Grace
Six months later
“I can’t fucking believe I’m wearing this. I look like a little pussy bitch,” Brett mutters under his breath and tugs at the collar of his shirt.
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“Brett!” Mandy scolds. “For the millionth time, watch your language in front of the babies.”
Grumbling under his breath, Brett shuffles over to the swear jar left on the kitchen counter and drops a twenty in it. The jar is already halfway full of twenties, and will probably be filled to the top before the night is over.
“Sorry, baby,” Brett sighs and leans down, kissing a very-pregnant Mandy on the cheek. Her belly is so big and round she looks like she’s about to burst at any minute.
From across the kitchen comes the happy squeals of Chase’s twin baby girls, Emma and Emily.
“Yeah, well you always look like a little pussy bitch,” Chase remarks with a smirk. “I don’t see how the shirt makes any difference.”
Chase’s wife, Avery, gives him the stink-eye but the big guy just grins and bounces his two girls, one in each beefy arm. With a sigh, Avery wanders over to the jar and slips in a couple of twenties.
“I personally think it makes you look more manly,” I giggle. “Nothing screams I’m comfortable with my masculinity like wearing a hot pink Britney Spears shirt.”
Brett gives me a confused look. “Seriously?”
I giggle and Chase calls out loudly, “Nah, she’s just fuckin’ with you.”
“Chase!” Avery sighs now and gives me an exasperated look as she drops a couple more twenties in the jar. “It will be a miracle if the girls’ first words aren’t fuck, shit, or bitch.”
“Don’t forget pussy,” Brett chimes in and drops another twenty.
Mandy eyes the jar. “Well, on the bright side, at the rate we’re going they’ll have enough to pay for college by the time they start kindergarten.”
I nod my head and then turn to the doorway as I hear Hope’s happy squeal echoing in the hallway. She’s so excited about tonight, we’re celebrating her official adoption by Max. The State of Nevada now officially recognizes him as her legal father. We’ve had her birth certificate changed and everything. From this day forth she is no longer Hope Madison Hilton, she is Hope Madison Harper. It’s such a relief that the three of us share the same name now.
After that night the guys confronted Carson, I haven’t heard a peep from him. His texts mysteriously stopped coming. Through our lawyers, he relinquished custody, signing over all his parental rights. He even left the city and no longer operates the Subaru lot on main. I don’t know what the guys did or said to scare him off but I can’t say I’m upset about it. Now that he’s gone, Hope is so much happier.
Today, Max may legally be recognized as her father but she’s been calling him daddy for months now, ever since she walked down the aisle as a flower girl in our wedding, and he loves it.
Max and Hope appear in the doorway, holding hands and grinning. The two of them are sporting matching Britney Spears t-shirts for the concert tonight. Hope and the group of guys are going while us mommies stay behind to take care of Emma and Emily.
“Why do I gotta be the only guy in a pink shirt?” Brett whines. Chase, Max and Hope are all wearing white shirts with Britney’s picture on them.
“Because that’s the only one that came in size wussy,” Chase grins and looks at Avery for approval for not cussing.
Avery rolls her eyes but she’s grinning.
“It’s okay, honey. You look good in pink,” Mandy tries to comfort Brett.
Brett scowls and accepts Mandy’s comforting pats while glaring over at Chase. “You know Chase, now that you’re getting up there in age, you’re sounding more and more like Dale every day…”
“Those be fighting words, boy,” Chase warns.
“Mommy,” Hope beams at me, dragging Max with her as she skips up to me. Dropping Max’s hand, she throws herself at me, hugging me tightly.
“Be careful, little bear,” Max rumbles affectionately. “You don’t want to hurt the baby in Mommy’s belly.”
“It’s okay, Max,” I smile and hug Hope back. “He can take it, he’s just as big and as strong as his daddy.”
Max nods and steps up, wrapping his arms around us both.