Chapter 58: Epilogue

AVA

“Ah…there we go,” the sonographer said and smiled brightly at us as the loud, almost mechanical pulsing sound filled the room.

Tears sprung to my eyes as I looked up at Cyrus, who immediately bent over to press a long, emotional kiss to my forehead.

~It was really happening. We were having a baby!~

“And you’re sure everything is looking good? We were in a car accident a little while ago. I’m not sure how far along I was, but—”

“Everything looks wonderful,” the sonographer reassured me. “We’re going to take a closer look in a few weeks, but as far as I can see, your baby looks healthy as can be!”

“And you’re sure there’s no added risks for Ava?” Cyrus asked, grabbing my hand.

“There’s no reason to believe this will be anything other than an ordinary pregnancy,” the sonographer said as she wiped the gel off my belly.

I pulled my shirt back down and sat up before taking Cyrus’s face into both of my hands.

“And an ordinary pregnancy is ~great~, love. Don’t you let your thoughts run wild.”

He smirked at me. “Nothing is ordinary when it comes to you, but I’ll take it.”

We walked outside, and I was overcome by the familiar feeling of butterflies rushing through my belly. “We’re having a baby,” I whispered.

Cyrus lifted me into his arms and kissed me hard. “I hope they have your dimples.”

“I hope they have your eyes,” I said. “And I hope I don’t have to win them over like I had to do with you.”

“You always had me.” He put me down and pulled out his phone. “Want to call the grandparents?”

We called my parents first, since they and Maisy were already in on our little secret.

I’d found out I was pregnant in an unorthodox way: sitting in the hospital beside my unconscious husband. A nurse had entered the room to go over my blood results and medication.

They’d run a full blood panel after the car crash and had asked me beforehand if there was any chance I might be pregnant, as that might affect what medication they would prescribe.

A sinking feeling had come over me as I thought about that possibility. I’d been off birth control for about a month and hadn’t gotten my period yet. And lo and behold, the test came back positive~.~

I hadn’t told Cyrus right away. I’d wanted him to recover at least ~slightly~ before dropping that bomb on him.

I’d been biting my lip, trying to hold in the incredible news, which also scared me to my very core, and then we got caught in that downpour outside the hospital.

The rain had quite literally washed away all my initial worries and made me feel at peace. I was going to be a mother. I was having Cyrus’s baby.

I’d told him as we drove away from the hospital, sitting in the back of the town car.

It felt like a pretty full-circle moment, and even though I’d always thought I would want to tell my husband in a more traditional way, it felt right. It felt like us.

I’d leaned into him and watched his face closely as I spoke the words out loud for the first time: ~“I’m pregnant, Cy.”~

I’d held my breath in anticipation, knowing how conflicted he felt about pregnancy, but there was no hesitation.

His eyes grew wide—probably the first time I’d ever seen his low-set eyebrows rise—and then he’d kissed me. We’d told my parents and Maisy soon after.

We called my parents and Maisy to confirm everything was looking good, and then we moved on to Dom and Gabby and finally Roald.

I took a deep breath. Even though things had been going very well between us all lately, I still felt a little uneasy about speaking to Roald most times.

I remembered going to see him after the accident to tell him what had happened. He’d been the one I’d felt most nervous to tell about our spontaneous elopement, for obvious reasons.

But to my surprise, he’d seemed genuinely happy for us. ~“Welcome to the family, Mrs. Brentstone,”~ he’d said and then given me an actual hug.

“We have some news we would like to share,” Cyrus said when Roald answered his phone.

He was still coming around to Roald, but he was definitely making progress. No one held a grudge like Cyrus Brentstone.

“We’re having a baby.” His blue eyes pierced mine as he spoke those wonderful words.

I wanted nothing more than to throw the phone away and jump into his arms, but I decided to hold off until later.

“Well, isn’t that just the most fantastic news!” Roald said.

I hadn’t even known he was capable of feeling excitement. It felt completely out of character but welcome at the same time.

“~What did they say?~” we heard a muffled voice ask in the background.

Confusion volleyed back and forth between Cyrus and me momentarily before we could finally pinpoint the voice.

“Is that ~Georgia~?” Cyrus asked.

“Well…,” Roald said, “yes, actually.”

“What’s going on?” Cyrus demanded, his breathing picking up speed.

I slid my hand onto his thigh and cupped his jaw in my hand, turning his face to mine. His anger began to melt away immediately after we made eye contact.

“We were going to tell you,” Roald said. “Today, actually.”

“Tell us what?”

“Georgia and I…,” Roald began before Cyrus cut him off.

“There ~is~ no Georgia and you.”

My brow furrowed, and I shook my head at him. “This is good!” I mouthed. “This is really good news!”

Cyrus let it sink in for a second. “Proceed,” he said.

“Georgia came over that day after I…locked you out of your house.” Roald sounded slightly embarrassed.

Cyrus just growled in response.

“Well,” Roald continued, “she yelled at me a lot. And I saw her in a different light.”

I chuckled. “You Brentstone men just like angry women.” That earned a little smile from Cyrus.

“Congratulations, guys,” I said, as Cyrus hadn’t responded yet. “I think you guys will…balance each other out nicely.”

Cyrus hummed in agreement. “We’ll finish this later. I’m going to take my wife out for ice cream.” He promptly hung up.

As we drove toward the ice cream place, I noticed he still seemed a little tense.

“I’m happy, Cy,” I said. “These are all good things. Georgia’s sweetness could turn even the bitterest of men into a happy grandfather.”

He nodded and rolled his shoulders to relieve the tenseness. “You’re right,” he said. “It’s probably for the best.

“And Georgia is the closest thing to a grandmother our baby will get on my side, so she might as well take on the role…fully.”

“What flavor can I get you?” he asked as we entered the ice cream place.

“I’ll take anything. As long as it’s cold at first…and then really sweet once you get to know it.”

Cyrus chuckled as he bent over to kiss me, right there in the middle of the ice cream shop.

Oh, how times had changed. And oh, how I loved this man. My ex-boss. My husband. The father of my child.

End of Book 1