EPILOGUE

ARIA

She turned first one way, then the other as she took in her reflection in the mirror above their dresser. The summer dress she wore was tighter than it had ever been and she couldn't help but feel a bit self-conscious about her appearance. Arms suddenly wrapped themselves around her middle and she watched as Ezra leaned down, placing a series of kisses between her neck and shoulder.

He looked up and caught her gaze in the mirror, flashing her a loving smile. "You look absolutely beautiful."

"I don't feel beautiful," Aria said with a sigh. She looked down, avoiding his stare. "I feel like I'm as big as a whale. And this summer heat is not helping."

Ezra laughed, pulling away slightly so that he could turn her to look at him. He lifted her chin gently to make eye contact before responding. "You are eight months pregnant, Aria. You're supposed to be a tad bigger but let me tell you… I think you're the most beautiful pregnant woman that there ever was. Absolutely. Beautiful." He punctuated each word with a soft kiss before pulling back and softly smiling down at her.

Aria rolled her eyes as her own smile mirrored his. "You're biased… but I'll accept the compliment."

"Good. Now come on, we're going to be late," Ezra replied with a laugh. He grabbed his ball cap from atop the chest of drawers and taking his wife's hand, made his way down the stairs and out to the truck. Opening the door for her, he was stopped short when instead of climbing in she stood still for a moment before pulling a shopping bag from the seat.

"What's this?" she asked, making to open the bag. He quickly swiped for it but she moved it behind her, out of his reach.

Ezra nervously ran a hand over his neck, avoiding eye contact. "I uh- it's nothing. It's just something I saw at the store the other day and I-"

Before he could continue, Aria was opening the bag, peering inside to see what it was that he was so nervous about. She let a soft smile grace her face as she reached in to pull out an infant sized baseball hat. It was the exact same hue of red as the cap sitting atop Ezra's head and almost identical in appearance.

"This is very cute," Aria giggled, playing with the brim.

A blush covered Ezra's face before he took the hat into his own hands. "I just thought, you know, a baby could really use a hat. I dunno…"

Aria smiled at his nervousness. "The baby will look adorable in this, Ezra. I can't wait to see him or her matching their daddy." She leaned up to give him a soft kiss before turning to climb in the truck. "Now come on, Mister. We really are going to be late if you don't get a move on it."

Smiling, Ezra quickly shut her door and jogged around the truck to jump in the driver's seat and pushed the truck into drive, heading towards the road. Spencer and Toby's son Stephen had turned six a couple months ago and had begged to join a baseball team for his birthday. Ezra and Toby had somehow gotten roped into coaching the team. Aria giggled to herself as she remembered the amount of coercing she'd had to do in order to convince her husband to help out. She could see how much he honestly loved doing it, though, and she couldn't wait to see him as a father to their own child.

When Ezra pulled into the small dirt lot just outside of a ball field on the outskirts of town, Aria was quick to spot Spencer, holding her two year old daughter in the stands just behind the home team's bench. She pressed a quick kiss to Ezra's cheek before climbing the aluminum stairs to sit by her friend.

"Hey! How are you feeling?" Spencer asked as Aria sat down.

"Like I weigh five hundred pounds," Aria groaned, dropping her purse from her shoulder onto the bench beside her. "And my feet barely fit into any of my shoes anymore. I may have to start wearing Ezra's."

Spencer laughed in response to Aria's statement. "Yeah, been there. Men are so lucky they don't have to deal with this."

"Oh trust me, I make sure Ezra has to deal with these pregnancy symptoms as much as I do," Aria giggled. "He's gotten very good at foot and back massages. I've even taught him to cook something more than soup."

Brooklyn, Spencer's daughter, suddenly reached out for Aria. "Up!"

"Brooklyn, what do you say first?" Spencer asked.

"Pwease," the little girl whispered. Aria laughed before turning and pulling the little girl onto her lap. Looking out at the field as the game began, Aria made eye contact with Ezra from where he stood coaching on third base and gave him a small wave. He blew her a kiss in response.

The afternoon dragged on until the late afternoon sun was soon becoming too much for Aria to handle in her current condition. She was reaching down into her purse to search for the water bottle she'd put in there when a shadow came over her. She looked up to see Ezra holding the handrail to the stairs, half on her level and half on the one below them.

"Hey, we should head home. It's getting brutally hot out here," he told her, reaching for her hand.

Aria knit her brows in confusion, turning to look out at the field. The game was still going on, they were barely half way through it. "Ezra, the game's not over yet?"

Smiling, he pulled her up and to him and grabbed her purse from next to Spencer. "I know, but Toby can handle the rest of the game. I don't think it's a very good idea for you to be out taking in this much sun. I should have thought about that before letting you come today." He started walking towards their truck, gently coaxing her to follow with a hand on her back.

"Ezra, I'm fine. I brought plenty of water and a hat and Stephen's counting on you-"

"Aria, there will be other games. Now come on, I'm exhausted," Ezra said, cutting her off. He once again helped her into the passenger's seat and wasted no time in driving them home. Wren was just closing the back door leading into the kitchen when they pulled up outside the house. Aria was extremely confused. He said he'd be in Columbus all weekend, visiting a few friends. Waving, Wren met them at the foot of the stairs leading up onto the deck.

"It's all set, gotta go now, Buddy. It's a couple hours' drive to the big city, see you two Monday!" With no other explanation for his cryptic statement, Wren was peeling out of the drive, on course to enjoy what was sure to be a giant drunken party all weekend.

"Ezra? What's going on?" Aria asked, turning towards her husband. He just smiled at her before taking her hand and leading her into the house.

The first thing she noticed upon entering the kitchen was the rich aroma of sautéed vegetables and a homemade potato casserole. She instantly started salivating at the wide array of smells until her stomach started to grumble in response. Ezra's smile turned into an even bigger grin as he led her to the table and pulled out her chair for her to sit down. He turned towards the stove and carried over the prepared dishes, serving first her than himself before joining her at the table.

Taking her hands into his own, Ezra was silent for a moment before turning to answer Aria's questioning gaze. "Aria, you have made me the happiest I have ever been since the moment you set foot on this property. A few short years ago you became my wife and now you're carrying my child. I want to show you, to the best of my ability, how much I love and appreciate having you in my life."

Aria couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her face and hastily reached up to wipe them away with a short laugh. "Damn pregnancy hormones." Leaning over she took a minute to press her lips to his before pulling away. "Thank you. And I love you too."

As she enjoyed the evening planned out by Ezra (complete with a warm bath and full body massage), she remembered being told once to let Ezra work through his demons, that he just needed time to find himself. She was sure glad she'd stuck around and gave him time. She'd had her own demons that he had let her work through. It seemed like everything they did complimented the other and she realized that was what being in love was all about. That night, lying in her husband's arms, she finally felt what it was to be completely and irrevocably loved.

Thank you all so much for reading this story! I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and an awesome New Year! Again, please follow me so that you know when I start a new story. I can't wait to share more of my thoughts with y'all! Happy Holidays!