Epilogue

Six Months Later...

“Are you nervous?”

“Why would I be nervous?” I cut my eyes to him as he lets me settle into the car before placing Iris’s car seat next to me. When I get her clipped in, Jasper slides in, letting the driver know that we’re ready.

“You’ve barely said anything all morning. You changed outfits three times and made me change my shirt.” Jasper chuckles, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. He didn’t get much sleep last night with Iris. It’s his fault, though. I told him not to let her nap for too long when we got to the hotel yesterday. While I was in a coma from one gas station wine cooler, Jasper had a baby smacking him in the head.

In his defense, Iris had been very excited to get to the hotel and most likely would have stayed up late regardless. She’s a busy little baby. I’m glad we’ve finally got the hang of this parenting stuff because the first few weeks were chaotic. No sleep. No showers. No fresh air other than doctor’s appointments. I don’t think I washed my hair until the week 6 appointment. Poor Jasper was so on edge that he could have heard a baby cry from 10 miles away. A car alarm in the neighborhood went off and he told me to make it a bottle.

When it was time for him to go back to work, he damn near jumped out of the bedroom window to get to his car.

Iris gave us a run for our money, but eventually, we all fell into a routine, and it works for us. We came to the conclusion that as long as Iris is happy, we can be happy. No need to stress over things that don’t matter. Is she eating right? Is she developing well? Are we holding her too much? None of that matters when your baby is smiling, giggling, and smothering your face with spit-filled kisses.

All that being said, we figured it was an excellent time to visit Harper for the first time since he left. After not speaking to us for about four months, he reached out to ask if we could visit. I initially said no. I had no desire to see Harper, but Jasper agreed without even hesitating. I put Jasper on poopy diaper duty the rest of the day after that. I had finally gotten comfortable with not having Harper in my life. Now I’m about to dig up all those feelings again. And on top of that, I have to see Lauren.

I’m not saying that I am bitter or hateful, but once you realize that someone is toxic for you, you tend to not want to be around them. When I’m around Harper, I automatically want to forgive and forget without thinking about the pain he caused. These King brothers have a strong hold on me.

During the Uber ride to his penthouse, I try to focus on playing with Iris, but she falls asleep, leaving me on my own. From where I’m sitting, I swear I hear Jasper sigh in relief.

The ride to Harper takes a bit of time due to traffic, which gives me time to decide what I’m going to say when I see him. I don’t know if I want to pretend that everything is fine or be honest. It would have been nice to sit down and have a big talk before he left, but he was in such a hurry to get the hell away from me that didn’t happen.

That’s it, I’m going to be honest. Whatever I feel in the moment is what I feel. No need to go out of my way to make Harper comfortable.

Thirty minutes later, we pull up, and my stomach is already in knots. I hate being nervous about things I can’t control. If I had the slightest idea what to expect, then I’d be okay, but I don’t even know why Harper invited us. The man didn’t call us for four months. Jasper had to get updates on his own brother from their mom. It’s stupid.

Jasper takes the car seat, and I grab the designer baby bag that Lea insisted I had to have. I’ll never admit it, but the bag is gorgeous. I don’t feel like a total mom when I’m holding it.

The moment we enter the building and get into an elevator, I feel like my lungs are going to collapse under the weight of my anxiety. Across from me, the reflective wall allows me to check myself over. I run my fingers through my hair, loving how long it’s gotten. I hardly had any shedding after Iris. I also lost all my baby weight and am now back to my regular size. My eyes scan my grey knee-length t-shirt dress and Birkenstocks. It’s the most comfortable outfit I own. I have on stretchy booty shorts in case Iris wants the boob instead of the bottle. I hate stretching my collar, so I just hike the whole dress up. If someone has a problem, they can kiss my ass or fight my husband.

We finally arrive at the penthouse floor, and as we reach the door, Iris begins to stir from her mini nap, which is good timing since it’s time for her to eat. Jasper knocks on the door, and within seconds, it swings open.

“Hey! You’re here!” Lauren squeals.

She lets us in, and when Jasper sits the car seat down, Lauren exchanges hugs with us. When she gets to me, her hug lasts an unusual amount of time.

“You look gorgeous. Motherhood suits you so well.”

“Thank you!” I force myself to return her level of excitement.

The moment she pulls back, I see in her eyes that she’s uncomfortable. I don’t know why. She wasn’t nervous when she rubbed Harper’s arm while he threw all my feelings in my face. It’s at this moment that I realize I have nothing to be nervous about. I haven’t done shit to be anxious about. What Harper and Lauren have now is none of my business.

On cue, Iris starts getting fussy, so I take her out of the seat.

At the same time, I hear footsteps coming down the hall as I kiss Iris’s forehead. She makes little noises, rubbing her sleepy eyes while resting on my shoulder. It always makes me feel warm inside when she lays her head on me. Out of the corner of my eye, Harper comes into view, and my heart skips a beat. It’s like I’m a teenager again, seeing this super handsome guy come into my house and not knowing what to do with myself. He’s as handsome as ever and always will be.

“Hey! You guys made it!” Jasper and Harper share a hard brotherly hug, chuckling in the same tone as one another. Lauren watches with a huge smile, most likely feeling as though she might have nothing to worry about, and she honestly doesn’t. She isn’t aware of all the history between Jasper, Harper, and me.

