Epilogue
Farrah
Three months later
Lee and I were in his truck, heading toward Seattle. I was starting to show quite a bit already. I hadn’t thought I would be quite this big at twelve weeks. I put my hand on my lower stomach, caressing the bump that had started to grow.
My other hand was linked to Lee’s. It had become a habit that when we were driving and he didn’t need his hand to change gears, that our fingers were interlinked. As he always did, Lee brought my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles.
I smiled, looking at him.
“How are you feeling, babe?” Lee asked.
“Nervous,” I said.
We were on our way back to Seattle for our first ultrasound. I had been with a doctor much closer to Packwood that had monitored my pregnancy and everything had been going well, but I wanted Dr. Hamish to be the one to handle the ultrasound. It felt right, seeing that he had been the doctor to guide me through my journey since I was sixteen. He had also been the doctor to find out with me that I was pregnant.
“Everything is going to be fine,” Lee said. “Dr. Katz is positive about how you’re coming along. I’m sure this is going to be a good visit as well.”
I nodded and breathed in through my nose, blowing out through my mouth. I wanted desperately to believe that everything was going to be alright, but a small voice in the back of my mind still kept suggesting that something could go wrong. I had been through so much it seemed too good to be true that everything was working out now.
So far, the pregnancy had been like any other. I had morning sickness that didn’t stick only to mornings, and I was starting to get tired more and more often. Everything was going the way it should which only made me more nervous, thinking something would go wrong later since nothing had gone wrong now.
Lee was amazing. He did everything he could to stay positive and as a result, I was more positive, too. He worked hard, but he always ensured that I was okay before he left for work.
I didn’t work with him at the pub any more—tiring too easily for that—but I spent more time with Hannah drinking coffee midday, or looking at the baby things I’d always avoided after trying and failing to get pregnant for years.
Sometimes, it was still hard to wrap my mind around being pregnant at all.
The last three months hadn’t been without other ups and down. I had work that took me further away from Lee than I would have liked, requiring that I stay over for a few nights at a time. But it had been good money, and when I’d returned I’d seen Lee and his cabin as home.
I had fully moved in with him, bringing some of my furniture to Packwood. The rest I had sold, and now my house was going on the market as well. While we were in Seattle we were going to meet with the agent and get things rolling.
“How are we doing?” Dr. Hamish asked with a smile when Lee and I walked into his office.
I grinned and looked at Lee who was grinning, too. I had brought Lee to meet Dr. Hamish shortly after everything had been resolved with Jim, and Lee and I had agreed we were going to build a future together. Dr. Hamish liked Lee a lot more than he had ever liked Jim.
“We’re doing great,” I said.
We sat down and Dr. Hamish ran through a set of questions about my health and symptoms. I had brought a file with me from Dr. Katz where she had recorded everything she had found in our consultations together. I saw her twice a month, more because I was paranoid about the pregnancy than that I needed it, but everyone indulged me, understanding how terrified I was.
“Let’s get you checked out,” Dr. Hamish said. He sent me through to the room where a technician was going to run the ultrasound. She was a Latina woman with a warm smile who introduced herself as Maya.
I put on the paper gown and lay down. Maya squirted the freezing jelly on my stomach and pushed against my skin with the probe. Lee was on my other side, holding my hand. He even looked anxious, now that we were here.
“It’s too soon to see the gender, but what are you hoping for?” Maya asked, as she stared at the screen.
“We don’t mind,” I said.
Lee nodded. “We’ll love whatever it is.”
“Well,” Maya said, staring at the screen. She leaned in a little, frowning.
Oh God, I thought. Here we go. Something was wrong.
“What is it?”
Maya turned to us and smiled. “Looks like there’s not just one baby in there, but two.”
“What?” Lee and I asked, in perfect unison.
“See for yourself,” Maya said, and turned the screen. She moved the probe, showing us one head, and then the other. “That explains why you’re bigger than normal.”
I couldn’t believe it. I turned my head to Lee who was as stunned as I was. I started crying. How on earth did this happen? At first, everything had gone wrong in my life. And now everything was going right.
Lee kissed me. “Proving the doctors wrong wasn’t enough for you, was it, angel?” Lee asked. “You had to do it two times over.”
I laughed and cried, and Lee kissed me, laughing, too. Maya excused herself, saying she was going to hand Dr. Hamish the report personally, while we had a moment to ourselves. When we were alone in the room, I looked at Lee.
