Epilogue Six years later I turned around in my bed and stretched my hand forward but it touched empty sheets . What the hell ? I popped one eye open and saw an empty side of bed , where my husband supposedly should've been asleep . I opened both my eyes and frowned . Where was he ? I rubbed my eyes and stretched and opened my mouth to call out Austin but before I could do that , the door burst open and my little family walked in singing " Happy Birthday " off - key . I chuckled and sat up on the bed properly and looked at them feeling my heart fill with utter happiness and love. Austin made his way towards me with a huge tray in his hand , it had a cute little cupcake with a single candle burning and I could smell some delicious food along with it . Our three little kids trailed after him wearing spotted party hats , singing the song . Austin kept the tray on my lap and gave me a gentle peck on the lips as he smiled down at me . " Happy Birthday Mrs. Hamilton . " He whispered softly in my neck making me shiver slightly as I looked at him and felt my heart skip a beat as I took in his crooked smile . This man never failed to make me breathless , even after all these years . TH My face was stretched in the biggest grin it could possibly hold as the three little ones jumped on the bed and hugged me . D " Happy birthday mommy ! " The three of them chorused in unison . I smiled at my beautiful children and reveled in the fact of how lucky I truly was . # # " Thanks you my little chipmunks . " I smiled as I kissed each one of them . Austin and I hadn't really planned on how many kids we wanted or when , we didn't want to rush it but after only a year of our marriage we found out I was expecting , it was sudden but we had decided to go for it with enthusiasm , the first scans had been inaccurate and in my pregnancy months , I had blown up like a balloon so alarmingly that everyone thought we were having twins but we were all taken aback when we realized later we were having triplets . Talk about getting surprised . They were fraternal triplets and the three of them didn't look alike completely and were unique in their own way . Addyson was the first one and she was their leader , she demanded attention and reveled in it and she had my grey green eyes and her father's features and had long raven locks till her waist , they were so beautiful , I never had the heart to cut them . Next came my sweet baby girl Adira , she seemed to be the one who all ways stuck out from the two with her inquisitive and calm disposition she had her father's chocolate eyes and my features , she had almost all my character traits and and then at last we had our little pocket rocket Adrian who was constantly up to some kind of mischief but he had the ability to melt your heart with just one look , he looked exactly like me with grey eyes and dark hair but had all the behavior characteristics of his father . He was a handful . But the three of them meant the world to me . And together the trio was quite 1.7 22 11 DO M ரு < Epilogue the team . + Points I looked down at the breakfast tray and blew the candle and bit into the cupcake , that my lovely husband had made . Marriage had turned me into a lazy cook , Austin prepared nearly all the meals and had spoilt the hell out of me , so technically it was his fault . But I didn't mind it one bit . I bit into the delicious Spanish omelet he had prepared for my and let out a hum of approval . " Yum … god Mr. Rich Pants I'm so glad I married you ." I moaned in appreciation as I devoured the omelete , feeding a few forkful to the kids and him . He pouted . " I knew you married me to use me , Mrs. Rich Pants , I knew it . " I chuckled as I fed the last piece of the omelet to Adira . The kids presented me their birthday cards and I felt myself glow with utter happiness as I saw their drawings . They were far too young to write as they were only four years old but nevertheless their little doodles made my entire year . After my lovely wake - up . The kids rushed downstairs to play as I decided to relish a few minutes of silence with my amazing husband . I looked at Austin's beautiful chiseled face and I felt like the luckiest woman in the world . I put my arms around his torso and gave him a soft kiss and smiled . TE " I love you . " I meant it with all my heart . We had been through so much yet we came out stronger , I still had scars and the memories never faded but it just made us stronger each day . He put his arms around me and lifted me up to his feet and kissed the top of my forehead . " I love you too cupcake . " Even after all these years I felt like the younger me in his arms even though I physically I wasn't her anymore . My entire body had changed and had put on curves in different places after bearing three children but he still treated me like I looked like I did when I was twenty three . People said , that marriage falls into a routine after some years but that never happened for us , for us every day was as exciting and as new as it was when we first met and there was nothing I would change . " So what do you think about starting your day with a nice , hot shower with me , Mrs. Hamilton ? " I gave him a cheeky grin . " Should I get the water running then ? " 222 " Happy Birthday dork ! " Trish sang as she enveloped me in a hug . I chuckled as I pulled apart sticking my tongue out at her . She rolled her eyes at me while still smiling . " Grow up woman , you have babies ' now . " I threw her a pointed look . " Look who's talking . " " Ladies , let's not indulge on petty fights today , okay ? " Alex chided as he let his daughter Zara to the ground . Blake and he had adopted her from Vietnam and she was an absolute darling . She was as old as my kids and they were an inseparable pact . I grinned at my friends . Life was good . 