Epilogue

P retty

Oh, you should wear my mum's earrings," órfhlaith offered, opening a small box that showcased the generous sapphires clip ons. "They're not bad on the eyes, and they count as something blue."

Placing the sapphire adornments on my ears, Queenie wobbled onto the chaise to rest her feet after slipping a pearl pin in my hair. "That covers something borrowed. You just need something old and something new."

"My mother gave me a charm from a bracelet she's had forever. It's fallen apart over the years, but I just have it tucked under my sleeve."

"You just need something new," órfhlaith slyly eyed in my direction as I reached for a box, a last-minute gift from my soon to be husband.

Lifting the lid, I admired the box's contents and the note that accompanied it.

For my sweet girl…

Two collars lined the box, one for ceremony appropriate and one for everyday use. Fingering the white collar through my fingers, I dripped it over my neck, admiring it's simple, but elegant make and fit.

"I actually have just the thing."

***

Having only been a few weeks along, to avoid scandal and running mouths, Paddy had actually been in a rush to get married. For my public perception, he hadn't wanted it to appear as if it were a shotgun wedding, and since he was Catholic, his level of urgency was swift.

I just hadn't expected a wedding of this magnitude to be organized so quick. Paddy didn't kid when he claimed he had family that had made many connections. In fact, the only obstacle had only really been Elijah.

Everything that happened in the last few weeks, it had been understandable how much that traumatized Elijah. I took my responsibility for that, as he was just a kid having to navigate the decisions of the adults around him.

But after the funeral, Elijah didn't speak for a week. He went from having his father, Paddy, kids his age to play with, to absolutely no one. Once Paddy and I agreed to give each other space, that type of abandonment—whether intentional or not—I feared he'd never recover from.

In fact, bringing Paddy back into our lives had meant starting all over again, as winning him over meant convincing there'd be no chance of him leaving like that again. Paddy was more patient than ever, waiting for Elijah to come to him.

So, when Elijah finally broke down, Paddy held him, as they both cried and acknowledged their mutual losses. Paddy let him know that it was ok to miss his father and that he loved him, even though he'd been far from perfect until the end. But he also assured him, especially through his love for me, that he was always going to be here and had no plans to change that.

Slowly, we were leaning in to the idea that we're a family and that didn't take away from the family that was lost. Paddy was already someone Elijah idolized, so it was truly an honor that Paddy wanted to take this journey with us.

For all Paddy's flaws, he did have amazing values when it came to raising kids. While he did feel men had certain roles, they weren't as toxic as I'd led myself to believe the first time we met. He was even teaching my son it was ok to cry, as it'd always been something Vernon strongly discouraged when it came to Elijah's pain.

Vernon had been flawed. I wish he hadn't lied but I didn't blame him for hurting me. He wasn't honest with himself and in the end, it ended poorly. I loved him off the strength that we'd had some good years, even if they hadn't meant the same to him as me. But I don't think I could ever forgive him for all that happened that was now going to affect our son.

I'll never know what he was trying to achieve that tragic day, but what I did know was that I planned on moving on, helping Elijah get back to the kid who damn near blossomed at the thought of having a father figure that paid attention to him. That had always been the one thing I could count on with Paddy, is how much he showed up for Elijah.

Though, sometimes, it was even overwhelming when he showed up for me. I couldn't believe Paddy had managed to fly my mom up from Barbados at the last minute. While I had wanted her in attendance, I was aware that with the timeline of things, it may not have been an easy task.

But Paddy had been determined to meet her, and show her that I would always be taken care of no matter what I did. I think my mother was just surprised that I had snagged a handsome man a little younger than me. She joked that my father had never been nearly as young or handsome, so I better hold on to this one.

In traditional Irish fashion, we had a Catholic ceremony, as Paddy had never wanted me to question the fact that I was Irish. I'd always be a Black woman, but it was encouraging to have a window into a culture that I'd been disconnected to my whole life. I'd lost it in an Irish father, but gained it in an Irish husband, and that seemed like a better trade off to me.

Everything happened in a blur, as before I knew it, Paddy was being asked to kiss the bride. I couldn't believe I'd gotten so lucky to have a second chance at love with him. Kissing Paddy as his wife felt like kissing him for the first time.

When we shared our first kiss, our first dance, mentally I was brought to tears when we cut the cake. Not that I had anything against my first wedding, but there had been a sense of relief having Paddy not smear cake all over my face, as Vernon had.

I know it was tradition, and it felt silly even addressing it, but it was a little degrading after sitting for hours getting your makeup done, only to have it ruined for a cake cutting. Paddy had not only honored my wishes not to do so, he'd fed it to me in small pieces so there'd be no chance of it getting on my dress or face.

He'd been a little fresh during the garter removal, opting to pull it off with his teeth under my dress, but that had honestly been something I was fine with, given that we'd agreed to abstain leading up to the wedding, so I was desperate for any attention.

