Epilogue
Ten years later
“Are you nervous about next week?” Bree asked Addison, as they stood at the edge of the trampolines and did their best to keep an eye on all the kids leaping from one platform to the next.
“No,” Addison said firmly. “It’s way past time.”
“MacGyver’s been super-reluctant, hasn’t he?”
Addison chuckled. “That’s putting it mildly. But Artem has been wanting to do this for years. It’s the only thing he asked for as a graduation present. He knows once he starts college, he’s going to be too busy to go.”
“How overboard has Tex gone with the tracker thing?” Bree asked with a huge grin.
Addison rolled her eyes. “Good Lord. I love the man, but I’m thinking four trackers for each of us is a bit much.”
“You can’t blame him. Things in the Ukraine have been calm for years, but there will always be that small chance something could happen while you’re there.”
“I understand that. But MacGyver has everything under control. Kevlar is coming with us, as is Dude. Did you know my husband also hired a security guard to come with us too? I guess the man in charge of the tour group is a former Marine and fluent in Ukrainian.”
Bree smiled at her friend, then swung her head around when she heard someone scream from nearby.
She saw Violet sitting on one of the trampolines, holding her leg, but she already had five kids around her, plus Preacher and Safe heading her way.
She didn’t look hurt, but she was clearly soaking up the attention from her best friends.
“That girl is so spoiled,” Addison said with a chuckle.
“She’s used to all the boys’ attention.”
“I know you aren’t badmouthing my baby,” Maggie joked, as she and Josie joined Addison and Bree where they were watching the craziness from the trampoline platform.
“Your baby is spoiled rotten,” Bree told her.
“Yup,” Maggie said, not sounding the least bit bothered.
“Where’s Amelia?” Addison asked Josie.
“With her dad. She got tired,” Josie said, pointing to where Blink was sitting at a table with their two-year-old daughter in his arms.
“How’re you holding up? Having triplets in the terrible twos isn’t exactly the easiest thing in the world,” Addison said.
“I can’t imagine having three that age,” Remi said, approaching the group. “I remember when Vinny was that age. I swore I wouldn’t have another kid because I was so stressed out, trying to keep up with him.”
“You obviously got over it,” Bree said with a laugh. “Because Mason came along two years later.”
“And his terrible twos were definitely when I called it quits,” Remi said. “My dad was disappointed. I think he would’ve loved it if I’d had eight kids, but two is enough.”
“Blink’s awesome with our brood,” Josie said.
“I can’t believe you had twins, then triplets,” Addison said with a shake of her head. “You’re crazy.”
“It’s not as if I planned it! And so says the woman with five kids of her own,” Josie fired back.
“Yeah, but four of mine are older,” Addison said.
“Speaking of…how’s Ellory?”
“She’s awesome. Just finished up her first year in the Peace Corps. We worry about her a lot, being in Gabon. I thought MacGyver was going to have a heart attack when he found out she’d be going to Africa to teach, but she loves it so much.”
“She’s going to the Ukraine with you guys, right?” Remi asked.
“Yeah. We’re all going. I’m looking forward to it. Artem, Borysko, and Yana deserve to see where they came from. Yana doesn’t remember much at all, but Artem and Borysko do.”
“I’m really impressed that Artem is going into pre-law in the fall.”
“He’s always said that he wants to help people who don’t have the means or ability to help themselves.”
“I can’t believe he decided to have his graduation party here,” Maggie said. “He could be hanging with his buds. Instead he chose a trampoline park, so all his little cousins could have the time of their life on his special day. He’s such a good kid.”
“He is,” Addison agreed, sounding extremely proud.
“Oh! Here comes Kelli. My turn to hold her!” Wren exclaimed, stepping toward the other woman.
Her daughter had just turned six months old, the youngest of all their kids.
And she was extra-special because of everything Kelli and Flash had gone through to have her.
Years of fertility treatments and trying and failing to conceive.
Just when they’d given up, deciding to be content with the older dogs and cats they’d adopted from the local shelter, she’d found out she was pregnant.
She’d had to spend the last three months of her pregnancy in bed, to make sure she didn’t lose the baby, and when Desiree was born, it had been a joyous day for everyone.
“No fair!” Bree whined. “I haven’t gotten to hold her yet today.”
