Chapter Single Mom’s Firemen: Epilogue I

The past several months seem like a hazy dream.

It all went by so quickly and yet so beautifully, but today is something else entirely.

Comfortably swaddled in pale blue, my sweet baby boy sleeps peacefully in my arms. A tuft of light brown hair curls atop his head, his skin soft and pink. I notice the Danson nose already making its appearance, a cute little button above soft lips. Tiny fists clump together as he fidgets in his slumber. My womb was warm and all-encompassing and all he ever knew until an hour ago. I imagine he’s struggling a bit to get used to his new environment.

“You’re glowing,” Eric says, sitting beside my bed.

Marie pulled some strings and got me into one of the best OB-GYN clinics in Dallas. The place feels more like a luxury hotel than a maternity ward, but I love it. It’s clean and sleek, and the staff are amazing. My men were right there with me every minute during labor, eager to welcome our son into the world .

“You’re delusional,” I mumble, my eyes half-closed as I sink into the bed. “I feel like I just went twelve rounds in the ring.”

Eric smiles and brushes my hair back from my face. “You were amazing, Halle. You powered through the whole thing like a champ.”

We were watching the game at home just eight hours ago. The second half had just started and the Cowboys were struggling to score. I remember Wyatt cussing and begging the linebackers for some support, not that any of them could hear him. His passion for the game made me laugh. And then my water broke, everyone switching gears in that moment.

The little man took us by surprise, but to my relief, his fathers were ready.

Half an hour later, I was here, surrounded by nurses and the doctor, ready to start pushing.

This is such a sweet, sweet haze. Happiness flows through my veins. Contentment and peace overwhelm me. Everything is right with the world. We are a family now and there is so much good ahead, to live joyfully and wholly, one day at a time.

“How are you holding up?” Eric asks after a while. “Want me to take him back to the ward so you can get some sleep?”

“Not yet,” I reply. “Where’s Marie?”

“She’s coming over with the kids. Dad, too. It’s gonna get crowded soon enough,” he says, smiling broadly. His gaze bounces between the baby and me, and I am pretty sure that this man is overflowing with the purest, warmest, sincerest kind of love. He’s over the moon. “My gosh, he’s handsome.”

“A Danson, through and through,” I giggle .

“Got something for you,” Chase quips as he comes back into the room, an armful of snacks, flowers, and a huge grin on his face. “What do you want, baby? Cheez-Its? Funyuns? Doritos? I got one of each until Wyatt gets here with the real food.”

“Pretty sure this place has food too,” I say, almost laughing.

“Yeah, but you deserve to enjoy some junk food for bringing our son into the world.”

“Thank you. Now come closer and give me a kiss,” I reply.

Happy to oblige, Chase sets the snacks aside and comes over, planting a sweet kiss on my lips, followed by a soft peck on the top of our son’s head. The little guy stirs in his sleep at the contact but doesn’t wake up. “You two, the kids, are my life,” Chase says, pouring everything he’s got into the words. “My everything.”

“None of this would be possible without the three of you. Speaking of three, where’s—”

“Chicken coming!” Wyatt exclaims as he joins us with a couple of loaded paper bags. The smell reaches us first—an intoxicatingly delicious scent of deep-fried goodness and cheesy decadence. Frankly, I’ll worry about nutrition tomorrow. Right now, I look forward to digging into that marvelous food. “How’s mama?”

He whips up a huge grin and sets the chicken next to Chase’s snacks. “Oh, good, so we’re splurging today, huh?”

“Mom’s bringing ice cream too,” Eric adds.

Wyatt’s smile grows. “Nothing but the best for our Iron Lady. Now, let me hold the little guy for a bit. Your arms must be tired,” he says to me .

“Not really but knock yourself out,” I reply.

He comes over and scoops the baby up. He’s so gentle, so cautious, I could melt right here and now. Words cannot express how much I love him, how much I love all three of them. But I notice a shadow lingering on Wyatt’s handsome face. It looks like concern, but maybe I’m just overthinking. I am, after all, exhausted, and my brain isn’t functioning properly at the moment.

“Is everything okay?” I ask Wyatt. He nods slowly as he lovingly gazes at our son.

“Yeah. I just… I made a decision. Not sure how you guys will feel about it,” he says.

Chase gives him a curious look. “What is it, brother?”

“I’m quitting the firehouse,” Wyatt declares.

“Whoa,” Eric replies, his brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

“I mean I want do something else,” Wyatt shrugs. “You two are insanely passionate about firefighting. I am too, but not to the same degree. I’ve always followed you in order to keep you safe. Older brother responsibilities, I guess. I like the rush, the satisfaction of helping people. But we’ve got this tiny, perfect human now to take care of, this child in need of a safe home and family. I’m not comfortable running into fires anymore. Whatever comes next, I want to do something that brings me peace and comfort. Something I know I’ll be able to come home to my family every day.”

“We can still do that,” Chase says. “No job is a guarantee of the ultimate safety.

