Epilogue Abby

A few years later…

Abby held her breath as they teetered on the precipice, waiting for the inevitable drop.

Grogen had been so wary of the rollercoaster at first that it had taken a lot of convincing to get him to try. He didn’t like not being in control of it. But all it had taken was one trip around the tracks, and now, he was hooked. Now, he couldn’t get enough. He was even willing to brave the crowds.

There was a click, and for a moment, nothing happened. Anticipation had Abby holding her breath. It started slow at first, as the front of the train slid past the point of no return and continued ever downward. Then it started to gather speed as the weight of the cars pulled them down the monstrous slope.

Adrenaline coursed through her veins and she felt the thrill chase its way up her spine as she let out a piercing scream. The sound was drowned out by the air rushing across her ears.They were hurtling down so fast she felt like she was lifting right off the seat, and the only thing stopping her from floating away was the secure harness system.

Next to her, Grogen sat in stoic silence, like he always did.

When they reached the bottom, they rose up again. The ride took them through two more smaller drops and rises and around several loops before the tracks seemed to stop in the middle of the air. But there wasn’t enough momentum for them to go over the edge, no matter how much it seemed like they would. Instead, the train slid backward, moving them through the tracks again.

By the time the train finally rolled to a stop, they were both grinning like kids in a toy store. Just as expected, Reka 5 now had the biggest, craziest rollercoasters in the galaxy.

“What’s next?” Abby asked as they made their way back to the main area of the amusement park.

“Food,” Grogen said, his eyes fixed on a couple walking by holding disposable trays of fried food.

Abby knew what Grogen was craving. A certain colonel’s secret spice blend had made it across the stars. Used on tepin meat and deep-fried, it was the best non-chicken fried chicken she’d ever tasted. They found the vendor and bought a family-sized box with the intention of bringing it home. Grogen snatched a piece up despite how piping hot it was and devoured it immediately.

“I’m getting a little tired. And we already did the best rides twice.” Abby said. “I think we should go relieve Jenny and Ckarus of babysitting duty.”

Gwen was a toddler now and loved playing the part of older sister to Geoff, Jenny and Ckarus’s kid. The two women had applied for the fertility program helping mixed couples conceive at the same time and gotten pregnant mere months apart. It had cost a lot, but her little ray of sunshine was worth every credit.

The two couples took turns babysitting so the other could spend time together, and sometimes the two Tallean males would babysit so the two women could have a girl’s night together. It was a good system.

Gwen flew at them the moment Ckarus opened the door, babbling a mile a minute about the grand adventures she and Geoff had today.

“We went on spaceship !” Gwen finished.

“That’s so cool,” Abby said, peering at the large boxes piled up in living room with holes cut out of them. That must be the spaceship.

“So, same time next week but at your place?” Jenny asked.

“Yup. Just bring him over.”

Grogen bent down to pick up their daughter and held her with one arm, taking Abby’s hand with the other. They walked to the transport together and all piled into the back. As the transport drove itself home on the pre-programmed route it had taken so many times, Abby leaned back against her sexy, capable mate, and held her perfect miracle child in her arms.

Never in a million years would she have imagined this would be her life. But here, out on the other side of the Milky Way, she’d finally found a family she loved with all her heart.

And that was all she’d ever need.

THE END