Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Epilogue

TYLER

“Happy birthday, baby girl,” I whispered as I kissed the head of mine and Kate’s goddaughter. It was Christine’s first birthday, and I mumbled to myself how she was the spitting image of her mother.

“Good thing she looks like Piper, huh?” Bill joked.

I slapped him on the back and embraced the man who had finally gotten the life he deserved: a great job, a beautiful wife, two perfect daughters, and pure happiness.

Two small hands circled my waist from behind. A whiff of her gentle, floral perfume floated around me, making me smile.

“Well, hello there, my gorgeous wife,” I said without turning around.

“Hi, handsome.” She moved to stand in front of me. “Are you having fun?”

“Of course. I get to hang out with my two nieces,” I said, referring to Christine and Tessa. “One day, we’ll have our own babies to play with.”

Kate’s eyes lit up like fireworks. She kissed my cheek and turned her attention to Piper, who was now hugging us both.

“Did you assholes get her something extravagant? It better not be a pony or some shit,” Piper yelled, shooting us a murderous look.

“No pony,” I assured. “How about we do that next year, Kate?” The sound of her cheery laughter filled the air.

“You know, when I met you girls, this is definitely not what I had pictured for us almost three years later.”

“Me neither,” Piper said, looking adoringly at her daughter and Tessa. “I thought I’d be single forever. Yet here I am, not even thirty, and married with a child and a stepdaughter.”

“I’m surprised Bill can still pump working sperm,” I joked with her. She slapped my shoulder.

“If Kate keeps making you wait to have kids, your spermies are going to become slow swimmers.” Piper moved her hand through the air in slow motion to demonstrate her point.

Kate glared at her. “You’re the worst, Pipe.”

They embraced one another and began laughing. Some things would never change. These two were like two peas in a pod.

I’d never seen two women love each other so much. Their friendship had never suffered, even through all that life had thrown at them.

Little footsteps crept up behind me. I turned just in time to catch Tessa. She always tried to surprise me by jumping on my back, but she was rarely quiet enough to do so.

“Now that you’re almost done for the season, can you please practice hockey with me?” Tessa batted her eyelashes.

“You know it, kid.”

Piper handed out shots to the adults, proving the~ real~ Piper was still in there somewhere. We clinked our glasses together and Bill said a few words before we took our shots. Except for Kate, who handed hers to me.

“You don’t want it, babe?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t eaten yet today, and you know how I am with alcohol and no food.”

I nodded and threw the shot back myself, then kissed my wife hard on the lips.

Hand in hand, Kate and I said our goodbyes before making our way upstairs to our penthouse. I was trying to get in bed early that night. The next day was the most important game of the year. I needed fresh legs and a long rest.

Piper squeezed me before kissing me on the cheek. “Thank you for being her number one, Ty,” she whispered in my ear. “You two are perfect.”

“You and Bill aren’t too bad yourselves.”

She rolled her eyes. “I hate and love you.” She laughed and moved on to hug my wife.

Kate slipped an envelope into Piper’s hand. We had gotten countless toys for both girls. We’d always have a soft spot for Tessa, considering Kate had been taking care of her in a sense since the moment she met her.

The envelope was extra special. I told Kate that Bill and Piper wouldn’t accept it, but she didn’t listen. Of course. Kate was stubborn as hell.

Piper pulled her husband to the side and slipped a finger under the sealed envelope. I stood by watching Kate almost jump with excitement. We didn’t have kids yet, but we treated Tessa and Christine like our own.

The moment the envelope was opened, Piper slapped a hand over her mouth, tears streaming from the couple’s eyes. They both threw their arms around Kate and me.

We had set up trust funds for each of the girls to ensure they’d always be taken care of, financially at least. Each trust had fifty million in it, a shit ton of money.

A few years ago, her generosity would have seemed crazy to me. But knowing Kate, by then I knew she’d give her last dime if it would help someone else.

In fact, Martin Financial’s profits had increased by thirty-six percent over the previous two years. She was a business badass, honestly.

“Why do you do things that’ll make me cry?” Piper asked Kate.

“Shut up. Give it to the girls when you’re ready. Tell them it’s from you, I don’t care. I just want them to have it when they’re adults.”

“Make sure they go to college or work, though. Remember how Nicolette used to be?” I chimed in.

“Hey!” Nicolette came up behind me. “You’re lucky you’re my brother-in-law,” she said with a laugh. “I don’t suck anymore though.”

“Nah, you’re my favorite sister now.”

She threw a hand on her hip. “I’m your only one.”

“Exactly.”

