Extended Epilogue

Three Years Later

Gritting my teeth, a low growl escapes me as I pace back and forth in the hospital waiting room, my gut tied in knots and my heart beating so fucking hard, it seems like it's on the verge of exploding. I run my hand through my hair and the beads of sweat roll down my back as I lick my lips and swallow hard, trying to work some fucking moisture into the desert in my throat. In the corridor beyond the waiting room doors, doctors and nurses in pastel-colored scrubs run back and forth, their rubber-soled shoes squeaking sharply on the tile beneath their feet.

I glance at my watch for what seems like the hundredth time and groan when I see only four minutes have passed since the last time I checked it.

"Fucking hell," I mutter to myself.

Time is crawling by, and my entire body is shaking like I'm holding onto a live wire. Back and forth, back and forth… I pace the waiting room so fast and furiously that I'm sure I'm going to wear a groove into the floor. The other people sitting around waiting to be seen cast furtive glances at me, as if I'm afraid I'm on the verge of a mental break. And to be fair, I can't really blame them for it since I kind of think I might be. Or a heart attack. One of the two.

I try to resist doing it, but I check my watch yet again, cursing under my breath at the doctors for leaving me out here with no word and no idea how Cassie is doing.

"Dad."

I raise my eyes to see Zane and Alyssa rushing through the door. They walk over to me, and we all exchange quick, tense hugs, the anxiety in their faces undoubtedly mirroring my own.

"How is she?" Zane asks.

"I have no idea," I say. "The doctors haven't told me shit."

"I'm sure everything is fine," Alyssa says, giving my hand a quick squeeze.

"You guys don't have to be here. I know you've got important things to do with your café opening and all," I say.

"We don't open for another month," Zane says. "And there's nowhere else we need to be that's more important than right here."

"Exactly," Alyssa says. "We weren't going to let you go through this alone."

"That means a lot, you guys. Thank you."

"You didn't think we wouldn't be here, did you, old man?" Zane says.

"My question is, why aren't you in the room with her?" Alyssa asks, her eyebrow arched and her tone light and teasing.

I purse my lips and look away for a moment.

"Out with it," Zane presses.

"Because she had them toss me out. She said I was making her more nervous by being in the room with her," I admit. "In my defense, this is a high-stress situation, and I've got zero experience with it. I think it's understandable."

"You yelled at the nurses, didn't you?" Zane says with a laugh.

"I didn't yell," I grumble.

My son and his fiancée share a look and a laugh. "He yelled," they say in unison.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You guys are hilarious."

"She's giving birth. That's pretty high stress for her too, you know," Alyssa says. "I'm sure your frantic not-yelling-yelling wasn't doing her any favors."

"I know, I know. I just… I mean… I didn't get the chance to be there with you, kid, so this is all new to me," I say.

"It's like you always tell me, old man. All you have to do is just be there for her. She'll tell you what she needs," Zane says. "It's pretty good advice."

"I'm better at giving advice than applying it to my life."

"Clearly," Alyssa says with a laugh.

"I'm glad you two are enjoying this."

"It's always nice to see you nervous and twitchy," Zane says. "It reminds us that although you're like a cyborg most of the time, you actually are human."

I laugh. "I'm not like a cyborg."

"Yeah, you kind of are sometimes," Alyssa says with a grin. "Personally, I like seeing you nervous and jumpy. It's adorable. I like knowing you have a soft and squishy side. And I know Cassie likes that too."

"Mr. Teague?"

My heart leaps into my throat as I spin around to see a nurse standing in the doorway of the waiting room. Her face is serious for a moment before she breaks into a broad smile.

"How is she doing?" I ask. "I mean, how are they doing?"

"Would you like to meet your daughter?" she asks.

"Daughter?"

"You and Cassie have a baby girl," she replies with a warm expression. "But I can only allow two in at a time."

"Oh my God," I gasp. "I have a daughter."

Her words hit me like a freight train and knock the breath from my lungs. My knees are weak and my legs suddenly start shaking so hard, I almost fall over. I hold myself upright, though just barely. Still, I double over and put my hands on my knees, taking long, deep breaths as I try to gather myself. Zane is beside me with a hand on my shoulder.

"You okay, old man?" he asks.

I nod as I stand upright again. "Yeah. I'm good. It's just… it's a lot."

Alyssa squeals and throws her arms around me. "Congratulations!"

I pull her into a tight but shaky embrace, still trying to process it all. I'm a dad. I mean, I was before, but I wasn't able to be a real dad to Zane. Now, I get the chance to do everything I didn't get to do with him. I actually get to be a father.

