Homecoming - Paul Lahote

Epilogue

      "Olivia, Embry will be here soon to take you to the beach. Get your shoes on", I heard her little footsteps run around the living room and she returned to the dining room. She plopped down on the floor and pulled on her sandals before pulling herself back onto the chair next to her little brother's high chair. 

      "Mama, I want to feed baby Ethan", she said reaching out to grab the spoon from my hand. I let her do it, needing to sit down and rest my completely swollen ankles. I smiled as I watched my five year old feed her almost one year old brother. When we found out that I was pregnant, only a few months after our wedding, Paul and I weren't sure how Olivia would react to having a little sibling since Lucca was not very happy when Emily had their second little boy. Since we told her, Olivia was so excited to have a little sibling and since Ethan was born, she has been so much help. 

      Liv finished feeding Ethan and wiped the excess food off of his face as a voice erupted from the front of the house, "Knock, Knock. I am here to take a little gremlin to the beach". Embry became visible as he made his way into the kitchen, catching Liv as she jumped from the chair and into his arms. "How are you feeling today?", he asked smiling down at my bump that was larger than the other two times when I was just three months pregnant. 

      "Better than I have been. Paul is working a short shift at the garage so that we can spend time together before the party tonight", I said to make sure that he remembered to be at Emily's for her birthday party tonight. 

      "I know, we will be there. Don't worry", he said while grabbing her sand toys before passing Liv to me so that she could give me a hug before taking her back in his arms. "Say bye to your mama". 

      "Bye mama", she said before she leaned down and gave Ethan a kiss on top of his head. "Bye baby Ethan", she called as they walked out of the kitchen and toward the front door. I listened as the front door shut again, but at the same time that the back door opened to reveal Paul and Jake. 

      "How is my god son today", Jake said as he picked Ethan up out of his highchair. He took the seat to my left, bouncing the giddy boy on his knee. Paul pulled a seat so that he was right next to me. 

      "How are you feeling baby", Paul asked while placing a gentle kiss on my cheek. 

      "I'm fine now, the morning sickness wasn't that bad today. Plus I'm just happy that I get to spend some time with you guys today", I reached my hand out to Ethan so that he could hold onto my finger as Paul laced his fingers with my own. 

      "You can't get rid of me now, Madison is on a cruise with her parents right now and they didn't want me there because they don't approve of how fast we moved", he just shook his head to himself and helped me get my finger out of Ethan's tiny hand. 

      "I'll go lay him down in the play pen and then we can just hang out down here", Jake said as he stood from his chair and made his way into the living room. 

      I leaned to my right so that I was leaning into Paul, "I can't believe that we already have two amazing kids and a third one on the way while you are juggling your nursing job at the pediatric office right outside the reservation", Paul said as he rubbed his hand along my baby bump. 

     "Plus the garage is doing extremely well. We've only been married for a little over a year and here we are with everything that we will ever need", I smiled up at him thinking about the perfect little life that we have so far. 

      "That other bedroom will be ready long before the baby gets here. We just have to finish getting all of my grandfather's junk out of there and once we find out the gender, it will be easy to put together after that", he said with a focused look on his face.