I thought I understood love before, but this was a whole new level. Seeing my wife holding my baby was something so profound I was momentarily struck silent.
“Oh my goodness,” Ivy was saying to her. “You are just the most beautiful baby I have ever seen. And look at your hair,” she practically sang as she drifted her fingertips over the whispy light-brown downy hair on her head.
She was a beautiful kid. Best-looking one I’d ever seen.
I mean, really, it wasn’t a surprise. She did come from my loins.
She was tiny, maybe six pounds. Her skin was all pink, her head was perfectly round, and her cheeks were chubby as hell. Her eyes were so big and so round and so blue that even the whites around them seemed tinted blue.
I watched as she yawned, her tiny mouth opening wide and her hand—which was practically the size of one of my fingers—reached out.
I brushed my finger against it, and her fist closed around it.
There was a light knock on the door, and Romeo stuck his head in the room. “Safe to come in?”
I waved him in. I still didn’t trust my voice not to crack when I spoke. Rimmel slipped past him and rushed in first. Her shoulder brushed against my side when she leaned in for the first look.
“Meet your niece, sis,” I said.
“It’s a girl?” Romeo asked from the foot of the bed.
“She’s perfect,” Ivy said.
“I thought I was getting a nephew,” Romeo said with a hint of jest in his voice. Then he came around the other side of the bed and leaned over to see her. “But she’s pretty cute. Guess she’ll do.”
“You wanna hold her?” Ivy asked him.
Romeo glanced at me, and I smiled. “Better do it now before that nurse comes back. She keeps trying to take my kid.”
“You’re sure?” he asked.
Ivy laughed. “Here. Watch her head.”
Romeo let Ivy put my little girl in his arms and tuck the blanket around her. Romeo was wearing a pair of scrubs already, and he pulled her in against his chest and backed up slowly to sit down in a nearby chair.
Beside me, Rimmel sighed and stared at them both.
I draped an arm across her shoulder. “You’re next,” I whispered.
She smiled.
Romeo made some sounds I’d never heard him make at the baby, and then he leaned down and kissed her on the forehead.
“Smalls,” he whisper-demanded, “I’d like to place an order. I’d like one in blue.”
Ivy laughed. “You can’t just place an order for a baby.”
“Why the hell not?” he demanded.
The baby made a sound, and everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at her.
“What’d you do to her, man?” I rushed around the bed. “What’s wrong with her?”
Romeo looked like he was holding a bomb he accidentally detonated. “I don’t know.”
The two of us stood there and freaked out, trying to figure out what was wrong, and behind us, the girls laughed.
“Babies make sounds, you idiots,” Ivy said.
As if to prove the point, she did it again.
Romeo and I both reacted again.
Rimmel laughed and pushed between us. “My turn.”
She scooped her up and cuddled her with both arms.
“Now that’s a sight I like,” Romeo said, gruff.
“I’m your auntie, and I’m going to spoil you rotten,” Rimmel whispered. Then she carried her over and handed her to Ivy.
“What’s her name?” Rimmel asked.
I started to say it, and Ivy looked at me. “No.”
“Aww, baby. Critter is the best I got,” I told her.
“It’s a solid choice.” Romeo agreed. “It would look good on the back of a jersey.”
Ivy and Rimmel both looked horrified. I chuckled and went over to sit on the side of the bed and put my arm around Ivy and my daughter.
“I have a name,” Ivy said, soft.
“Hit me with it,” I said.
“Nova,” she answered. “It means new star.”
“The stars have always been good to us, Blondie,” I said. “I think they’ll be good to this one, too.” I brushed a hand over her downy hair.
“Nova is a beautiful name,” Rimmel said and sat down in Romeo’s lap. “Fits her perfectly.”
Ivy smiled. “I think so. My grandmother’s name was Rose. So I was thinking Nova Rose.”
“Nova Rose Walker,” I said, trying it out. “I guess it is better than Critter.”
Ivy rolled her eyes, and Rimmel laughed.
“Do you like it?” Ivy turned her eyes up to me.
My chest constricted with emotion, and I pressed a kiss to the side of her head. “I love it. Nova is perfect.”
The nurse came in and busted up our happy time.
She was really getting on my nerves.
But she was learning. Before she reached for the baby, she asked if it was okay. Ivy didn’t want to give her up. I could tell by the set of her jaw and the sheen in her eyes.
“Go with her, ‘kay?” she asked.
I nodded. “Rome can come, too. Ain’t nothing going to bother my little angel with two football players escorting her.”
The nurse sighed and accepted her fate without comment.
“Make sure my brother sees her!” Ivy called out as we went from the room, the nurse gently pushing the rolling cart with Nova inside. “And hurry up!”
“Get some rest, princess,” Romeo told her. “We got this.”
I winked at her as the door closed behind us.
Out in the hallway, Rome clapped me on the back, the sound loud because of all the pads I was still wearing.
“Congratulations, man. She’s awesome.”
“Thanks,” I said and stared down at her where she lay. “We’re gonna need to move up the timeline for the family compound,” I said, thinking of the place we’d all been planning since we got married.
One big piece of land, several houses, and one stone wall with a gate around the entire thing.
“My thoughts exactly,” Rome said, also staring at Nova. Then he put his arm across my shoulders, and we walked down the hallway, our bromance on full display.
“Family just got bigger,” I told him.