I laughed when she rolled her eyes before hugging her. Nicolette got along great with all of us. She was sweet, mature, and worked her ass off.

Not to mention, she had been dating a friend of mine for a while now—Mathieu. It was still weird to think about, but they had fallen head over heels for each other.

Kate and I both told them not to get married until they were older. So far, they were listening.

As Kate and I fell asleep that night, I thought about how lucky I was.

What started as a difficult relationship turned into the most beautiful thing in the world. It’s weird how that works. Things were easy then though. Everyone knows the famous Kate Martin is married to me.

No one was commenting on it. No one was accusing me of wanting her money, or her of being a poor businesswoman. People had realized they couldn’t say those things anymore.

I had fallen head over heels for Kate even before I knew who she was. The moment I had laid my eyes on her in that bar, I was hooked like a sea bass. I wanted her and nothing else.

As for Kate? She wasn’t a poor businesswoman at all. She had increased Martin Financial’s worth even more than it was, changing people’s lives daily.

The Blades had won the Stanley Cup the previous year and were contenders for it again.

The first year we were together, we didn’t win the cup. We had actually lost in the first round of the playoffs. That got us all bummed, but it had been quite a difficult year.

Kate was dealing with court proceedings and her mess of a mother. Luckily, Theresa was destroyed in court, and she ran back to France with her tail between her legs.

Kevin was out of the picture, thankfully. Fred had stepped down as the owner to fill in the shoes of the team’s General Manager. That was what he really wanted to do anyway.

Kate and I became Internet stars as soon as we announced our relationship, with hashtags everywhere supporting our love. Once we got engaged, the fans went crazy.

My proposal was all over the Internet; surprisingly, nothing negative was said. Our love was obviously clear to everyone who saw.

Reporters still stormed us, but for different things. We were bombarded with questions such as when we’d have kids or if they’d play hockey. They’d want to look at her ring or do tours of our houses.

***

I was standing below the towering Martin Financial building. Kate had woken up early and left me a note saying she had to sign some paperwork.

I picked up a bouquet of colorful roses, with a red one sitting at the center.

She had texted me that she was about to leave the office, so I was waiting patiently to see the love of my life. A few seconds later, I was graced with the sight of her.

She had on a light gray shirt with a black leather jacket over it. Gold jewelry dotted her wrists and neck.

Her gorgeous wavy hair hung down to her ample breasts, and in the absence of heels, her shoes showed how tiny she truly was.

“You bought me flowers?” she asked in tears.

“I’m sorry,” I blurted out. “Why are you crying? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, you’re just so sweet.”

I stared at her for a minute. “You’re crying because I’m sweet?”

“Yes.” She sniffled and pressed her face against my chest. I held her there, stroking her hair and wondering why my beautiful wife would cry over something like that.

“And you came here to pick me up.” More crying followed. She rarely cried, so that worried me.

With a hand on each of her cheeks, I kissed her like my life depended on it.

“Thank you for picking me up from work,” she said, still sniffling.

“I’ll always be here, Kate Carlson.”

It was true; I would always be there for her. While she sat atop her kingdom, running the business world, I’d be sitting in parallel, dominating the NHL.

Every single night for the rest of my life, I had the honor of kissing her pretty lips before I drifted off to sleep. I was the luckiest man alive.

***

My teammates and I skated around the ice, sweat dripping down our bodies. With only forty-five seconds left in the game, all I could think about was how I was the real winner, no matter the outcome.

My loved ones were sitting right behind the glass, as Kate wanted a perfect view of the game. She admitted she just wanted to see me all sweaty up close.

She always got turned on when she watched me play, and I had no complaints about that.

Tessa held a sign that read, “Uncle Tyler’s my hero,” reminding me that I’d come out on top.

The score was tied at ~1-1~, with just thirty seconds left. My adrenaline was pumped to new levels. I locked eyes with the guys on my line, all of us planning the right move in our heads.

Coach had a plan set in play, but San Jose was blocking everything we were aiming to do. Their defense was incredible.

When the puck touched my stick, I knew it was now or never. With only ten seconds left, I just had one shot. I struck it and held my breath, waiting to see if their goalie could stop it.

It seemed as if the world had gone silent for a slight moment. All I could hear was the pounding in my chest as the puck seemed to move forward in slow motion.

Suddenly, the crowd roared and I threw my hand up in the air. Black and red confetti rained onto the ice, music blared, and my teammates jumped on top of me.

The New York Blades had just won the Stanley Cup for the second time in a row. Such a win hadn’t been seen since 1997 and 1998 when the Detroit Red Wings had claimed the trophy back-to-back for two years.

