Epilogue

Epilogue
The sun was high in the sky, filtering through the tree canopy above and dappling the clearing in the woods with soft light. The sounds of early summer hummed in the air as I settled myself on the large picnic blanket and began unpacking out picnic lunch.

I looked up to the sound of screeches of glee and giggles to see Grimm chasing a little boy with shaggy, dark hair, while a little girl with bouncing dark curls dangled from his shoulder.

My heart soared with love, watching my mate play with our toddlers in our favorite spot.

“Why couldn’t we have had lunch at the pack house?” Amy complained as she settled next to me on the blanket with a huff, rubbing a hand over her swollen belly, “I’m too big to keep waddling through the woods.”

I rolled my eyes, “I had twins. I was a blimp. You can’t seriously be complaining to me about being pregnant with one pup.”

“That was almost three years ago, Cam. Get over it,” she teased.

Grimm and Ryder came to join us with the twins, Asher and Ivy.

“When do we get to see your pup, auntie Amy?” Ivy asked, her little hands lightly pressing against Amy’s belly.

“Hopefully very soon,” Amy said.

“But not too soon,” Ryder added.

“Mama, I’m hungry,” Asher whined as he plopped down next to me on the blanket.

“Me too. Do you want to share a ham sandwich with me?” I asked, pushing back the mop of hair from his forehead.

“I hope you’re saving some for us,” Declan called as he and Seraphina approached, hand in hand, carrying a small picnic basket of their own.

Our group soon settled in, enjoying lunch and chatting, being amused by Ryder using Amy’s belly as a table while she played back, taking turns playing tag with the kids who seemed to have endless energy to run and play.

Our lives over the past few years had been filled with nothing I expected and I loved every moment of it. The twins kept Grimm and me busier than I ever imagined, but our little family of Amy, Ryder, Declan, Seraphina, and even Father Sean helped us so much.

Declan insisted on taking more and more responsibility from Grimm during my pregnancy and the first few months of the twins lives, so Grimm could spend as much daddy time as possible. Amy helped me start classes and groups for expecting and new moms in the pack and even took over teaching classes about newborn pup care and safety which were very well received.

The twins thought of Father Sean as a grandfather. He had decided to split his time between Ireland and the pack, and the kids were always spoiled with toys and treats when he returned from overseas twice a year. He delighted them with his dramatic readings of werewolf lore and pack history.

Although it was still very early, Ivy was already starting to show signs of the goddess’ blessing. She was the sweetest little she-pup, making the entire pack fall in love with her with a flutter of her sparkling green eyes. Grimm and I had noticed on more than one occasion that Ivy seemed to have a knack for soothing pain and heartache.

Once, just after the twins second birthday, I was speaking with an elderly pack member who was having a tough time after the loss of her mate. The heartache and pain in her eyes and etched on her face made me want to cry for the woman. Little Ivy reached out her chubby hands, indicating she wanted the woman to hold her. Although I insisted she didn’t need to, the woman gladly took Ivy on her lap. Ivy raised a chubby toddler finger to the woman’s cheek and I saw the pain fade away from her eyes instantly. Her grief lightened and she began to smile at my little girl. Another time, Asher had been stung by a bee. He was sobbing until his sister placed a gently kiss on the sting, declaring his boo-boo all better. Minutes later, Asher was back to playing like the incident never happened.

Father Sean had been researching different goddess gifts that have been discovered over the centuries and believed Ivy was gifted to be a healer.

My reverie of my babies lives was interrupted by Amy groaning dramatically as she pushed herself up into a sitting position.

“You’re really making me excited about being pregnant again,” I said sarcastically.

“You’re pregnant again?” Seraphina asked, drawing everyone’s eyes to Grimm and me.

I blushed under their scrutiny but couldn’t hide my smile.

“We were going to wait a little longer to announce it,” Grimm said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Guess the wolf’s out of the bag now.”

“Oh my goddess! Are you really?” Amy said, grabbing my hand.

I nodded, “Number three will be making his appearance at the end of September!”

The conversation turned to congratulations, cheers of excitement, jokes about Amy’s girl and our expected little boy being fated mates in the future.

“Well, unfortunately since hybrid pregnancies last longer than full werewolf pregnancies, ours isn’t going to arrive until closer to Halloween,” Seraphina said with a grin.

“WHAT?” Amy and I shouted together. This news was unexpected, given how many times Declan and Sera told us they were in no hurry to start a family if they even decided to have a baby.

Declan wrapped an arm around Seraphina, his hand resting protectively over her belly.

“Surprise,” He said.

“I can’t believe this! How long have you known?” I asked, still shocked.

“Two months,” Sera confessed, looking guilty.

I leaped forward, nearly tackling Declan with my hug, “I’m so happy for the two of you,” I said.

“Cam, you’re strangling me,” Declan teased. I gave him an eyeroll as I released my grip and gave Seraphina a gentler hug.

“Well,” Grimm said, his arm curling around my waist, pulling me to his side, “We’re all going to have quite an eventful year ahead of us.”

We were and I couldn’t wait for every moment of it.