Epilogue

— Hunter —

TEN MONTHS AFTER THE WEDDING

"Did you figure out a name yet?" Izzy ran the side of her knuckle along Baby Girl Delucia's cheek.

"Well it certainly isn't going to be Sebastian," I said. After months of fighting over our soon-to-be son's name, Nat and I had finally settled on Sebastian Jayce. I think we were both still a little shell-shocked from when the doctor lifted the baby last night and announced, "It's a Girl!" We'd had two sonograms, and both times the technician seemed pretty confident the baby was a boy. Apparently, the umbilical cord sometimes becomes positioned in a way that made it appear to be a penis.

"What about Elizabeth?" Izzy said. "Then we can call her Lizzy for short and be Izzy and Lizzy?"

I chuckled. "I'm not even going to attempt to come up with names. Whenever I pick anything, Nat wrinkles her nose. But a month later, when she comes up with the same damn name, it's a great idea."

Izzy looked up at me, her eyes filled with mischief. "Can we take her socks off again?"

"What is with you and your sister's toes?"

"I have no idea. But I really want to play with those little sausages some more."

I smiled. "Go for it."

The bathroom door opened, and Nat walked out shuffling her feet in her slippers.

"Any luck?" I asked.

Her shoulders slumped. "No."

"How about if I go out and find a nurse and ask if she can give you something now that this little guy… I mean girl… is on the outside? Just a little something to help you go."

The last few months of pregnancy had been tough on Nat. She'd had constant sciatic pain shooting down her leg, couldn't seem to stay asleep more than an hour at a time, and had terrible hormone-induced constipation. The latter could've been helped with over-the-counter medication, but my wife wouldn't even take an aspirin during her pregnancy.

Nat nodded. "Yeah, that would be great. Thanks."

While I was out at the nurse's station, the Rossi girl gang arrived. They had balloons, flowers, and more gift bags than they could carry. Then I got a load of Bella, Nat's mom.

I pointed to the large pot in her hand. "Is that what I think it is?"

She smiled. "I made you meatballs and sauce. You can't eat the disgusting hospital food."

Alegra smirked. "You made who meatballs, Ma? I thought those were for Nat."

Bella's eyes narrowed at her daughter. "Stop being fresh."

We all laughed. It had been a running family joke that Momma Bella had a secret crush on me. I didn't know if it was true, but when she liked you, she cooked your favorites. So I might've played into it occasionally.

I took the pot out of my mother-in-law's hands and leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Thank you for making these. Go on in. I'm just waiting for the nurse to get something for Nat."

It couldn't have taken more than five minutes for the nurse to come back with medicine for Nat. But when I walked into the room, I thought I was in the wrong one for a second.

"Did someone vomit pink in here?"

Everywhere I looked was washed in pastel pink. Pink balloons, pink flowers, even pink streamers were draped across the room. Just minutes ago, my daughter had been wearing a baby-blue onesie with matching baby-blue pants. Now she was clad head-to-toe in pink—pink headband, pink shirt, pink shoes, pink swaddling blanket. These nutjobs had even changed the tiny sheet in her bassinet to pink.

Nat's sister Francesca jumped down from a chair after finishing tacking up the last of the pink streamers. She smacked her hands together. "The princess needed a few things."

"Yeah, some sane relatives."

It was a good thing we lucked out and Nat was the only person in this two-person room, because the Rossi ladies took it over during their visit. Bella whipped out plates and silverware and started to fix everyone heaping plates of food. Nicola played "Brilla Brilla La Stellina"—the Italian version of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"—from her phone while all five Rossi ladies sang along at the tops of their lungs. Apparently their grandmother had taught them all the nursery rhyme as soon as they were old enough to talk. Alegra even made herself comfortable on the empty hospital bed next to her sister. It was a little bit of insanity whenever they were all together, but a whole lot of love.

The Rossi ladies stayed for the better part of an hour, until the nurse came in and told them Nat needed her rest. She'd delivered our girl at two in the morning. It was hard to believe that was only sixteen hours ago. A few minutes after the room was emptied of everyone except Izzy, me, and the baby, Nat drifted off to sleep.

