by Alice Shaw
Riley took both our hands and smiled. “Thank you, guys. My parents have been gone for a long time, and I’ve never really felt so welcomed in a family before,” he said. “I love you and promise that I’ll always be there for every single one of you.”
My family let that soak in for a second, but Andy broke the loving silence. “Hey, as long as you give us free food, everything’s cool in my book!”
We all laughed, but there was a new understanding between us all. We were a family whose bonds could never be broken again.
Chapter Twenty
Riley
“I’m glad you’re going through with the fundraiser, Jared. It’s going to be great. You won’t regret it,” I said.
I scoped the bar out. Everything was decorated uniquely. Balloons lined the walls, bowls of punch were on each small table, and I had a big kitchen space to work with.
Jared tapped his fingers against the bar and admired the place. “Well, it’s good promotion for the old bar too. We need some fresh blood in the place.”
Holden, who was now nine months pregnant, was sitting on a leather couch off to the side. “The only thing I’m not excited about are the TV cameras,” he said.
They had been filming us for weeks, preparing the story on our food truck. Riley told his story, but now it was time to film the big celebration.
“What are you worried about? It’s going to be great!” I exclaimed. The truth was, however, that I was pretty nervous too. I had never been on TV before, but the producers of the Today Show insisted on doing the last part live at the fundraiser instead.
Officer Brady walked out of the bathroom, adjusting his belt. “Don’t worry. I’ll do all of the talking.” He winked and smiled. His Chihuahua followed him from behind his legs.
I walked up and hugged Brady. “Good to see you here, man,” I said. Lately, he had been working hard at Gastro Gourmet to clear his debts. He left the force, but found a new sense of self in working for us.
Everything in Belleview Bay was different now, but in a good way. We weren’t from the rich side of the bay, and for a while, we never felt connected to anything. In the weirdest way, we were now together in this. It wasn’t just Holden and I’s food truck. It was everyone’s.
We worked as hard as we could on this business, and it sure as hell was paying off. Every single day, the lines outside grew bigger and bigger. Holden was too far along with his pregnancy to help in the truck, but he was sure damn good at strategy.
He hired small boats to flow along the river, all adorned with “Gastro Gourmet” signs. On the sides of every business, our posters were present. He even made t-shirts! Once the word got out, the money started to flow in. We still lived in the trailer, and we hadn’t gotten word on our loan, but our morale was as high as could be.
Even Bradley was a changed man. With his wife back in the picture, he had taken on a different role. Instead of badgering people about minor offenses, he helped people when they needed it most.
“All I want is to see the area flourish. For a long time, this was another plastic development center. I never had any faith in it, but I was hired to patrol the area. Now, it’s like everything has changed. I’m really proud of you guys,” Brady said. “I feel like I’m a part of a great family.”
Jared grabbed two bottles of beers, as well as two bottles of Coca-Cola. He handed the beers to Brady and I, while Holden and Jared held their sodas.
“I think we’re all proud of each other,” Jared said. “So, I’m going to propose a toast. To us, the best motherfuckers in town.”
“To us!” the three of us yelled.
The party commenced when Jared opened the doors. Not only was there delicious food from various regions, but there were also drinks and lively music.
We didn’t have the classy jazz musicians from the other side of the bay, but we did have a set of speakers, and a DJ. That seemed to be enough to keep the crowd moving.
Raffle tickets were sold and donations were collected. By the time people were nice and drunk, they were practically throwing dollars into the bins. Even Brady was shaking his booty for the cameras while collecting donations.
The publicity was something I had always wanted, but at the moment, I didn’t care about any of that. I cared about the mood my omega and I were feeling.
I took Holden into my arms and stared into his mystical eyes. The sparkle was there. In fact, it was always there. Without saying a word, I kissed him as passionately as I’ve ever kissed a man. I inhaled his precious scent and ran my hands across his waist. He was perfect. So fucking perfect.
“I’ve said this a million times,” I said. “But I love you. I’ll always love you throughout this life. Shit, if there is more than one life, I’ll love you in the next one too!”
“You better, handsome,” he whispered. We kissed for minutes, just completely making out in front of the world. Yep, the cameras loved that.
The whole fundraiser was a blast, but it wasn’t just the booze that brought a smile to my face. I had lived in Belleview Bay for years. For so long, I was alone in my trailer, in my food truck, and I was certainly alone inside my own head.
Back in those dark and lonely times, there was no community here. But at the end of the party, I got a chance to look around at everyone. The room was full of people and every single one of them had a giant smile on their face.
We were all finally connected to something. This city wasn’t just a plastic shopping center. It wasn’t just a boardwalk for the rich tourists to sport their newest shopping bags. It was a place with people who wanted to enjoy something real.
In a moment of inspiration, I jumped onto the bar and wobbled myself steady. Jared, my first customer and now good friend, saw what I was doing. He threw me a microphone and cut the music. Out of breath and full of energy, the people all clapped.
