“What is it with you chicas?” Ria asks, hands on hips, shaking her head, rocking a royal-blue skintight dress she could have stolen right out of Sofía Vergara’s closet. She’s standing off to the side of the mirror catching my gaze through the reflection, her eyes an icy-blue as usual.

I’m also in front of the long mirror in my new bedroom, the one Carson added on to our beach ranch house so we didn’t have to sleep in the room where Misty died. That room is now a game room for the guys. Right this instant though, I’m looking at myself in my wedding gown. It’s a breezy, flowy white silk that covers one shoulder completely, hiding my scars. The other arm is bare, showing all skin. The bodice is cinched together with intricate beading, emphasizing my seven-month baby bump, not at all trying to conceal it. Carson and I are excited about our growing family and want the world to know it.

I run my hands down my belly, settling the little kicker inside. He or she wants me to move, and by the way the kicking gets harder, I can tell my little one is very insistent. The only time I get any rest from the soccer player inside me is when I’m moving around. Apparently, rocking the baby to sleep through movement is in my very near future.

“In what way?” I ask while Bree places sprigs of baby’s breath and a fresh brilliant-orange Gerbera daisy in my hair in the small sweep we’ve pulled to the side. The rest is falling in long curling waves down my back the way Carson likes it. One bonus about being pregnant—my hair is growing like a weed and is three times thicker than normal.

Maria points at my belly and then gestures to my entire body. “Isn’t it obvious? Hello, pregnant and getting hitched.”

Gillian fluffs out the bottom of my dress. “So what?”

“I just think it’s funny that I’m the only one who did things right.” She grins cockily.

“Oh, is that so? Says the woman who married her boyfriend’s twin brother!” Bree laughs manically, and Ria pouts.

“Cierto.” True, she admits.

I chuckle and swish from side to side. “You have to admit it is kind of funny that all three of us got married while pregnant.”

“Technically, I didn’t know I was pregnant at the time, so it doesn’t count.” Gigi flicks her long red waves over to one side.

“Doesn’t matter. You were pregnant. So was Bree when she and Phillip eloped, and now, here you are, very pregnant and getting married.” Maria’s confirmation is not helpful.

I frown. “You calling me a hoochie? You calling all of us hoochies?” I put my hands on my much fluffier hips and cock my head for emphasis.

She grins. “Si el zapato calza…” she says in rapid-fire Spanish.

“Shut your mouth. If the shoe fits… What the fuck ever. I had sex one time. One frickin’ time and got pregnant,” Bree huffs. “Gigi was kidnapped and missed her birth control pills. And Kat… What happened to you, Kat? I forgot.” Bree frowns and taps her lips with one finger.

“My implant ran out.”

“Oh yeah, her implant ran out… Wait. You let that shit run out?” Bree accuses.

I roll my eyes. “Bree, rant. Maria, continue. Or better yet, don’t. Just because Maria’s afraid to get pregnant and be responsible for another human being besides herself doesn’t mean we are.”

Maria’s mouth opens and her entire face contorts into a fiery demon. “That is not true! If it were, we wouldn’t be expecting right now.” She crosses her arms over her ample breasts, and her eyes widen to the size of small saucers.

All three of us stop fiddling with my dress, lose the wind in our bickering sails, and stare at Maria. Her mouth twitches and her eyes water.

Three voices split the air at once.

“No fuckin’ way!” Bree squeals and jumps up and down.

“Oh my God, Ria!” Gigi cries, her hands clasping and going to her chest over her heart.

“Holy shit!” I whisper, not believing what I just heard.

Maria swallows while all three of us stare at her, mesmerized. I’m not sure any of us believed this day would come. The day Maria broke down and gave that man of hers a child. She loves children, sure, but she’s always been so focused on her career and enjoying her relationship. Every time the subject came up, she would change it immediately, stating they had all the time in the world.

“Maria…” I don’t know what to say.

Bree, on the other hand, does not have a problem speaking. She practically flies over to our soul sister in her hot-pink slinky tank dress and tackle-hugs her, squealing with glee.

Gigi loops an arm around my shoulders as we both tear up and wait our turn. Only Bree has no plan to let our sister go, so we make our way over and wrap our arms around one another in a group huddle. All three of us express our excitement over the fact that our kids are going to grow up together, and we’re going to spend the rest of our lives as one big happy family.

Our girl-hug session is broken up by a booming voice. “Everyone ready to get this show on the road?”

