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When she pulled back, she held the baby up toward me. "Would you like to hold your new daughter, Mikaela Deanna Marshall?"
"Deanna?"
"That pays homage to Dean, who drove like an old lady to get me here, but he got me here safe and sound."
I laughed and then took Mikaela Deanna Marshall into my arms.
My eyes welled with tears as I looked at the beautiful being in my arms. I glanced at Betts. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. For what?"
"For giving me the chance to be a better man. To have love. To have a family."
This time, her eyes welled with tears. "Thank you for giving all that to me as well."
We had to be quite a sight. The two of us crying over a brand-new baby. I suppose the nurses had seen it before, but I doubted anybody had ever felt such an overwhelming intensity of love as I felt at this moment. And the best thing was, I had the rest of my life to love this woman, and Dean and Mikaela and any other children we might have. I was the luckiest man in the world.
EPILOGUE
Todd
Sun, surf, sand, and family. Was there anything better?
I sat in my lounge chair, watching as the waves came in. Dean dropped his skim board onto the sand and water, hopping on and gliding across the beach. It looked like fun, but I discovered that looks were deceiving. When I made an attempt to skim board, I was reminded that I was a fifty-year-old man. I landed hard in the sand and still had abrasions from it.
I turned to the right where Betts was reclining on a lounge chair. She was slathered in sunscreen and wore a hat while she sat under the umbrella. I didn't blame her. With all her gorgeous red hair and fair skin, she was sensitive to the sun. Her eyes were closed, and so I took a moment to admire her beauty.
To look at her, no one would guess that four months ago, she’d given birth. Her tits were still a bit larger from nursing, but her stomach was flat and her hips were round. I loved playing on the beach, but I eagerly awaited bedtime when I could run my hands over her sublime body.
I settled into my chair, also underneath the umbrella, and kissed the top of baby Mikaela’s head which lay against my chest. She was sleeping soundly, cuddled up against me. Sometimes, it was still amazing to me how I had gotten so lucky to have all these beautiful people in my life.
Life was a bit of a whirlwind after Mikaela's birth. When she was two weeks old, I was finally able to relinquish control of the company to a new CEO. I continued to work with Dean and the Buckaroos on the Junior League hockey event. First, we had to get through the season and the playoffs. For the second year in the row, the Silver Nuggets won their division, and I used the money from the bet with Levi to purchase this small island in the Caribbean.
The charity event was a big hit. Our junior hockey team kicked the opposing team’s butt, but the Buckaroos, for the first time in over a year, beat the Silver Nuggets. Since it was all for charity, I didn't mind losing.
Once the event was over, I packed us up and brought us to the island with the intention of staying here until school started. Betts wondered if that was a good idea, since Dean would be away from his friends. Dean didn't complain, but we made arrangements to have his friends come visit a few times during the summer.
The sound of a boat took my attention away from my family. In the distance, a boat approached the main dock.
"Is that them?" Betts asked next to me.
"I imagine it is." I rose from the chair, adjusting Mikaela and then reaching down to help Betts up.
"Dean," I called out.
Dean picked up his skim board and trotted back toward us.
"Our guests are here."
He looked over toward the dock and then tossed his skim board on his towel.
As a family, we walked to the dock where we greeted Reed and Analyn, Pierce and Naomi, and Bo and Ruby with all their children in tow. They had also brought with them Dean’s friend, David. The two of them high-fived and then ran back to the house so David could change and they could skim board.
"Welcome," I greeted our guests.
“This is lovely,” Analyn said, hugging Betts and then taking a peek at Mikaela.
“It’s not bad,” Betts agreed.
