Page 225 of The Compass Series

EPILOGUE

HAILEE

THREE YEARS LATER

“ K ennedy and Aaliyah, we need both of your input quick. Stella and Hailee can’t be involved because they will be biased.

” Aiden hopped off the tree stump he was sitting on and hurried over to the front yard where us women were hanging out with all the kids.

The three girls were giving me notes on what to expect when expecting, seeing how I had a bundle of my own on the way.

Damian followed his brother, walking in our direction.

The two men stood next to one another, Aiden towering over Damian with a few inches.

They crossed their arms in sync and wiggled their noses at the same time.

Their blue eyes matched the sea at dawn, and they cleared their throats in harmony.

They were brothers, all right. No getting around that.

Discovering their matching mannerisms was one of mine and Stella’s favorite pastimes.

“We’ve been going back and forth all morning about this, and we need your vote,” Damian explained.

Kennedy raised an eyebrow. “What’s the question?”

“Who’s better looking, Damian or me?” Aiden asked.

“That’s not fair, Aiden was Aaliyah’s hall pass,” Damian chimed in. “You already know who she’s going to pick. This isn’t a fair study.”

Aaliyah frowned. “You know what…the more I hang out with him, the cornier he becomes and now he feels like a little brother, so the thought of it is…” She shivered in disgust.

I smirked. “This is why they say you shouldn’t meet your idols. You always end up disappointed.”

“So you’re saying I’m the more attractive brother?” Damian asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Actually, you’re both equally hideous,” Kennedy remarked.

“Yeah, it’s like God took his paintbrush, dipped it in black ink and instead of making a masterpiece, he drew two stick figures and went ‘meh that will do,’” Aaliyah added in.

“Exactly! Like he got lazy the day you two were created,” Kennedy agreed.

Aiden pouted. “Jax and Connor, your wives are bullies.”

“Don’t ask silly questions unless you want sassy answers,” Jax hollered as he and Connor sat with fishing rods at the back of the property. We were right on Lake Michigan, celebrating the Fourth of July.

We’d been working on our dream property for a while in Leeks.

When I brought up the idea of building our home, Aiden was too excited about it.

He still had one final Superman movie to complete with his contract, but then he’d be back on his way to moving to Leeks full time with me and our bundle of joy that was on the way.

The movies had all been great successes, which wasn’t shocking. Aiden was remarkable at everything he’d done. But his passion for acting wasn’t there, and it never had been. Once he let his father go from his life, he felt as if he, too, could let go of the dream that was never his to begin with.

He went to college. He was still trying to figure out exactly what he wanted to do, what he wanted to be, but I loved the joy that it brought him—the possibilities.

The world probably thought he was insane for giving up his acting career that was filled with success, but that was never his dream.

It was Samuel’s. I could see the joy in Aiden’s eyes as he talked about the possibilities of our new future that we were building from the ground up.

As nightfall grew upon us, Mama, Dad, and Laurie came over for our cookout.

Later, Kate and Henry showed up, too. Even Mr. Lee came through for a plate of barbecue and some fireworks over the lakefront.

Mr. Lee also brought his son, Lin, who’d moved into town not that long ago.

He seemed to be making Laurie laugh harder than I’d ever seen her laugh before.

My romance novel loving heart was strongly hoping that there could’ve possibly been a love connection there.

Laurie deserved a happily ever after, and the way Lin was making her smile made me think that perhaps he could lead her down that road.

Aiden and I were surrounded by love, and everything felt right in the world.

I couldn’t wait for our kids to be running around with their cousins on the lake when they’d come visit in the summers.

Damian said he’d only come during summertime because winters in Wisconsin were made for insane people. Fair enough.

We were lucky the builders even allowed us to have a small gathering while it was still in the process of becoming our forever home, but fireworks over the lakefront in Wisconsin were unmatched.

The house was nowhere near done. We only had the foundation up.

The bones were there, it was just time to add the meat to it all.

We still had to have the insulation put in, along with the walls, the roof, and the brick stones.

I wasn’t too concerned with how much time it would take.

We had a solid foundation, Aiden and I. Everything else would come into place right as it was meant to be.

As the fireworks began, everyone rushed over to the water to watch them explode in color. All but Aiden and me.

He took my hand and walked me into our home.

He led me to what would one day be our living room where we’d make a million memories together with our children.

We laid down on the floor and looked toward the sky, since there was no roof blocking our viewpoint just yet.

As the sky exploded in color, my heart burst with a level of joy I never thought I’d experience.

Aiden took my hand into his. “Look at the stars, Hails,” he whispered, pointing up to the sky.

I tilted my head toward him and smiled. My Tom. My lover. My very best friend. “Yes,” I said, snuggling against him, feeling his warmth, feeling his love. “Look at the stars.”

Aiden

Four Years Later

“Daddy! Look! It’s Mommy’s turn!” DJ said, pointing to the stage.

DJ was short for Damian Junior—named after the brother who came into my life and showed me what it meant to be family.

I felt as if I’d been cheated out of having Damian in my life for so many years, but he told me that we had the rest of our lives to annoy the living hell out of each other, so that felt promising.

“Yeah, look at her go!” I said, pointing to the stage with my left hand as I held baby Luna in my arms. She was only four months old, and in a deep sleep, even with all the noise surrounding us in the auditorium.

I glanced down at the seats that were filled beside DJ and me with all our family members.

Damian, Connor, Jax and their crews all came out for the celebration.

Along with Kate, Mr. Lee, my mom, and Hailee’s parents.

We were a lively bunch, and Hailee’s biggest fans.

“Doctor Hailee Jones-Walters,” was called out by the speaker. Our three rows of individuals began to cheer as loud as we could as Hailee walked across the stage to get her Psy.D degree. After years and years of hard work, she’d collected her Doctor of Psychology degree.

The smile on her face as she collected her degree said it all. When she turned toward us, she held the diploma in the air and grinned ear to ear.

“ILY,” I mouthed to her.

“ILYT,” she mouthed back.

My eyes grew misty as I stared up at the love of my life.

Even when the stars didn’t align for us, we created our own galaxy.

Our own happily ever after. Hailee Jones was a remarkable being.

She was the perfect partner, the perfect mother, and the perfect friend.

On top of that all, she was now a doctor who was going to save the lives of so many individuals—the same way she saved mine.

I could say with confidence that my life wouldn’t be as great as it was without that strong woman by my side.

She was there when I got my degrees in illustration and animation.

It turned out, I still wanted to be in the entertainment field, but not in the form of acting.

I returned to my love of drawing and illustration, which opened a wave of possibilities for me.

Hailee was my biggest cheerleader throughout my search for myself.

She was the brightest star in my life. She was my north star, and she led me home time and time again.

She was victorious in everything she did in her life. Her goals always reached completion because giving up was never an option. She was my heart, my soul, and my very best friend. My pride in her success was infinite. It was a gift and the greatest privilege in the world to watch her shine.

And oh, how brightly she shined.