“There’s always room for family,” he replied.
“Always.”
Ivy
He stood in the middle of the hospital room, looking like a giant.
All grass stains, sweat, and messy hair.
His purple uniform bulged over the massive pads and protectice gear he wore.
He looked like a warrior who had just stepped off a battlefield.
Except for his face.
It was softened and downturned, his eyes in complete and utter awe.
He didn’t hold a sword, or a football… but a tiny baby who stared back at him like he made up her entire universe.
I understood that look.
Because it was one I wore every single day.
The first sight of my tough-looking husband with our daughter in his arms was something I would never forget.
It became a permanent mark—a tattoo on my heart.
And it was only the beginning.
A new star was born today, and despite her small size, to us, she would always be the brightest of all.
Romeo
I don’t know the exact moment we all grew up. When we went from friends to family.
All I know is we chose one another. Love chose us.
Even though we weren’t young college students anymore, even though we had jobs, family, and responsibilities, we were still the same. Deep down inside us, we were all the still the same.
We just loved deeper. Bonded tighter. And knew exactly where we belonged.
Our life wasn’t over.
It was just beginning.
And it was going to be one fucking beautiful ride.
Just when you thought this was the end…
A Hashtag Holiday Short Story
Plus five festive recipes to fill your tummy and warm your heart.
Givers Gonna Give…
Twas the night of game day,
And all through the town,
Lacey glittering snowflakes fluttered around.
They clung to the roads, concealing everything with white.
It was a beautiful #holiday sight.
The paparazzi were out without any care,
In hopes to catch Romeo and Rimmel, rumored to be there.
When out on the road there arose such a clatter.
The Hellcat spun out, but it shouldn’t matter.
I pulled out my cell to dial in a flash.
But the battery was dead. What useless trash.
The moonlight glistening on the new fallen snow
Made us forget we needed a tow.
For the season was upon us. Our family was alight.
Our #holiday was destined to be merry and bright.
**PRE-ORDER NOW**
Author’s Note
This entire book is a love letter to my readers. A love letter to this series. I don’t think I can quite convey how real these characters are to me and how big a part of me they really are. This book was a real labor to complete.
But it was a labor of love.
Even as I just typed the last words on the page and I sit here typing my final author’s note of the Hashtag Series, I’m not saying good-bye. I can’t. Because to me, there isn’t a life without a Romeo, a Rimmel, a Braeden & Ivy. Even though their story is finished, they will still live on in the pages of these six books.
I wanted this book to have it all. A little drama, a little plot, and a lot of romance and epic moments. I wanted us all to experience as much as we could with these guys in some of the happiest moments of their lives.
You guys deserve that. You deserve this book to be everything you want it to be, and I sincerely hope this book is the conclusion you were hoping for.
I was scared to write this book because I didn’t want to screw it up. I didn’t want to let them go. But now that the story is complete, I know there is no other way this could have gone. It’s as it should be. The characters made sure of that.
Even though this series is ended, it won’t be the last of this family. I’m sure you saw the little teaser image on the previous page for my next book… GEARSHARK is a spinoff series of the Hashtag Series. Maybe you noted in the book that Drew carried around a copy of GearShark Magazine?
That’s not a coincidence.
Drew and Trent have some stories of their own to tell. I think they need to find their happily ever afters, too. This winter I will be diving into the world of racing (which I know nothing about… ha-ha) and going for a ride with our boys.
I can’t tell you yet what is going to happen, but I can promise it’s going to be something I’ve never done before, with some of that hashtag flare we’ve all come to love so very much.
So even though the ending of the Hashtag Series is bittersweet, I hope you will pick up the first issue of GEARSHARK when it hits stands and join me in a whole new adventure.
One last thank you to the readers of this series. Words or hashtags cannot express how much I appreciate you. Thank you to the #nerds in my fan club for the neverending support and excitement and for all the pics of hot shirtless men on days when I’m dragging. Shirtless men fix a lot of stuff…
#BetterThanDuctTape
Thank you to Regina Wamba for posting that first still behind-the-scenes picture, which inspired me to create an entire world. Thank you to Cassie McCown for being an amazing editor but an even better friend. Thank you to Melissa Stickney for keeping my fan club an awesome place to be. And of course, thank you to my family who understands that Romeo and the rest of the family are no less real to me than any of them.
So with tears in my eyes and maybe a little heaviness in my chest, I conclude this series.
In the words of Romeo, it’s been one fucking beautiful ride.
XOXO,
Cambria
Cambria Hebert is an award winning, bestselling novelist of more than twenty books. She went to college for a bachelor’s degree, couldn’t pick a major, and ended up with a degree in cosmetology. So rest assured her characters will always have good hair.
Besides writing, Cambria loves a caramel latte, staying up late, sleeping in, and watching movies. She considers math human torture and has an irrational fear of chickens (yes, chickens). You can often find her running on the treadmill (she’d rather be eating a donut), painting her toenails (because she bites her fingernails), or walking her chorkie (the real boss of the house).
Cambria has written within the young adult and new adult genres, penning many paranormal and contemporary titles. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense. A few of her most recognized titles are: The Hashtag Series, Text, Torch, and Tattoo.
Cambria Hebert owns and operates Cambria Hebert Books, LLC.
You can find out more about Cambria and her titles by visiting her website: http://www.cambriahebert.com.
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