When he pulls away, I think that he’s going to hug me, but instead, Harper runs his hand down my arm, taking my hand.

“How are you, Eden?” His eyes are sincere and kind.

“I’m great. It looks like you’re doing well.”

“I am. Lauren and I…” His words trail off as his finger runs over my wedding ring. His eyes follow, and he sighs a little.

“This is some rock,” he comments. Looking down at the new diamond Jasper got me after having Iris, I can’t help but smile.

“It’s part of my push present package.”

“Package?” Harper asks, still holding my hand, causing Lauren to take notice. Her eyes widen when she sees it.

“Yup,” Jasper starts, coming to my side to take Iris, “she got a new car, a new ring set, and a brand-new marriage certificate.”

“Marriage certificate?”

“Mhm, after everything that happened, we didn’t want to make a big deal about planning another wedding, so we went to the courthouse. Our mothers were our only guests.” I look at Jasper, remembering how happy I felt that day, finally getting to say that I’m married to Jasper without it being a lie.

Harper lets my hand go, clearing his throat. I know his feelings are hurt about not being there, but if he’d answered one of the many calls Jasper made to him, he could have been. Since he never answered, Jasper asked his mother not to tell Harper. Jasper loves his brother more than anything, but he’ll never let Harper get away with being an ass to his family. I hope Harper doesn’t think he’s the only one allowed to keep secrets.

After that awkward moment is out of the way, we all sit for lunch and catch up. Harper and Lauren spend most of the time playing with Iris, making her laugh over and over. I’m glad they are finally meeting. I don’t want Iris to go months or years without seeing Harper. I want them to have a great relationship. So far, so good.

We go through all the talking points, filling each other in on work, life, and in our case, parenthood. Jasper and I can’t stop babbling about Iris as she lays comfortably in my arms, breastfeeding. While everyone talks, I look down at her, caressing her chubby cheek. She has the best parts of Jasper and me in looks as well as attitude. She’s the perfect baby, though. I’m so blessed to be her mother.

As she becomes full, her little eyes begin to flutter as they close. She fights it for a bit before letting herself pass out.

“This little one is out again. She wanted to be a party animal last night, and now she’s paying the price. Is there somewhere I can lay her?”

Harper stands quickly, beating Lauren to it.

“Yeah, you can put her in the guest room. I’ll show you.”

I take the baby bag with me, following Harper, leaving Jasper and Lauren to their conversation about adjusting to the city. As we head down the hall, their voices fade away and silence takes over. Harper shows me to the guest room, and I lay Iris in the middle of the bed, brushing her wild hair from her face. When I straighten, Harper is staring at me from the door.

“You’re a natural at this.” He smiles, glancing down at Iris. “She’s beautiful. Jasper sent some pictures, but they don’t do her justice.”

“Jasper sent you pictures, and you still couldn’t call him or text?” Raising an eyebrow, I watch as the happiness in Harper’s face drains a little.

“It’s complicated. I needed time to get myself together. Putting some distance between all of us was the only way.”

“Jasper is your brother, for Christ's sake. Didn’t you learn anything the first time? Whatever happened between us has nothing to do with calling your brother to let him know you care. A relationship with your niece and brother is more important than our stupid love triangle.”

“I know. That’s why I called when I did. Lauren made me see that I was wrong for running away. She doesn’t even know the whole story, yet even she knows I’m wrong. I knew it was time to make things right between all of us.” He lets out a small chuckle, running his fingers through his hair.

I don’t say anything as he takes a step into the room.

“I owe you the biggest apology. I let my selfishness get in the way again. I promise I never meant to hurt you. I know that doesn’t mean much, but I really mean it, Eden. You didn’t deserve the things I said to you. I only said all that to somehow justify lying. I never meant to hide Lauren from anyone. She didn’t deserve to get caught in the crossfire. I like her so much, but I was scared that I’d never be able to let you go. So I lied and snuck around.”

“You should’ve just said all of that, Harper. I told you that I wanted you to be happy, but you heard what you chose to hear. Lauren is a good person, but I hate her because you made me hate her. She had no business being part of that conversation.”

Harper steps closer until he’s two or three feet away from me. His cologne hits my nose, urging me to take a deep breath.

“I know. She knows that too. We talked about it a lot when we got here. It wasn’t perfect at first. We barely knew each other, but we’re happy now.”

“I’m glad you’re happy. Tell Lauren that I have nothing against her. Just give me some time, okay?”

A smile creeps onto Harper’s mouth, and with another step, he closes the space between us.

“You know I’ll always love you, Eden. Nothing is ever going to change that.” When he reaches up to cup my face, I nearly melt.

“I love you too, Harper.”

The air thickens in the room as Harper’s brown eyes burn into mine. Those eyes held a part of my heart for many years, and now he’s moving on. It stings, but I’m glad he has someone special.

Placing my hand on his face, I lean in and kiss him. His whole body stiffens before relaxing. The kiss is sweet, loving, and the closure both of us need.

I pull away first, a bittersweet sadness rushing over both of us as we look at one another.

“Why did that feel like goodbye?” He runs his fingers over his lips.

“It’ll never be goodbye, Harper.”

*The End*