“I’m ready for more kids whenever you are. I know you wanna finish your degree before we even talk about more kids though. I don’t blame you and will wait as long as you want. Though, it would be nice to have a little girl who looks just like you,” he says, completely serious about having another baby.
“I want that more than anything, Axel. It was just so hard to go to school when I was pregnant with Leo. I don’t want to do that again in case I have the same problems as before throughout the pregnancy. We’re both still young enough to wait a few years before we have another baby. Plus, it will give us time to spend with Leo and him alone,” I say, looking down at our son as he cuddles against my chest fast asleep.
“Okay. When are they gonna start work at the ranch?”
“Next week. They’re obtaining the last of the permits they need to start the buildings and finalizing all the plans so I can approve them before they break ground. It’s going to take the longest to build the indoor arena so they’ll start with that. Once that’s mainly finished, they’ll start the other buildings on the plans. Eventually, I’d like to go through the house and renovate it. Make it more modern and updated. It hasn’t been touched in years. I want it to be a place our kids can call their own when they grow up,” I tell him as Leo stirs in my arms and Axel pulls out a bottle from the inside of his cut and hands it over.
“I knew he’d be wakin’ up soon to eat. Once you feed him, I’ll take him in for a diaper change and tummy time before he goes back to sleep,” Axel says, watching as I feed our son.
Axel doesn’t just anticipate my needs, he’s always one step ahead when it comes to Leo. He’ll be awake in bed minutes before our son wakes up during the night. Axel has no problem preparing bottles, changing Leo’s diaper, and sitting up with him on the nights our son decides that’s when he should be awake. Axel lets me sleep for school the next day and rarely gets me up to help unless Leo is sick and he’s worried he’s not doing something right. He’s such an amazing dad and I couldn’t have chosen a better man for the father of my children and my husband. Every single one of my dreams over the years pales in comparison to the reality of life with Axel.
Once Leo is fed and back inside with Axel, I get back to work on studying and preparing for an upcoming test. I’ve gotten my bachelor’s degree and have started my higher education to become a veterinarian. The classes are harder but I love them. Every test, late night study session, and class I sit through is doing nothing except preparing me for the dream I often thought wouldn’t become a reality. Since I was a little girl, I knew I wanted to help animals. They’re almostdefenseless when they’re hurt or sick and need more empathy and help than humans who can verbally express what’s wrong with them. Animals don’t have the ability to tell us what’s wrong and it breaks my heart to know they struggle and don’t get the help they need unless they’re in a loving home. My dad never discouraged me or got upset when I’d bring a random animal home that was sick or injured. If anything, he paid thousands of dollars over the years in my quest to help them. One of the many reasons I love the man who gave me life and raised me as a single dad my entire life.
After studying and enjoying the warmth of the day outside, I head inside in time to find Axel starting to make dinner. Like most nights we’re both home, we prepare our food together. Music plays softly from one of our phones as we work together in the kitchen. Every now and then he’ll grab me and we dance together. I love this man more with every passing day and can’t believe I’m lucky enough to call him mine. As usual, we eat our dinner and then spend the rest of the night together with no distractions.
Epilogue
Tease
Six years later
LIFE IS FUCKING perfect. Honestly, I couldn’t be happier than I am right now in my life. I’m sitting at the clubhouse with everyone as we wait for dinner to be ready. We all gather here for a huge family dinner at least once a week. Mainly on the weekends so we can all slow down and catch up with one another. The kids love hanging out with all of us there and it’s amazing to watch the boys be so protective of the girls in our families. They’re already taking after the rest of us and it’s a sight I’m sure our own parents loved watching. Mr. Russell and Shelly spend every family day at the clubhouse with us as well. The Dirty Slayers family has certainly grown over the years and I couldn’t be more proud of each and every person I’m lucky enough to consider my family in this club.
Sheridan graduated with honors two years ago and we had the biggest party for her. Her dream has become a reality and the ranch is thriving already. Not just the ranch, but her veterinary practice is also doing better than she thought it would already. My wife spends eight hours a day doing what she loves and working with animals. She’s gone from home for at least ten hours a day though because she spends two hours at the ranch catching up with everyone and ensuring things are running smoothly. Eric is officially the head of the ranch hands and goes through Sheridan for everything. The two of themwork amazingly well together and I fully believe he’s one of the reasons the ranch is doing so well. Sheridan does as well. Shelly also turns to him when she has questions about anything and Eric takes his time to explain things to her in ways she can understand. He’s like that with everyone on the ranch.
Over the last two years, Eric has truly come out of his shell and we’ve all witnessed a side of him we never thought we’d see. His confidence has gone through the roof and he truly enjoys splitting his time between the club and ranch. He’s a full patch member now and was given the road name Wrangler because of all the work he does with the animals. I also believe he has something going on with Shelly because they spend a lot of time together. He has a calmness to him that rubs off on her and she makes him live a little wilder than he typically does. They balance one another out perfectly.
