Chapter 278 Chapter 278

Chapter 278 Chapter 278
Epilogue: Nate & Prue
Prue stood in the doorway of the nursery, watching Nate rock their eighteen-month-old daughter, Lily, to sleep. The soft glow from the lamp was the only light in the room. Nate sang something low and off-key that shouldn't have been soothing but somehow was. The man couldn't hold a tune.
"She's already asleep," Prue whispered, moving into the room. "Has been for the last five minutes."
"I know." His voice was equally quiet. "I'm just... enjoying it."
She understood. After everything they'd been through, after losing their first baby and spending years believing they might never have this, moments like these felt precious. Sacred, even.
Nate carefully laid Lily in her crib, tucking the blanket around her small form. She barely stirred, her dark lashes resting against chubby cheeks, one tiny fist curled near her face.
They stood there together, watching her breathe, the way new parents did even when their child wasn't so new anymore.
"Come on," Prue finally said, taking his hand. "Before you decide to camp out on the floor again."
He'd done that twice already this week after Lily had developed a chest cough, unable to convince himself that she was really safe unless he was right there watching her. Prue understood that too. The paranoia that came from nearly losing everything once before. She'd had her own worries. Lilly was ok now and didn't need her daddy sleeping on the floor.
They retreated to their bedroom, the new house they'd bought just before Lily's birth. No memories of Trish here. Just clean spaces filled with photos of their family and fresh starts. Lily's toys scattered across the living room. It was a home, not a showpiece.
"And speaking of babies," Nate said, his hand moving to rest on her still-flat stomach, "how are you feeling?"
"Nervous." She placed her hand over his. "Excited but terrified, all rolled into one. I can't believe I'm pregnant again so soon."
They'd only found out last week. Eight weeks pregnant, and this time Prue had made Nate promise not to tell anyone. She wanted to make it to her second trimester first.
"We're going to be okay," Nate said firmly. "You, me, Lily, and this little one. We're all going to be fine."
"You can't promise that." But she wanted to believe him. God, she wanted to believe him. The first pregnancy had been one long nightmare of worries. She would wake up screaming, thinking she'd lost the baby. Nate would put his arms around her and hold her until she went back to sleep.
"I can promise I'll do everything in my power to make sure of it." He pressed a kiss to her hair. "That's good enough for me."
It was good enough for her too.
"Did you hear about Trish's appeal?" she asked after a moment, the question she'd been avoiding all evening. Trish hadn't gotten away with her insanity defense.
His body tensed beneath her. "It was denied. She's staying exactly where she is for the next twenty years minimum."
Relief flooded through Prue so suddenly it made her dizzy. The appeals process had dragged on, Trish's expensive lawyers finding every possible angle to reduce her sentence. But the evidence had been too strong, the confession too damning, the psychiatrists too certain that she'd known exactly what she was doing.
"Good," Prue said quietly. "That's... good."
"Your father asked if we'd come for Christmas," Nate said, changing the subject deliberately. "Wants to spend time with his granddaughter. And I quote, 'before you two give me another one to spoil rotten.'"
Prue laughed. "He's going to lose his mind when we tell him."
"Completely." Nate's hand rubbed gentle circles on her stomach. "But we'll wait. Like you want. Make sure everything's okay first."
"Thank you." She tilted her head up to kiss his jaw. "For understanding. For not thinking I'm being ridiculous." She still woke in a cold sweat, but now she didn't wake up screaming.
"You're not being ridiculous." His voice was firm. "You're being cautious after trauma. There's a difference. And I'll support whatever you need, Prue. Always."
After getting ready for bed, they lay in comfortable silence for a while, listening to the occasional sound from Lily's baby monitor on the nightstand. She was such a good sleeper, had been since birth, but they still kept the monitor on. Still checked on her multiple times a night. Parents who understood how quickly everything could be taken away.
"Nate?" Prue said softly.
"Mm?"
"I'm happy." The words came out simple, honest. "I know we went through hell to get here. I know it wasn't easy. But I'm happy. We have great friends and family, and I couldn't want for anything. Thank you."
His arms tightened around her. "Me too, Prue. Me too."
And he was. The business was thriving. They had expanded into Europe and Asia with satellite offices and trusted contractors running operations. He still took the occasional high-profile case, but mostly he worked from home now, managing his team remotely so he could be present for Lily's milestones. For Prue's doctor's appointments. For the small moments that made up a life.
His father had never come around. Had spent millions on Trish's defense, had painted Nate as the villain in every society column that would listen. But Nate had made peace with it. Some relationships couldn't be salvaged, and that was okay. He had Prue. He had Lily. He had the family they were building together, and that was enough. She had felt for Nate at the start, not having family by his side… But her father got on well with Nate, and they had their friends. They were building their own family, and they would always be loved.
More than enough.
"Love you," Prue murmured, already drifting toward sleep.
"Love you too." He pressed another kiss to her hair, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. "Both of you. All three of you," he corrected, his hand still resting protectively on her stomach.
Outside, rain began to fall, pattering against the windows in a soothing rhythm. The house settled around them, warm and safe and theirs.