by Ivy Fox
“And whose fault is it she’s not?” Michael smirks at her, kissing her neck to soften the blow.
“Leave it alone, Michael. Doc’s happy. Wherever she is,” Cam says, bouncing the twins on his lap.
“Hope so,” Michael hums under his breath, running his fingers through Daniel’s long blond locks.
“As long as she has Nico, Aurora is more than fine. You don’t give my brother enough credit, Michael,” Hope says, with a twinkle in her eye.
“You have to admit, he sure did take care of Ben in the end.” Cam laughs out, still living the same high he got when we got news of how Ben was received by Nico and his boys at the State Correctional Institution in Graterford.
Yeah, Hope’s ex-husband will no longer be an issue to us or anyone else for that matter. I feel my little bird cringe, though. I know it has more to do with remembering the time Nico spent in prison, and less about how her ex was disposed of.
“Daddy, Daddy, please let me play with it a little while?” Danny begs, burning holes into my best friend’s heart and bringing us all back to more pleasurable topics.
“Okay, but only for a little while. And don’t take it out of its holster, or your ass is gonna get a whipping,” Michael warns as he hands the blunt-sheathed blade he now keeps on himself just because little Danny has a fascination with it. Still, all of us keep a close eye on the little rascal, just in case he gets any ideas.
“Mama, the girls want a popsicle. Can I give them one?” Angel yells through the kitchen screen door.
At the mention of ice cream, the twins on Cam’s lap quickly jump to their wobbly five-year-old feet and run to their big brother.
“We want one too, mama. Can Angel give us one?” they say in unison, showcasing sweet deep dimples on either cheek, making it hard to deny them a thing.
“I thought I saw your sisters have some already?” I ask, my brows raised, thinking how those three girls have Angel wrapped around their tiny fingers.
“Dad, please? Otherwise, they’re gonna cry, and I hate it when they do that,” my boy says, his head through the screen door, looking like he would rather eat dirt than have to say no to his little sisters.
“Sure, baby. Angel, take the boys in with you and give them all their ice cream. It’s too hot anyway, and an extra popsicle won’t do any harm. But don’t be messing with my kitchen, you hear?” Hope remarks, her eyes still closed, absorbing the sun on her skin.
“Yes, Mama,” Angel replies, while the twins screech in delight behind their big brother.
“Baby, don’t you want one too?” Hope coos at Danny when she realizes he’s still too enthralled with Michael’s dagger to pay attention to anything else around him. Even the mention of ice cream isn’t enough to take his attention off of it.
“No, Mama,” he answers, not even lifting his head up, eyes fixed on his prized possession.
“I swear, that boy loves his blade more than he does his own kin,” we hear Joe say, walking toward us, and Uri right behind him.
Our house is always so loud and full of little ones laughing and talking a mile a minute, we didn’t even hear Michael’s uncles arrive. Nothing new, I guess. Once you have seven kids all under the age of eight, it’s hard keeping track of everything. Come winter, we’re going to be adding a new element to the family, and this one, I know, will be a baby girl with a velvety soft voice, and hopefully my timber eyes. I place my hand over Hope’s belly bump and just feel my girl inside, anxious to meet all her brothers and sisters, just as they are for her arrival. Doubt she’ll be the last one, either. Between us loving seeing Hope barefoot and pregnant, and her urge to adopt every child in Warren, our family will end up rivaling the Archangels themselves in number.
Both Uri and Joe kiss Hope on the forehead before taking their seats and grabbing a beer from the cooler, a sight which seemed an unlikely reality a few years back. It took us all awhile to forgive Uri for leading the devil to our doorstep, and Uri and Joe’s relationship had always been strained. But between Hope’s kind heart and willingness to start fresh, and Aurora’s own predicament, this family was forced to mend old wounds as well as new ones.
“So, are you going to put us to work, or what?” Uri says, taking a big gulp of his beer.
“Yep, just waiting on the kids to finish up inside, and then we can all get to work,” Michael replies, getting a cold bottle of water and passing it to Hope, using it as an excuse to bend down and kiss her as his thank you.
“You sure you want to build a tree house and not actually add more rooms to the one behind us?” Joe smiles coyly. “Seems to me you guys are starting to run out of room as it is.”
“We’ll make do, Joe. Although, I wouldn’t mind turning our attic into one large vacant space. Done right, with some new windows, new floors, and some walls, I think three, maybe even four new bedrooms could be made up there,” Hope smiles, already vocalizing her ambition to grow this family further.
“Another four? Girl, you planning to have your own football team or something?” Joe teases.
“Or something,” Cam replies, winking at our girl, letting her know if she wants it, she’ll get it. Clearing out the attic will get us the room we need, but I’m not against Joe’s idea either of adding extensions to the house. A few years ago, this house felt too big for the three of us, but just like our lives, this house modified into something new and vibrant, full of more than what its current walls can contain.
“You ready to set aside your gavel for a hammer there, Uri?” Michael teases.
“For the afternoon, at least. Seems I’m stuck with the gavel longer than I wanted,” Uri goads back, taking another pull of his beer.