Leo is thriving and we just celebrated his sixth birthday. He’s a mama’s boy for sure and follows her around like a little shadow. If he could get away with being on the ranch every day, that’s where he’d spend all of his time. Our son is the best boy and always helps everyone around him. He spends hours with his grandpa in the garage learning about vehicles and rides the small minibike Knuckles got him all over the compound. He’ll definitely have his first bike by the time he’s sixteen. However, he’s a little troublemaker. We get at least a call a week from school because he’s gotten into a fight. Most often it’s because he’s defending someone smaller than himself from bullies. I’m not about to punish my son for sticking up for those who can’t do it themselves. Shelly always laughs when Sheridan gets the call while my wife shakes her head in exasperation.
We all talk to Leo about doing something different than fighting, but our words seem to fall on deaf ears when it comes to him. So, we’ve made the decision to enroll him in martial artsclasses so he can learn discipline and hear from someone else there are other ways to handle situations. I’m sure he’ll also play football when he’s old enough because it’s one of his favorite sports to play with the boys when they’re all together. My son already has such a personality and I can’t wait until he gets even older and channels everything he feels into better ways to handle each situation he finds himself in.
After graduating, Sheridan gave me a daughter. We named her River Moon and she’s two and a half now. She’s the spitting image of her mama but is my girl. While Leo follows his mom around like a shadow, River is definitely my shadow. No matter where I am or what I’m doing, she wants to be with me. I don’t have a problem with it at all. River entered the world in the middle of a storm and was calm and sweet. She rarely cried as a baby and gives everyone in her world nothing but love. The only problem we have with her is that she hates wearing clothes. If she could run around in her pull-up and nothing else all day long, she’d be the happiest little girl in the world. However, we don’t allow her to do that. My girl needs to be covered completely at all times. When I’m not home or I’m busy, she follows the boys around. Leo doesn’t ever push his baby sister away and encourages her to go with him and the others every single day. That’s how all the boys are with the girls. No one is left out or made to feel as if they don’t belong.
Slayer’s Pit is thriving and Sheridan is a regular there. Not so much when we’re open and the girls are dancing, but before and after open and close she’ll show up to spend time with the girls. They’ve accepted her into the fold and have even taught her how to pole dance. I enjoy those lessons and watching my ol’ lady learn something new. She loves it and says it’s more of an exercise than anything else. With Jess gone from the club, the girls are happier and accept everyone new into thefold without hesitation. There’s no drama or jealousy between the dancers. If a problem arises, they take care of it amongst themselves and only tell me about it if I’m needed. For the first time in a very long time, I actually love my job and don’t have to spend countless hours there doing nothing but playing referee. I’ve been able to make changes to improve the place including adding a kitchen and food menu.
“Dada, I hungry,” River says, her sweet, soft voice washing over me and pulling me from my thoughts.
“I know, Baby. They’re almost done cookin’ and then we can eat. You want another drink?” I ask her, knowing I spoil her like crazy.
“Please,” she says just as Knuckles walks over with a cup of juice for her. Yeah, he might spoil my daughter worse than I do. “Unca!”
Leo and River see Knuckles and Janessa as their aunt and uncle instead of cousins. None of us bother correcting them when they call them aunt and uncle. Their kids call Sheridan and myself aunt and uncle as well. We’re all one large family and most of the kids call us aunt and uncle. It’s a role I’m proud to have and one I won’t ever take for granted.
“There’s my girl. Why you sittin’ here with your daddy and not playin’ with the kids?” Knuckles asks her as River snuggles deeper into my chest and wraps her arms around me.
“She’s tired. Missed her nap before we came over here. She was playin’ with Leo, Kaden, and Alexis. Sheridan tried to get her to lay down with her, but River refused. You know she loves playin’ with the other kids as the baby of our large family,” I tell him as Leo and Kaden rush up to us. Yeah, they’ll be best friends for sure as they get older.
“Miss River, ya gotta take a nap when you’re tired, Baby Girl,” Knuckles says, running his hand down her back as she looks up at him with a smile.
“Sissy, I’ll lay down with you,” Leo says, hugging his sister and me before Kaden does the same thing.
River shakes her head no and just holds me tighter. When she’s tired or sick, my girl rarely goes to anyone but me. Sheridan can’t even take her from me. She’ll cry and scream until she’s back in my arms. It’s literally the only time she does cry these days.
Knuckles sits down with me at the table as the boys run off to find the other kids and my dad and Mr. Russell make their way over to us. River doesn’t pay attention to either of them as she plays with the sleeve of my tee-shirt and remains cuddled up close to me. My dad presses a kiss to the top of her head while Mr. Russell rubs her back for a minute.
“She’s a tired girl today,” my dad comments with a smile on his face. River tries so hard to stay awake when we’re at the clubhouse because she doesn’t want to miss out on anything happening around her.
“I was just tellin’ Knuckles she missed her nap because Kaden and Alexis were over and she was playin’ with them and Leo. She’ll eat a little bit and then go to sleep. Unless she falls asleep before dinner is ready. We’ll make sure to save her a plate of food and dessert so she doesn’t miss out. It won’t be the first time she sleeps through dinner,” I say as River’s eyes flutter closed before opening again. Yeah, my girl isn’t gonna make it to dinner today. She’ll be asleep in a matter of minutes.
