Epilogue
~ Ashton ~
Anna had been named sole beneficiary of Carter Thomas’ will. He left everything to her – his cars, houses, money, and shares. Of course, the police knew that it was all obtained through illegal means, so they petitioned the courts to impound it. However, to be able to confiscate the money, they had to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the money had been obtained by breaking the law. The trouble was that Carter was incredibly proficient at covering his tracks.
It took over three years for them to build their case and prove the money had been made through illegal businesses. Just over a half of it was confiscated by the state; the rest had been laundered again and again to make it appear clean even though everyone knew that it wasn’t. Anna was, therefore, issued just over twenty-nine million dollars of Carter’s money.
Anna being Anna, hadn’t wanted anything to do with him, even after death. So she gave two million dollars to each of the agents’ families that died whilst guarding her, and two million to Jack’s family. Then she gave just over ten million dollars to AWC, a charity called Abused Women and Children that helped victims of domestic violence. Her final icing on the cake? She gave five million dollars to a cat charity because Carter had a real hatred for cats. She said he would be turning in his grave, and had actually laughed when she signed the bank transfer order.
Lots of other changes had happened in the five years since Carter’s death. The biggest change: we were now married. Just like I had promised her, I’d taken her back to the Maldives. Our wedding had been held in secret, on the beach, with just very close family and friends in attendance. That was the proudest day of my life, the day I got to change the only thing that I didn’t love about her – her surname.
Some things remained the same though. The press still loved us. Annaton fever still gripped the nation but, knowing there was nothing we could do about it, we just got on with our lives and tried not to focus on it too much. President Spencer remained in office; he’d been re-elected and had another three years left to serve his country.
Anna had finished school, so we moved to Los Angeles. For the last two and a half years, she’d been working for a large graphic design company, and she loved her job. My career had also taken a slightly different path. I was now heading up a brand new specialist department that was kind of a first base for terrorist attacks. Testing potential locations for weak points and running through possible attack strategies was a small part of my new job. That was what I’d been doing nearly all day today – scouting a couple of locations for a presidential seminar that was due to take place in a few months.
I was in desperate need of a coffee as I climbed the stairs and walked into my outer office. Immediately, Raine, my secretary, jumped out of her seat and ran towards me, looking slightly panicked.
“Ashton, where have you been? I’ve been trying to get hold of you for hours! Your cell phone’s off,” she scolded, following me as I carried on walking to my office at the end of the room. I really needed to sit down.
“I was scouting locations, Raine, you knew that.” I laughed and pulled my cell phone out of my pocket, looking at the blank screen. “Battery must be dead. What’s up anyway?” I asked, throwing my cell onto my desk and pulling out the charger.
“It’s time! You need to go there right now!” she cried excitedly.
My heart stopped and my mouth popped open in shock. “Now? Right now?” I shouted, frantically searching my desk for my keys. I felt sick. This was too early. It shouldn’t be for another two weeks. “Where are my damn keys?” I shouted, practically pushing everything off my desk in a bid to find them quicker.
Raine laughed and grabbed my wrist. “They’re in your hand, silly! Just go,” she ordered. “And make sure you call me.” She was practically jumping on the spot with excitement.
“I will, and thanks!” I cried, as I sprinted at full speed back through the office, ignoring all of the stares. I jumped to the side just as someone stepped out of their office, narrowly avoiding taking them out because I was running so fast. “Sorry!” I shouted over my shoulder.
I couldn’t help the nervous excitement that was building inside, but the thing I felt most was worry. What if something went wrong? What the hell would I do? As soon as I was at my car, I jumped in and threw it into drive, pulling out and snapping on my seatbelt as I drove through the parking lot. I plugged my cell phone in to charge for a few minutes while I drove. Thankfully, there weren’t many other cars on the road, so I made it there in record time. The blue lights that I’d put on top of my car probably helped with cutting through traffic.
As soon as I was in the hospital parking lot, I pulled into the first available space and ran for the building, praying I wasn’t too late. In the foyer, I pressed the call button for the elevator, but it was stopped on seven. “Come on, come on!” I chanted, practically bouncing on the spot and I tapped the button again and again. The elevator wasn’t moving, so I decided to go for the stairs instead. I took them three at a time and got to the fifth floor, grinning excitedly as I spotted the ‘Maternity’ sign over the door.
I burst in and squirted some sanitizer on my hands as I ran to the desk. “Hi, where’s Annabelle Taylor?” I asked the lady sitting there.
She smiled kindly. “Room three.” She pointed down the hall so I turned and ran off.
As I got to the door, I took a couple of deep breaths. I needed to be calm. Being all super excited and scared shitless wouldn’t help Anna. When my heart had returned to a normal pace again, I pushed the door open and peeked in. She was sitting up in the bed, chatting to Rick, her near guard. Her head snapped round to look at me as I walked in, her face lighting up. She looked incredibly beautiful as always, even in a hospital gown.
