Which was, for clarity’s sake, forever.
Epilogue
IRINA
Sometimes when formerDimefront band manager, Brek, had staffing issues, he’d have the guys help him out behind the bar at Brek’s Bar. The guys loved it, and the customers loved it even more.
Since Knox and Irina had finished the award show circuit and were looking for something a little lower-key, they agreed to close out the bar tonight. Everyone else had cleared out. It was a Tuesday, so not totally unexpected.
“What are you thinking about?” Knox asked, drying another glass before putting it away on the shelf.
The man could play keyboard, guitar, sing like Bryan Adams, deliver babies on airplanes, wear a tuxedo like nobody’s business,andtend bar. She’d begun to think there was nothing he couldn’t do.
“I’ve been thinking about a lot of things,” she said. “Maybe we should talk about kids and where they fit in our future?”
It’s true, mostly these days, Irina had been thinking about babies. Not because it was the cliche next step in their forever, but because she discovered she actually enjoyed them. Babies, that is. Spending time with Harley showed her that being an aunt was awesome, but being a mom might not suck.
“You’ve been thinking about kids?” he asked, leaning over the bar to press a kiss against her mouth.
“Mmm-hmmm,” she said, letting him linger.
“I’ve been thinking about kids,” he said, pulling back.
“Serious?” she asked.
He nodded, with a little wink of a grin. “If you want them. I want them.”
She let out a breath through her nose. “I do want them. Maybe one, at least. Two if labor doesn’t totally wreck my ability to laugh without peeing myself.”
“That sounds reasonable.” He strode around the bar and pulled her to stand.
The jukebox played some old country song, and he danced with her, stroking her hair. “One, maybe two. I get to deliver them.”
She laughed. “As long as it’s in a hospital where there are medical professionals nearby who didn’t learn everything they know online, then I’m good with that.”
“Then it’s decided.”
“You know what else is decided?” she asked, glancing up.
“What?” He turned her, then moved her back into his arms.
“I’m putting in my order for an epidural now before we even get to the fun part of the plan.” She wiggled her eyebrows.
“You’re not even going to let me explain what a cascade of interventions is, are you?” he asked.
Probably not. “Will you use whatever that is to try to talk me out of doing labor without feeling it?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“Then I don’t want to hear about it.” She really, really didn’t.
“Yet.” He dipped her. “You don’t want to hear about it, yet.”
“Maybe we do the fun stuff first, then we get to the nitty gritty.”
“One other thing before we seal the agreement,” he said, moving her with him.
“Yeah? What’s that.”