“Not still sore about that, are you, Uri?” Cam taunts our Prez on how he never did get Michael to replace his seat on the throne.
“Nah, I’ve come to realize that fate had a different idea for all of us. Michael, me, you boys, even Aurora. There isn’t much we can do once destiny takes the wheel, I guess,” Uri replies thoughtfully.
“Guess so. Times are changing. The Archangels might have to change right along with it. Passing the gavel to someone who is fit to hold it, instead of bloodline, wouldn’t be the worst thing,” Michael says, turning away from his uncle to grab himself a cold one, too.
“Couldn’t agree with you more, but you’d be surprised, Michael, how sometimes life provides exactly what you need without you even expecting it,” Uri says, looking at Danny.
“What was that?” he asks, twisting the cap off his bottle.
“Ah, nothing. Just me musing away at life’s crazy sense of humor, that’s all,” he chuckles.
“So, are we gonna talk shit all day, or are we going to build my nephews and my nieces a tree house?” Joe says, grinning, picking up the toolbox he brought with him and taking the lead.
“Kids, get your butts out here, and let’s go build us a tree house!” Cam yells, picking Danny up from his seat and placing him on his shoulders. Michael quickly takes back his blade, walking behind them, and Danny slumps with a frown for no longer having his favorite toy.
“It’s going to be a fort, Daddy,” the twins yell, running out of the house, followed by Angel and the girls.
“No, it’s going to be a castle,” the girls say, giggling hand-in-hand, following their uncles to the backyard.
I place Hope on her feet, and we walk behind our family. She wraps her arms around my waist, letting her gentle sigh fill my soul to its brim while placing her head on my chest.
“You happy, little bird?” I sussur in her ear, taking in her wildflower scent, treasuring these stolen moments away from the pack.
She nods and leans back, her eyes filled with words I know by heart now. Filled with promises and desires yet to be fulfilled, but at our fingertips. I see vows to be true to our love, always and forever more. I get lost in her stare and see hope.
My eternal Hope.
“Are you?” she asks, knowing my answer, but always determined to hear me talk from the heart.
>
“Every single day, little bird. Every single day.”
Epilogue
Hope
There is always so much noise in this house.
Innocent giggles and deep barks of laughter echo and bounce off its walls.
No ghosts live here.
No need for dark corners to hide in, or to seek refuge behind locked doors.
This house is too filled with love and light for there to be room for anything else.
Such bright joy, it consumes you from within, making you sparkle and shine.
Genuine smiles and whispered ‘I love yous’ are sung throughout the day and night.
The same melody playing on repeat, so overwhelmingly beautiful and true, angels weep in elation.
This is not a house built on concrete and steel foundations alone.
The bones of its structure hold strong and protectively with love over its residents, promising only heaven’s kiss and glory.
From ash and pain, a paradise blossomed.
Our little piece of heaven right here on earth.
I wake up, stretching my body to its full length, taking advantage of the empty bed I’m in. Usually, this thing is so crowded I wonder why we have more beds in this house if everyone is going to end up sleeping in ours. But as much as I love having it all to myself now, I love it, even more, when it’s crowded with the pieces of my heart.
I hear Cam and Gabriel outside with the kids roughhousing, making enough noise it’s a wonder I was able to sleep through it. In the kitchen, I hear Michael teaching the ones he could blackmail into helping out with breakfast in the kitchen. The smell of bacon and eggs making its way to our bedroom tells me I should wake up and get some before there is nothing left for me. Not that it would happen, since Michael would have a plate full of my favorite things stored away from eager, chubby hands.
Even though I could do with some food, especially with the workout my men gave me last night, five more minutes in bed just listening to the joy outside my door and window will do my heart good.
I try to recall the memory of last night’s dream, but like always, it’s the feeling these dreams leave behind that I treasure most. The feeling of peace they offer, reminding me how the life I chose the second time around was my destiny all along. The path I would have found once I was brave enough to seek it out.
There are some certainties I have come to realize in this blessed life of mine. One is how even shattered wings hold heavenly beauty, and how nothing that has been severed can’t be glued back together with love, friendship, and patience. Lessons I have learned by heart and repeat to all my children in earnest. I wish upon each star how they never have to learn these lessons on their own, but take my example instead. Somehow, I know their happiness will always prevail, but the mother in me, the survivor in me, will always take precautions to make it so.
But I’m not the only one.
I have three angels who will guarantee it. They guard my babies as they protect me. They give them room to grow and be the people they were meant to be on their own, while always reminding them that their fathers would go to the end of the earth to do anything for them, and woe to anyone who crosses their path while doing it.
“Mama, why are you smiling?” I hear a soft voice call out to me. I look to my side, and sure enough, my little Valerie, with her chocolate curls and golden-brown eyes, stares back at me, waiting for me to say it’s okay for her to crawl in beside me. I pat the bed, and in no time at all, her chubby hands find the comforter to pull herself up. She giggles out when she’s halfway to me and jumps up into my arms to get those cuddles she loves so much. I kiss her face over and over again, as she squeals in delight.