”

“I know, I know. But I really want to dim those chances of something unfortunate happening,” Wyatt says.

The twins nod slowly, exchanging brief but meaningful glances.

I’m touched that Wyatt would do this. It means the world to me and our children. At the same time, I will always respect and admire Eric and Chase for their choice of career. I trust them, and I understand that absolute safety is a myth. Whatever life has in store for us, it’ll happen, whether we want it to or not. I’ve made my peace with that.

“I support you,” I tell Wyatt. “And I am so grateful that you even considered this.”

“Honestly, I was considering it long before you showed up, Halle. You, the kids, and this tiny bundle of joy, in particular. Having you guys in my life sped up my thought process. I made a decision sooner rather than later.”

“We’re right behind you, brother,” Eric says with a firm nod.

Chase agrees. “What do you want to do instead? Don’t say stay-at-home dad because I will punch you.”

“I’m thinking landscaping,” Wyatt replies with a laugh. “I’m really good at it and I like the work.”

“Mama!” Luna exclaims as she bursts through the door.

Marie and Sammy are right behind her, along with Steven, the Danson patriarch. “Sorry we took so long, traffic is insane at this hour,” he says, lighting up like the sun when he sees his grandson in Wyatt’s arms. “Oh, gosh, he is so tiny.”

“He’s perfect,” Marie says .

Luna and Sammy come over and Eric and Chase help them up on the bed so they can hug me. I’m flanked by my children and on the verge of tears, overwhelmed by so much love and affection. It’s not what I’m used to but it’s wonderful. It’s what I deserve.

“Hey, honey bunnies!” I coo as I wrap my arms around Sammy and Luna. “How are you two holding up?”

“We’re good, Mama! Grandpa Steve made waffles for dinner last night!” Sammy says.

“Are you okay, Mama?” Luna asks, her big, smokey blue eyes searching my face. “You look tired.”

“I am tired, but I promise you that I’m okay.”

Wyatt comes closer with the baby. “You two ready to meet your little brother?”

“Yeah!” Sammy exclaims, putting his hands up in excitement. “Where is he?”

“Right here,” Wyatt chuckles, then lowers himself just enough for the kids to see our precious baby boy. “Say hello to…. ” He pauses and gives me a startled look while Luna and Sammy’s eyes grow wide with wonder and what I can only describe as the truest love of all. “Well, shoot, darlin’, did we decide on a name?”

“We decided on two, actually,” I giggle. “I picked John, for my father. And you three were supposed to pick the other one.”

Eric smiles, watching as Sammy and Luna inch closer. My daughter’s face lights up as she slowly reaches out, gingerly touching the baby’s bright pink cheek. “I think we were almost in agreement over Anthony,” Eric says. “We’ll figure it out before they ask us for the birth certificate. Pinky swear.

”

“Oh, Mama, he’s so cute!” Luna says.

“He looks weird,” Sammy crinkles his nose, as if he’s looking at some curious bug in a terrarium. “Kinda wrinkly.”

“That’s because he was just born,” I laugh lightly. “You were kinda wrinkly, too. Both of you.”

Sammy gives me a startled look. “Like that?”

“Yes.”

“You’re still wrinkly when you get out of bed,” Luna dryly remarks, and the whole room bursts with laughter.

Marie and Steven come over to congratulate me, and I welcome their affection and their kindness with all the grace and excitement that I can muster in my exhaustion.

“You did phenomenal,” Marie says, gently squeezing my wrist while her eyes scan my face. “But you need to rest. So how about Steve and I take all three kids off your hands for a couple of hours?”

“Are you sure, Marie? You’ve already done so much,” I reply.

Somewhere behind her, I see the Danson brothers fidgeting and exchanging nervous glances next to the food table. It smells fantastic. I reckon they’re eager to dig in—likely more eager than me, somehow. Marie gives me a warm smile.

“Halle, you’ve made me a thrice-over grandma in record time,” she says. “The least I can do is give you a little bit of room to breathe, to sleep, to eat, to decompress. Imagine I had to knock out two boys at once. I know what you went through and then some.

”

“I thought you said we were an easy birth and that Wyatt took forever to come out,” Chase mutters, prompting Wyatt to jokingly roll his eyes.

Steven laughs. “Your mother just didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

“Oh, wow,” Wyatt scoffs. “But you were okay with hurting mine, calling me Mr. Tardy for the first five years of my life.”

“You were my first born and kept running my patience thin,” Marie jokes. “You had it coming since day one. Off we go, kiddos! Let’s let Momma get some sleep, and we’ll come back later, okay?”

Sammy and Luna both nod and get off the bed, letting Steven guide them out of the room. From what I can tell, Sammy is quick at learning how to tug at the old man’s heart strings. He even has his big puppy-dog eyes ready as he looks up.

“Grandpa Steven?” he asks.

“Yeah, kiddo?”

“Can we get ice cream?”

“Sure thing. There’s a cafeteria downstairs, I reckon we can score a cone or something.”

