Epilogue – Lex
Eight Years Later
The sound of little voices giggling through the vineyard makes my little piece of heaven even more special. Thanks to Talia agreeing to be my wife, we have four kids sharing our life in the vineyard.
“Daddy,” says our oldest, Jacob, as he leads his siblings carefully through the vineyard toward where Talia and I are working. “Can we go play with our cousins?”
All my sisters and their husbands live on our shared land.
Even though I’m not sure which cousins Jacob is referring to, I know my children will be safe no matter which house they end up in.
“Sure, just make sure not to cause any problems for your aunts and uncles.” I ruffle Jacob’s hair as he rolls his eyes.
At seven, Jacob thinks he’s too old for me to ruffle his hair.
Luckily, his twin sisters, at five, are still young enough to want a hug from their dad before they run off to play.
Then there’s our youngest, Lily, at four.
She’s our most independent, giving me a thumbs-up before running after her siblings.
“They’re growing up so fast.” Talia slips her arms around my waist and rests her head against my back.
“They sure are.” I spin her in my arms to kiss her. “It almost makes me wish they were babies again.” I tuck a lock of her wild blonde hair behind her ear, as I’ve done a thousand times.
“What if I said I could make your wish come true?” She takes my hand and rests it on her soft stomach. “I’m pregnant. I just found out today.” Happy tears well in her eyes as she smiles at me.
“A baby? We’re having a baby.” I wrap my arms around her waist, lift her, spin her, then set her feet gently back on the ground. “I love you, Talia.”
“I love you, too, Lex.”
I kiss her deeply, remembering that one hot mountain night that led us to where we are now.
-The End-
Want more Hot Mountain Nights? Check out the whole series HERE!
Looking for Marx and Lana’s story? Oops, I fell for the Mountain Man Next Door.
Want more Temptation Ridge couples?
Mountain Man’s Secret Crush – Junie I can’t imagine dating anyone else. Still, I don’t want to hurt David’s feelings.
“I’m sorry, David. I already have a date.” It’s not exactly a lie. As soon as Brooks picks up his cookies, I’m going to ask him out.
“I figured. A woman as pretty as you probably has all the guys falling at your feet.” With a sad smile, he places his order.
Still in shock over his sweet comment, I go through the motions of collecting his payment and giving him his change before he steps aside, waiting for Brynnlee to finish boxing his order.
My heart races when I see Brooks and Molly step to the front of the line. I was so busy trying not to hurt David’s feelings I didn’t notice them come in. But before I can say anything, Cassi Martin, with her perfect hair and perfect body, steps in front of Brooks, stopping his movements.
“Brooks, hon, I was wondering if you'd like to go to the summer festival with me tomorrow.” Her perfect fake eyelashes flutter prettily as she waits for his answer.
I can’t take my eyes off Brooks, even holding my breath, waiting for his answer. Out of the corner of my eye, I think I see Molly shake her head and pull on his arm.
The silence stretches out, making my heart thump so loudly that I’m almost sure the entire room can hear it racing, until the one word I never thought could tear my world apart escapes from Brook’s mouth.
“Sure.”