Page 105 of Cardinal

The two of us took center stage as the lights dimmed and our song, Breathless by Shane Ward, played over the speakers as we wrapped our arms around each other. "Is that why you've been off the past few weeks?" Luciano asked as we swayed softly to the beat of the song.

"Yeah… It kind of took me by surprise because I was still on my birth control patches, but my boobs didn't feel right, along with my appetite. So, I made a doctor's appointment two weeks ago, which is when I found our little bean inside of me." I replied to him with a sheepish chuckle. "Two months, that's how long our little troublemaker has been inside of me."

"Isn't two months a little early to find out gender? How do you know it's a boy?" Luciano questioned with a high raise of his eyebrow. "Not that I mind or care either way, as long as it's our baby, that's all I care about. But you said son on the picture earlier."

"Blood test." I gave a small shrug of my shoulders. "I was too impatient to wait until the scan at twenty weeks, so when the doctor offered the blood test since I already had to give blood for the other lab work, I said yes."

Tightening his arms around me, he lowered his head into the crook of my neck, humming softly and inhaling deeply. "I'm so fucking happy right now I could really die. This day… Just… Fucking amazing." He mumbled into me.

Inhaling a trembling breath, I leaned my head back to look at him nervously. "Would it still be amazing if I make one request regarding our kid?" I asked with a lick of my lips.

"Nothing can dim today. You can tell me to wear a clown suit right now, and I wouldn't be offended." He assured me with a warm smile, stroking my cheeks with his fingers.

"Please don't ever do that. If you ever wear anything remotely clown-like, I will ban you from sex for a whole year." I threatened him with a serious glare before recollecting myself.

Stepping into him, I lay my head on his chest and looked up at him with hopeful eyes.

"Can we name him Gale?"

Epilogue: Luciano

~18 years later~

"Oof! Get off me, old man!"

"Are you going to keep your trap shut to your mother?" Fuck I felt old; struggling around on the floor with my nearly legal son made my damn bones ache as if I'd been slammed against the cage twenty times in a row by a charging bull.

Throwing his elbow back, Gale caught me right in the face, making my hold on him loosen enough for him to slip free. "No! I don't want her ripping my head off after you throw me under the bus. I ain't taking the fall for it this time."

Slightly winded, I panted softly, "You got a new Lambo out of the situation last time," I argued back with him as I scrambled up to my feet and charged after him.

Just as he grabbed the door handle, I wrapped my arms around him and threw him backward onto the floor. Quickly, I threw him into a headlock and held him down.

"That Lambo was so not worth Mom's wrath. I nearly shat my pants when she chewed me out! And she locked up the Lambo, so I can't even freaking drive it. Nothing is gonna keep my mouth shut this time." He argued back in a strained voice.

Grunts of struggles, along with the thumping of our bodies hitting the floor, filled the room as we rolled around.

Unfortunately, I stood no chance against my son because I raised the damn kid, and at seventeen, going on eighteen soon, he was already my size. Actually, as much as I hated to admit it, he was bigger than me. I wasn't close to my prime now at a much older age, and with age came its downfalls. By no means was I weak and useless, still picture perfect in terms of health, but I definitely wasn't how I was when I was in my twenties and thirties in terms of strength, agility, and dexterity.

Which my son took full advantage of.

A pained grunt and hiss scratched at my throat at the feeling of something large and hard bashing my face. "Son of a bitch." I cursed out of habit as I reeled back and held my face.

And unfortunately, he had Juliet's smartass mouth. "Wow, that's not nice to say of mom. Then again, that's not nice to call your wife. Though, also, for me to be born, you would have had to..." His word drew out from the stern glare I shot him.

"You're about to be grounded until college at this rate," I grumbled in a stuffed-up voice because of my aching nose.

"Ooooh, what you gonna do? Lock me at home? No technology? You know I can still fuck shit up no matter what." Gale sassed me back with his arms crossed and a smug smirk on his face.

Fucking… I am seriously not doing this right now.

I shouldn't be arguing with my damn kid, nor should I be letting him get under my skin this much. Then again, I had no one to blame but myself because he came from my balls. Granted, he is half of Juliet, but I couldn't blame all of Gale's spunk on her genes because I definitely was a huge asshole like him when I was his age.

God damn it. Parenting was supposed to be easy at this age, not harder.

"Would you just shut up and go to your room already." It wasn't so much a question as it was a demand.

Of course, being the smug little devil spawn he was, he locked his feet down and widened his smirk. "No." I wanted to punch his puffed-out little chest and knock him down a few pegs. "What are you gonna do about it, old man?"

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