“Well, that takes care of that,” Marie says, then plants a kiss on my forehead and takes the baby from Wyatt. “I’ll bring up some ice cream for you later, Halle. Get some rest,” she adds with a wink. I imagine she will be happy to spend some quiet time with her new grandson in the nursery while Steven takes the older two for ice cream. “See you later, taters!”

Once they’re gone, I feel a sense of peace wash over me. For so long, I was the only one looking after myself and my children. Even when I was still part of the Nash family I was alone, though I was constantly surrounded by people.

I’m not alone anymore.

I take comfort in knowing that there are three men in this world who would do anything, including the unspeakable, to keep me safe, healthy, and happy. I have a family, a big family filled with people who are kind and patient, loving and giving, always ready to help. This right here… this is the rainbow I’ve been searching for.

“Halle,” Eric says as he closes the door to give us some privacy. “We need to talk.”

“What’s wrong?” I ask, a sense of alarm pricking the back of my neck.

“Nothing’s wrong,” he says.

I look at him, then at Chase and Wyatt with equal concern and confusion.

“We’ve been talking,” Chase sighs.

Wyatt fumbles through the back pocket of his jeans. “And we can’t seem to fall in agreement as to which of us should go on the birth certificate as the father.”

“Oh.” I can’t help but laugh. This has been an emotional rollercoaster from the moment I learned that I was pregnant, yet I never expected a moment where we’d get tangled in such logistics. “I forgot all about that part to be honest.”

“And yet here it is,” Eric sighs. “What do you think?”

“Well, DNA testing is an option,” I say with a slight shrug. “I don’t care which one of you is the daddy. All three of you are his daddies, after all.

”

“Yeah, but legally speaking—” Chase starts but Wyatt cuts in.

“Let’s draw straws.”

“You’re serious,” Eric says, staring at his older brother in sheer disbelief.

“Got a better idea? I’m all ears,” Wyatt shoots back as he takes three of the paper straws out of the fast food bag, breaks one, then hands them over to me. “You hold them. I’ve already shortened one.”

I’m laughing my ass off, but even that takes a considerable amount of effort as my chortles turn into long, drawn-out yawns. “Alright,” I concede. “Anything to get this over with.”

I check the straws and then close my fist around them, careful so they won’t see which one’s shorter. Cautiously, the Danson brothers approach, taking deep breaths with each step. They are equal parts hilarious and devastatingly handsome in this particular moment, and I can only pray that we have a lifetime left of this ahead. No more running, no more hiding, no more secrets. We’re done with all that.

Let this right here be our biggest challenge.

“Draw your straw, gentlemen,” I say.

A moment later, I’m holding back a heavy laugh as I watch my men stare at their straws. It feels like forever before one of them finally speaks.

“I guess I’m the baby daddy,” Eric says. “It doesn’t take anything away from the two of you,” he adds, looking at his brothers.

“Yeah, we’ll all be there, equally involved,” Chase agrees. “No doubt about it.

”

“You know what this means, though, right?” Wyatt asks Eric.

I’m out of the loop for this one, since I’m too busy inwardly giggling over this entire exchange. The baby will grow up with three fantastic fathers. How lucky is he?

“Right. Yeah,” Eric mumbles, then looks at me. “There’s something else, Halle.”

“Oh, dear…”

He takes a small velvet box out of his jeans pocket as he comes closer. My heart stops for what feels like forever and I’m unable to take my eyes off the box. “Since I’m going be the legal father of our son, I should be the one to make an honest woman out of you, too, in the eyes of the law and all that.”

“Eric,” I mumble, unable to say anything else.

“Before you protest, we’re all in agreement here,” he says. “We love you, Halle. More than anything in this world. And this…” he adds as he opens the box to reveal a gorgeous engagement ring with a teardrop shaped diamond framed by tiny sapphires. “This is our promise to you. We want to spend the rest of our lives with you. With you and our three kids.”

“We wouldn’t mind making more either,” Wyatt interjects with a half-smile.

I still can’t believe my eyes and ears. “Eric… Chase… Wyatt… Are you serious?”

“As serious as we can get,” Eric replies. “Halle, will you marry us?

”

Tears spring from my eyes, a never-ending stream of the purest kind of joy as I nod without hesitation. “Oh, God, yes, a million times yes. I will marry you.”

“Great, because none of us were anywhere remotely ready for a no,” Eric smiles and puts the gorgeous ring on my finger, then kisses me with everything he’s got.

His arms wrap tightly around me as he pours all of his love into the kiss. I’m overflowing with so much light and warmth, I could easily pass out from so much happiness. This is too good, too wonderfully weird, too beautifully strange, but it is real.

“Come here, baby,” Chase says as he joins in. We kiss, melting into one another. “I love you so much.”

“I love you.”

“It’s gonna be a fun wedding to organize, I’ll tell you that much,” Wyatt says when he, too, comes closer so we can seal this deal with a soft kiss.

“I think it’s going to be the best day of our lives,” I laugh, my cheeks still wet and glistening with sheer happiness.