Swans Don't Quit

Epilogue: Family

"Alex! Hurry up!" I hollered up the stairs for the second time. What could be taking this boy so long.

"Relax Eli." Leah said coming up behind me carrying Caylee in her arms.

"No. We are supposed be at dad's in twenty minutes and if Alex doesn't hurry up we'll be lucky to be on the road in twenty minutes." I said looking at my watch.

"Here, you take Cay and I'll go get him." Leah said passing my seven-year old daughter to me. She was adorable in her light pink dress and her hair done back in braids.

"Where are your sister and brother?" I asked as I realized the house was too quiet.

"Elijah and Charlotte are outside. Mommy told them to wait on the swing." I nodded and grabbed up dad's present to put in the truck. Outside the door like Caylee had said was my son and Caylee's twin. It was hard to believe that Alex was already fourteen years old. Leah's and my oldest, Elijah Caleb Swan Jr. was already nine, soon to be ten. Then my babies. Caylee Susan and Charlotte Harriett had just turned seven. Despite the characteristics that he got from his mother, the darker skin and the black hair, Little Eli had my eyes and face and appeared to be inheriting my height though that could be from Leah too. The girls however look exactly like their mother with the exception that they had my nose.

My girls had me wrapped around their little fingers since the day they were born. The minute Leah set them in my hands I was gone, mesmerized by the little creatures in arms that I had helped create. Dad was ecstatic about having granddaughters to spoil the hell out of as was Sue and dad's new wife Tiffany Call. If Leah or I told the girls no about something they wanted grandpa Charlie or grandma Tiffany was sure to get it for them.

Leah finally came out of the house with Alex trailing behind. Alex had been tricky since we had been to tell him that I was actually his uncle and Leah his aunt. He understood that his mother had been young she had him. When he asked if could ever meet her we told him what everyone believed in town, she had died while away at her senior year of college in horrible car crash. We gave him a picture of Isabella and took him to see her grave marker when he asked. He looked a lot like Isabella which was bitter-sweet for Leah and I since he was so much like our blood son to us. He had Isabella and dad's dark brown hair and chocolate eyes.

It was even harder to tell him about not knowing who his father was. He had thought that if he couldn't know his mother he would know his father. Since telling him, Alex had become a little more difficult, but he still told us he loved us and called us mom and dad. It had been interesting when Renee had come for Isabella's 'funeral' and had finally meet Alex when he was roughly five years old. She had tried to flaunt over him and bribe him with gifts and toys. Instead of making him fond of her, he dobbed her the crazy lady with too much money and told her as much. After that she had cut off all contact with dad and myself not even bothering to recognize Alex as her grandson anymore.

"Great let's go. Grandpa isn't getting any younger." I said and helped Leah get in the car while the kids piled in their seats. I started down the road to the new house. When dad had married Tiffany she left her house to Embry while dad sold his house. They moved into a house down the road from Billy that could fit both of them and have room for the grand kids. Embry had imprint on a nice woman named Maggie. They got married and have a little three-year girl named Kelley.

"Mommy? Kelley and Julia will be there, right?" Charlotte asked from the back seat.

"Yes, honey. I doubt Uncle Seth or Uncle Embry would come to grandpa's birthday party without their daughters." Leah said and I smiled. The fools had busted on me for being wrapped around my daughters' fingers, but amazingly they worse. There was nothing that those girls wanted that they didn't get.

"What about Uncle Jake? Is he going to be there?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, he and Katie and Billy will all be there." I replied and turned down the road. Seth, Embry, Sue, and Jake's cars were in the driveway with dad's cruiser and Tiffany's car. As soon as the doors were unlocked and the seat belts were undone the kids made a mad dash for the door. I stayed back and walked with Leah. We watched as the door swung open and dad squatted down and was almost plowed over as the kids ran into him. Tiffany laughed behind him holding little Kelley in her arms.

Kelley wiggled until she was let down and joined in the hug fest. Leah and I maneuvered our past the children and into the house. Tiffany gave us a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Hi, mom." I said and kissed her cheek before walking into the living room with everyone else. Everyone had been shocked when I started to call Tiffany mom, but she was. She was everything that Renee never was when I was growing up and she did the things that Renee should be doing now. When I needed advice about what to do with Leah or something with the kids she was the one I called now. She was the one to call just to check up on us or to remember our birthdays.

"Hey Seth." I said and shook his hand that wasn't wrapped around his imprint and wife Gigi. She smiled up at me and I kissed her cheek before she gave me a hug.

"How are you doing Eli? The kids succeeded in driving you crazy yet?" Gigi asked with a giggle making everyone laugh.

"Not yet, I give it another six months." Leah said with a smirk before walking our to talk with Maggie.

"Uncle Eli!" I heard Julia yell behind me and spun around and caught her as she jumped toward.

"Hey, hey. Lookie here. You get prettier every time I see you, Jay." I said and she blushed and giggled before giving me a kiss on the cheek and squirming till I let her down to play with her cousins.

"How is it that you are always the favorite uncle. I never get greeted like that?" Embry questioned as he walked up behind me.

"Because I have a badge, a gun and a car with shiny lights on top. That's why." I said with a smirk. Embry shook his head before shaking my hand with a smirk.

"So that's what I've been doing wrong. I went into the wrong occupation." Embry said like it explained everything and we laughed.

"Yeah the only thing you and Jake got going in the bibs and being dirty all the time from being a mechanic. How's the shop doing?" I asked.

"Pretty good. Jake's a tyrant as a boss. And then to go on patrol and have him as an alpha?" Embry said and made a face." I laughed and tried to stop when Jake came up behind Embry and smacked him on the back of the head.

"I'm not that bad and if I'm remembering correctly I was the one that rearranged your work schedule so you have today and your anniversary off." Jake said and Embry rubbed the back of his head, shooting Jake a glare. Jake smirked and pulled Katie a little closer to him and laid his hand on her stomach.

"No." I said looking at his head and Katie smiled with a nod.

"Congratulations, guys. I'm happy for yeah." I said and slapped Jake on the back and gave Katie a hug.

"Food everybody." Tiffany called stopping all conversations as we all made our way into the dining room. We sat and ate, gave presents, and laughed as the night progressed and as we sang happy birthday to my father, I looked around the group of people gathered around the table singing and saw what my life had become. From losing hope in ever being happy in my life to having a family that I would do anything for. I looked at the smiles and the tired eyes as the song ended and was glad that Swans don't quit.

The End