Two Years Later

“Did you see that hit?” Harley asks excitedly, walking from the ballpark, his dad beside him. Desi and I are sitting on the bleachers. It’s February, but Florida being Florida it’s humid as heck out here and I feel like I’m melting. It’s more than worth it though, to be here to watch Harley bat his very first homerun.

“Of course we did! Didn’t you hear me and Desi yelling?” I laugh. I know he did, he kept looking over here, smiling.

“Yeah,” he says almost shyly as he and Marcum make it to us. Marcum has his hand on Harley’s shoulder and sweet Jesus… Marcum is always hot, but seeing my tattooed biker, with his leather cut, next to his little boy, holding him close and smiling ear to ear… all my female bits want to heat up and explode.

“You were a star out there, Bub,” I tell him, ruffling his hair.

“Mom,” Harley complains, but he’s laughing.

“Who’s ready for ice cream?” Marcum asks and my laugh is drowned out by the screams of joy from Desi and Harley.

“Is this a private party, or can anyone join?” Max laughs as he and Ride stand up behind me.

“Shouldn’t you be in a hurry to get back to Tess, boy?” Marcum asks, shaking his head.

“Please. She has Maddie and Bella on a playdate today, which means she’s napping. I’m not about to interrupt that,” Max answers naming his newest baby girl, Bella. I think they were hoping for a boy at first, but are completely in love with their two daughters. Max likes to joke he’s surrounding himself with beautiful women so he will look good in his old age.

“Then you help the kids load up Harley’s crap in the SUV and I’ll help Toi up,” Marcum agrees.

“Jesus, I’m heading out. All this baby shit and kid life is making me old before my time,” Ride says with a wink. “Later people. Catch you next time, Dawg,” he adds with a wave.

Once everyone heads out, Marcum reaches down to pull me up.

“I’m not that fat, you know. I could have got up on my own,” I tell him, and I probably could, but I’m so fat and round it would have been a struggle.

Marcum places his hand on my stomach. I look down at his ink-covered hand with heavy rings adorning each finger, holding my stomach where inside our little boy is resting, and I wonder if a woman could die from happiness.

In the last two years, life has become as perfect as humanly possible. Every single day with Marcum just gets better and better. He’s still Marcum but he’s happy now. You can see it written all over his face. I feel the same. I’ve grown so close to Desi and Harley, as well as Marcum’s other kids, and now we’re finally going to have our own child.

We both decided to wait until Harley felt more secure. In the end, I had Marcum do a DNA test to confirm he was the their father. If I’d been wrong, we would have never told either of them, but I was right. Seeing in writing that Marcum was his true father healed Harley’s fears completely. If there was any doubt left inside of him, it disappeared when I officially adopted the twins as my own. I didn’t offer to adopt the other kids; they didn’t need that from me. But, a few call me their mom and I’m completely happy with that.

I even got up the nerve to have surgery on my throat. It kept getting better, and the doctor said some of my issues were psychological, and I was slowly healing that part on my own because I felt safe now. Still, since the surgery I’m good now. I still have days where my voice is off, but they are few and far between.

“I just wanted a moment with my woman. Is that so bad?” Marcum whispers, bringing my attention back to him. He’s looking up at me with his beautiful dark eyes.

“Not at all. I missed you, though I have to admit it was kind of hot watching you coach Harley out there.”

“Did you get pictures?” he asks. He’s always asking that and each time he does, my heart flips in my chest.

“A million of them,” I tell him.

“That’s my girl,” he laughs and then he pulls me up in his arms and carries me toward the vehicle.

I’d argue that I’m too heavy, but it never does any good and honestly, I love being in his arms.

“I love you, Marcum.”

“I love you too, Dragonfly. I love you too,” he says and if hearts could smile… mine would definitely be smiling right now.