I held my beer in the air and tapped it with a spoon. “I’m sorry for cutting the music. You can trust me when I say that there’s plenty more dancing after I shut my trap. I just needed to say something simple to you all. When I had this dream, I didn’t think it would be possible to commit to,” I said.
“But then, out of the heavens came a young man. He was going through hard times, just like me. I could have let him flounder. I could have turned my back and just said ‘fuck it.’ But I didn’t do that. Something inside of me told me that he needed a friend,” I said.
I looked over at Holden and smiled, getting a bit wistful. “Well, I think you all know who I’m talking about now. I’m talking about the man of my fuckin’ dreams, the omega of our future baby, Holden Reiss! Come up here, darling.”
But as soon as I said those words, I saw Holden’s eyes widen with intense fear. “Um,” he whispered.
My smile lingered on my face. I knew that he was a bit stage shy, but I felt like people needed to know who my main partner in crime was. “Come on, baby. What’s wrong?” I asked.
Holden merely shook his head and whispered, “I think it’s happening.”
He clutched his stomach. I dropped the microphone. The whole room turned silent.
All eyes were on me, the alpha in charge. I jumped off of the bar and ran toward Holden. “You’re sure?” I asked.
His eyes were wide open, but he wasn’t scared. “I’m sure,” he said. Then, we both heard it. It was the sound of water dropping onto the plastic floor.
I, the alpha, went into panic mode. “Fuck. Okay. It’s happening. It’s happening. It’s—”
“Hey! Snap out of it. It’s okay. Just take me to the hospital,” Holden said.
I gulped down and felt the courage rise up within me. “Okay. I can do this,” I thought to myself. “I’ve been through so much during my life. This is easy.”
I scooped Holden into my arms, amidst everyone in the bar. I walked out of the large wooden doors and I placed Holden into the car. “Everything is going to be okay, my love,” I said.
He nodded his head with acknowledgment. Strangely, we were on the exact
same wavelength. “I know that. We’re going to have a beautiful baby. It’s going to be the start of our wonderful life together.”
That image kept me going. I weaved through the traffic, making sure to stay safe while driving. I brought my omega into the hospital and met with the doctors and team of nurses.
Everything was going to be perfect. It was all coming together. We just needed to have faith.
And when the doctor told Holden to breathe, I held onto his hands. I helped him through it, and I saw how strong Holden was. Then, I heard the sharp cries of our baby hit me in the center of my heart. And that’s when my life changed forever…
Chapter Twenty-One
Holden
“Honey, where’s the formula? I can’t find it anywhere in the fridge,” Riley asked.
I groaned. He knew where the formula was. Yet, he asked this question every single day. “I swear, you’re the most forgetful man in the world,” I said while laughing. “It’s on the side, next to the eggs.”
“Oh. Durr,” he said. As soon as he grabbed the milk, Ethan started crying loudly.
“I’m going to go grab the mail,” I said, looking for any excuse to make my alpha deal with our screaming, beautiful darlings.
“Perfect timing,” Riley joked. “I’ll be here. Don’t forget about me.”
I laughed and ran outside to grab the mail. It had been three weeks since we had the children, and I almost couldn’t believe it. Time was a strange thing now. It used to move slower, but every day seemed to pass in a second.
Our whole life’s story had been broadcasted on live television. Millions of people heard our truth. It all culminated with my water breaking. It was completely crazy to see, let alone experience.
Last week was the final day in our crappy trailer. We decided that we weren’t going to sell it. Instead, we gave it away to charity and found a place of our own.
Our new home wasn’t on the other side of the bay. We had some money, but we didn’t feel the need to gloat or overspend. All we wanted was a healthy, happy home. And that’s precisely what we got. Plus, our backyard was big enough to hold my horse, Sonny.
I reached into the mailbox and pulled out the only envelope inside. It was unmarked and rather large, so I waited to open it until I got inside.
“Anything important?” Riley asked, while juggling our baby. Ethan had stopped crying now that he had his milk. Thank God.
“Nope. Some spam, I think. I don’t know. Here, you can open it,” I said.
I took our baby and bobbed him up and down on the couch. Ethan smiled and drank his milk, while his alpha daddy opened the envelope. “I hate spam,” he said. “Why do they still send crap like that out, anyway?”
“Beats me,” I said.
Riley finally opened the envelope and pulled out a large group of forms. His eyebrows creased with confusion. “Wait a second…”
“What? Is it something bad? I thought we paid all the medical bills for the month,” I said, sighing.
Even with the money from the food truck coming in, things were tight. We still had dreams of opening that restaurant on the other side of the bay, but that seemed a long way off.
A smile formed on Riley’s face, but instead of just telling me what the deal was, he handed me the forms. I quickly scanned the words and my heart nearly stopped.
“No freakin’ way!” I squealed. “We got it?”
Riley was in a state of total shock. “We did it, baby. We got the loan,” he said.
“We did it!” I screamed. Ethan looked at me in complete confusion.
Riley scooted in real close to all of us. “This is it. This is our dream. We’re going to have a restaurant. Our very own restaurant. And it’s going to be on the other side of the bay.”