I pull back first to see Chase standing just inside the bedroom in black dress slacks, a linen button-up, and an orange Gerbera daisy matching the one Bree put into my hair pinned to his shirt. He looks alive, tan, and healthy. In his arms is a tiny bundle of love wrapped in a blue blanket. Gillian leaves the huddle and wraps her arms around her husband’s waist, leans up as he leans down, and kisses him softly on the lips.

“Everyone ready downstairs?” she asks, eyes focused solely on her husband, love shining all around them.

“Yeah, beautiful. Will you take Clay so I can get the bride-to-be handed off to my cousin?” He grins and kisses her one more time.

“Yeah,” she says dreamily, putting her hand into the hair at his nape, tugging him forward, and kissing him with a bit more depth than the previous two pecks before finally pulling back. She then takes their three-week-old son into her arms.

The girls shuffle out, and Chase walks over to me and sets both of his hands on top of my shoulders. We look at one another in our reflections in the mirror as I assess myself one more time before becoming Mrs. Carson Davis.

“You ready to become a Davis?” He smirks.

I put my hand over one of his. “Damn straight. Take me to my man.”

He chuckles, hooks his elbow with mine, and leads me through my house and out across the porch to the private beach. A path has been created out of flower petals, and our beautiful gazebo is decorated in a mixture of orange daisies and other wildflowers. Swags of fabric fall down each side, providing the most beautiful arch. At the top step are the preacher and Carson.

His eyes are as blue as the sky, and his smile is bigger than ever before and filled with so much love it makes me stumble. I want to get to him faster. Chase holds me up and grins as we walk up the two steps it takes to get to the entry of the arbor and the man I’m going to spend the rest of my life with. Chase hands me off to Carson, who holds both of my hands.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispers only for me.

“You’re sweet,” I counter.

“You’re everything.” His voice is filled with unending emotion.

“Everything I am is yours.”

“Baby, you were amazing. I’m in awe of you,” I tell my wife after experiencing the most death-defying act known to man. How a woman survives childbirth is a mystery.

Kathleen sighs, petting our son’s cheek with her thumb. Yes, Maria was right, as usual. She sure knows how to take the fun out of the we-want-to-be-surprised game with our first child. Still, I can’t be mad right now. I’m looking at my wife and our son. Twenty-one inches and seven pounds of perfect human being.

“He’s perfect,” Kat says, tears clogging her throat.

“Yes, he is.”

A knock sounds at the door. “It’s time to introduce him.” I make sure she’s covered from her first nursing session, which went surprisingly well considering she’s new at it.

Kat swallows and looks at the door nervously. “Do you think he’ll be happy?” Her caramel-brown eyes flicker with worry.

“Only one way to find out.” I know this is going to floor the man entering the room.

“Everyone decent? Can we come in?” Chase asks, Gillian tight to his side.

Kathleen chuckles. “Come in, guys.”

Kathleen adjusts herself, sitting up in the hospital bed. Chase comes to her right side first, Gillian a few paces behind him. He’s always eager to hold the babies. The man is a baby magnet, and I have a feeling he’s going to have a very special connection with this one. At least I hope so. My little guy is going to need all the love and strength of his family.

“My, my, why look at our little bruiser,” Chase murmurs, getting close.

Gillian leans over Chase’s side to get a gander. “And a brunette with blue eyes like his Uncle Chase. What’s his name, or does he not yet have one?” Gigi asks, petting his foot.

Kathleen clears her throat, and I tighten my hand on her shoulder, giving a squeeze so she knows I’m here for support.

Gingerly, using her newfound strength in her injured arm, she lifts the baby toward Chase. “I’d like you to meet Chase William Davis the Second.” Shivers ripple down her arms and sear into my hands. Tears begin to fall down her cheeks.

Chase’s eyes whip up to me, to Kat, the baby, and back to my wife. “Kathleen…Carson…I don’t… I-I don’t know what to say.” He’s clearly shocked by this gesture.

Kathleen puts her hand over his, which is cradling our son. Gigi puts hers on his back, silently crying what I can only believe are tears of joy.

“If you hadn’t risked your life that night, he wouldn’t be here. And neither would I. This is our gift to you for making such a sacrifice.” Kathleen struggles through what I know she’s practiced a hundred times over the past few months since we made the decision.

Chase shakes his head. “Not a sacrifice, Kathleen…Carson…” Again, his words are stilted and thick with emotion.

She places her hand on his cheek. “Thank you,” she whispers. His eyes fill with tears, and one spills over the edge. It’s the first time since Aunt Colleen’s funeral I’ve seen him shed a tear. To see this powerful man filled with such emotion and allowing it to be seen is something I’ll never forget as long as I live.

