Purposefully Coincidental ✓

81. Epilogue

Leo

Tiptoeing out of our bedroom, I close the door behind me before dashing out to the living room. No one is up yet, so hopefully I'll have enough time to get this done.

I descend the stairs of our home towards our kitchen. It has four bedrooms and two and a half baths. We bought it and fixed it up just in time to move in after our wedding over six years ago.

When I enter the kitchen, I put my hands on my hips as I take in the mess the kids made last night.

Once a month, we let them go loose. They can choose one activity and we say yes to whatever it is—of course, if it's safe for their age. And last night, they simply wanted to learn how to make their mother's famous cupcakes.

They failed miserably.

But that was expected of four and almost six-year-old girls.

Quickly, but quietly, I clean up the mess. Then I start up on a new batch of batter.

I now know the recipe by heart and can make cupcakes and frost them with my eyes closed.

Since it's December 24th, I frost the cupcakes in fun Christmas-y shapes. Ornaments, trees and snowflakes.

It's nine I clock when I hear soft feet getting closer.

Luna's little hands clutch my hips and I turn around to hoist her up.

"Buongiorno, my little angel." I smile at my four-year-old. Josephine's and I's second daughter. And she's literally an angel. She's quiet, shy, calm, observant, and artistic. She's basically my twin in a much smaller form.

She and I have a special bond.

"Papa." She hides her chubby face in my neck, her eyes still puffy.

I kiss her head and hug her closer to me as I grab the plate with the finished cupcakes and walk to the living room.

Maeve and Josephine will be up much later. They sure love their sleep.

"Wanna try a cupcake before Maeve and mama finish them?" I whisper to her, as if telling her a secret.

Her eyes widen, and she glances towards the stairs that lead to the bedrooms before facing me again.

"Si." She giggles. She's been speaking mostly Italian for the past few months. Not sure if it's because we try to speak as much Italian as we can with them or because Nicole has been trying to teach her boyfriend Italian but is failing miserably, so she's teaching my daughter.

I don't mind it though.

Setting Luna on my lap, I grab the plate and hold it in front of her. "Pick one."

She carefully eyes them all before grabbing one that appears to have the least frosting on it.

She's not a big fan of sugar.

I watch in awe as she munches on it, not making too much of a mess around her mouth.

Every day, I wonder how I got so lucky in my life.

I married the love of my life almost seven years ago. Three months after I came back from the army for the very last time, I proposed and six months later, we got married. It was intimate and one of the best days of my life.

A few months after our wedding, Josephine woke me up and told me she got the pregnancy test back positive. It was the best news ever. Then she got pregnant again with Luna two years later.

Each day I wonder how I get to call Josephine mine. My wife. Best friends. Partner. Soulmate. Mother of my children. She makes each day interesting, and it fills me with so much joy seeing her with our kids.