“But what about the food cart?” I asked him.
I really loved that cart. As simple as it was, it was the thing that really started it all. Without it, life would feel a little empty.
“We’re keeping that food cart,” Riley said, adamantly. “It’s more than a food cart. It’s a food cart for the people!”
I laughed even though I agreed with him. “Oh yeah? Is that right?”
“Damn straight. Not everyone can afford to go to the fancy-schmancy restaurants on the other side of the bay. Gastro Gourmet is a place where anyone can buy affordable yet, delicious gourmet food,” Riley said.
“I love how passionate you are about it still. I am too. It was the beginning of our relationship,” I said.
“It was the beginning of everything. But I think Brady can run it now. We’ll be so busy with the new restaurant, and at this point, I think he can handle it,” Riley said.
“It’s a deal,” I said.
We gazed into each other’s eyes. Riley and I were so madly in love that it was a sickening sight to see. “When we have each other, we have everything,” he whispered.
Holding Ethan in my lap, we kissed. Our child clutched against Riley’s shirt and cooed loudly. Our love was precious, but our child was even more so.
There was so much we had done already, but our dreams didn’t stop here. We had Ethan, the best baby in the world. And though we finally got approved for our restaurant loan, that wasn’t the first priority.
Before we’d know it, Ethan would be in grade school. Then, he’d be in high school. Then, college. And then…? Well, crap. I didn’t want to think that far ahead!
Deep down, we both knew he’d shoot for the stars. He’d be just like his daddies: Strong, courageous and empathetic.
A year ago, I didn’t believe in love. But once I saw Riley, I couldn’t help but dive head first into it. Summer Love was risky, but it gave me everything.
The End.
Epilogue: Ethan
“Bang! You’re dead!” Jimmy shouted, hands outstretched like a pistol.
“I’m not playing that game. My dad says that guns are bad,” Ethan said, proudly standing on an old tree stump.
“But you have to play!” Jimmy shouted.
All of his friends played cops and robbers, and he used to love that game. That is, until his alpha dad told him how guns could hurt people.
Ethan never wanted to hurt a soul. He wanted to become a veterinarian, not a criminal. So instead of playing cops and robbers, he sought to bring people together.
“I have an idea. We can watch cartoons at my house,” Ethan said.
“Okay. But I’m hungry,” Jimmy moaned, holding his stomach. “Can we go to your dads’ restaurant? Please?”
Ethan shrugged his shoulders. He could definitely eat a big piece of apple pie, as long as there was whip cream slathered over the crust.
“Okay!” he shouted.
Both of them ran across the bay bridge. The town had changed over the years. Ethan never really experienced the “plastic” side of things. Sure, there were shops that lined the bay, but now there were whole neighborhoods that enveloped the city. There was life. It was a real city now.
“Hurry up!” Ethan shouted with a smile as he stepped across the sandbank. He had no idea that this was the same area his parents declared their love to each other, so many years ago. To him, it was just another part of the city.
As they ran closer to the restaurant, they slowed down, catching their breath. Ethan threw his arm around his good friend Jimmy and took a few seconds to suck in some oxygen.
Out of nowhere, Ethan felt a sense of pride creep up inside of him. “You know what?” he asked.
“What?” Jimmy replied.
“My parents are superheroes,” Ethan gloated.
Jimmy’s eyes creased with doubt, but a little part of him believed it. “No, they aren’t,” he said. “Are they?”
Ethan nodded and smiled. “They used to live in a small box. It had one room, and barely any electricity. They didn’t even have air conditioning!”
“So what? That doesn’t mean they have superpowers,” Jimmy said.
In the distance, Ethan could see his two dads. They were sitting with his g
randparents, and his uncle, Andy. The whole family waved them over, but Ethan wasn’t finished bragging.
“I swear they do. Every night, they used to close their eyes. They wished they would open this restaurant. They said the magic words,” Ethan said.
“And it came true?” Jimmy asked.
“It came true!” Ethan screamed.
“Maybe everyone has superpowers like that. But maybe they just don’t know it,” Jimmy said.
“I think that’s true,” Ethan said. “Let’s close our eyes and wish for something.”
“Okay, but what are we going to wish for?” Jimmy asked, suddenly buzzing with energy.
“Let’s wish for something good to happen,” Ethan said.
“Okay. Let’s wish for world peace,” Jimmy exclaimed.
“Okay. Deal.” Together, they close their eyes and made their wish.
It was an optimistic wish, but as soon as they opened their eyes, a set of fireworks shot into the air. “Whoa!” they both exclaimed. “No way.”
Holden, Riley, and Ethan’s two grandparents strolled up to them. “Happy fourth of July, you two.” Riley said.
“Happy fourth of July, dads,” Ethan said.
The family came together and hugged their son tightly. Then, as if knowing what was on the kids’ minds, Ethan’s grandfather announced, “Who wants some hot apple pie!”
“I do!” the two children announced.
Life was certainly good in Belleview Bay. Scratch that. It was perfect.
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