Elliot turned me in his arms and frowned when tears splashed on to my cheeks.
“Green eyes,” he said softly as he thumbed them away. “Ye were with her when she passed away; she wasn’t alone in her final moments because she had you right next to her. Your goodbye to her was that night.”
My lower lip wobbled as I burst into sobs. “I miss her so much.”
Elliot enveloped me in a warm, tight embrace, and I wrapped my arms around him as I cried. Life without Bailey was hard, but it was getting somewhat easier in the sense that I didn’t always cry when I missed her. But today was one of those days where my grief struck me hard, and broke me down into tears.
“Mummy?” a small voice called. “Don’t cry, we didn’t mean to scare you. Did we, Daddy?”
I pulled back and smiled down at my son, and when I bent to lift him up, Elliot stopped me and picked Baylor up instead. Baylor reached down and rubbed my swollen stomach, which brought on a fresh wave of tears that had my son near tears himself.
“Mummy’s okay, Bay,” Elliot assured him with a cuddle. “She just misses Auntie Bailey.”
“I miss her too, Mummy. It’s okay.”
He only knew of Bailey through pictures, videos and stories we told him of her, but that was enough for him to fall in love with his sweet auntie. I stepped closer and wrapped my arms around my boys, and the baby in my belly decided that he – or she – didn’t want to be left out, and they gave me a whopping kick that Elliot felt against his own stomach. He laughed.
“This one will definitely be me footballer.”
I snorted. “Maybe she will.”
“Still stuck on him bein’ a girl?”
“Yup,” I answered with a smile. “Our little Bailey.”
Elliot eyes shone with love, and he leaned his head down and pressed his lips to mine. We’d named Baylor after her by tweaking his name, and I’d named my shop after her because I could never look at lilies without her face popping into my mind, but I wanted a little girl that I could name after my sister-in-law too.
The kiss my husband gave me lasted no more than a second before Baylor claimed he wanted a kiss from me too. Elliot’s grunt made me grin. Once Baylor heard the theme song for Paw Patrol play on the television, he wiggled in Elliot’s arms until he was put back on the floor and then he took off running.
“That lad has the energy of ten kids.”
I pressed my face against Elliot’s chest and slid my arms back around his waist. While I was still hurting for the loss of Bailey, I couldn’t deny how happy I was in my life. I’d gone through a hardship not many people face. I’d lost the love of my life and found him again, as I found myself. I’d married him and given birth to his son, and was a few months away from giving him a second child. I had the security, love and life I had always dreamed of with Elliot, and I had that life with my parents living right down the street.
My father had beaten his cancer and had been in remission going on two years. My bond with my parents had strengthened and our love for one another had only deepened. I couldn’t imagine my life without them, and I didn’t want to. Elliot’s parents were still happily married and heavily involved in our lives; his mother was currently thinking of coming to work for me in my flower shop. I hoped she accept my offer, because I loved being around her.
AJ and his beautiful wife Dani had twin girls a month after I had Baylor; the two of them aged AJ by the day. He often swore he was getting the snip when he’d had one too many nights of getting nothing but a couple of hours of sleep. Those threats were clearly empty now that Dani was ten weeks pregnant with their third child. After AJ cried for a day, he started praying to God that he’d get a boy this time around because he was certain it would be his and Dani’s last baby.
All of Elliot’s station buddies were doing wonderfully in life. Stitch, Tank and Pretty had added two more kids – each – to their families. Texas and his girlfriend, Jodie – Dani’s cousin from Ireland – were engaged and expecting their first little one. We all often had family day outings together, and we made sure whenever one of our kids had a birthday that we all made a big deal about it. Each of those men put their lives on the line every time they went to work; they knew the importance of celebrating each milestone like it could be the last.
The person who was the cause of so much pain and suffering in my life would never have the chance to hurt me or anyone else for as long as he lived. Anderson Riley had been charged with multiple serious offences, and in a trial that had lasted just a couple of weeks, a court of law had found him guilty of all charges. With his sentences all added together, he would die in prison and would forever lose the control on his life that he craved.
He’d got what he deserved, and Bailey and I got our justice.
“I miss her too,” Elliot said as he hugged me to him. “But she’s here with us. Ye feel her, right?”
I nodded. “I do. Today was just a day that I missed her extra.”
“I know, green eyes. I had one of those days last week. I just can’t believe the years have gone by so quickly without her. Think of it, this time five years ago you had no clue how
