Page 114 of Until Nalia
“Oh my god, you’re so annoying.” Zuri rolls her eyes, and Billie tosses a pillow at her.
“No, you’re annoying.”
“What do you think, baby?” Logan asks, and all eyes turn my direction. I’m not surprised that he’s putting me on the spot in front of the kids; that is totally his style.
“I…” I look at Cooper, Billie, and then Zuri. “Are you really okay with us all living together?”
“Yeah,” Zuri says.
“Sure,” Cooper mutters.
“Yes, especially because I won't always have to clean the bathroom,” Billie says, and Zuri tosses a pillow at her.
While the kids laugh, I look at Logan. “And you?” I ask, and his face gets soft.
“You know I want you girls here.” I do know that, not because he’s brought it up even once, but because, like everything with him, he’s made it clear in the best ways that he wants me around, that he wants Zuri around.
“Okay, I guess we’ll start figuring out when we can move in so that Billie can have the extra help,” I say and everyone laughs but me because I’m so caught up in the moment, it’s one I know I will remember for the rest of my life because it’s the moment I got everything I never knew that I wanted. A family of my own.
Epilogue
NALIA
Sitting in the dark living room with only the light of the Christmas tree casting a soft glow around the room, I watch Logan put together the last piece of the makeup table we got for Zuri from Santa. Billie’s new writing desk is already set up, along with her chair. Cooper’s basketball hoop was installed outside by my dad and Logan’s before they left few hours ago after our first ever Christmas Eve party.
“Alright, let's see how this works,” Logan says, quietly flipping on the light, and the mirror lights up.
“She’s going to love it.” I finish putting the stuff in the kids’ stockings, that are hung on the makeshift mantle, that Logan hung on the wall and decorated with garland and lights. As I step back, I look around the living room and take in the real Christmas tree, because you cannot have a fake tree (Logan’s rule, not mine), all the decorations, and the presents under the tree. It looks like something out of a catalogue, the way that all the wrapping paper matches and the decor is classical red and green with touches of gold. I thought that my mom was crazy about Christmas, but Billie might be more obsessed than her when it comes to decorating, and she was adamant about her vision, so we all let her take the lead.
Well, that, and because she is an amazing decorator. That’s why, before we officially moved in just a few weeks ago, Zuri asked Billie to help her decorate her room, something Logan insisted she do because the other kids had before they moved in. After lots of thinking, she decided that she wanted something girly without the traditional pink, and Billie came through with a cute idea of painting the wall behind her bed to look like fluffy white clouds with light touches of pinks and yellows, and a drape of lights and a huge macramé piece.
The girls worked together and made a rainbow out of pool noodles, which they wrapped in light fabric of different colors, and found a macramé chandelier. After adding all the stuff from her room at our old house to her new room, it was totally her, sweet and cute, but not too cute. It’s a room that she can grow into, and I have caught her in there more than once just looking around because she loves it so much, and I love that.
I love that there was no need for us to adjust to being here. The kids were right, we had basically been living here for a while, so spending the night every night didn’t change much of anything except where we fell asleep. Well, it also changed that I now sleep like a baby seven nights a week rather than the one or sometimes two, I’d sleep in Logan’s bed.
“Coop and Zuri are probably going to be up early,” he tells me, wrapping his arms around my waist before walking me down the hall to the bedroom.
“I’ll probably be up early too, I’m just as excited as they are.” I take off my robe and toss it to the end of the bed while he closes the door. “Actually, I might not even be able to sleep.” I haven’t been this excited about Christmas since I was a little kid.
“Oh, you’ll sleep,” he mutters, walking to me and pushing me back onto the bed. As my back hits the mattress, he comes down on top of me and uses his knee to make room for his hips. Lifting my hands, I thread my fingers through his hair and lean up at the same time he drops his mouth down to mine. And by the time he’s done with me, I sleep like a baby.
With the kitchen still a mess from the huge meal the girls and I cooked all day, and dessert left uneaten because we all stuffed ourselves at dinner, I watch the kids shout out their guesses in charades as they attempt to figure out what Cooper is.
As the three of them laugh, I look over at Logan, and we smile at each other. It wasn’t planned that the kids would be with us for Christmas since we also had them for Thanksgiving, but a week ago, something happened between Kristy and Aaron. We still don’t know the details, but she ended their engagement and kicked him out, then decided to go to see her parents, needing a little break.
I’m worried about her, but she called his morning and seemed okay, and I know that she is better off without Aaron, so I have no doubt that in a few months she will be living her best life.
“You’re a turkey,” Zuri yells as the timer beings to beep signaling that they ran out of time.
“What part of this makes you think turkey?” Cooper does some strange move that does in fact make him look like a turkey. “I was a baseball player.”
“Alright, I’m up.” Logan gets to his feet before the arguing can start, and the kids all put their foreheads together and giggle, then motion for Logan to lean down so that they can tell him what to act out.
When they are done telling him, he turns to me with a grin.
I really wish I didn’t suck at this game, but unfortunately, I have already lost us three rounds.
“Alright, four words,” he says before Zuri starts the timer, and I sit up a little straighter. As he begins to march around the room with his hands in front of him, I yell out, “soldier, army,” and a few other things before he turns to face me and touches his eyes. I’m honestly so lost. “I have no idea.” Shaking his head, he holds out his hands in front of him, palms up. “I still don’t get it,” I mutter, looking at the kids who are all giggling. “Are you talking to someone?” I ask when he moves his mouth, and he shakes his head again, then gets down on one knee in front of me, dropping his head to look at the ground. “You’re tying a shoe,” I yell as the timer goes off.
“Baby. It’s will you marry me?”
“What?” I still don’t get it. What is ‘will you marry me’?
“Will you marry me?” he says, meeting my gaze while reaching into his pocket.
“Logan,” I whisper when he holds a ring out between us.
“Will you marry me, baby?” He takes my hand as I nod then he slides the most perfect simple cushion cut shaped diamond ring on my finger. Then without another word, he let's go of my hand and captures my face and kisses me until I can’t breathe, while the kids scream and jump around us. And it’s the most perfect Happily Ever After I could ask for.
THE END