“It’s what you did, sweetness. All you. He’s perfect.”
“Hunter Bartholomew Evans,” I whisper.
“Bartholomew? Mierda! Why are you giving him that name? He’ll have to beat up his whole school for picking on him with that name!” Skull says. I grin up at Hunter, my husband, my partner, my rock.
“Katie and I are going to call him Bad Bart,” he says with a wink. Only he and I know that Bartholomew is Hunter’s middle name. A small secret. It’s okay, his secret is safe with me. Just like I know that our child and I will always be safe with this man.
“I love you,” I tell him, and those three words seem like so little when you realize what they encompass. He gives me air to live.
“I love you too, Katydid. I always will.”
With my life, I never thought I could believe in a man, let alone a promise he gives me. I know that no matter what, I can always trust in Hunter’s, though. Peace, just one of the gifts he gives me.
“Bethie you better hurry up over there. Hunter’s getting lonely.”
“Working on it,” she huffs, and I wink up at Hunter, right before the nurse comes over and starts giving breastfeeding instructions. I get ready for even more blessings that having Hunter in my life has given. I do believe my cup runneth over… and if the big sloppy tears of joy falling from my eyes give me away, no one comments. Least of all my husband, who has the same tears in his face as our child suckles from my breast.
BETH & SKULL
“Beth, are you ready, mi cielo? We’re going to be late for Thomas’s birthday party,” I call before walking into the bedroom of our new home.
I had our new home custom-built right by the dock where Beth and I got married. Torch and Katie are right up the road, too. Far enough away so I won’t have to kill Torch, but close enough so our children can be together, because one thing has shown itself in the last two months: these kids are going to bond. They somehow instantly sense when the other is in the room.
Diego Cruz was born exactly fifteen minutes after little Bart made his appearance. He’s got Beth’s blonde hair, my dark eyes, and a mixture of both of us when it comes to his personality. He’s perfect, and Gabby is fascinated by her little brother. She’s walking beside me, her little hand in mine, and it never fails to make me feel like I’m ten feet tall.
“Mommy’s sleeping, Papi,” she whispers. She calls me Papi. There was no coaching, nothing; she just picked it up one day and it clicked, and I’ve been Papi ever since. My daughter is the smartest child on the planet, and I’m definitely the proudest.
“That she is, calabaza.”
“So is Dee-go.”
I smile, picking Gabby up in my arms. Her little hands come around my neck and she kisses the side of my face, giggling. She’s turned into daddy’s little girl, and I couldn’t be happier.
We’re supposed to go to Dragon’s little boy’s birthday party. Nicole had a little boy they named Thomas and he and Dom keep him and Nicole completely on their toes. I hate to miss it, but Diego has had trouble sleeping through the night. Looking down at my beautiful wife and my son, there’s no way I’m going to disturb them. I let Gabby slide to the floor and then I pull the cover up around Beth and a sleeping Diego, who is napping, spooned by Beth. Mi mundo.
“How about we skip the birthday party and go fishing on the dock?” I ask Gabby.
Her face breaks out in a big smile. “Can snuffles go?”
Snuffles is her teddy bear that her grandpa Tucker bought her. Tucker, who bought the property across from me and set up house there just to be close to his family. Tucker is a pain in my ass, but the best grandfather a little girl could ask for, and we won’t even begin to talk about how he’s trying to spoil Diego and BB—which is what we call Torch’s and Katie’s son, but then again, I warned them not to name him Bartholomew.
“Absolutely. We can make him bait the hook.”
“Snuffles can’t do that, daddy!” She giggles as I pick her up. When I get back to the door, I look back at Beth and Diego and smile. My heart feels so full it’s about to burst.
Mi familia…
Life couldn’t be more perfect. The pain, the hurt, the ghosts from the past… They have been released, and all that we have around us now is love.
The End.
LEARNING TO BREATHE
Beast’s Story
Fall 2016