In a welcome shift, Bellamy offered to make the first toast, congratulating us on our big day. "Can't believe my little brother just got married?—"

"Hey, I can't believe it either," Paddy jovially yelled during his speech.

"From the first time I saw the two of you together, I knew it was love. He'll give you hell, Pretty. Because that one came out the womb trouble. But now that you're expecting?—"

"One bun on the stove, one bun in the oven! I'll drink for both of us!" Paddy joked. Again , interrupting Bellamy.

"For the love of God. Paddy, you gonna let me fucking finish? What I was gonna say is, now that you're expecting you'll keep him home. And I couldn't think of a better addition to this family than you and Elijah." As everyone clapped and before Paddy couldn't notice, I secretly slipped away.

Paddy

Now I understood why people had weddings and didn't just get hitched at city hall like a sane person. Marriage wasn't the wedding, but it was nice getting the family together to share in a moment so significant. Now I know why Cillian had done it twice.

After Bellamy's speech, the light dimmed, as the shift in music shouldn't have surprised me, but when Pretty had set up the microphone on the dance floor, her band was playing in the background.

The light focused on me and Pretty, as if we were the only ones in the room, as cleverly weaved in lyrics about singing for me, being my sweet girl and being her Daddy made me emotional.

I'd never inspired anybody to do anything for me, much less write a song. I can't believe I had someone who loved me, wanted me, accepted me and all my flaws.

I'd taken a life for her and she'd taken a life for me, but in return, we gave each other life. Especially a one worth living to the fullest.

I fucking loved this woman. I loved our son, and I loved that baby on the way. Nothing made me feel more whole than family, so I took great pride in integrating her into mine. Once the reception had settled, I was as hungry as a wild boar, that I couldn't wait for Pretty any longer after her set.

"Paddy!" Elijah surprised me, jumping into my arms after spending some time with his grandmother, as I squeezed him hard and set him on my lap.

"Having fun with your grandmother, Elijah?"

"Yeah."

"Just so you know, if you ever want to visit her, tell me, and I'll try to figure something out. I don't want you forgetting your roots, which is why, come this summer, I'm taking you to Ireland so you can know more about your Irish side."

"Really?"

"It'll have to be after the baby comes, so your mother doesn't have to travel while she's carrying. You excited to be a big brother, Elijah?"

"Not really." Honestly, I was a wee disappointed in his answer.

"Aw, why?"

"Because everyone always pays attention to the baby."

"Elijah, you never have to worry about the people who care about you not giving you attention. Have I ever given you reason to think that you can't count on me?"

"No." The kid had to know I had no desire to replace him.

"I promise you this, siblings are like built in friends. Sometimes you hate them, most times you love them, but they only expand our family, not replace anyone. Since you're a lot like me, you're gonna love being an older brother. I only got to do it once, but it's someone you get to push around and tell them what to do," I bragged and I got that cheery little smile on his face.

"But most of all—and this is probably the most important—you also learn to protect and look out for someone. You'll be good at that since you're a Sullivan now."

"I know Dad." Not gonna lie, my fucking heart sunk into my stomach every time Elijah slipped and called me Dad instead of Paddy. He didn't have to, stepfather, father. This was my son, and I knew where he stood with me. But I had a lot of work to do when it came to him, so I loved that he was warming up to me, even if it was only shown through the smallest of gestures.

Giving Elijah a final hug, I sent him off to go find his cousins, only to be later joined by this beautiful, amazing goddess of a woman. Leaning in to kiss her, I couldn't stop until my stomach started growling again.

"You better take care of that," Pretty joked.

"It can wait for just one more," I said, grabbing her face and stealing another kiss. "I can't wait to be one of them annoying husbands, bringing up his wife in every conversation. Whether I'm bitching or bragging," I said in jest.

"Well, I can't wait to be yours again." I ran my fingers across her temporary collar, relishing in the fact she was mine for all the see.

"You'll be mine tonight. One little baby bump ain't gonna stop me from being all over you. Remember, you didn't marry no saint Pretty, you married a fucking scoundrel. And we got two weeks of abstaining to make up for, so that baby's gonna have to prepare for a rowdy few months."

Greetings gentle reader! If you reading this ahead of the release date, it would mean the world to me if you could find time to review on Amazon . Goodreads and Bookbub are also important, but for voracious readers like yourself, they depend on your opinions on consumer sites like Amazon to decide if they want to purchase or borrow.

The more reviews an author has, the more they'll prioritize books in the other series, and with Bellamy next in line, y'all will finally get your fill of the fan favorite, smooth-talking, slightly obsessed, curve-loving playboy y'all been telling me y'all want!

Bellamy finds out his very first love, not only is alive, she's been hiding his secret baby from him!

If you want me to prioritize Bellamy's story…

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