Epilogue

Bailey

SIX MONTHS LATER

"I still can't getover how amazing this place is," Olivia enthused as she grabbed the diaper bag off the kitchen island while holding Beth on her hip.

"I know. Cole did such an amazing job!" I stated proudly as I bounced Mikey on my lap.

Olivia had given birth to Michael Bradshaw Whitaker and Elizabeth Pearl Whitaker a week after her false alarm, and they'd already changed so much since they were born. They would be six months old next week. I couldn't believe that they'd been alive for half a year already. Between the holidays, renovations, and moving, the past six months had flown by.

Cole and his crew finished the renovations, which were nothing short of miraculous, two weeks ago, and we were finally all moved in. They'd brought Grandma Betty's and Grandpa Bill's house back to its original glory, only better because it had all the current technology and appliances. The twins still shared a room, but that was their choice. Carly had her own room and, maybe more importantly, her own bathroom. We converted what used to be the dining room and pantry to a second main suite on the first floor, which was Sara's, so she didn't have to worry about the stairs anymore.

It had taken some convincing for Sara to agree to the living situation. She hadn't wanted to intrude on me and Cole, but after months of talking and begging, she finally relented. I think what might have tipped the scale in our favor was when I took her to lunch and reminded her that she'd taken custody of Cole when she was pregnant with Carly. And then he continued living with her after he turned eighteen because Peter got sick. After that, she got sick. He loved seeing the kids every day, being a part of their everyday lives, and he would never relax if she lived in another home. He'd be worried all the time.

She must have known what I was saying was true because she caved.

The past two weeks that we'd all been living here had been the happiest of my life. I'd loved Cole before, but seeing him so happy and relaxed, having all the people he loved under one roof, had allowed me to get glimmers of the man he was before the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

I'd finished unpacking late last night, which was good because today was Carly's twelfth birthday, and she'd invited the entire cheer squad over for a barbeque. The kids were all on the built-in trampoline Cole had installed in the backyard. Billie and Birdie were keeping an eye on them while Cole was manning the grill with Ben, Olivia's husband, Arthur, and Trevor.

"I'm going to change her, and I'll be back to feed that one." Olivia pointed to her son.

"Back to feed this one?" I kissed Mikey's cheek. "What if I eat him first?"

Mikey giggled as I pretended to gnaw on his cheek. He smelled so good. There was nothing better than new baby smell.

Well, maybe one thing. Cole. I was addicted to his woodsy, masculine scent. Just thinking about it made my nose start twitching. I couldn't believe that I was going to be his wife in just six weeks. He'd tried to convince me to do a quicky ceremony at the courthouse and then have a wedding later, but I'd stuck to my guns.

I'd always dreamed of having my wedding in the backyard, and now that the house was finished, my dreams were going to come true.

"There's a big truck in the front yard!" Luke shouted as he raced through the kitchen to the front door.

"A truck! A truck!" Leo trailed behind.

I stood and followed the boys with Mikey on my hip, wondering if it was some sort of delivery for Carly's birthday. When I stepped out onto the porch, I saw a massive moving truck backing into the Knights" driveway next door. The house had been vacant the entire time Cole had been working on our place.

"Looks like we have new neighbors," Cole observed as he joined me and the boys.

"Or not new neighbors," I commented when the driver stepped out of the truck. "That's Adam Knight."

I hadn't seen Adam in probably twenty years. He'd definitely filled out. He'd always been tall with an athletic frame, but he wasn't a teenager anymore. He was a man whose T-shirt pulled tic on his broad chest and muscular arms. Last I heard from Grandma Betty, he was a Navy SEAL, which would explain why he was in such good shape.

"He was your neighbor growing up, right?" Cole asked as Adam opened the door and then walked inside his garage.

I nodded as Billie stepped out onto the porch behind Cole. "Olivia's looking for you?—"

"Adam's back." I cut my sister off and pointed next door at the exact moment Adam walked out of the garage and pulled the lever on the rear door of the truck.

I turned to look at my sister, fully expecting her to smile, wave, or maybe even go and speak to him. But instead, she just stared at him like she'd seen a ghost. A really hot ghost.

When I looked back over at Adam, I saw that she wasn't the only one staring. He'd spotted us. I lifted my hand and waved, but he didn't notice. His eyes were trained on Billie. There had to be a good fifty yards between them, but somehow, the tension they were creating was so thick you could choke on it.

"Billie?" I said softly.

Without saying a word, my sister turned and walked back inside the house. When I looked back at Adam, he was still staring with a dazed expression at the spot Billie had just occupied. After a few moments, he blinked, then walked back toward the garage before shaking his head and turning around to open the back of the truck.

"What's all that about?" Cole questioned aloud what I was thinking. "Do they not get along?"

"No, they were friends. Good friends. Adam is a few years older than us, but he and Billie were always hanging out."

"Were they more than friends?"

I'd always suspected as much, but Billie had never said anything to me or Birdie, and we always talked about our love lives. She'd even told me about her college professor. So why wouldn't she say anything about Adam Knight?

"Oh, there you are!" Olivia said as she stepped out onto the porch. "I need to feed this chunky monkey."

I kissed Mikey's head before handing him to her. I was following Olivia to the kitchen when Cole wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me against him.

"When are we gonna have one of those?" he whispered against my ear.

My head spun around, and I looked up at him.

"One of what?" I asked, holding my breath for his response.

"A chunky monkey."

I shook my head. "I thought you didn't want to?—"

"I didn't think it was possible, not with everything else in my life. But, with you, anything is possible."

"Are you serious?" I asked, not wanting to get my hopes up.

Since Olivia had the twins, I'd definitely caught the baby bug, but I hadn't said anything to Cole. I was more than happy with our life and satisfied being a kickass aunt to Carly, Leo, and Luke and godmother to Mikey and Beth.

His gaze grew somber. "Yes. I want us to have a baby. If you want to."

My eyes filled with tears at the thought of us having our own child to add to the family. It made my heart explode with joy.

"Is that a yes?" he asked as he wiped the tear that slid down my cheek.

I nodded. "Yes."

His smile turned wolfish as he tugged me into the spare room and shut the door. "Cole!"

I was reaching for the handle to leave, as his hands were already tugging my pants down. "We have people here; we can't…"

His hand slid between my legs, and his finger brushed over my already swollen clit.

"They won't miss us." His breath fanned my neck. "We can't have a baby without hanky-panky."

A small chuckle filled my throat before I lost my breath completely. As excited as I was at the possibility of expanding our family, I was just as excited to spend the rest of my life with the family I had now. It was everything I ever wanted—no, it was more. Cole had made dreams I didn't even know I had come true, and I couldn't wait to spend the rest of my life returning the favor.

THE END