Epilogue

It's been a decade since my son, Tristian, came into the world. He's my mirror image, and he's filled my heart in all the ways a son should for his father.

As I strolled down the corridor toward my office, a child rounded the corner and collided with me. I caught him by the arms before he hit the ground, and looking down, I saw a smaller version of myself.

“Tristian, how many times have I told you to be careful in these halls?” I said, gripping his shoulders. “A castle isn’t exactly the best place for running around, you know.”

He looked up at me with those eyes that always made me melt. “Sorry, Dad, we were playing hide-and-seek. It’s my turn to hide. Where can I go that will take the others a while to find me?”

I tapped my chin, pretending to think, then pointed to a large wooden box around the corner. “If you hide in there, you have to be quiet. Don’t peek out either, because they’ll see you.”

He gave me a quick hug before darting off toward the box. Just as I resumed my walk to my office, three more bodies crashed into me. This time, I was knocked off balance and had to grab the wall to keep from landing on my ass.

I looked down at the three boys who had just barreled into me. They froze and looked up at me.

“Sorry, sir,” said Ezekiel, who was nine. “We’re looking for Tristian. Have you seen him?”

“Just like I told him, these halls aren’t for running around in,” I told him, tapping his nose and avoiding his question. “You could get seriously hurt.”

“So you have seen him?” Cooper asked, his voice filled with excitement.

“Yes, but I don’t know where he went.” I wasn’t about to give away his hiding spot.

“Aw, man. I told you he wouldn’t tell us.” Nathan crossed his little arms over his chest.

“Go that way; that’s all I’m going to tell you.” I pointed down the hall, and they took off in that direction.

Ezekiel was the son of Conner and Angela, who had indeed been pregnant that day she went for the check-up. They had tied the knot about six months after they found out she was expecting.

Cooper was my other son, now seven. Yes, my son. The doctor had managed to revive Shay and put her on medication for her heart condition.

Nathan was six and the son of Noah and Brooke. They got hitched a year after Connor and Angela, but it took them almost a year to conceive their son.

We had all moved to the castle five years ago and taken over my parents’ roles.

Noah came running up to me. “There you are. Shay needs you, like, now.”

We rushed down to the hospital wing, where she was about to give birth to our daughter. As I walked in, my love was lying on the table waiting for me. I smiled as I approached her, and she landed a punch right in my balls.

“I swear, I told you when Tristian was born we weren’t doing this again. Now here I am for the third time because of you.”

Noah burst out laughing as I coughed, trying to catch my breath. ~Damn, she still packs a punch, even lying down~, I thought.

“You’re the one who forgot your promise, love, not me,” I managed to wheeze out.

She clicked her tongue, then looked away. “You had me on that damn trip and made me forget. One freaking month and you had to get me pregnant.”

I chuckled a little, but her glare quickly silenced me. “Fine, you wanted a girl, so now you have one. She’s our last since you told the doctor to fix you.”

“He’s going to do it right after she’s born. There’s no way I’m going through this again!”

Conner walked in, looking pale. “I have a girl! Look, isn’t she adorable?”

“Why the hell do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” I asked.

“That’s my wife’s doing; she was in there cussing me out for everything I was worth for the last three hours. She said this was it and I have to get snipped, man.” Connor crossed his legs.

Shay laughed. “Maybe I need to do that to you, Zane. That way, there’s no ‘oops’ again.”

The doctor chuckled as he walked in. “All of your wives have scheduled an appointment for that. They have the children they want, so they want to make sure they don’t get pregnant again.”

“It’s your turn to feel some pain, love,” Shay said as the nurses got her ready to deliver what would be our last child. “I’ve had enough of this shit.”

Finally, she was born. The doctor then performed a hysterectomy on Shay because Carina had damaged her walls. I sighed with relief, while the guys stuck out their tongues at me for dodging the vasectomy so easily.

Brooke was four months pregnant, so it would be a while before her baby joined us. But at least we now had two girls who could play together and not be bothered by the boys.

Noah and Brooke eventually had a girl, and all of our daughters grew up just as close as all four of our sons.

Tristian was next in line to take over when Shay and I stepped down, but the other boys were his backup, just like Connor and Noah were for me. The boys were very protective over the girls, making sure no one messed with them.

The girls were each spitting images of their mothers, which was a little weird in a way, but I guess since the boys looked so much like their dads, then the women got what they wanted.

Cooper had my looks too, but his hair was the only difference. It was the same as his mom’s.

Our children all grew up learning how to handle weapons. They were going to be a force to be reckoned with when they became adults. They all knew how to handle bad situations and be the close family we had hoped they would be.

^The End^