Epilogue
HANNAH
“Honey, I’m home,” I announce, shutting the door closed and taking off my shoes.
Alex didn’t want to wait to move in with me.
We found a house on Hunts Point, which is halfway to his shop and halfway to the magazine.
Compromising was easy because the house is right by Lake Washington, and as a bonus, is close to my parents’ house.
There’s plenty of room to build a greenhouse, and best of all, we have the room to grow—or receive my friends.
We haven’t set a wedding date yet. For us, it’s not only about the ceremony, the paper, or the status. It’s about what feels right. Also, I want all my family with me. For now, I want to enjoy being Alex’s fiancée.
As I make my way through the mud room, I spot a card on top of the bench. Next to it is a snickerdoodle and flower petals sprinkled around it.
Eat me!
(Cookies)
I chuckle and take a bite of the cookie. I turn the card around because Alex loves leaving notes or letters around the house, in my car, and sometimes, I find them in my office. He’s sneaky, and I love it.
Dear you,
Happy First Kiss Anniversary!
Your first day back to school might be your worst nightmare, but it’s the reminder that I found you.
Love forever,
Alex
There’s a trail of flower petals on the floor, which I begin to follow. As I make my way through the house, I spot a glass of wine on the coffee table.
Drink me!
(Cabernet)
As I turn the card over, I frown.
Are you a parking ticket? ‘Cause you’ve got fine written all over you.
A
P.S. Your corny pick-up line of the year
I laugh, and Bruno comes running toward me. I squat and rub his ears. He then flops onto the floor and rolls over, so I’ll pet him. He loves when I rub his belly the most. I notice a note taped to his collar. I roll my eyes and chuckle.
Don’t let Bruno follow you.
(The third C is waiting for you, follow the trail.)
I turn it around and read Alex’s next note.
Unicorn,
Hurry up, I can only be in this position for so long.
A
“Where’s your partner-in-crime?” I ask Bruno, as I search for Draco.
He barks twice in response and runs away. Draco must be in the kitchen with Alex. He likes to be around him when he’s cooking. Bruno isn’t allowed in the kitchen because he always finds a way to snatch food from the counter.
I take a deep breath. There’s nothing better than coming home after a long day at work.
Following the trail, I scrunch my nose when, instead of taking me to the kitchen, it’s leading me to the stairwell. My stomach grumbles. The cookie just whets my appetite. But I smirk, I know exactly what’s waiting for me.
Alex’s cock.
If I’m lucky, there’s whipped cream in the bedroom. The doorbell rings right as I’m about to climb the stairs. It’s followed by a knock.
I open my doorbell app to check the camera. My parents are waiting on the other side. I grumble.
“Get dressed, Alex,” I say, heading to the entry.
“Don’t open!” he yells from the bedroom. “It took me forever to set this up.”
“The last time we didn’t open the door, Dad barged into the house,” I remind him and walk toward the entry.
Alex and I were having a picnic by the fireplace. More like a whipped cream and melted chocolate feast. Dad still complains that he has nightmares.
“Hi,” I greet my parents, swinging the door open.
Dad snaps a picture of me. “The kid on her first day of school.”
“Mom, control your husband,” I complain and move aside, so they can come into the house.
After I close the door, she says, “I controlled him. He wanted to meet you at the school to take your first picture—the way he used to do it when you guys were young.”
“I still do it to Aubrey and Grady,” Dad points out, and I can’t help but feel bad for my siblings.
“Ugh, you can be extremely embarrassing, Father,” I say, but hug him anyway. He’s the best dad in the world.
Mom hands me a tin of cookies. “Here, I baked you some cookies. Where’s Alex?”
“Right here,” he announces, rushing down the stairs.
He’s wearing a plain t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and his hair is damp. When he sees me, he smiles and picks me up from the floor.
“How was it, Professor?”
I cup his face, answering, “It was good.”
When he gives me a peck, my dad protests, “PDA, Spearman.”
I laugh and press my mouth to Alex’s. The fun thing about my fiancé and my father is that you can spook one while giving the other a hard time. So, I deepen the kiss and wrap my legs around Alex’s waist.
“Spearman, hands off of my kid.”
I can’t help but laugh harder.
“Babe, are you trying to get me killed?”
“He wouldn’t kill you,” I say, untangling myself from his body. “The man is a softy.”
Dad glares at me. He deserves it. They interrupted my new first day tradition. Before I left the house this morning, I was promised a magical day. It had been so far. There was a cup of coffee waiting on my desk. A berry tart on the side with a note from Alex wishing me luck.
Mid-morning, I received a bouquet of purple flowers. At lunch time, Alex came to my office with food. Chicken noodle soup prepared by him.
“Something hearty before your first day,” he said.
It seemed like today was going to be phenomenal until my parents arrived and interrupted us.
“Dinner is ready, if you’d like to stay,” Alex offers. “I made enough for everyone.”
“We just came to check on you,” Mom says, looking at her phone.
“We need to pick up Aubrey from soccer practice. Grady is at home with grandpa. I don’t want to leave those two alone.
The last time, they almost set the house on fire.
Dad shouldn’t try to cook unsupervised. Are you guys going to be around this weekend? ”
Alex looks at me and shrugs. His family just texted earlier asking if we’re visiting them this weekend. We try to spend one weekend a month with them. Well, they see Alex more often, since he has to check on his shop.
