“One!”
“Happy New Year, Mrs. Sheridan,” I whisper against her lips.
“Happy New Year to the best dad in the world!”
When we kiss this time, there is wild cheering from our friends and family. Mya and Kai whoop and rush up to us with hugs.
Everyone toasts to us, revisiting the fact that last year we were very much caught off guard after being hypnotized and married. I feel like a human boomerang in the best possible way.
Later, after the guests have gone home and the kids are finally asleep (it took a while since they were hyped up on sugar and excitement), Nina and I sit on our front porch swing, wrapped in a blanket, watching the last of the New Year’s fireworks fade over Cobbiton as the late-night revelry continues.
“It’s been an eventful year,” she says.
Now knowing we have twins on the way, I add, “And I doubt that’s going to stop anytime soon.”
I think about the stranger with gray eyes who spontaneously danced with me at a Las Vegas party. About the hypnotist who took a risk and married us. About the journey from that stage to this moment, surrounded by our own version of family.
Surfacing from my thoughts, I say, “Eventful and better than I could’ve imagined.”
“Even after the holiday break ends and we have to get back to the routine of packing school lunches?”
“And managing the bakery.”
“And two kids who will undoubtedly find new and creative ways to keep us on our toes.”
“And hockey games to win.”
“Soon there will be a nursery to prepare and baby names to pick and all the wonderful mayhem that comes with expanding our family.”
“But tonight, Mrs. Sheridan, is all ours.”
I catch the light reflecting off Nina’s engagement ring—grateful for her yes as she snuggles up in my arms. Snow begins to dust our small town and I’m certain this is the very best kind of happily ever after.
The kind that started with a dance and is growing into forever.
The kind we had to be brave enough to rise up and claim.
The kind that proves sometimes the most impossible things are worth saying yes to.
EPILOGUE 2
KAI
Mrs. Kimball’s class,5th-grade end-of-year assignment:Write about something you’re an expert at.
A Prankster’sGuide to Family Life
By Kai Sheridan
People thinkpranks are about being mean or getting in trouble, but they’re wrong. Pranks are actually about making people laugh and building trust. If you do them right, they can help create the best family ever.
Here iswhat I’ve learned:
Rule #1: Start small and harmless. When Uncle Lane first became my dad (it’s complicated), I put plastic wrap over the toilet seat. This told me two important things: 1) He cleaned it up without yelling, and 2) He actually laughed a little. That’s when I knew he might be a keeper.
Rule #2: Make sure your partner-in-crime is trustworthy. My twin sister, Mya, is the bestaccomplice because she thinks three steps ahead and always brings snacks. When we locked Mom and Dad in the bakery office, Mya had stashed “emergency cookies” in the desk drawer in case they gothangry. That’s professional-level planning.
Rule #3: Pranks should bring people together. The best pranks make adults work as a team. Like when we rearranged the contents of the entire kitchen so Mom and Dad had to cooperate just to find the coffee mugs. By the end, they were laughing and talking again instead of being weird and awkward.
