Page 89 of Honeyed

“I love you, too.”

EPILOGUE

WARREN

One and a Half Years Later

“Can I have another ice chip?” my wife requests in a pained voice, and I can see the contraction rippling through her. I swear, men could never do this. There would be no freaking babies in the world anymore.

“Of course.” I scramble to get one, rubbing it over her lips before letting her take it into her mouth.

“Thank you.” She sighs as if the coldness brings a sliver of relief.

She’s been in labor for twelve grueling hours, and I feel so helpless not being able to take the pain away as the intensity ramps up. Even with the epidural, she still feels the stab of our baby girl trying to make her way into the world.

“You’re doing so amazing, you’re a warrior. Fight for us,” I whisper in her ear, my hand being used as a pincushion once more.

“That’s it, Alana, I can almost see the head,” our doctor tells us, working between her legs while I support her head.

Anxiety, nerves, love, and so much anticipation rumble through my chest. Any minute now, I’m going to meet another woman who will absolutely steal my heart.

Our daughter.

There was a time when I didn’t believe I’d get the first one to fall in love with me.

Alana got pregnant on our wedding night. Or, well, I guess it was technically our second wedding night. On the one-year anniversary of our courthouse wedding, about seven months after Rebecca, Cass and Patrick’s daughter, was born, I surprised Alana with an all-out bash on the back lawn of her childhood home.

A place that held all of our firsts, means so much to us, and could hold the two hundred people who came out to party and dance the night away with us. Cass was in charge of kidnapping my wife and getting her wedding ready, so of course, she already had some idea when she got dropped off in a sparkly white princess dress, looking absolutely radiant.

It wasn’t until her father, in a tux, met her out front and held his arm out that she realized what was happening. There wasn’t a dry eye in the joint as we exchanged our own vows and gave our family exactly what they’d missed the first time around.

And that night, when we got back to our house, and then I carried her over the threshold and unbuttoned the row of buttons going down her back, we created this little miracle of life that’s about to come into the world.

Over the last year and a half, we’ve gone through so many ups and downs that this being the final hurdle is the peak of it all. Lily is thriving, and we’re busier than ever, especially with having to hire a staff and a new manager. Between Hope Pizza and the local goods store, we were taking on way too much work. August left for college, and we struggled there for a while, working fourteen-hour days to make sure both jobs were done to satisfaction.

After our wedding, during our house search, while discovering Alana was pregnant, we knew we needed help and delegation. That’s where the three new members of the Lily family entered; two full-time store employees and a manager who holds it all down. We are still there almost daily, but now we can balance a lot more. Especially with Evan bringing in some more help at Hope Pizza now that Thomas has tried to retire.

And by tried, I mean failed. His bossy ass is still there four times a week, even when Leona tries to drag him out by the ear. She’s ready for the next chapter of life, traveling and babysitting baby Rebecca, while he can’t help sticking his nose in the business he’s left in the capable hands of his children.

That’s how this family is, though, always in each other’s business. Nonna spoiled our pregnancy news when she could tell Alana was pregnant the moment she walked into a Sunday dinner a little over seven months ago. And when it came to helping us through the trial, I’m not sure we could have done it without them.

Six months ago, Mason Klein was sentenced to nine years in prison for what he did to Alana and me. After searching his files, following up on his visits with my father, and all the other evidence, the jury had enough to put him away for a long time. Of course, not as long as we would ultimately want, but justice was served.

The trial and coverage of it were brutal for me, having to relive what my father had done. It swept up a lot of media about my mother, my childhood, and the murder in general. Comparisons between Mason and I were made, and it was just a difficult time to get through. Alana and our family had been there every step of the way, holding me up when I didn’t think I was strong enough to bear it alone.

Everything Arthur had wanted for me when he signed that will is what I got. A wife who would go to the ends of the earth because she loves me so much, a dream of my own that we got to build together.

Arthur left me a legacy, catapulting me into something I might not have otherwise chosen for myself, and I’ll always be grateful for that. I only wish he and Clara could be here to meet the little girl they would have spoiled rotten.

But the family still left out there waiting; Patrick and Cass with their daughter and their son arriving in four months. Evan, Leona and Thomas, who are probably pacing the hallway. Liam, whose own crazy path is a doozy for all of us. August, who’s been video calling me from college, wanting to know if the baby is here yet. She still hasn’t discovered who’s funding it, and I’ll keep the secret till my grave if I can.

The whole cast of characters is waiting for their newest member, but no one is more eager to meet her than Alana and me.

“One more big push, Alana,” our doctor tells her, prepping for what feels like will be the final big one.

My wife bears down, a scream ripping from her throat, as she squeezes my hand hard. I silently kiss her head, rubbing her neck as she brings our child into the world like the warrior she is.

The next moment, I hear the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard in my life. A little cry, a mewl almost, followed by an intake of breath.

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