Epilogue
Travis
“Hey, look who it is!”
“Well, if it isn’t the belle of the ball and the beast of the underworld.”
“Are they talking about you or me?” Ava asked.
“Pretty sure you’re the belle and I’m the beast,” I said.
“That’s not very kind.”
“It’s Jasper and Leo. Did you expect any different?” I asked.
My brothers came striding up and wrapped their arms around Ava. She was seven months pregnant with our flourishing baby girl and looked more radiant than ever. Ever since my parents decided to take up permanent residence in Florida, my brothers and I had grown closer. I wanted my daughter to know her uncles. I wanted Ava to become a part of this family.
But most of all, I wanted all three of the business owners to have a close relationship with one another.
“How are you feeling, beautiful?” Jasper asked.
“You look good. That a new dress?” Leo asked.
“It is new, yes. Because I’m ballooning faster than my closet can keep up,” Ava said. “And thank you, Jasper. That means a lot.”
“Have you guys gotten everything together for the tax season? It’s gonna hit us sooner than you think,” I said.
“We can talk shop later,” Jasper said. “Right now, I want to hear all about how this last month has gone.”
“Yes. How is my little niece doing?” Leo asked. “She still using your kidneys as kickboxing bags?”
“She’s flipped a bit, so now she’s on my bladder. I’m two more well-placed kicks away from needing diapers myself,” Ava said.
“That sounds petrifying. Travis, I hope you’re doing everything for this woman so she doesn’t have to do anything herself,” Leo said.
“I’ve got it under control,” I said with a grin.
Jasper fired up the grill to cook us up some venison steaks. Out of all of us, he was the hunter. The one who did it year-round. If it was an animal and legal to hunt, he did it. Deer. Bear. Quail. Squirrel. One time, I caught him trying to make a roach stew for the hell of it.
It was fucking awful and I made sure he understood it.
“When did you catch this one?” Ava asked.
“Fresh from the basement this morning,” Jasper said. “It wandered up into my driveway and I took a shot right from my door. Most convenient kill I’ve ever made.”
“You still drag those things down into your basement?” Leo asked. “I figured you would’ve set up a shed or something by now to make it easier. You know, with a drain pipe or something.”
“That’s why I use the basement. Sure, it takes some work hauling the animal down there. Especially those damn bears. But there’s a bathroom for me to wash off and a drain pipe in the middle of the floor. Got my butchering bench right over it,” Jasper said.
“What are you doing with the fur this time?” Ava asked. “Are you making anything?”
“Why? You wanting something? Because I’ve got no issues making you something,” Jasper said.
“I was thinking about making our little girl a blanket. You know, pink fleece on one side and the animal fur on the other,” Ava said.
“That’s a fucking tremendous idea. Jasper, you could turn that shit into a side business,” Leo said.
“He’s got his hands full with the company right now,” I said. “The new business we’ve acquired requires his personal expertise.”
“What? In wooing women?” Ava asked.
“In a manner of speaking,” Jasper said with a grin.
“I don’t even wanna know,” Ava said.
“Oh, Leo. I was wondering if you could jerky some of this venison for me. I can get it for you after we eat,” Jasper said.
“Yep. You give me what you want, tell me the flavors, and I’ll get it to you,” Leo said.
“Now that’s a side job I can get behind,” I said. “Leo’s jerky is the best.”
“Really? Do you sell it?” Ava asked.
“I’ll give you some of mine when I get it back,” Jasper said. “He does all kinds of flavors. What’s your favorite?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never really been a jerky eater,” Ava said.
“Oh! Oh, my heart! It hurts. Those words stung, beauty. Cut me right to my core,” Leo said.
“You can stop being dramatic now,” I said. “We don’t want to distract Jasper while he’s cooking. Remember what happened last time?”
“Last time?” Ava asked. “What happened last time?”
“He stumbled back into the grill and burned his ass,” Leo said.
He said it with such a straight face that I wasn’t sure if Ava believed him.
“No he didn’t,” Ava said.
“God as my witness,” Leo said.
“I mean Jasper’s tall, but his butt doesn’t come all the way up to the grill,” Ava said.
“You starin’ at my ass?” Jasper asked.
“That’s actually a good question,” I said with a grin.
“I’m just saying,” Ava said with a giggle.
“Wanna see the burn scar?” Jasper asked. “It’s right there on my left ass cheek.”
“She’ll pass,” I said.
I heard a car pull up as we all turned our heads. Ava locked up beside me as the car came dragging to a stop. Leo and Jasper looked at one another before Leo came to Ava’s side, standing just in front of her in case things got rough. Despite my opinion of the situation, Ava wanted to invite her family to this get together. She wanted to try and make amends with them after spending a few months away from their grasp. I loved her big heart and her willingness to make things work, but I also knew people didn’t change.
But, for Ava’s sake, I supported her decision.
We watched as her brothers stepped out, their eyes widening at her protruding stomach. They looked so much like her, it was almost impossible to deny who they were. They ran and gave her a massive hug, doting on how good she looked and how they had missed her. I shook their hands and they clapped my back, then I introduced her brothers to mine.
Then, I looked over and saw her parents step out of the car.
Their eyes were hard on me as we all stood around Ava. The last thing I was going to let them do was ruin this for her. These family cookouts were supposed to be a stress-free time for all of us to get to know one another and update each other on our lives. It was a time for Ava to get to know my family and for me to get to know hers better. And I wasn’t going to allow her bullshit parents to ruin that for us.
I’d drag them off this property with my bare hands if I had to.
“Hey Dad,” Ava said.
The sea of men surrounding her parted as her father and mother approached us. Their eyes raked up and down her body, clocking her stomach and drawing in deep breaths. I watched their faces closely, ready to pounce at a moment’s notice in case anything went south.
But then, a smile bloomed on her mother’s cheeks.
“You look gorgeous, sweetheart,” she said.
Ava and her mother embraced as her father rubbed her back. Ava soon threw her arms around her father’s neck, holding him close to her. I watched in partial shock as her parents embraced her, but the moment was pierced with the sound of another car coming up the driveway.
And I gawked when I saw my parents behind the wheel.
Ava rushed to my parents, hugging them tightly as they got out of the car. We all embraced as the steaks rested on the grill, with Jasper running into his cabin to get more food. My parents were introduced to Ava’s and tensions slowly dissipated. My anxiety and my protective stance turned into one that was welcoming and warm, and I was shocked as to how my father and her father got along.
Despite all the bullshit those two had gone through with their companies, it was shocking how much they had in common. They talked about their golfing trips and their experiences traveling abroad. They both had a love for Barcelona and classic literature. The two of them talked like they were old friends, sipping from beer bottles while Jasper cooked up more steaks. I held Ava close to my side, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.
“Did you ever think you would see this?” I asked.
“What? My father getting along with yours? Not a fucking chance,” Ava said.
“How do you feel about all of this?”
Ava turned her gaze up to mine as she stood to her toes, her lips hovering in front of mine.
“It feels like home,” she said.
I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her deeply as Jasper continued to cook food behind us. Leo bonded with her brothers, cracking lewd jokes and bragging about his sexual escapades. Our parents laughed over memories and talked about future ventures for their companies, and I held my world in my arms.
The mother of my child and my unborn daughter.
Nothing could get better than this.
“I love you, Ava,” I said into her lips.
“I love you, too, Travis.”