Chapter 69 Dakota's Birthday
Anushka's P.O.V.
As we pull up to the enormous mansion, Dakota and the other kids squeal with excitement. Noah even laughs when he sees the giant fire-breathing dragon. It's a large blow-up. I don't even know where they found something that size.
As we get out of the SUV, my dad and brothers are waiting for us. They all hold open their jackets to show they don't have guns. Dakota runs over to them and jumps into my dad's arms.
"You got me a real dragon!" she says excitedly. He kisses her cheek and laughs.
"Of course we did." We all turn when another car pulls up. Yurkov takes a deep breath and walks toward it. I see a beautiful woman with dark brown hair get out before helping a little boy who looks like my brother out of the back. Dakota has my dad put her down, and she walks over to them.
"I'm Dakota. Are you Corrine and Luka?" she asks them. Luka looks at her shyly while Corrine smiles.
"Yes, we are. Thank you for letting us come to your birthday party." Corrine says. Dakota smiles and looks at my brother.
"You're welcome. Well, Uncle Yorkie, you talk about them all the time. Are you at least going to give them a hug?" She raises her eyebrows, and Yurkov and Corrine both turn a little red. They look at each other nervously before silently making the decision to hug. I think they meant for it to be quick, but when Yurkov pulls her into his arms, Corrine doesn't look like she wants to let go.
"That's better. Now hug Luka, and then we can go inside." Dakota turns and walks back to us as Yurkov picks up his son with tears in his eyes. Jordan and I walk over to them.
"It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Anushka, and this is my fiancé, Jordan." I hold my hand out to Corrine, and she smiles.
"It's so nice to meet you. Yurkov has told me a lot about all of you. I don't think anything would have prepared me for Dakota, though. She's not like any other child I have ever met." We all look at Dakota as she speaks softly to Noah.
"Yeah, sometimes she forgets she's five and not twenty-five," I tell her as we all head inside. I thought the dragon outside was bad enough, but from what I can see, the entire downstairs of the mansion is filled with dragons and fairies. I look at my dad in disbelief.
"Seriously? She said she likes dragons and fairies, but you don't think this is over the top?" I ask him. He shrugs as the kids walk around, looking at everything. Dakota is now holding Noah's and Luka's hands. It didn't take her cousin long to fall under her spell.
"What can I say? We wanted to make it special." My brothers laugh as my dad quickly follows the kids. I look at Corrine.
"Please tell me they'll calm down eventually. Ever since they found out about us, they've been a little over the top with everything." She laughs and hooks her arm with mine. I like her already.
"Sorry, but these guys don't seem to know any other way.” As we follow the others, I realize the dragons and fairies are making a trail to an enormous dining room. I freeze when I see who's sitting at the table. It's Santino. Corrine freezes, too.
"Sandy. What are you doing here?" Dakota asks, running over to him. He lifts her and kisses her cheek.
"Your grandpa said I could come to your birthday party. Is that okay?" Corrine looks at me with wide eyes.
"Did Dakota call him Sandy?" she whispers. I smile and nod.
"Yes. She has nicknames for all of them. She calls my dad Chrissy." We both burst out laughing.
"It's okay," Dakota says, hugging him. My dad and brothers don't look entirely comfortable having him here, but they would do anything for Dakota. The table is filled with dozens of presents. There's also an enormous cake with a fire-breathing dragon on top and fairies all over it.
We all sit down to the lunch Dakota requested for her birthday: cheese pizza. After we're done, we eat cake and ice cream before Dakota begins opening her presents. She has never had a real birthday party, and everyone is making this one as special as possible for her.
"This was the best birthday ever," Dakota says, running around hugging everyone. Her favorite present is a gorgeous blue dress that my dad had made for her. It's a little big, but he said she would fit into it soon. He figured she would need it for something special one day. I spent some time alone talking to Corrine, and she said she could see a big change in all the men. So much so that she's going to tell Yurkov that she'll give him another chance.
By the time we're leaving, everyone is exhausted. The kids fall asleep on the way home, except for Dakota. She's so excited she doesn't stop talking. We have another surprise for her when we get home. Everyone comes up to our place where Bill is waiting with a smile when we walk in.
"What are you doing here?" Dakota asks, running over to him. Bill squats down and hugs her.
"I've been waiting to show you something. Are you ready?" He asks.
"Yes." Dakota takes his hand, and we follow them to her room. He has an enormous bow on her door.
"What's this?" she asks.
"Open the door and see what's inside," Bill says. Dakota turns the nob and squeals as she runs inside. Not only did he finish the walls, but he also put her new furniture in the room. It's exactly what she wanted.
One corner is filled with flowers and greenery on the walls and ceiling, with tiny fairies painted throughout the trees and flowers. In another corner, there's a summer beach scene, with Dakota, me, and Jordan holding hands on the beach. The winter corner is filled with snow-covered trees and an ice skating pond. There are sparkles everywhere, making it look like it's shimmering. A giant dragon sits in the middle of a forest in the autumn corner, and the tree branches reach out to touch the bookshelves built into the wall. Dakota's new bed looks like it came out of a fairy tale. The legs and headboard look like ivy, and the bedding is a gorgeous white and green. Her dresser and nightstand match.
"What do you think?" Bill asks her. Dakota twirls around in the center of the room, giggling.
"I love it!" she says excitedly.
"You did an amazing job," I tell Bill. Everyone walks around her room, looking at everything in amazement. I can guarantee no one has ever had a room like this one. Jordan and I stay by the door, smiling.
Today has been a perfect day filled with family, love, and happiness. We needed this after everything we've been through. I can't wait to see where we all go from here.