait to experience every second of his life with Devyn. This was just the beginning.
Two Years Later
“Never again!” Riley seethed between clenched teeth.
“Okay,” Oz soothed.
As another contraction overcame her, Riley growled. She honest-to-God growled. “I mean it, Porter. I can’t do this againnnnnn!”
The last word was more of a wail than an actual word.
To be honest, Oz hated this. Not her having his baby—that he freaking loved. But he hated seeing her in pain. Millions of babies were born every year, but seeing Riley struggle to bring their child into the world was torture.
He couldn’t deny that he loved kids though.
He loved everything about them. The chaos in their house.
The sleepless nights. The warm baby snuggles.
But he knew having three babies in about as many years was overwhelming for Riley.
Not to mention, throwing Logan and Bria into the mix.
They were all good kids, but still, four was a lot. Five was going to be even harder.
“Okay, no more kids,” he reassured his wife.
“Are you just saying that because I’m in the middle of labor and you know I’ll seriously hurt you if you even talk about knocking me up again?” she raged.
Oz knew better than to laugh. “No. We should’ve waited before having our third so soon.”
“Too late now,” she groaned.
It was. And Oz couldn’t wait to meet to meet his son. Riley had given him Amalia, then Brittney. Now it was Charlie’s turn.
The discussion about whether or not to have any more kids was cut short when the doctor arrived and told Riley the “good part” was about to happen.
Three hours later, Riley held their son in her arms. She was sweaty, exhausted, but Oz still thought she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Even more so because she’d just given him another child.
Oz forgot their chat about future children because he was too busy introducing his other kids to their new brother.
Then he was celebrating with his Delta Force team.
Then it was time to give Gillian and Trigger last-minute instructions on what to let Amalia watch before she went to bed, how much to feed Brittney for dinner, about what time Logan needed to be at baseball practice the next day, and how Bria’s friend’s mother would drive her home after dance practice.
His life was hectic, and Oz didn’t have a second to relax, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
He planned to spend the night in the hospital with Riley and Charlie.
The Army forced him to be away more than he liked, so he wasn’t going to waste a single night, even though Riley was in the hospital.
It was now dark outside, and he was sitting right next to her bed as they watched TV.
“Porter?”
“Yeah, Ri?”
“I was serious. I can’t do this again. Three is enough for this body.”
“And I said I agreed,” Oz reminded her.
“But that doesn’t necessarily mean I don’t want more children…”
Oz turned to give her his full attention.
“I love our kids. Our life is insane, but I never thought I could be this happy. I like the chaos, even if it drives me crazy sometimes. I’m not saying now, and probably not even for a few years, but I wouldn’t mind looking into fostering, with the option to possibly adopt.”
Oz’s heart swelled in his chest. Fuck, he loved this woman.
“Say something,” she urged, looking concerned.
Standing up, Oz perched on the edge of her bed. He gently lay down on his side and took his wife into his arms as carefully as he could. The last thing he wanted was to cause her any pain. He snuggled her close and sighed. “I’d love that.”
Neither said anything else. They had a lot of time to figure things out.
Their son’s birth day wasn’t the time to plan when to bring more people into their already crazy lives, but he was still thrilled at the idea.
Nothing was as satisfying to Oz as when his kids turned to him for advice, for help, for protection.
It was heady to be needed, to be the one to help guide them, and he couldn’t imagine his life without at least one child in it.
“Sometime in the future,” Riley stressed, as if she knew what he was thinking.
“All right. I love you, Ri. You’ve made me happier than I ever thought I could be. And every day my happiness increases exponentially.” He knew he was being cheesy, but if he couldn’t be cheesy on the day his son was born, when could he?
“Same,” Riley said, before yawning huge.
“Get some sleep,” he ordered.
“Wake me up if they bring Charlie in,” she mumbled.
Oz smiled. Of course he would. It wasn’t as if he could nurse their child. But instead of teasing her, he simply agreed. “I will.”