“Daddy said to let you sleep, Mama. You have to be quiet, so he doesn’t find out I woke you,” she giggles, putting both hands on my mouth, even though she’s the one shrieking and laughing.
“Okay, baby,” I hush, smelling her innocent flowery scent that clings to her curls and skin.
“Mama, you didn’t answer my question. Why were you smiling?” she presses on, eyes wide with curiosity.
“I had a good dream, baby,” I explain, caressing my nose with hers in Eskimo kisses. Another giggle springs free from her, and she quickly presses her hands on my lips to hush the noise she’s making. I laugh into her little hands and kiss them a million times over.
“I get it, Mama. I would smile too, if I had a nice dream,” she replies once she’s calmed herself down.
“Mmm,” I murmur, locking her in my embrace.
“But I don’t like to sleep too much,” she whispers back.
“Why not, baby?” I ask, now concerned. She looks at me thoughtfully and then shrugs.
“Because Mama, what if I miss something while I’m taking a nap, or in bed at night? Wouldn’t that be awful?” she answers with a frown, sharing with me her biggest worry.
“I prefer to be wide awake. I don’t want to miss a thing,” she replies decisively.
I pull her in closer, kiss her forehead and smile wide, knowing exactly what she means.
“Me neither, baby.”
In this life, I don’t want to miss a single moment.
The End
Author Notes
Hi!
So yeah… It’s me again.
I think you might end up getting bored with the little notes I leave you at the end of each book, but I feel that, in so many cases, this is my one opportunity for you to know what’s going inside my head and get a little taste of who I am as a person as well as an author.
Many of you who have read Her Secret know I am still finding my way through this glorious world that is Reverse Harem. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, well, Her Secret was my very first attempt at getting my feet wet, if you will, with the RH genre. I wanted to try and prove to myself that I was brave and confident enough to leave my comfort zone, and chose to write what I love to read as my own personal growth challenge as an author.
I have to be honest with you guys, I was so nervous when I launched Her Secret. I thought people were going to hate it and they would tell me I had no business whatsoever writing anything about the RH genre, but the feedback that I got… well, let's just say I cried a lot those first couple of days. And it had nothing to do with sadness, but with the feeling of love I got from the readers and the RH community which—for a newbie like me—I wasn’t expecting to receive as much as I did.
I wanted so desperately to show you the love in my books, and I received it tenfold from you guys instead. There will never be any words I can put on paper that can thank you enough for the support, messages, and kind words I have gotten since my debut went out into the world.
So am I nervous now you might wonder with the release of Archangels?
Terrified!
But it’s okay. Although I hope you’ll love Archangels just as much as I do, I know I’m still learning. I know I’m on a path to learn every day to give you guys the book you deserve. So, I’ll practice. I’ll practice the shit - pardon my French- out of it. And continue to give you book after book until you tell - Hey Ivy! I think you got it, girl! And then I’ll practice some more. Hehe.
Now, you might have established one difference when reading Archangels MC from Her Secret, right? Yes, it is double the word count. And why did I do that you might ask?
Well, when you guys left your reviews saying that your only regret was that Her Secret wasn’t a bit longer, I listened and took it to heart. I had asked you if you could be kind enough to tell me if I should keep at this writing gig of RH or get out of the kitchen. And you took that to heart too and gave me your feedback, so I’m just paying it forward. If you enjoy my writing and the only complaint is that I just didn’t write enough for you, well, come hell or high water I am going to deliver.
And why?
Because you are making my dreams become a reality. Writing is all I ever dreamed of doing, and you taking a chance on me and falling in love—or even hate in some cases—with my char
acters, gets me to fulfill that dream in every sense of the word.
So, without abusing the word thank you too much, I want you to know I appreciate each and every one of you that read this little baby.
I’ve had this story in the back of my mind for a long time and to see it complete—I won't lie—it’s bittersweet. But I have to be content with the knowledge that I will see these characters again.
Oh… Didn’t you get that? Hehehe.
I left some clues in the book, but I can share it with you now. All the books in the Bad Influence series are standalone but Bad Influence is still very much a series, which means you will find some characters interconnected with each other. So don’t be surprised if you see Freya or the Perry boys pop by in a book or two (or in Room for Three * hint * hint * ).
Having said that, I hope you liked some of the side characters in this book, some were more prominent than others, but still, I hope they got your interest piqued since they will be showing up again later this year in Savages.
So, without taking too much more of your time, thank you again for sticking with me through this journey, for leaving your reviews that are so precious to my own author growth, and for those who reached out to me, either through social media or email, your support meant the world to me, and I will treasure it always.
With lots of love and gratitude,
Ivy
Ivy Fox Novels
Contemporary Romance
After Hours Series
The King – Out Now
The Prince – Coming Soon
The Duke – TBA
The Kingdom – TBA
Reverse Harem
Bad Influence Series
Her Secret — Out Now
Archangels MC — Out Now
Room for Three – Coming Soon
Hating You – TBA
Savages – TBA
For more news on upcoming projects, get the inside scoop and sneak peeks by joining my FB Author page here or Ivy’s Sassy Foxes