“Two babies are even more to take on than one. Are you sure you’re up for it?”
“Whatever life throws at us, I’m ready for it, as long as I have you,” Lee said. He kissed me again. “I’m not only getting two for one, but three for one.”
I laughed at his stupid joke. I couldn’t believe it.
Once we had sat in Dr. Hamish’s office again, talking with him about how crazy it all was, Dr. Hamish sent us on our way with his congratulations, and a future appointment date to find out what we were expecting; boys or girls or one of each. I couldn’t wait.
We met with the housing agent and agreed on a price for the house. I wasn’t at all sad to leave Seattle and my life here behind. While I had lived here, both during my relationship with Jim, and after, I had known only pain. Now, in Packwood, I knew what happiness felt like, and the small town represented home to me more than Seattle ever had.
On the way out of town, Lee and I stopped at a restaurant to eat a late lunch and to celebrate our incredible news. The restaurant was quaint, overlooking a peaceful lake, and our table was on a deck outside. The weather was crisp as we were headed into winter, but it was fresh and I enjoyed being outside. Since I had moved to Packwood I had fallen in love with the nature all around me. There were quite a few diners enjoying the view, just as we were.
“Farrah,” Lee said, taking my hand after we had ordered our food and drinks. “You have made me the happiest man on earth.
“Which is crazy, since your life has been filled with nothing but chaos since you met me.”
Lee laughed. “I happen to like chaos, thank you very much. I get bored so easily. Besides, it’s so much more than just chaos. You are amazing. Have I told you that?”
I blushed the way I always did. “Every day,” I said.
“Then I should bump it up to twice a day.”
I blushed even harder and Lee chuckled. He loved making me blush and he always searched for new ways to make it happen.
Our food arrived and as we ate, we talked about my exhibition. I was working on nature photographs the way I had always wanted to. Lately, I had taken to wandering into the forest and taking photos of the nature all around me. I had a great collection already. Hannah had given me the idea of opening a gallery in Packwood for tourists to get a taste of what was out there in the mountains, and Lee had been really enthusiastic. I had started working with Frankie on the Tourism Board to make it happen, and I aimed to open around the time the baby was due.
Babies, I mean. Plural.
“I still can’t believe we’re having twins,” I said to Lee, getting back to the topic. Maya had printed out a screenshot of the two babies for me and it was tucked safely into my purse.
“I know. It’s amazing,” Lee said. “But before we have the kids, I’ll need you to make an honest man out of me.”
“What?” I asked. What on earth was he talking about?
Lee stood up and kneeled next to the table. I covered my mouth with my hand. Was he doing what I thought he was doing? The diners all around us exclaimed and turned to look at us.
“Farrah, you are the love of my love, mother of my children. I love you more than an old ranger like me can ever put into words. Will you be my wife?”
I was crying, and my cheeks were on fire. Lee had managed to make me blush again. He pulled a small black box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal a solitaire diamond ring.
“Oh, my God,” I said. “Yes!’”
Everyone applauded. Lee took the ring and slid it onto my finger before he hugged and kissed me. I was laughing and crying again. I couldn’t believe it. This morning we had left Packwood and I had been worried that something would be wrong when Dr. Hamish had a look at my baby. Now, not only was I having twins, but I was going back home an engaged woman. I was going to marry this man who had turned my life around and I would be Mrs. Farrah Roper.
I liked the sound of that.
When Lee sat down again, I studied the ring.
“It’s beautiful,” I said. “How long have you been walking around with this?”
“About two months,” Lee admitted. “I didn’t want to propose too soon, but I had a feeling today might be a good day.”
“The best,” I said, smiling.
When I had set out to Packwood to work on a project for the Tourism Board I had no idea I would meet my future husband. I hadn’t thought I could ever have children, much less twins. I had fought to keep my head above water, to recover after I had been battered and bruised emotionally. Since then, I had changed completely. Now, I was a confident woman with a future, a loving fiancé and two babies on the way. I had a friend and sister in Hannah, who would be my real sister soon, and I had a family in the people of Packwood, larger than I’d ever had growing up.
Four months ago, if anyone had asked me what my future would look like, I would have told them it would be a struggle. Now, I would tell them that my future looked as bright and beautiful as the ring on my finger, the nature all around me, and the shining eyes the love of my life cast on me every now and then.
Lee took my hand and kissed my knuckles.
THE END
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