14 217 DONN 11 Fink DO M O < Epilogue Aerin came up to us , her son Zach hanging by her pinky and enveloped me in a hug . " Happy birthday Soph ! " + Paints I smiled at her as her . " Thanks Aerin . " Aerin was now one of the best authors world wide , her debut book had stirred a global storm and had also been turned into a motion picture and after that she had released several more books within six years and I had stuck to being her partner in crime , obviously with a higher paycheck after my promotion . And now Austin and I were discussing if I should open my own publishing house , the idea was exciting and I was thinking of taking it forward soon . I looked at my surroundings and smiled inwardly . Austin had thrown a garden birthday party for me . He wanted to keep it simple knowing how much I appreciated that . We had purchased this mansion four years back and moved into a more elite locality for the sake of the kids and even though it broke my heart to move out of my house , I knew I had to . Though I never sold it , I had rented it to a single mother with two kids who I knew would love it as much as I did . A loud crash snapped me out of my thoughts as I turned to look towards the direction of the sound . I shook my head as I looked at the upturned food table and the fallen sausages on the grass . My eyes narrowed at the furry devil beside the mess . Tango looked at me with an alarmed doggy face which said- I swear I didn't do it . It must be the imaginary cat . I shook my head as I crouched down to him and chuckled . " Even old age can't teach you manners . " I chuckled as Tango wagged his tail at me being all- Since you're chuckling , I'm not in trouble right ? Phew . The household help cleared the mess as the kids played with the dogs . Both Roxy and Tango were inseperable now . Had I not neutered Tango we'd probably be having a dozen puppies around , as much as the idea seemed cute it was impossible to even consider it after we had the triplets . Our house had enough crazy to last forever . " Sophia ? " A familiar voice called out timidly behind me . I turned around and smiled at the person in front of me . Ryan . 741 4 He stood in front of me , shy . He gave me a silver gift wrapped present and smiled . He was dressed casually and he looked genuinely happy for the first time in forever . " Happy birthday Soph . " I gave him a hug and smiled . " Thank you Ryan ." Austin came to stand beside me and put an arm around me and I rolled my eyes at him internally . His possessive tendencies apparently never took a chill pill . OOOONN 11 IL 3/7 FAK DOM T ||| < Epdoque Ryan looked a bit uncomfortable under Austin's formally cold glare but still smiled . +8 Points > Ryan was now a changed man . After that incident , I had not pressed charges against Ryan , much to Austin's outrage but it was my decision and I hadn't budged . Instead I had volunteered to enroll him in the best mental facility in the country . Ryan had made a lot of mistakes but sometimes instead of looking at everything with a critical eye and bearing the burden of a grudge , the best thing you can do is forgive that person and give them a second chance . Ryan was not a bad man , his disease made him the monster that he was , it dictated his actions and it was not him or his true conscience . Schizophernia is a very , very serious disease and the patients are the real victims , just imagine how hard it would be to have two alternate people inside you , dictating your actions against your true will and making you a monster , imagine being all alone through it all , imagine wanting to kill yourself every single minute , imagine being labelled as a monster and not knowing what was happening to you , imagine you becoming your worst enemy , imagine being lost and not knowing the way out . People thought I was crazy for trying to help the person who had stabbed , shot and kidnapped me . But I was fine with being crazy if that meant allowing someone to have a shot at life . Ryan had never known a real family , just like me . Where I had friends and some people to look after me , he had no one except his disease , he only had the alter ego his brain had created and we all know how pleasant hat alter ego was . Ryan was not sick anymore , he had fought hard to get better for five years . And now he was under control . Schizophernia never leaves a person completely , but with proper assistance and medicines and lots of support it was curable . I knew I had to be his support because he literally had no one else . Austin hadn't appreciated that fact at all but even he knew I was right as bitter as it all was . So whether he liked it or not , he had to come in terms with it but he still wasn't comfortable with Ryan around me , which was understandable so I didn't push him either . Trish and Austin were on the same page while all the others had been more understanding . I knew they'd come around . As for Ryan he had only really started socializing since last year and was still a bit timid but I was determined to get him better . Well , me and Chloe . She was Ryan's nurse and believe it or not , I think he had a shot at a new life with her . They weren't exclusive but they did like each other . My children had also been a great source of comfort and support for Ryan . They welcomed any playmate . open heartedly and Ryan was no exception . Austin absolutely was against letting Ryan near our kids but I had a way with words with him so he never won the arguments . But that didn't mean , he didn't turn into a big Papa bear whenever Ryan came to visit them . But I knew Austin very well knew Ryan was harmless now . Besides the one thing I learnt all this years was that there are no real " villains " . Everyone is born innocent , circumstances change them . People like Ryan are not villains , they are people , who are lost and need help to become like us , Esmeralda on the other hand … greed unfortunately has no cure . Ryan had bought Chloe with him and it made me happy to know that she was there for him now . Austin toned down his coldness after he realized he bought Chloe with him and realized Ryan was very involved with her . Addyson ran to me , her face scrunched in a scowl . " Mommy ! Adwian is puwwing my hair ! " 4/7 11 M T < Epilogue +8 Points > I turned to Adrian and gave him a pointed look . " Adrian , it's not nice to pull your sister's hair . Apologize to her . " Adrian gave me his classic innocent face . This little rogue , I swear . " But Mommy I didn do anything . " He spoke in his angelic voice . " Adrian … " He pouted in defeat and stuck his tongue out at Addyson . " Adrian ! " I scolded . He pouted and sighed . " Okay .. sowwy Addy . " Addyson sniffed at him haughtily . " It's okay . " Adrian gave Addyson a hug . Aw , they're such cute little munchkins . 767 Mys A He pulled her ponytail again from behind her and ran away from us , letting out peals of laughter . I thought to soon . Addyson let out a frustrated scream and chased him around the lawn as I shook my head . Austin put an arm around me as he stood beside me , watching our kids . " He has all your traits . " I sighed . " He's going to be such a hit then ." Austin cockily added . I gave him a flat look and Austin chuckled , kissing the tip of my nose . He pulled away . " By the way I want you to meet someone . " I gave him a puzzled look . " Who ? " " Come with me . " He took my hand and led me to the back garden . A woman stood near the miniature fountain . She turned around and my heart stopped . Mom .