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“Late afternoon tomorrow,” he said with a grin.

“What will you tell them about your injury?” Maksim asked with a snigger.

“I will lie through my teeth,” Rurik said.

I shook my head to watch our children. Alexei gently inspected Liliya’s tiny hand while Tatiana stroked her fine, downy hair. Orla glanced up at me with a smile.

“She is beautiful like her mam,” she said softly.

She didn't know it yet, but she would be her godmother. The twins had their uncle Akim, while Liliya would have Maksim and Artyom as her godfathers.

“I’m next,” Maksim said adamantly.

“Be quick because it will be her feed time shortly,” Rurik said, and my smile vanished.

“She doesn't have a routine yet,” I said with a frown.

“No, but you need to rest,” he said, and I relaxed. “You’ve traumatised me enough,” he muttered.

I was tempted to moo at him but held back since our bedroom was full. I lay back to sip my hot cocoa and watch all the people I loved with our children. This pregnancy and birth was completely different from my first one. Rurik kept all of his promises and treated me like a Hucow queen.

???

The room was silent except for the noises Liliya made while she fed. The lights were dimmed, everyone had left, and Rurik lay beside me watching our daughter. Her tiny rosebud mouth suckled on me, and my heart ached, remembering when the twins were this small.

“This is what I needed,” Rurik said quietly. “To see how it all began with our son and daughter.”

“You did kind of have a breakdown when your dick did the job,” I whispered, reaching out for his hand.

“Never again,” he said stiffly.

“What happened to breeding season?” I said with a chuckle.

“Oh, that’s still on, but I won't let you use my dick the way you did.”

“Sure, you won’t,” I said, rolling my eyes. “I think she is falling asleep.”

Rurik moved to take her from me, placing her on his chest to burp her.

“I can't believe how tiny she is,” he said, rubbing her back. “She will grow up too quickly.”

I watched his massive hand rub over her white and polka-dot cotton onesie. The size difference was immense. He held her out for me to kiss her before he did the same and placed her in the basket. Once he covered her with the blanket, he gazed at her for a seemingly long time before placing the canopy cover down.

“Do you need anything?” he asked.

I shook my head. We were both tired, so I patted the bed, and he climbed in, leaving Liliya on his side. He switched the lamp off and held me. My eyes began to droop immediately, and my last thought was that fate wasn't my enemy after all.

Epilogue

Rurik

Three Years Later

Our bedtime stories were always read in our bedroom. It was a ritual we had to bind together before we slept. I held our son Lev while Mariya read to the children. The twins were over having another sibling, but Liliya was fascinated with Lev, much like Tatiana had been with her.

I watched the five-year-olds and three-year-old giggle when Mariya acted out the various voices from the book. I stared at my dark-haired son, who looked to have Mariya’s eyes. The peace my family gave me was priceless. All these moments became memories for everyone involved.

The countless travels I once did for my company were now leisure trips with my family. Mariya kept her dreams and travel list of countries she wanted to visit, adding more as time passed. We still made time for our milking room since we had two nannies now. Four children for Orla to care for while we vanished was too much.