The next hour was a blur. People spoke, hugs were exchanged, and drinks were poured. It was a celebration no one wanted to stop enjoying.

We all took pictures with the Stanley Cup. Each of us would get to take it home, taking pictures with it and such.

When I finally had a moment with my sexy-as-hell wife, I spun her around and kissed her.

“I am so proud of you,” she said. “You were incredible. Oh my God, that was amazing!” she yelled, squeezing me tighter.

I stared into her bright, blue eyes, which had once again turned watery. “Jesus, you’re gorgeous.” Even after three years, she still managed to take my breath away every single time I looked at her.

“You just won the Stanley Cup, and all you have to say is that I’m gorgeous?” she asked, laughing.

“You will always have me to look at; go kiss that cup with the others.” She shoved me forward to mingle with my winning team.

Later that night, Kate and I had our closest friends and family over to celebrate at the penthouse. Kate was in the kitchen pouring glasses of champagne for our guests.

My mom was on Kate’s tail all night; she was in love with her. She’d never thought I’d settle down, and since she had met Kate, Mom was all for us being together.

I swear she cried tears of happiness the whole week we were in Antigua for our wedding.

I looked to my left where Ben was chatting with Piper and Bill. They’d become rather good friends. It was awkward at first, but that had faded quickly enough.

“I can’t fucking believe it,” Jason said. “My brother’s a two-time cup winner.”

“Right,” Steve added. “Big bro here has made us proud.” They tapped their beer bottles against mine.

Mathieu came over to us, still elated from our win. I was surprised he had walked away from Nicolette; typically, they were attached at the hip.

A few minutes later, Kate and some others walked into our massive living room, carrying trays of champagne flutes. Everyone walked up to grab a glass and returned to their place.

When I stood next to her, she kissed me and whispered in my ear, “I can’t wait to really celebrate later.” My stomach fluttered, anxious to get my wife alone and naked.

I backed up a few steps but stayed close to her. She held her glass up to make a toast.

“We are celebrating the unbelievable success of the Blades. All you players who have come here tonight, I applaud you. You are spectacular, and I love you all,” she said, gleaming with excitement.

We clapped. Most of the players and their families had joined us. Kate truly treated everyone like family. “I cannot wait to continue watching you grow as a team, as a family.

“And along those lines, there’s something else that will be growing.”

Kate paused, and I knew. Her eyes found me, my own getting teary. The only other time I had cried was when watching her walk down the aisle on that beach.

I knew exactly what she was going to say. A fire of bliss lit within me. I walked toward her, feet heavy and moving slowly. I could feel my smile widening with every step I took.

“You’re going to be—” she whispered, but stopped when I dropped to my knees. I lifted up the Blades jersey she was wearing with our last name on the back. Pressing my lips against her flat stomach, I spoke to my unborn child.

“I’ve waited so long for you,” I whispered.

The pregnancy explained her bizarre emotions over the past few days. And I wondered how long she’d known.

My mom ran over, practically tackling us. Everyone offered their congratulations, and the night turned into a whole new celebration. I was elated, unable to believe I was going to be a dad.

“I didn’t even get a chance to tell you the rest,” Kate said. Everyone shut up, staring at her.

“The rest?” I asked.

She smiled at me. “I guess having twins really does run in the family.”

I picked her up again, kissing her all over her beautiful face. “Really? We’re really having twins?” She nodded.

I ran over to my own twin brother. “I’m going to be a dad! To twins!” I yelled, while he congratulated me in our own connected way.

Jason was the only other person in the room who knew the bond twins shared. I couldn’t wait for my two kids to share that very same bond.

Our loved ones stayed for hours, talking nonstop about our win and my precious babies.

I thought my wedding day was the best day of my life. But standing beside the woman whom I loved so much as she held two little ones in her belly trumped my wedding day.

I couldn’t stop kissing her. Kate had given me everything. She was my everything.

It was not until three o’clock in the morning that we were finally alone. We lay in our bed, talking about what we’d name our children. “I still can’t believe it,” I said, rubbing her nonexistent belly.

“Me neither, but I have no doubt you’ll be the best father in the world.” Her words choked me up, but I tried to act manly.

“Only because you’ll be the best mother,” I replied, making her giggle. “You’ve given me everything I’ve dreamed of and more. I love you to the moon and back, a million times over, Kate Carlson.”

She moved to straddle my hips. “I love you to the moon and back a~ trillion~ times over,” she said. Her hands moved to take her shirt off, exposing her already swollen breasts.

“Now show me just how much you love me.”

^The End^