"You're a girl dad, old man," Zane says with a chuckle. "You up for this?"

"Honestly? No."

Zane steps forward and pulls me into a tight but manly hug. "You're going to be great. For what it's worth, we may have had a delayed and rocky start to our relationship, but you've been a great dad to me once we got past it all. I'm proud to call you my dad, and I know you're going to be a great father to this little girl."

I laugh, shaking my head and pulling him into a hug. "I love you, kid. With all my heart."

"I love you too, old man. Now, get in there and meet your daughter before she's old enough to collect social security," he says. "And be quick about it. I want to meet my little sister."

With a fond look at Zane and Alyssa, I follow the nurse down the hall and into Cassie's room. I hesitate at the doorway, my heart pounding so hard and so loud, that I'm sure the people in the cardiac unit can hear it. The nurse pats me on the back reassuringly.

"It's okay, go on in," she says. "But five minutes. Mom needs her rest."

Trembling so hard I nearly fall over several times, I finally make it to Cassie's bedside. She looks up at me, her eyes red and puffy, tears still streaming down her face. In her arms, she's holding our baby. Our little girl. She's so small and delicate. So fragile. I'm afraid of touching her, lest I break her, so I stand with my hands on the hospital bed railing.

"Sorry I threw you out," she says, her tone drained.

"It's okay. I was being obnoxious. I probably would have thrown me out too."

"Yeah. You were being pretty obnoxious," she says and laughs weakly.

"She's… she's beautiful," I whisper.

Cassie pushes the blanket aside to let me see our baby girl's face fully. It's pink and wrinkly, but absolutely gorgeous. The tiny human opens her eyes, and I draw in a sharp breath when I see those little green eyes sparkling at me.

"She's got your eyes," I say.

"And she's got your temperament," Cassie says. "She hasn't cried once. This little girl is going to be stubborn as hell."

"Sounds like she's got the best of both of us then."

"We'll see how much you enjoy her temperament when she gets to be a teenager," she replies with a laugh.

"Dear God."

"Exactly."

My eyes travel from our baby girl to Cassie, the love of my life. She looks tired. Worn out. It was hard labor, but she looks happy. I brush a thick lock of her rich, red hair away from her forehead and plant a soft kiss on it. She looks up at me, and although she looks like she wants to close her eyes and sleep for the next three days, she offers me a lovingly warm smile.

"Do I look terrible as terrible as I feel?" she asks.

I shake my head. "You've never looked more beautiful than you do right now."

"That's sweet. But you're a liar."

"I'd never lie to you."

She searches my eyes, and a weak smile curls the corners of her mouth. "No, I suppose you wouldn't. But only because you're afraid of me."

"That's very true."

She looks down at the bundle in her arms then back up at me. "We have a family."

"We do."

"We didn't plan for this. Are you okay with it?"

"As long as I'm with you, I'm okay with anything," I say. "Besides, I believe it was you who said the universe puts people in our lives that need to be there or something like that. I guess this is the universe telling us our baby girl needed to be in our lives."

"Yeah. I did say that, didn't I?"

"You did."

"I'm pretty smart."

"You truly are."

Her eyes glimmer and her smile nearly steals my breath away. It's crazy to know that after all these years together, she still has the power to bring me to my knees with nothing more than a casual glance. I love that about her. And I love this life and this family we're building together. Everything from meeting Cassie to having our baby girl has been unexpected. Everything in my life since Cassie walked into it has been a surprise.

I never used to like surprises at all. I'm a creature of habit and routine. And the last four, almost five years now, have been anything but that. But it allowed me to experience a life I never thought I could have. It's given me a joy I never thought was possible. And it's allowed me to embrace a love I thought you could only find in fairy tales. Cassie has turned my life upside down. She stormed through like a tornado and smashed every wall I built around myself.

But if not for her, if not for that twist of fate, or the hand of the universe at work, or whatever you want to call it, I wouldn't have the happiness and contentment I have right now. I wouldn't have this big, beautiful life I'd never contemplated having before she found her way to my doorstep that rainy night. Without her, I would never have embarked on this beautiful and glorious adventure we find ourselves on. And every single day I wake up not just thankful to have somebody like Cassie by my side, but eager to see what the day brings and what new adventure awaits us.

"Penny for your thoughts," she says.

"Is that all they're worth?"

"Tell me what you're thinking, and I'll let you know."

I laugh softly then take her hand and give it a squeeze. "I was just thinking about how much I love you and that there is nobody I would rather be on this journey with. You are the love of my life, Cassie Robb."

"And you're the love of my life, Cash Teague."

The End.Thanks for reading!