EPILOGUE
Scarlet
3 months later
“Wow. I can’t believe you’ve officially made the move,” Mila said over the phone. “So, Chicago is your kind of town, huh?”
“It is now,” I said with a chuckle. I had Mila on speaker-phone as I packed the last of my things in my apartment.
The last few months had been quite a whirlwind, but it all felt worth it. Tobias had invited me to move in with him, and now the big day was finally upon me.
“Scarlet, I don’t want to uproot you from your life, but I just can’t imagine being away from you and the babies. I want you all here with me. If I could, I would move out to where you’re at. But I can’t leave the firm behind. Besides, my house is more than big enough for all of us.”
It had taken a lot of convincing from his end, but I ultimately knew that it made most sense for me to move in with him. At this point, it was much easier for me to move than it was for him. And at the end of the day, I honestly wanted to be with him.
Granted, it had been a hard to accept that I would be leaving my old life behind, especially my job. My work wasn’t glamorous and I certainly didn’t belong to a multibillion-dollar business like he did, but I still valued my non-profit organization and it pained me to leave it behind.
“Are you really leaving us?” one of my co-workers had asked once news got out that I was moving to Chicago. On my last day, I had shared a lot of tearful goodbyes with the people I’d been working with for the past several years. The day after that, I had received a call from my boss.
“Hey Scarlet, I need you to come in today for a minute. There’s some last-minute business I need to go over with you. Can you make it?”
“Sure,” I’d said, although I’d been slightly taken aback. I had just started packing and found it a bit inconvenient to have to return to the office after I’d already said my heartfelt goodbyes the day before. “How soon do you need me to come in?”
“Sooner rather than later.”
“Okay. Give me about an hour and I’ll be there.”
“Okay, sounds good.”
Having completed everything work-related already, I had been left wondering what last-minute stuff my boss could have possibly had for me to do. When I showed up to the office, I’d been greeted with cheers, confetti, and smiling faces. They’d thrown me a surprise going-away party, complete with baby shower gifts for the twins. I had been reduced to a sobbing mess, thoroughly appreciating this chapter of my life ending on such good terms.
“We’re going to miss you, Scarlet. Best of luck to you in Chicago,” my boss had said, hugging me.
“So, how does it all feel?” Mila asked as I pulled clothes from my closet, sorting through what I planned to take with me, and what I would give away to the GoodWill.
“Surreal,” I answered. “I’m pregnant, just a couple months away from my due-date. I’ve found a guy that I adore. I’m moving to a new city. I’ll have to find a new job.”
“Well, you actually don’t have to find a new job,” Mila chimed in, chuckling. “I’m sure Tobias would be more than willing to take care of you. You wouldn’t have to lift another finger for the rest of your life if you didn’t want to with his kind of cash flowing in.”
“You know I’d never be happy that way,” I said. “And he knows it too. It’s not about his money. It never was.”
“Yeah, I know,” Mila said with a sigh. “You’re so noble. Go figure you’re the one to end up with a billionaire.”
“Shh!”
“Girl, I’m alone. No one can hear me.”
“Oh, okay,” I said and laughed. “Anyway, isn’t it crazy that all of this happened in just a year?”
“Yes,” Mila agreed. “But you know what, Scarlet? You deserve it.”
“Thanks.” I smiled, feeling slightly teary-eyed.
“Well, you know as soon as you get settled in, I have to come visit you in the city,” Mila said. “And you know the rest of the crew is going to want to come too. Everyone’s dying to meet Tobias.”
“I can imagine,” I said. “Yeah, we’ll have to get together soon.”
“Well, I know you must be busy, so I don’t want to take up too much more of your time,” Mila said. “I’ll talk to you later, all right?”
“Okay. I’ll call you once I’ve made it to Chicago and have gotten settled in.”
“Okay. Love you, girl.”
“Love you too.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
I ended the call and looked around my room, seeing how much more I needed to pack. I saw that I was almost finished, just as I was almost finished with this chapter of my life. It was a bittersweet feeling as I glanced around my apartment. I’d been there for a long time, and it was the first and only place I’d lived since being on my own.
And now it was time to leave it behind. Closing my suitcase, I rubbed my stomach, feeling the babies kick, perhaps in response to my own nerves and excitement.
“Everything’s about to change,” I said, looking down at my stomach. “Everything’s about to change for the better, because of you two.”
I felt two kicks in my stomach and smiled before flipping off the light switch and exiting the room.
* * *
“You’re in.”
I blinked. “Th-thank you,” I stammered, staring at my future boss, stunned that the interview had gone so well and was over so quickly. After getting settled into Tobias’s place, I had wasted no time in searching for job opportunities so that I could have work lined-up for me after the twins were born. Early in my search, I had come across a non-profit organization aimed at helping at-risk youth around the city that I’d been interested in checking out.
