Extra Epilogue
EXTRA EPILGOUE
CRESSIDA
Cassie picked up a smooth gray stone and squinted at it as though she could will it into being the perfect piece for the tower Aaron was building.
“Try it here.” Aaron tapped the flat top of the stack beside his knee.
She stuck her tongue out in concentration, wobbled the rock into place, and beamed when it stayed put. “I did it, Daddy!”
“You sure did.” He brushed a strand of hair off her forehead and pressed a kiss there. “Smartest little girl in the world.”
Cassie scrambled to her feet and threw herself against my side, nearly knocking me over. I wrapped an arm around her and tugged her close. “Careful.”
“Wanna run, Mommy.” She tipped her head back to look at me. “Andrew runnin’. I run too.”
Aaron came up behind us. “No going past the big rock. You stay where we can see you and keep close to your brother.”
She nodded. “’Kay.”
Andrew darted toward us, flicking the tip of his sister’s ponytail in passing before he took off across the clearing at a speed that made me shake my head with a soft laugh.
Cassie wriggled out of my hold and tried to copy him, her short legs pumping as she chased after her big brother.
She didn’t have his speed, but what she lacked in length of stride, she made up for in sheer determination.
Aaron sank down behind me and drew me back against his chest, his arms wrapping around my waist. I leaned into him, letting his warmth seep through me while he nuzzled the side of my neck, his scruff rasping over my skin.
Then he tensed when Cassie stumbled, her boot catching on a small dip in the ground.
She pitched forward, landing hard on her hands and knees but didn’t cry right away. Her little shoulders rose as she sucked in a breath, then she let out a wail that arrowed straight through my heart. “Mommy!”
Aaron and I were already moving, but Andrew got there first. He skidded to a stop beside her and dropped to his knees. “You’re okay, Cassie. Please don’t cry.”
Aaron and I reached them just as the air around Cassie shimmered. It started as a faint glow clinging to her skin like dust motes caught in sunlight. My breath caught in my throat, and my unicorn pressed against my ribs, her hooves pawing at the inside of my chest in frantic joy.
“Aaron,” I whispered.
“I see it,” he rasped.
The glow pulsed, rippling over Cassie’s small form. The tiny scrape on her knee vanished before my eyes, her skin smoothing as though it had never been touched. She blinked, her tears forgotten, and then the light exploded outward in a shower of glittering sparks.
When it cleared, our daughter was gone.
In her place stood a foal small enough that Andrew could have wrapped his arms around her neck and still had room to spare.
Her coat was a luminous white that seemed to drink in the light, but her mane and tail were threaded with faint iridescent streaks that shifted from pale gold to pink and blue as she moved.
A spiral horn rose from the center of her forehead, shorter than mine, the colors coiling through it like captured starlight.
She shook her head, her mane rippling in a silken wave, and let out a high, startled whinny.
Andrew’s eyes were as round as full moons as he whispered “Cassie?”
The little unicorn turned her head toward him, familiar blue eyes wide and uncertain. She took an unsteady step, then another, her hooves digging into the earth for balance. When he reached out slowly, she bumped her muzzle against his chest like she always did with her face when she wanted a hug.
Coming out of his shock, Andrew let out a delighted laugh. “You’re so pretty!”
Aaron rushed forward and dropped down in front of our children. “You’re a unicorn, just like Mommy.”
She snorted and nudged his hand until he cupped her cheek. The moment his palm settled against her, the glow around her horn brightened.
“You’re…” His voice broke. He swallowed hard and tried again. “You’re incredible.”
“Perfect.” I slid beside him and rested a hand on her shoulder.
His throat worked as he looked at me, his eyes suspiciously bright.
“Before I met you, I used to lie awake at night, wondering what kind of pups I would’ve had if things had gone the way they were supposed to.
” He huffed out a breath. “Turns out fate didn’t have a damn clue what she was doing.
Our kids are better than anything I ever imagined. ”
Emotion clogged my throat. I leaned in and pressed my forehead against his, my fingers curling in Cassie’s mane as Andrew pressed his hand on top of mine. Our familial bond hummed between the four of us, a steady pulse of love and pride that proved I’d made the perfect choice when I met Aaron.