“Too bad,” Wren sang with a grin, as she reached for baby Desiree.
“Look at us,” Remi said with a small shake of her head. “Who would’ve thought we’d be where we are today. How many kids are there now?”
“You and Kevlar have two,” Wren said. “I have one. Josie and Blink have five, three for Maggie and Preacher, Addison and MacGyver also have five, Kelli and Flash have their little Des, and Bree is the only smart one with none.”
“Seventeen kids. That’s insane,” Maggie said with a laugh.
“No, what’s insane is how most of them are boys. What did we do to deserve that?” Wren asked.
Bree beamed at her friends. The happy shrieks and squeals from the kids bouncing on the trampolines echoed around them.
They’d rented out the entire place so they could have it to themselves for Artem’s graduation party.
He’d invited a few of his close friends, and the older kids were keeping an eye on the younger ones.
Especially Logan and Violet, who were four and five, respectively.
Brody and Cody, Josie’s twins, were bossing everyone around, as they usually did when they got together with their cousins.
Arlo, MacGyver and Addison’s son, and Ben, who belonged to Maggie and Preacher, who were both the oldest at ten, were ignoring most of the other kids, pairing up and probably planning something outrageous and dangerous.
Borysko was chilling with two of his friends from school at one of the tables, eating hamburgers…something that didn’t surprise Bree in the least. The kid was a bottomless pit. He could eat a full meal, then twenty minutes later claim he was hungry again.
Yana was fifteen and a typical teenager. Most days she barely tolerated the craziness that was her cousins, preferring to watch videos on her phone and chat with her girlfriends, but today she seemed happy to entertain Tony and Walker, two of Josie’s two-year-old triplets.
Looking around the room, Bree saw the men who’d become some of her best friends, doing what they could to both entertain and rein in their overexuberant progeny.
The retirement date for the SEAL team was quickly approaching and none of them were ready.
They loved the Navy. Loved what they’d done for a living for so long.
It felt weird that they would be retiring and yet still have such young children at home.
But none of them would stop working altogether. Everyone had plans for the future. They weren’t the kinds of men to sit at home and drink beer and watch television.
Kevlar was jumping on a trampoline with Vinny and Mason, his eight- and six-year-old boys. Safe was still hovering over Violet, making sure she was all right, and his son, four-year-old Logan, was right at his side, holding Violet’s hand.
Blink was still sitting off to the side holding Amelia, now asleep in his arms, as he watched over the group in general. His boys were hellions, but most of the time all it took was one warning look from Dad to make them behave.
Preacher had left Violet in Safe’s capable hands and was now standing next to Blink, holding his one-year-old adopted boy, Milo. He had Down syndrome, and was almost as spoiled as Desiree and Violet.
MacGyver had stopped by the table where Borysko was sitting with his friends, laughing with them about something, and was now heading back to the trampolines to join in the fun.
Flash joined Yana to help with the twins, giving chase as they ran from them, giggling maniacally.
And then there was Smiley. Over the last decade, he’d loosened up a lot. He’d never be called gregarious by any stretch of the imagination, but seeing him jumping up and down on a trampoline, acting as the judge as Ben and Arlo tried to see who could jump the highest? It filled Bree with joy.
As if he could feel her gaze on him, Smiley glanced in the direction of all the women. His gaze met Bree’s, and she could practically feel him trying to figure out if she was good. If she needed anything.
He was extremely intuitive when it came to her.
When she was crampy and bloated from her period, he brought her a heating pad.
When she was hangry, he’d make her a snack without having to ask if she wanted one.
And even after all this time, he was just as amorous in bed as he’d been when they’d first started dating.
They’d followed in the footsteps of their friends and had a small, intimate wedding ceremony on the beach, and then a huge party at Aces to celebrate.
Becoming Smiley’s wife was wonderful, but it hadn’t changed how Bree felt about him.
She loved him so much it was almost scary.
His deployments were always stressful for her, but she put on a brave face and tried not to let him know how much she hated each and every time he left home.
But he knew anyway. He’d apologized once, and Bree had lit into him. Demanding he never do that again. Told him that he was an amazing SEAL, and she knew he loved what he did. How she felt about his deployments wasn’t his problem, it was hers.
Of course, he’d immediately disagreed.