“Go for it,” Tobias had encouraged me.
“But should I wait until after the babies are born?” I had asked skeptically.
“There’s nothing wrong with getting your foot in the door early,” he had said.
I had decided to take his advice, and now that I was sitting in the office, already being offered a position after my maternity leave ended, I couldn’t have been more grateful.
My future boss stood from her desk, smiling warmly with her hand extended out to me. I stood, albeit with some difficulty, and shook her hand. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this,” I said.
“No, thank you! I appreciate you choosing us. You have an excellent work history, and I know you’re going to be great for this organization. The kids are going to love you.”
“I’m sorry I won’t be able to get started right away,” I said, nervously biting my bottom lip.
She waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. Trust me, I know how the work-force can be. I was in your position before. Pregnant, trying to ensure work, but had employers left and right turning me down, thinking it was too much of an inconvenience to hire a pregnant woman and have to wait for maternity leave to be over. When I started this organization, I made a vow that I would never treat any woman so unfairly. Having to choose between career and family shouldn’t have to be two mutually exclusive categories.”
I smiled, already able to tell that we were going to get along wonderfully. “Well, it’s been a pleasure to meet you, and I can’t wait to start working with you!”
“Same here,” she said, escorting me to the door. “And congratulations to you with your new bundle of joy on the way.”
“Bundles,” I said and smiled at the way her eyes widened. “Twins.”
“Oh my goodness. Be sure to let us meet them when they get here!”
“Will do.”
Stepping outside, I saw that the temperature had risen. The sun was shining brightly, and it was promising to be a beautiful day, warmer than usual. Enjoying the feel of the breeze on my face, I carefully made my way across the parking lot and to my car. Once I was settled behind the driver’s wheel, I sat there for a few seconds, letting the moment sink in.
I’d gotten the job. Once again, I would be doing something I loved. I fished around in my purse in search of my cell phone, unable to contain my excitement. I’d had every intention of waiting to see Tobias in person to deliver the news, but I just couldn’t wait.
“Hey, baby. What’s going on?” he said after answering on the second ring.
“I just finished my job interview.”
“Really? That was fast.”
“Yeah.”
“Well? How did it go?”
I grinned. “I’m in! I got the position.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes!”
“Congratulations, love!”
“Thanks,” I said. “Of course, I won’t be officially starting anything until after the babies get here,” I rubbed my belly, “but it’s nice to know that I already have something waiting for me, you know? And my boss is so understanding. She seems great already. I really think I’m going to love this job.”
“Yeah. See, I told you it would pay off to just go for it and get your foot in the door.”
I laughed. “You just couldn’t wait to find a way to say, ‘I told you so’, huh?”
He laughed. “Well, I wasn’t going to say it. You said it for me. So, what are you doing now? On your way home, I hope?”
“Yeah, I’ll be there in a little while,” I said. It was still weird to know that my ‘home’ was now a huge mansion, but I was slowly getting used to it. “Why?”
“I’m just anxious to see you, that’s all.”
“You’re at home?”
“Yeah. Decided to leave the office early today.”
“That’s surprising,” I said. “So what’s going on? You miss me already?”
“I always miss you. Besides, I know I better enjoy having you to myself for as long as I can because soon, I’ll be sharing you with two little munchkins.”
I laughed. “I’ll be there in a little while then. I think I’m going to stop for food first though. I’m so hungry. I was praying my stomach didn’t growl during the whole interview. You have a taste for anything in particular? I’m not sure what I want.”
“Don’t stop off for food. Just come home. We’ll go out for something to celebrate.”
“Tobias,” I groaned, “I don’t know if I can wait that long. I’m starving. We can just eat in. I don’t feel like waiting for tables and reservations and all of that.”
“Baby, just come home, all right? It’ll be fine.”
“What’ll be fine?” I frowned, detecting something in his voice that I couldn’t quite figure out. “Tobias, is everything all right?”
“Yes,” he said. “Everything’s fine. Just come home.”
“Okay, okay. See you in a little bit,” I said, ending the call. I cranked the engine and prepared to get home, curious to see what was going on with Tobias.
“Tobias?” I said as I walked through the front door, my footsteps echoing through the large corridor of his mansion. My new home. “Where are you?”
“In the kitchen,” his voice rang out.
I hung my jacket and purse on the coat rack, slipped out of my shoes, untied my hair from the bun it had been in, and walked barefoot toward the kitchen.
“SURPRISE!”
I clutched my chest, taking several steps back.
“Oh no, we scared her!” a woman said, coming toward me with a friendly smile. I was startled, but I could still easily see her resemblance to Tobias. She was gorgeous and had the same dark hair and gray eyes as him. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” she said, hugging me as if we were already best friends. “I’m Joanna, Tobias’s sister.”