“Hey, you! I was wondering if you were going to show up,” she teased, grinning.
“I wouldn’t miss this for the world,” I chirped, heading over and sitting on the side of her bed, putting my hands on her swollen tummy, rubbing it in small circles.
“I’ll leave you to it now that Ashton’s here. I’ll just be outside,” Rick announced, standing up and heading to the door.
Anna smiled and nodded. “Thanks for staying with me.”
He grinned. “Of course.” Rick had been guarding Anna for the last four years. When we were together, I was sufficient as her near guard, but when I was working, Rick took over. He was actually a great guy, and we were all friends outside of work too.
Once we were alone, I turned back to my wife. “You okay?” I asked, looking to see if she was in pain or anything. She seemed like she was okay though.
She smiled. “Yep, it doesn’t hurt between contractions, so I’m good right now.” I grinned and moved up the bed so I could kiss her softly. Her brown eyes were burning into mine making me feel slightly weightless. “You ready to be a daddy, Agent Taylor?” she whispered against my lips.
“Hell yeah I am,” I admitted.
We’d been trying for this baby for the last two and a half years, practically as soon as she left college, and finally she’d fallen pregnant. Because of Anna’s injuries to her stomach, and scarring from her miscarriage when she was with Carter, we’d had to try a lot harder to conceive than most couples, but we’d finally gotten there.
“The baby’s eager to get out of there,” she said, rubbing her stomach, smiling.
“Yeah, you know why he wants to get out of there?” I asked, raising one eyebrow.
“Why does she want to get out of there?” she replied, smirking at me. This was a running joke, Anna was convinced that it was a girl, and I was convinced it was a boy. In all honesty, neither of us cared as long as it was healthy.
“Because he knows I was going to finish painting the nursery this weekend, so he’s trying to be awkward like his momma,” I teased, settling onto the bed next to her, taking her hand.
“Maybe she wants to see you so she can… OUCH, SHIT!” she gasped, clamping her jaw together and squeezing my hand tightly.
I looked at her helplessly; I had no idea what to do to help. “Shh, it’s okay, Baby Girl. It’ll be over in a bit,” I soothed as I rubbed her stomach lightly. Oh God, please let everything be okay, don’t let me lose either of them, please!
“Shit. Ashton, go tell them I need drugs!” she hissed, looking at me pleadingly.
“Okay, let go of my hand then and I’ll go sort it out,” I replied, trying to pry her hand off mine, but she just held it tighter.
“Don’t leave me!” she cried, breathing in pants. I nodded and slammed my hand down on the call button, and a minute later a doctor came in, just as the contraction was easing off. Anna slowly started to relax and sat back, looking pale and sweaty.
“Bad one?” the doctor asked, smiling kindly at her.
Anna nodded and pressed her face into my chest, catching her breath. I stroked her hair. I’d wanted this baby so much, but seeing her in pain kind of made me wish that we hadn’t done this at all.
“Okay, well let’s do another exam and see how you’re getting on,” the doctor suggested, coming over to the side of the bed and lifting the sheet. After a minute the doctor pulled back and smiled, throwing her gloves in the trash. “You’re doing so great, Anna. You’re almost nine centimetres. Just keep doing what you’re doing.” She patted her leg and smiled.
I looked at my wife proudly, she really was incredible, and I loved her more than anything. Suddenly, Anna leant forward and grabbed my hand, hissing through her teeth again as another contraction took hold. Wow, that was fast. It had been less than two minutes! “The baby’s impatient to meet its parents,” the doctor joked, rubbing Anna’s leg as she squeezed the life out of my hand.
“Ouch… shit! Ashton, you better not want any more kids after this because I’m not doing this again!” Anna shouted loudly, squeezing her eyes shut.
“Okay, Baby Girl, one’s perfect. I always only wanted one baby anyway,” I joked, trying to make her feel better. “You’re doing so great, Anna, so great.” I stroked her hair with my free hand and kissed her sweaty forehead.
“I need the gas! Get me the damn gas!” she screamed, pointing at it. I winced and jumped up, grabbing it. Holy shit, in labour Anna is feisty!
After three of the longest and most painful hours of my life, she was finally ready to push. Well, what was meant by ‘finally ready’ was that she had been pushing for almost half an hour, and they could finally see some progress. She had her legs up in stirrups with a sheet draped over so we couldn’t see what was going down there. I stayed up near her head, having the bones in my hand slowly crushed where she was squeezing so hard. Anna was sucking on the gas and air like it was going out of fashion. She was a little woozy and kept saying things that made me laugh. It was kind of like she was slightly drunk or high.
“Okay, Anna, here comes another contraction. I need you to push real hard for me when I say, but not until I tell you,” the doctor instructed, peeking over the sheet and smiling encouragingly.
