Page 83 of Sexting the Silverfox

“Looks like a raisin,” Vitaly adds, raising a skeptical eyebrow that makes Jason and me laugh wholeheartedly.

“Bro, we all looked like raisins,” Anton jokingly rolls his eyes.

“He’s definitely a Fedorov. That nose ain’t lying,” my oldest brother says, then gives me a warm and affectionate smile. “Congratulations, little sis. You did it. We’re proud of you.”

“Congratulations, Jason,” Anton adds. “Bet you he’s going to be a handful.”

“Let me guess, the Fedorov children were all handfuls,” Jason replies, joining in on the banter.

We’ve been so worried and stressed about the whole Bratva ordeal, and we’re still settling into what we like to call a normal life. Jason is the reason I smile more, he’s the peace I’ve always wanted, and I do my best to reciprocate, but even I can tell that he sometimes succumbs to the fear of potentially losing me and the baby again. I can only imagine what it felt like when Dad told him that Arkady had taken me.

“You know it,” Vitaly says. “Anton used to stick his fingers into every socket in the house.”

“I only did that a couple of times; don’t be so dramatic,” Anton replies, then whips up his signature deviant grin. “But then I started using a fork. Total game changer.”

Amidst the laughter and the joy, the jokes and the heaps of fun that we’re about to deal with alongside countless sleepless nights and dirty diapers, I feel myself detach from the scene as if my spirit is hovering somewhere just above, watching them. My brothers are chucking puns and revealing embarrassing childhood memories of us. Jason laughing with one hand resting over mine. Me reminiscing and wondering about the future.

“Audrey?” Jason’s voice pulls me back into my body.

I glance down to see a diamond ring sparkling in front of me. “What the…” I mumble, somewhat confused, while Anton and Vitaly stifle hard chuckles.

“She was not paying attention,” Anton says.

“Are you serious?” Jason laughs as he holds up the ring for me.

“Oh, wow, wait … what?” I manage, trying to pull myself back to reality.

Jason takes a deep breath. “Will you marry me? I had a whole speech prepared, but then you went into labor and … well, here we are.”

I need a moment to wrap my head around this. The ring is stunning. The diamond is huge, crowned with tiny sapphires on white gold. It’s delicate, but it also stands out without being too ostentatious. The kind of ring he knows I’ll gladly wear even while working with messy, chocolate-covered five-year-olds. My heart starts galloping as my brain finally catches up.

“Oh, my God …”

“Audrey, I love you. I never thought I’d meet someone like you, let alone get to build something so extraordinary together,” Jason says. “I need to make an honest woman out of you, however. I plan on spending the rest of my life making sure you are happy, loved, and constantly evolving to always be the best of anything you ever wish to be, baby. Marry me and make me the luckiest man in the world.”

“Jason … yes, absolutely yes!” I immediately reply.

He slips the ring on my finger. I’m briefly hypnotized by the light that bounces off the diamond and splinters into thousands of tiny, colorful shards just before Jason swoops in to kiss me. He pours all of his love into it, our lips trembling, our breaths faltering, as we join our hearts as one. Vitaly and Anton cheer in Russian and English with equal enthusiasm until I’m forced to shush them.

“You’ll wake the tiny demon,” Vitaly gives Anton a nudge in the ribs, nodding at our still-sleeping baby.

“His name is Edward,” Anton corrects him. “We only call him demon if he ever sets the curtains on fire. I thought we agreed on that.” He gives Vitaly a sly grin.

This is perfection.

It is more than I ever expected. And whenever I think about how Jason and I met, how we got swept up in that sizzling storm, clothes flying everywhere, secrets unraveling and damn near destroying us, I find myself feeling thankful.

Exhausted but thankful.

The best is yet to come. I know it.

Epilogue II

Audrey

They say time flies by when you’re having fun, but the same can be said for a first-time mother trying to navigate her new life, her new family, and a blossoming career as an educator for one of the best private kindergartens in the city—possibly the state of Illinois, altogether.

A year has passed since everything changed.

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