“Oh! Hi!” I said, hugging her back. She stepped aside and I saw a man standing behind her, holding a beautiful baby who looked around a year old.
“We’ve heard a lot about you, Scarlet. Been dying to meet the woman to get my best buddy over here to fall so head over heels,” he chuckled. “I’m Anderson, by the way. And this is Addison, Tobias’s niece.”
The baby girl smiled at me, and I couldn’t help grinning back at her. She was too adorable for words.
I nodded my head, recognizing Anderson from pictures. He wrapped me into a quick one-armed hug.
Tobias finally made his way over to me. “Hope you don’t mind that I invited company over to celebrate your good news. Plus, it was time for you to meet my family.” He pulled me into a hug and kissed my lips.
“No…No, I don’t mind. I was just caught off guard.”
“Sorry about that again,” Joanna said. “We weren’t trying to send you into an early labor or anything.”
Everyone laughed and Joanna looped an arm around me. “How about we sit down and let the men set the table for us?” she said, grinning.
I looked toward Tobias, my eyebrows raised. “You cooked?”
“I sure did,” he said and then winked. “Good thing you came straight home, right?”
“Thank God, because you know I’m starving. Hurry up and set the table!” I said, causing everyone to laugh again.
“Well, if we’re setting the table, you keep this one then,” Anderson said, passing Addison to Joanna.
“Come on, baby girl,” Joanna said, taking the baby into her arms. “Time for you to meet your new auntie.”
“May I?” I said, reaching for her.
“Of course,” Joanna said, passing Addison to me. And the two of us, plus the baby, headed to the living room, where we sat on the couch, talking and getting to know each other while we waited for dinner.
Once again, everything felt surreal. Joanna was a complete gem, as was Addison. The day had turned out better than I could have ever imagined.
About fifteen minutes later, Anderson appeared in the living room and cleared his throat. “Dinner is served, ladies.”
* * *
“That feels so much better,” I said, leaning back in my seat and rubbing my protruding abdomen. “Tobias, I didn’t know you could cook like this. I probably would have preferred this to all those fancy restaurants you kept taking me to.”
He grinned. “I’m glad you liked it. And rest assured, there’s plenty more of where that came from.”
“Me and the crew will be looking forward to it,” I said, rubbing my belly again. I laughed. “I think both of them just kicked.”
“They like their daddy’s cooking already,” Tobias said, standing from the table. “Anderson, help me clear the table so that I can bring out dessert.”
“What’s for dessert?” I asked eagerly. But Tobias didn’t answer me. He just disappeared into the kitchen with a smirk.
I looked toward Joanna, noticing that she seemed to be concealing a smirk of her own. Abruptly she cleared her throat. “Let me go change Addison. I’ll be right back,” she said.
I slid back from the table. “Let me help you.”
“No, no,” Joanna said, waving her hand. “You stay here. Relax. Trust me, you’ll have plenty of diaper changing in your near future.”
“I could use the practice then.”
“You’ll have more than enough practice soon enough,” she said with a wink, and disappeared from the dining room as well, leaving me seated at the table alone.
I drummed my fingers on the table, feeling that something was clearly up. From the kitchen, I could hear Tobias’s and Anderson’s muttered voices.
What are they up to? I wondered.
Before I could think any further about it though, Tobias exited the kitchen with a covered dish in his hands. I looked at him skeptically as he smiled back at me.
“Some mystery dessert dish you’re trying to feed me?” I asked with a raised eyebrow.
I looked toward the general direction of the kitchen, seeing Anderson’s shadow lurking nearby.
“Something like that,” Tobias said, and then set the dish in front of me. “Hope you like it.”
Giving him one more skeptical look, I pulled the top off of the dish.
I blinked. There was no dessert inside. Instead, there was a small black box. I reached for it. Opening it, a huge diamond ring sparkled back at me. My eyes immediately began to water and my heart skipped several beats. When I looked up, Tobias was kneeling on one knee.
From somewhere beside me, a camera flashed; Joanna had gone to retrieve her phone to document the occurrence.
Anderson came to the kitchen doorway, smiling.
“Scarlet,” Tobias said, “you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. It’s been a long time coming, but it was a blessing to have you step into my life. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you, raising our children. I can’t tell you how happy you’ve made me over these past months. With that being said, will you marry me?”
I let out a breath I hadn’t even realized I’d been holding. Tobias took the ring out of the box and slid it onto my finger.
And all I could do was nod my head eagerly, before finally managing to choke out the word, “Yes.”
I sprung up from the chair and into Tobias’s arms, certain that I had never in my life experienced happiness so intense. Tobias kissed me, and all at once, I could see our happily forever after spreading right before my eyes.
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xxx
Nicole