I smiled. “Thank you. For not giving up on me.”
“Never.” He pulled me closer, kissing me on the forehead. “I fucking love you, Chloe.”
“And I love you, Kai.” Never had I felt so full, so joyful in my entire life. But he was my life now. Him and our babies. We would live life together—the good, the bad, the fun, the hard. It would be full and real and better than anything I ever could have imagined for myself.
Epilogue
Kai
Tiny Phillip squirmed in her arms, grunting and fussing, as she stood next to me. Farrah snoozed in mine, her perfect rosy cheeks shining in the rays of the setting sun, her chest rising and falling in the most relaxing way. I wanted to nap with her, but I had to listen to my best bud declare his love for my sister in front of the small crowd that only included his dad and some of our close relatives.
It ended up being in Mom and Dad’s backyard, much more casual than initially planned, with lights strung up around the ramada they put up for the occasion and flowers lining the posts and the few aisles of chairs. Just as Mia wanted it. No one seemed to mind the fussing baby. They had even planned it so we could make it on one of my days off. And even though I couldn’t be up there, since I wanted to help Chloe with our babies—anyone in my family would have gladly taken the job—I was his best man and he was mine.
“I’m gonna have to feed him,” my wife whispered in my ear just as he wailed, arching his back in her arms.
“Do you need my help?” I whispered back.
Farrah grunted, her eyes doing that freaky thing where they cracked open but she was still asleep. I stopped breathing, willing her to keep sleeping so Chloe wouldn’t stress about her while feeding Phil.
“Don’t move,” Chloe demanded, eyes wide while Philip made some snorting noises. Then she was up, heading for the house. I watched her leave, reveling in every inch of her. The way the coral dress she chose hugged her backside was amazing. Even with the giant—but fashionable—diaper bag slung over her shoulder, she was sexy as hell.
The second she was gone, Farrah’s eyes fluttered open. She made a pouty face.
“Hi, love,” I whispered.
Dad leaned over, staring down at her, while Mom blubbered next to him. He stuck a finger out for Farrah to grab. “Hey, cutie,” he muttered with an adoring smile—the effect my princess had on any unsuspecting bystander.
The “I dos” were happening. The moment they kissed and everyone cheered, Farrah yelled. I hopped up, following Mia and Pierce down the small aisle with a pissed-off baby. Chloe was right inside, sitting on the couch with the cover thing on, feeding Phillip. Mia went right to her, and Chloe exclaimed, “Congratulations, you guys,” looking like a pro mom, not at all perturbed by them standing there while she fed him.
She spotted me—or probably heard Farrah. “He’s almost done,” she assured me with a soft smile.
But Farrah heard her and wailed louder.
Mia marched over, sticking her hands out. “Gimme,” she demanded, taking my little girl, who instantly quieted when Mia bounced her and made cooing noises.
The bond they’d grown in the first few weeks of the babies’ lives was incredible. Mia had still come to stay with us for a few months, since I had long hours. Pierce even came by to visit often. She’d been there to drive Chloe to the hospital when she went into labor at thirty-three weeks. I showed up right before they did an emergency C-section, which gave me a fucking heart attack, making me fear losing the wife I’d only barely just made mine.
They brought our perfect twins into the world, and Chloe made it through the whole ordeal just fine. Mia stayed with us while Chloe healed, helping with the twins and anything else she needed. How helpful she’d been, how amazing she was with the babies, had surprised me. Though, when my sister truly cared about something, she did so with single-minded ferocity.
I went over to Pierce, patting him on the shoulder. “Congratulations, man.” He was not only my best bud but now my brother-in-law… which was still weird.
“Yeah. Thanks for not beating the shit out of me during the vows.” He chuckled.
“Just don’t hurt her and I won't have to, Hendricks.”
“Ha! Like she would ever let that happen.” He watched my sister bouncing the baby in her arms with adoration in his eyes. “I, uh, changed positions. I’m doing a lot more desk work now so I won’t be gone as much when we get back from Colorado. No more undercover shit,” he told me as everyone came inside—Ava, my grandma, and Mom going right to Mia to coo at Farrah. Dad talked to my grandpa, Pierce’s father, and the minister. And Cade went to stand by Ava.
With raised eyebrows, I shot him a sideways glance. “How do you feel about that? ”
He grinned at Mia. “Better than ever.” She glanced at him as if she could feel his gaze on her, then winked. They loved each other. It was that simple.
I caught Chloe’s eye when she switched babies with Mia. Her crooked smile lit me on fire. It seemed such a huge burden to be stuck there feeding both babies, but she handled it with finesse and grace. Like she handled every other part of being a mom. Everything she did that she’d never imagined herself doing. After everything she was raised in, she somehow found something inside her that was far greater than that oppression. Something that shined in the darkness. The same light we’d found in the midst of our surprise pregnancy.
When the pictures were taken and the festivities began, Chloe wore Farrah in one of those wrap things while Ava played with Phillip and I played cornhole with Pierce, Cade, and Mia. We ate good food and partied until the sun set over the horizon. Mia smashed an entire piece of chocolate cake in Pierce’s face, and then he kissed her, rubbing the chocolate frosting all over hers. The small crowd was in hysterics. Watching my sister enjoy life after enduring so much dark showed me just how blessed my family was. Both my sisters and I were blessed beyond measure.
“I want cake,” Chloe told me, squeezing the hand she held.
I smirked, kissing her cheek and murmuring, “Want me to feed it to you, toots?”
The sultry smile that spread across those luscious lips had my blood thrumming. “We could take some back to the hotel.”
I chuckled, kissing her mouth that time. “I will get all the damn cake you want.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here, then!” she exclaimed, making me laugh, my heart swelling.
We got our cake and said our goodbyes, the bride and groom leaving right behind us to head for their house. They would be leaving for Colorado in the morning, as we would be headed back to Ohio and Ava and Cade to Tennessee. Though we all lived scattered across the country, we were so much closer than we’d ever been. Or rather, my sisters were extremely close to my wife, always calling, often coming all the way to Ohio to visit. Where I thought my family may have been disappointed that they didn’t get to share in our wedding, they had all been ecstatic to add her to the family, especially after getting to hear most of her story.
“That was the most perfect little wedding.” Chloe sighed after we got the twins strapped in the new car Chloe had let me get her.
My hand resting on her bare knee, I squeezed it. “You’re not regretting our courthouse wedding, are you?”