"I should go, too," Izzy said. "I have an exam tomorrow afternoon."

She leaned down to the bassinet and gently rubbed her nose with the baby's. "Love you, pumpkin pie."

"Thanks for staying all this time, Izzy."

"Of course. There's nowhere else I'd rather be." She nibbled on her bottom lip for a moment before speaking again. "I've been thinking… You know how little kids sometimes get confused and call someone their uncle when it's not really their uncle? Like if they're hanging around other kids who call that person Uncle because the person is actually their uncle?"

I had no idea where she was going with this, yet I shrugged. "I guess."

"Well, maybe it would be less confusing if I called you Dad, instead of Hunter."

My jaw dropped open.

Izzy looked up and saw my face, then added, "You know, it would be easier for the baby and all."

I'd miraculously made it through the last twenty-four hours without crying, but that did it. I broke. My eyes welled up, and I tasted salt in my throat.

"You wanna call me Dad?"

She nodded her head. "If that's okay with you."

I lost the fight to stop the waterworks. Fat tears streaked down my face. "It would make me the happiest guy in the world for you to call me Dad, Izzy."

My amazing stepdaughter wrapped her arms around me and squeezed. I followed suit, holding her tight. Emotional moments with Izzy were rare and had to be held on to for as long as possible. When her grip loosened, I kissed the top of her head.

"I love you, kiddo."

"I love you, too, Dad."

She pulled back and scrunched up her nose. "You didn't get snot in my hair, did you?"

I pretended to pull something from the top of her head. "Oh yeah, big green chunks."

"You're gross."

I smiled from ear to ear. "But you love me anyway."

She rolled her eyes but the grin never left her face. "I'm going to regret this, aren't I?"

"Abso-freaking-lutely." I pulled the phone out of my pocket and started to scroll. "I'm already ordering you an I'm with Dad T-shirt."

"Great. I'll exchange it for an I'm with Stupid one."

I mussed her hair. "Be careful driving home."

"I don't want to wake my mom, so tell her I said goodbye. I'll come back tomorrow morning if she's not released by then."

"Will do."

After the door closed behind Izzy, I stood there for a minute, still absorbing what had just gone down.

"I guess you gained two daughters today?" Nat whispered.

My head swung around. "You heard that?"

She smiled and nodded her head.

I let out a big breath. "Thank God. Because I wasn't sure you would believe me when I told you."

Nat scooted over on the bed and patted the spot next to her. "Grab our little girl and come here, you big crybaby."

I chuckled and did as I was told, settling our little peanut into her mother's arms before climbing into bed and joining her. I draped my arm around my wife's shoulders, and we both looked down in awe.

"Did Izzy tell you she was going to do that?" I asked.

"Nope. She didn't mention a word."

"I'm blown away. I still can't believe she wants to call me Dad."

Nat smiled. "You've been a father to her since the first time you guys met. That might be what most attracted me to you."

"And here I thought it was my big—"

My wife pressed her finger to my mouth, stopping me from saying what I was about to say. "Shh… don't say that in front of your daughter."

I smiled and looked down at Baby Girl Delucia. "What are we going to name this little munchkin?"

"I actually thought of something I really love. I think you're going to love it, too."

"Considering it took us six months to come up with Sebastian, I'm curious to hear what you think is going to make us agree on something on the first try."

"Jacey. J-A-C-E-Y. Like your brother, but a little more girly. You didn't want to give our son Jayce's first name, because you wanted him to have his own. This would honor him while still giving our daughter her own identity. Plus, it sounds adorable."

My damn eyes filled with water yet again. "I love it."

Nat smiled. "Me, too. Are you crying again?"

"No." I swiped at the wetness on my cheeks. "I got something in my eyes."

"Yeah." She laughed. "Tears."

We were both went silent again, staring down at Baby Jacey. It was surreal that I was a dad after all these years.

"I can't believe we have a baby, Hunter. You've made all of my dreams come true."

"I'm glad. Because you've done better than that for me, sweetheart. Real life with you is better than any dream I've ever had."