Chase swallows and clears his throat. “I’ll strive to be a good role model and show him and both of you how honored I am by this gesture. He’ll want for nothing,” he says with finality.

“Oh no!” Gigi shakes her head, and it falls forward against his back. “Another one bites the dust. Good luck, guys. He’ll be buying your kid every toy, car, house, whatever it is. It’s now his. You should have thought of that before you dropped this kind of bomb,” she jokes, lightening the situation.

Chase is not at all fazed by it. He lifts the baby toward his face, nuzzles his neck, inhales deeply, and kisses his forehead. “It will be me and you, Chase-ter. I’m going to teach you everything there is to know about money and how to control the universe with it. Isn’t that right?”

I roll my eyes but can’t suppress the smile as my cousin carries on.

“And look at your Auntie Gigi. Later, you’ll understand how gorgeous she is. I’ll teach you how to secure your own babe. Yeah…”—he paces around the hospital room—“me and you, kid. My namesake. Not a more fitting name. Just me and you…”

Gillian leans over and pulls Kathleen into her arms. “The gift that keeps on giving.” She laughs.

“Yeah, kind of the point.” Kat chuckles too and hugs her friend tighter.

“Nothing’s ever going to reach this level of awesome. You realize that, right?”

“Best sister ever!” Kat grins, and the three of us chuckle.

“He may never let you have your son back.” She hooks a thumb over her shoulder at Chase, who does not seem at all eager to bring the baby back.

I walk over to him. “That’s enough. Give me back my son.”

“He’s my namesake. We’re bonding,” Chase rumbles and holds the baby closer.

I put a hand out in a hand-him-over motion. He grumbles and carefully transfers the baby to my arms.

The door opens, and Bree and Phillip enter, all smiles. Maria and Eli are behind them. Chloe pulls up the rear with my dad. Cooper will be here soon, and Craig and Faith are flying in with the kids in a couple weeks when things are settled.

Everyone greets my son, Kathleen, and me with well wishes, hugs, and pats on the back. Each girl cries when they hear we’ve named the baby after Chase. The laughter ensues when Kathleen asks Maria what she’s having. She pets her four-month-along bump.

“No lo sé,” she admits, and everyone stops laughing.

“Wait a minute. With every single one of us you could tell what we were having before we had it, but you can’t on yourself?”

Maria shrugs and Eli grins, putting his arm around her. “Guess it doesn’t work in reverse. We have an appointment to find out Monday.”

The rest of the group laughs and carries on until it’s clear Kathleen is tired and the baby needs to nurse. Plus, I want to spend time with my whole family alone.

Just as everyone is leaving, Chase and Gillian’s nanny brings Cora into the room. I hand off baby Chase to Kat before picking up Cora and settling her on the bed next to Kat. The nanny leaves silently.

“Mommy, dis my baby?” she asks Kathleen.

Once Misty had been out of the picture for a couple months, Cora instantly switched to calling Kathleen “Mommy.” Neither one of us asked her to do it. We never stopped her. And Kathleen has never shied away from the role, much to my heart’s content. She’s shown nothing but love for Cora since the minute she met her.

She runs her hand through Cora’s blond hair and taps her nose. “Yep, honey. This is your baby brother, Chase.”

Her nose crunches up. “But dat’s Uncle Chase’s name.”

“I know. We named the baby after him. Isn’t that great?”

She nods and leans forward and kisses his forehead. “Hi, Chasey. I your sister, Cora. Say Cooooorrrrrraaaa,” she drawls out. She waits a moment and looks up. “Nope, he no say it yet.”

Both Kat and I laugh. “No, honey, because he can’t speak. It will be a long time before he learns how to talk the way we do.”

“He tired. Look, he closed his eyes,” she says with glee, as though she won the lottery by guessing what he needs.

“Yep. How about you lie with Mommy and Brother and rest awhile.”

“Okay.” She leans against Kathleen and focuses on her brother quietly.

I press against Kathleen’s side, a boulder of emotion so big pressing on my chest, I’m not sure how I’m going to get it off, or if I ever want to.

“Kathleen, how did we get so lucky?” I kiss the top of her head and stare down at our beautiful son and daughter sitting on the bed, Cora petting his wispy brown hair, proving that we did in fact name him well. He may even end up looking like my cousin.

Kat is silent for a moment, just staring down at our son. Then she looks at Cora and then back up to me. Her brown eyes are so soulful, and I plan to spend every day of my life looking into them.

She smiles softly. “There’s only one logical explanation.”

“And what’s that?” I lean down and press my forehead against hers.

She responds with her lips touching mine so we both can physically feel her answer.

“It’s fate.”