by Portia Moore
It’s amazing how everyone has come together, I think, as I grab a beer for myself and one for John and Jackson. Jackson is here, back from his lengthy trip overseas, and although he and Cassandra have divorced, she’s here too. They’ve reached a point of being amicable, although I doubt they’ll ever be best friends. My mother is here too, Tiffany is here with Philip, Parker and Brad, Melissa and Greg, and Alyssa—her companion the camera that she’s taking photos of literally everything with. I glance over at Jackson who is chatting with John about something. I ask if I can talk to him a second alone. He smiles at me and John excuses himself before patting me on the arm.
“Dad can I ask you something, and I want you to be honest.” I ask him and he looks a little hesitant.
“Did you buy the building I lived in? The one in Jeresey?” He gives me a guilty smile.
“I just thought…”
“It’s okay dad. It’s one of the best things you could have ever done for me.” I tell him sincerely. I call John back over to join us and while we chat I look around and shake my head in disbelief, thinking how just a year and a half ago none of us would have thought this was possible, that our whole family would be happy and together to celebrate my son’s birthday, that Madison and I would be married, that everything would have worked out despite how terrible it all seemed at the time.
It’s a picture-perfect, beautiful summer day, and as I hand both of my fathers a beer, I reflect that I would never have thought we’d have to go down the road that we did in order to get here.
But I think, clinking my bottle against theirs, I’m glad that we did.
I can’t imagine a more perfect beginning to the rest of everything.
Also by Portia Moore
If I Break Series
#1Before Him
#2 If I Break
#3Before I Break
#4Almost Broken
#5 Beautifully Broken
#6 Shattered Pieces
Time Duet
#1 What Happens After
#2 The Trouble With Before
Her Series
Her
Mine
Them
Stand Alones
He Lived Next Door *A Clean Romance
Epilogue
Madison
“Hey, be careful,” I caution little Alex as I hand him a small bowl of chocolate ice cream, balancing my own cheesecake ice cream in the other hand as Tiffany pays for hers and walks over to join us. Alex is working tonight so we decided to have a girls’ night out at the mall, plus one. Tiffany is starting a new job at a PR firm next week and needed a first day of work outfit, and I’m glad to get out of the house for a bit. To my surprise, since Alex and I got back together, Tiffany and I have become closer friends than I would have expected. She’s incredibly sweet, and loves being an aunt to little Alex.
I gently wipe chocolate away from Alex Jr.’s mouth as he takes a big bite, and Tiffany laughs as she sits down, watching us both. “You know,” she says, giving me a considering look, “it’s been cool to see you mature since I’ve known you. You’re a mother now…and a fantastic one. It’s so different from the first day I met you.”
“I know,” I agree, pushing my hair behind my ear as I pull little Alex closer to me and give him another bite. “I feel like a completely different woman than the one who met Alex. It feels like a whole lifetime ago. Everything is different now. And I’m so glad.”
Tiffany gasps, and I look over to see she’s gone pale. I look around, trying to figure out what’s making her so upset, completely confused.
“Holly is behind you,” Tiffany hisses, catching my eye. “And she’s heading this way.”
I press my lips together. “Don’t worry,” I promise her. “I’ll get rid of her. You won’t even have to talk to her.”
I leave little Alex with Tiffany and get up, striding towards Holly, who stops in her tracks, clearly shocked that I’m there. “I didn’t see you,” she says, turning a little pale as she steps back, but I’m having none of it. Remember, I think, giving myself a pep talk, you’ve grown. You’re more mature now.
“I just want to talk to my friend,” Holly says, and I laugh coldly.
“She’s not your friend,” I say sharply. “You ruined that completely with that little stunt that you pulled.”
“Well obviously it didn’t work,” Holly sneers, her gaze going to little Alex, and looking at him I can see that he’s the spitting image of Alex, except for my black hair that he inherited. And that’s when, with a wave of satisfaction, I realize that I’ve had the best revenge on Holly that I possibly could. I have Alex, and little Alex, and Holly’s seen it all for herself now, that she lost everything she ever wanted, while I got everything that I ever did.
“Congratulations, you won,” She mutters bitterly, her eyes staring daggers into mine.
“Just go, Holly,” I tell her, turning around to leave.
“He had to be so fucking desperate,” Holly calls to me, and I freeze. I take a deep breath and realize I’ve grown; I’m happy, a wife and a mom. She can’t get to me, and I turn around to tell her that, but somehow in one swift move, my hand has made its way to slap her across the face so hard that she stumbles backward.
“Bitch! Are you crazy?!” she cries, but she only glares at me before scurrying away.
I shake off my hand, shit that hurt, and head back towards Tiffany and little Alex.
“Madison!” Tiffany breathes out, shaking her head but wearing a hint of a grin.
“That didn’t just happen,” I tell her calmly with a smile and wink, and before kissing little Alex on his forehead.
Yeah, I’ve grown.
But, I’m still fucking human.
Authors Note:
I hope you enjoyed Madison and Alex's story as much as I enjoyed sharing it with you. It has a special place in my heart being my first completed series since If I Break. If you haven’t checked it out, definitely give it a look. I appreciate every single reader I have and wish you and your family nothing but love, hope, and success. If you’d like to drop me a line, please do at [email protected] If you love books and want to talk about them, especially mine, please join my fantastic group of girls in our Party Posse here. To stay up to date for any new releases from me text Portia to 797979. Also Follow me on IG @Portiamoorewrites. Thank you so much for reading!
