Epilogue

Jake

Mason was a fucking maniac in the court system. I was glad George had hooked me up with him. The guy was a valuable asset, and I planned on using him and his firm for any future legal problems. He had managed to get the adoption paperwork pushed through with record speed. I had no idea how many palms had been greased and how many favors had been cashed in. I didn’t care. I was going to get Iris and give her the Colter last name. I knew Tracy and my parents would be happy to have the little girl back in the family.

“You ladies ready?” I said, stopping by the nursery.

Avery was pulling a pretty pink dress over Iris’s head. “Just about. She has to look good for her big day.”

I smiled and walked over to tickle under the baby’s chin, earning a giggle. I would never get tired of the sound.

“Okay, all done!” Avery declared.

“We don’t want to be late. I’ll grab the diaper bag,” I said, heading for the kitchen to grab a bottle from the fridge. “Is Sally meeting us there?” I asked, walking into the foyer.

Avery was fastening Iris into her seat. “Yep.”

“Great. Let’s go.”

When we got to the courthouse, it brought a different feeling than usual. All my previous visits had brought stress or anger. Today’s appearance was going to be different. I hoped it was the last time I ever had to step foot in the place.

Mason was waiting outside the courtroom along with Don and Nettie. Sally was there as well, beaming like a proud grandmother.

“Thank you for coming,” I said, shaking Don’s hand.

“We wouldn’t miss it. Thank you for inviting us. It isn’t often we get to see the happy ending with one of our foster kids.”

Avery was on the verge of tears again. It was something I was getting used to. As it turned out, her emotions were going to be out of whack for the next eight months. Her birth control had failed, and we were expecting our second child early next year.

“Let’s go in,” I said, taking the baby carrier from Avery.

We walked in and found the same judge sitting at the bench. He was smiling as we approached.

“I see your lawyer moved mountains for you.”

I laughed. “Indeed he did.”

The judge did his part and made us Iris’s official adoptive parents.

“Congratulations,” Nettie said, giving me a hug, then Avery. “I’m so glad everything worked out for you.”

Don leaned in close as we walked out of the courtroom. “Have you heard the latest gossip?”

I shook my head. “Can’t say I have.”

Nettie scowled. “Don, be nice.”

He grinned. “I am. These nice people deserve to know Janice has taken a leave of absence.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Really? For what reason?”

Don shrugged. “Some kind of nervous breakdown. This job can be a lot of stress, and you two weren’t the only ones who felt her wrath. It’s only too bad she was allowed to keep working for so long.”

I scoffed. “No kidding. Well, I hope she gets the help she needs.”

We said our good-byes, and then we headed off toward our next stop.

“You ready for this?” I asked Avery before opening the car door to get out.

“I am. I haven’t been out here since the new headstone was delivered.”

We headed for Tracy’s grave.

“We did it, Tracy,” I said. “Iris is here. She’s ours, and we are never going to let her go.”

Avery was nodding her head and lovingly tracing the letters on the tombstone. “Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for trusting me to raise your daughter. I promise I will do my best to raise her like you would want. I’ll make sure she knows all about you. We hung your paintings in her nursery. She’ll always remember you.” We spent a little longer visiting Tracy before I stopped at my parents’ graves.

Once we got home, I couldn’t wait to give Avery another surprise.

“What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the giant ribbon I had the realtor put on the front door.

“It’s your present. Let’s open it,” I said, grinning like a fool.

She looked confused. We walked to the front door and she pulled off the ribbon. “I don’t get it.”

I handed her a small box. “Open it.”

She opened the box and pulled out the house key. “A key to the house? I already have one.”

I shook my head. “Not this one. This key is to our new house.”

“We’re moving?”

I laughed. Clearly, I hadn’t thought the whole surprise through. “No, we’re not moving. I bought this house.”

Her eyes widened. “You did? How? I thought the owners weren’t willing to sell.”

I smirked. “Everything’s for sale.”

She burst into laughter. “You are nuts. This is amazing. Thank you. I cannot wait to make this place ours, really ours. First, we’re going to paint that nursery, and then we’re going to make that den brighter.”

I shook my head as she went on to list all the changes she was going to make. I was happy to let her do whatever she wanted.

“I’m going to go put Iris down for her nap,” she said, giving me a quick kiss before heading upstairs. She turned around and looked at the wide staircase. “We need to babyproof these. Iris is going to be crawling soon.”

I laughed. “I’ll get right on it.”

A short time later, I went upstairs to check on my girls. Avery was rocking Iris in the nursery, humming some unidentifiable tune. It was the best sight in the world. Two of the most important people in the world were right in front of me, with a third one growing inside my lovely wife’s belly.

I could not have imagined any of this in my wildest dreams. I turned my face up to look at the ceiling and silently whispered a thank you to my sister. She had changed my world for the better, and I would always be grateful.

***

END OF THE FIRST STORY