Page 85 of Secret Baby for Mr. Grump

But somewhere through the haze of rage, I thought of my son.

He was sitting there watching this. I didn’t want him to see me like that. I didn’t want to be the same as this murdering psychopath.

So with every ounce of my control, I stopped.

Ken was already halfway passed out at my feet—his face a bleeding mess below me—when I turned to Caleb, afraid that I’d scared him.

He was staring at me, frozen.

“Come here, son,” I said, holding up my bloodied hands.

To my surprise, Caleb didn’t hesitate.

He ran to me and sobbed his heart out. I held him tightly, feeling my heart break too.

Somewhere in the distance, I heard the police sirens. I also heard Sean coming in with Allie, both of them screaming for us. Allie fell to her knees, wrapping her arm around her son, her other hand clutching mine even though it was bloody.

I held both of them.

My family.

My world.

They were finally safe.

EPILOGUE

ALLIE

They were going to drive me nuts.

“Geronimo!” Caleb cried out before squealing in laughter as my dad tossed him high in the air.

“Not too high, Dad!” I called out nervously.

“Don’t forget about your heart, hon,” my mother cautioned.

“Y’all are a bunch of worry warts,” my father said, winking at Caleb, who was now sitting on his shoulders, his chest pounding with excitement. “We’re fine, aren’t we, buddy?”

Caleb nodded fervently, beaming from ear to ear.

My mother and I glanced at each other and rolled our eyes in unison before heading toward the kitchen, narrowly avoiding barreling into another little boy on the way.

The house was filled with noise, laughter, and chatter from every corner. People from around the town, family friends, and even some strangers who were staying at the resort had been stopping by all day, and some of them hadn’t left yet. Kids were making snowmen outside, there was eggnog cooking, and everyone was getting into the Christmas spirit.

“Never thought I would see your home get this full,” my mother commented, amused, and I had to agree.

When Marcus had shown me the new home he’d built for us to move into, I’d gasped.

“It’s too big,” I told him. It was a three-story mansion that was on the outskirts of town, right at the base of the hill that led to Leeroy’s mountainside. The house was large and charming, and the view was beautiful, but I was concerned the space would be too big for us.

But now I was glad for the extra room because, with my family, his mother, our kids, and various other well-wishers packed in, there was just enough space to move around.

My mom and I continued into the kitchen and filled up the snack bowl so that our guests had something to munch on. Marcus was currently outside, talking to Vernon, who needed advice on how to catch whoever was stealing his cows.

“When do you think we should go out there and rescue him?” I voiced in amusement.

My mother gave me a look. “You’re on your own with that, sweetie. Even I don’t have the boldness to take Vernon on once he starts his complaining.”

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