Honestly, we want to stay home and just be with each other.
Alex is beyond tired. He’s traveling more than he should.
By the end of the year, he’s promoting a couple of his employees so that he can cut back on the amount of time he spends traveling.
We’re just not sure how we’re going to break the news to his family.
Next year, our traveling will be reduced significantly.
The cool thing about my parents is that they aren’t really overbearing. They give us space.
“Probably, we want to lay low. We’re a little worn out. Maybe we can drop by your house on Sunday?” I propose.
Mom nods and smiles. “That’ll be lovely.” Then, she looks at me and asks the question. “Have you set up a date yet?”
I sigh, Alex stutters. “She’s trying to find the right place. Once she does, we’ll set the date.”
That’s our official statement.
“Are you eloping?” Dad asks suspiciously.
I laugh. We considered it for a hot minute.
But how could we when I want flowers, a garden, and my family to be there.
Which brings us to one problem. Zeke and Rocco are still in rehab.
I talk to Zeke often. He’s ready but wants to finish the program.
This time, he’s fully committed. None of us have spoken to Rocco. I just hope he’s doing alright.
“Eloping is off the table,” Alex informs them.
Gazing at Dad, I smile mischievously. “I wouldn’t miss the chance to see you wearing a tuxedo. Never. There’ll be a big party.”
After they leave, Alex grabs my hand and pulls me to him, giving me a long, hard, and deep kiss.
“Hi,” I greet him.
“Hey, beautiful. I missed you.”
“Sorry about them,” I apologize on behalf of my dear parents, who always mean well, but they arrive at odd times.
He shakes his head, as if saying it’s cool.
Alex gets along with my family. They love him, and he feels like a part of us. Just like I feel like a part of his family. I think the only one who isn’t thrilled about this is June, who knows we’re going to split holidays and vacations. But she got a new sister and kept her best friend.
“So…we’re having a big party. What happened to a quiet wedding at home? I’m building you a fucking gazebo.”
“Focus on the present,” I say. “What happened to the third C?”
He looks at his attire. “Since I didn’t know if they were going to stay, I had to shower.”
I lick my lips. “Let’s check what’s in the kitchen. I’m sure we still have ice cream.”
“Alex’s cock doesn’t like cold,” he protests. “Ice cream is too fucking cold.”
“I don’t complain when you use it on me,” I remind him, setting my hands on his torso. “We’ll have to improvise.”
I lower my hands down his chest until I touch the edge of his jeans. I unbutton them and then unzip them. Shoving his pants down slowly makes him shiver.
“Alex’s cock is ready,” I say, curling my fingers around his hard length.
He hisses out a breath.
I grin, running my hand up and down. “The question is, do I want to eat it…or ride it?”
He shudders when I kneel and kiss the tip. I’m about to wrap my lips around the head of his cock when my phone rings. I ignore it and take him deep.
“Fuck, baby, don’t play with my balls. I’m going to come.”
I look up at him, challenge accepted. However, we startle when his phone rings. It’s June’s tone. I groan.
“We should put a sign outside, no visitors,” he says and then grunts. “Can we put the phones away in the freezer?”
“She’s going to call the landline,” I remind him, and as if I’m a mind reader, our landline begins to ring.
He lifts his hands and laughs. “I give up. It’s easier when we don’t plan it.”
My phone rings again. I sit on the floor and answer it.
“Yeah?”
“Is my brother with you?” I look up at Alex and roll my eyes. “She wants to talk to you.”
“No!” I hear her scream as I’m passing him the phone. “Put me on speaker.”
“We’re listening,” I say, after tapping the speaker phone.
“Guess what?”
Alex and I shrug.
“We’re pregnant!”
“Again?” Alex and I say at the same time.
“You two don’t sound excited about your godchild,” she says with a snappy voice.
“I’m happy for you, June. Seriously,” I say. “When you said you were going to try soon, I didn’t think it would be this soon. Congratulations.”
“Well, the babies turned one in July, and if we want our kids to be eighteen months apart, we have to crank things up.”
God, she’s scheduling kid delivery now.
Alex takes the phone, removing her from the speaker. They talk for a couple of minutes, and he hangs up right after.
“Everything okay?” I ask, when he gives me the phone.
He nods. “I just reminded her it’s your day but that we’re thrilled for her.”
He offers me his hand, and when I take it, he pulls me up. “She also asked if I’ve knocked you up already, because…wouldn’t it be amazing if we’re bump buddies?”
I grunt, marching toward the kitchen. “I love her dearly, but she likes to push her agenda—too hard.”
When I turn around to see if he’s following me, I catch him frowning. “Do you want to have babies?”
I tap my chin a couple of times. “Is the answer going to change what you feel about me?”
“Never. I want you. I love you. As long as I’m with you, it doesn’t matter if we have furkids or if we fill the house with little girls who look like you. We just never talked about this before.”
There’s a slow dazzling smile crossing his face. He opens his arms, and I walk toward him, molding myself against him. His eyes sparkle before our lips meet. He kisses me slowly.
“I want us, and whatever life has to offer us,” I answer. “Sure, I’d love to have your babies, but most of all, I want you.”
His lips slide along my throat. “Then, we’ll have a beautiful girl, who’ll look just like you, and, hopefully, a boy.”
I feel the curve of his smile against the back of my ear. “I love you forever,” he whispers.