As his wife fell asleep in his arms, Oz closed his eyes in contentment. If someone would’ve told him several years ago that he’d have five kids in the near future, he would’ve laughed his ass off. Now he couldn’t imagine his life any other way.
Three Years Later
“I can’t believe you finally let me talk you into marrying me,” Doc told Ember.
They were in Los Angeles at the Four Seasons honeymoon suite.
Their one-year-old little girl, Jemila, was currently being spoiled rotten at her grandparents’ house.
As much as Doc loved his child, he was definitely ready for some alone time with his wife.
Ember was one of the hardest-working women Doc knew.
Her gym back home, The Modern Kid, had over four hundred kids attending now.
There were classes from eight o’clock in the morning until nine at night.
And while Ember didn’t teach all of them, she insisted on spending more than her fair share of time at the gym.
One of her greatest achievements to date was when one of her older kids, a Black boy who’d started with her program three years ago, shortly after she’d opened, qualified for the junior national championships for the modern pentathlon.
Ember had been so proud of him, of how much he’d learned and improved.
She’d taken her fame and used it for good, just as she said she would.
Her social media was famous now, not for selfies or for hawking products, but for helping to find missing people.
The press had attributed her posts to finding fifty-three so far, as of this month.
There were so many more men, women, and children who needed finding, but as of now, there were fifty-three people who were no longer missing, which Doc found amazing.
He’d asked Ember to marry him three months ago. Jemila was nine months old and they’d been together for more than three years. Neither of them had been in a hurry to get married. They loved each other, and that had been good enough.
Until one day three months ago. He’d woken up…and just knew it was time. He wasn’t content to be Ember’s boyfriend any longer. He wanted more.
So he’d asked, she’d said yes, and now here they were in Los Angeles.
Her parents had organized a low-key and beautiful ceremony on their property. They’d thankfully behaved, not going overboard with the huge reception he and Ember both knew they’d wanted. But they’d splurged on getting them this hotel room for the night.
They’d just made long, slow, sweet love for the first time as man and wife, and were lying snuggled together on the bed when Ember’s phone vibrated with a text. Because Jemila was with her parents, she immediately reached for it.
“Is it Jemila?” Doc asked anxiously.
“No. It’s from the photographer. She sent me the picture I asked her to send as soon as she could,” Ember told him. Then she turned the phone so he could see the screen.
Doc sucked in a breath. The photographer had captured the exact moment Ember had walked into the yard, and he’d seen her for the first time. Of course, the photo was taken from behind him, so his face wasn’t in the picture.
It was exactly the picture of their wedding he’d promised she could post on her social media, once upon a time, but even better…because Ember was carrying their child in her arms.
His wife looked absolutely beautiful. She’d lost a little of her muscle tone over the years, and having a baby had filled her hips out a bit more, but to Doc, she was even more beautiful than she’d been when they’d first met.
Doc rested his head on her shoulder and wrapped his arm around her belly as they lay together in the luxurious bed. “Are you going to post it?” he asked.
She pulled her head back to catch his gaze. “You think I should?”
“Absolutely. Your followers will love this.”
“But it’s not who I am now. I don’t post selfies anymore.”
“This isn’t a selfie. It’s a picture of a mature, beautiful woman about to marry the man she loves. Jemila’s face is turned away from the camera, so our rule of never posting pictures of our kids still applies.”
Ember nodded, and she immediately began clicking on the screen of her phone. It didn’t take long. She once again turned the screen to face him, so Doc could read what she wrote.
She’d posted the picture with only one word. Bliss.
Doc reached for the phone and practically threw it on the table next to the bed, then he rolled on top of Ember and smiled as she giggled.
“Something wrong?” she sassed.
“No. Something’s right. I love you.”
“I love you too,” she said immediately.
Doc knew the real world would intrude soon enough, so for now, while he had his wife to himself, he was going to enjoy every blissful minute.
Four Years Later
“It’s beautiful,” Lefty’s mom breathed.