Anna shook her head fiercely as tears rolled down her cheeks. “I can’t. I can’t do it anymore. Please just get her out!” she wailed. She grabbed my shirt and pulled me down so our faces were inches apart. “This is your damn fault, Ashton! Do you have any idea how much this freaking hurts?” she growled through clenched teeth. Her hand wound around the back of my head so I couldn’t pull away.
“My fault?” I asked, confused and honestly a little scared of her. It looked like she was trying to kill me with her eyes.
She gasped and nodded. “For getting me pregnant! Oh God, I need to push RIGHT NOW!” she screamed. Her hand fisted into the back of my hair, making me grit my teeth as my scalp started to burn. I wanted to ask her to let go, but I couldn’t exactly complain while she was pushing a little person out of her, my guess is I was getting off pretty lightly with a little hair pulling.
After a huge push and a lot of screaming, she narrowed her eyes at me. “If you think you’re getting in my pants again after this, you’ve got another thing coming!” She shoved the gas tube back into her mouth and sucked on it hard, whilst glaring at me as if I was the one hurting her.
I grinned. I loved it when she was like this. I knew I shouldn’t like it, but the bitchy side of Anna was kind of a turn-on for some reason. I loved that my girl had some fight in her and wouldn’t take any crap. “Who said I want in your pants again anyway?” I joked.
She burst out laughing then immediately stopped and gasped. “Not again, not yet. I need a break!” she moaned, sucking on the gas as the little contraction monitor on the side started scribbling on the paper like crazy.
“Okay, one last push, Anna. Come on, you can do it,” the doctor instructed.
I grabbed her hand and made sure she couldn’t grip my hair again as she took a deep breath and pushed, squeezing her eyes shut. Her whole torso rose off the bed from the effort.
“Come on, Baby Girl, you can do it. Come on, push, Anna,” I encouraged. After what seemed like forever, she let out a piercing scream and then slumped back down on the bed, panting for breath.
“You did it, Anna. It’s a little boy,” the doctor announced.
I heard a baby cry and I felt my heart stop. Holy shit, I’m a dad! I couldn’t breathe. We had a baby. I looked back at Anna to see that she was smiling at me tenderly, her eyes glistening with tears. A sense of gratitude washed over me, making my whole body tingle. She’d made me a dad. This was honestly the best day of my life; the way Anna was looking at me made my heart ache.
“You were right,” she laughed quietly.
I bent my head and kissed her on the lips. Her hand went to the back of my head, holding my mouth to hers for a couple of seconds. When I pulled away, I grinned. I was happier than I had ever been in my life. I had the most incredible girl, and now we had a little baby boy.
“Thank you,” I said gratefully.
“You’re welcome, Pretty Boy,” she laughed. I pulled back, and she looked at the doctor, who was wrapping the baby up in a blanket. “Is he alright?” Anna asked worriedly, moving up on the bed.
“He’s perfect. Ten fingers and ten toes,” the doctor replied, walking over with a little bundle in her arms. She held him out to Anna, who took him immediately, looking down at him.
“Oh God, he’s so beautiful,” she murmured, pulling the blanket back to get a better look. A tear rolled down her face as she looked at him lovingly. I moved forward and leant over the bed so I could see. She shifted the baby in her arms, tilting him towards me. He was amazing, a perfect, little, scrunched up, dirty-looking baby with a mass of brown hair. His eyes were closed, and he was crying quietly as Anna rocked him gently. He looked just like his momma – incredible, and the most beautiful thing in the world.
“He looks just like you, Anna.” I hesitantly reached out a hand to touch him. As my fingertip touched his face, I felt my heart speed up. He was so soft. His skin was flawless and creamy-looking, even though he was covered in mess and blood. “Hi, little guy. I’m your daddy.”
“Want to hold him?” Anna asked smiling, still crying happy tears.
Oh crap, I have no idea how to do that. “Um, yeah okay,” I nodded, looking down at him. How was I supposed to take him? What was I supposed to do if he cried?
Anna laughed quietly. “Stop stressing, Ashton. Hold your arm out and I’ll pass him to you.”
I sat on the edge of her bed and cradled my arms, wincing and feeling sick with worry. She shifted him in her hands and placed him so his head was in the crook of my arm. I tensed my back and stayed completely still. He weighed hardly anything at all.
“Relax, Ashton.” Anna laughed and rubbed her hand on my leg reassuringly. The little baby in my arms was so special that I felt emotion bubbling up inside me. I was lost for words. I couldn’t take my eyes from him as his eyes fluttered open and then closed again. “My two boys,” Anna breathed.
I smiled and looked away from the perfect bundle in my arms, to his perfect momma. “I love you, Anna, so much,” I promised.
