Epilogue
Kennedy
Five Years Later
"I'm scared," I whisper, reaching for Asher's hand. He slips his into mine, squeezing gently.
"Don't be," he says, pressing his lips to my temple. "I'm right here."
I lay my head on his chest and close my eyes, breathing him in. He wraps his free arm around me, holding me tight. Being in his arms always calms me. No matter what's going on or how nervous I get, as soon as his strong arms close around me, I feel like I'm capable of anything.
There's something magical in his embrace, or perhaps in the way he loves me. For the last five years, he's made my life complete. Every dream I've had, he's helped make come true. Every fear, he's helped me conquer. I'm not small and easily overlooked in his arms. I'm a queen, unafraid and so damn powerful.
I love him more every day. All my life, I dreamed about a career as a writer, of sharing my words with the world and touching those who read them. And I've done that. But it would have meant less without Asher in my life. He completes me, makes me whole in ways I never expected or imagined were possible.
We're two halves of the same whole. We work effortlessly together. I know what love is because of him, and he knows what home is because of me. No one will ever love me more or drive me as crazy as this man.
He's followed me all over the country without complaint, uprooting his life so I could chase my dreams. And I have chased them. I released my first book when I was a junior in college. I released my second not even a year later. My third will be out in a few months.
It's still surreal to see my name in print and to have readers who want to meet me.
After I graduated, we moved to California to be closer to my family. His shop here is just as incredible as the one in Nashville. He didn't open a shop in New York while we were there. Instead, he did guest stints at some of the other shops in the city and flew back to Nashville every other month for a week.
I don't think I realized just how big of a deal he is in the Body Mod world. I knew he was talented, but I didn't know that he was basically a freaking superstar. People pay him a fortune, just to be able to say he did their ink.
He's still a little bit heaven and a little bit hell, both gentle as can be and bossy as all get out. He can reduce me to a puddle in a matter of seconds…and fire me up just as quickly. I love every minute of it.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
"It's time, angel baby," he says, reaching for my phone to silence the alarm we set.
I take a deep breath and exhale it slowly.
"You ready?"
I nod and then squeeze my eyes closed tight.
"You're not looking, are you?"
"No. You tell me what it says," I say, which makes him chuckle.
I know as soon as I hear the sharp intake of breath what the answer is. I feel it as his arms tighten around me and his entire body relaxes all at once.
"You're pregnant again, angel baby," he whispers.
I sob his name as my heart goes crazy, overflowing with happiness. He's given me two of the most amazing little girls on the planet already. Catherine and Coraline are the most beautiful little souls I've ever met. Like their daddy, they're a little bit heaven and a little bit hell.
Catherine, our two-year-old, is a lot like me. She's tiny and quiet, more content observing from the sidelines than participating. Her three-year-old sister is the exact opposite. She wants to be involved in everything at all times. She's bossy like her daddy and has no problem expressing herself.
I thought being in college while pregnant would be hard, but it wasn't. Asher made it so easy for me. When I was sick, he would hold me. When I was too big to see my own feet, he would kiss the tops and tell me how perfect they still were.
He's so incredible. I never doubt how much he loves me and our babies. He shows us every single day.
Our girls idolize him. We had to take the markers away from Coraline. She wants to be just like her daddy. Naturally, that means she would draw pictures all over herself. Washing marker off her skin every day was a lot of work! It's hard to explain to a toddler that drawing on herself is bad when her daddy is covered in ink.
"Are you happy, angel?" he asks, tipping my head back to wipe my tears.
"So happy," I whisper. We've been trying to get pregnant again for a few months now. It took a little longer this time, which was making me anxious. Now though? I feel nothing but joy. I'm having another baby, one who will be a little bit me and a little bit him like our girls.
He kisses me, long and deep and sweet.