She smiled at me tenderly as she stroked the baby’s face with the back of one finger. “I love you too. I’m so sorry I shouted at you,” she said, looking at me apologetically.
I laughed and shook my head. “Would you slap me if I told you it was kind of a turn-on?” I asked, grinning.
“If you weren’t holding my son right now, then hell yeah, I’d slap you,” she answered, shaking her head disapprovingly but laughing at the same time. “Seriously though, he was so worth all of that pain. So if you want to make babies with me again anytime soon, I’m up for that.”
I laughed. “I’m always up for that, you know me.”
“I know, pervert. Maybe after I’ve had some sleep,” she joked. “So, what should we call him?” She settled back against the pillows, her hand still stroking his cheek.
I looked down at the little baby in my arms. A name sprang to mind instantly. “How about Cameron?”
“That was your dad’s name,” she said quietly. I nodded, looking up at her to see if she liked it. We hadn’t discussed names much; just a couple that we both agreed on, like Will and Kaden, but he didn’t look like either of those. “Cameron Ashton Taylor,” she cooed as a wide smile crept onto her lips. “I love it. It’s perfect.” She bent her head and kissed his forehead softly.
“Ashton?” I repeated. We hadn’t talked about a middle name.
She nodded. “Well yeah, he needs to have his daddy’s name, silly.”
After we’d both had plenty of cuddles, the doctor took him back, weighing him, checking him over and cleaning him up a little. Once he was decked out in a tiny, little white baby grow, he was placed back into his proud mommy’s arms. My heart ached at the sight of them together. I couldn’t keep the ecstatic grin off my face.
“I’d better get some photos and make the announcement,” I suggested, pulling out my cell phone. Anna chuckled, adjusting my son so that I could get a few good pictures. After sending them to Nate, Rosie and Anna’s parents, I settled down onto the bed next to her, still in slight disbelief that I was now a father.
“Your mom’s gonna be so mad that she’s not going to be first one through the door to visit,” I stated, shaking my head and imagining the panic on Melissa’s face when she heard the news that her only child had given birth to her first grandchild. They were currently in England so Tom and Melissa would have to wait a couple of days before they could meet the new Taylor family addition. She wouldn’t be happy about that at all. She was ridiculously eager to be a grandmother.
“I know. She’ll freak. She’d already ordered me to cross my legs before she went,” Anna chuckled. “Nate will be psyched that he gets to be the first to meet him though.” She stroked her finger across Cameron’s cheek, smiling down at him. “Are you going to ask him today about being Godfather?”
“Yeah,” I nodded. Nate was going to flip out when I asked him; he’d been on countdown to Anna’s due date too, just like I was. He was already referring to himself as ‘Cool Uncle Nate’. Anna and I had talked about Godparents before the baby was born and were planning on asking Nate and Rosie because they were our closest friends. We lived in LA so we saw Nate all the time; he practically lived round our place. Rosie lived a couple of hours drive away, but we still kept in contact and saw her whenever we could. She and Anna spoke on the phone for hours on end at least once a week. On the up side, Rosie was moving to LA soon too for a new job, so that would make seeing her even easier. Anna couldn’t wait to see more of her best friend.
I sighed contentedly and wrapped my arms around the love of my life, dipping my head and planting a soft, lingering kiss on her temple. “I love you, baby momma,” I whispered, holding her tightly. She smiled and pressed her face into my chest. My cheeks were starting to hurt where I hadn’t stopped smiling. I’d known her for a total of five and a half years now, yet she still managed to take my breath away everyday. I hoped I never took her for granted because I was the luckiest guy in the world to have her love me like she did. Every day I thanked my lucky stars that I’d met her and that I had the chance to make her happy again.
Sounds of cooing came from Cameron’s direction, so I looked down at him, cradled protectively in her arms. I was awed by him and his tiny frame. It was hard to believe that this little boy was something that mine and Anna’s love had made. He was less than an hour old, yet I loved him so very much already. I knew I would give my life for him in an instant, the same as I would for Anna.
Reaching out, I picked up his little hand, just marvelling over his tiny fingernails. “Thanks for keeping up your end of the bargain and not hurting your mom too much when you came out. I promise to keep up my end of the bargain and be the best dad in the world,” I murmured quietly. Anna chuckled, chewing on her bottom lip. I smiled at her before bending and kissing the tips of Cameron’s fingers. “It’s you, me, and your momma now. Us Taylor boys have to watch out for your momma. She’s just incredible, and you are one lucky little baby to have her.”
When I looked up to Anna, I saw that she had tears in her eyes. I sighed and shook my head in disbelief. After all this time, I still had no idea how I managed to get a girl like her to fall in love with me. Nothing had ever felt so precious to me. My little family. I stroked her hair away from her face before bending in and pressing my lips to hers softly. This girl and this baby were my world, and the only things I needed out of life. I just hoped I could somehow make them as happy as they both made me.