At my Lowest

Epilogue: Dakota

I walked through the garden of my large home shouting out his name.

"Miles! Miles come out I can't find you! You win hide and seek!"

The small brunette child ran out and hugged my legs tightly while smiling up at me.

His little sister sat on my hip toying with my hair.

They both have brunette hair so no black hair in sight, unfortunately.

I felt arms wrap around my waist and turned around to face my husband.

"Ethan, we're going to be late!"

He groaned and scooped Miles into his arms.

"Is Mariah fussy or happy today?"

"She's surprisingly happy!"

I looked down at my little girl who just hugged me tighter.

We walked over to the car and sat the kids down.

Once everyone was settled we drove to my brother's house.

I walked out and rushed up to Layla and Ava.

"Hi, girls!"

"Hey, Kota!"

Layla smiled at me and we began to catch up.

Liam walked over and kissed his wife on the cheek.

"Hi, Liam!"

"Hi Coco! How are you guys doing?"

"Amazing. I would have never seen any of this coming back in high school."

"Tell me about it. I'm the father of two children. I didn't even want kids! But it's a blessing now."

Layla gave birth to Dalia who is four and her little brother Ronny who is two.

They're adorable!

Miles is four as well and Mariah is one.

Layla excused herself and picked up Ronny while gunning for the champagne table.

Ava and Javon are doing well too.

They're very happy to have a nephew and niece and visit Layla and Liam often to see them.

They also have a little boy.

Micheal.

Mikey is the cutest thing.

Ava went to speak to Ethan so I turned to the host.

"Matt!"

"Hey! How are the kids doing?"

"Great-"

I stopped speaking as his wife walked out.

Kennedy is a gorgeous woman.

And she made stunning kids as well.

The twins, Kole and Karoline aka Kali walked out each holding a hand of their mother's.

I opened my arms and they ran to hug me.

"My pretty niece and handsome nephew!"

I stood up and looked at Kennedy.

"You look amazing Kenz"

"Thank you! As do you for a woman who popped out a kid so recently."

"She's a year old! I've had time."

"Still feels like yesterday for me."

I hugged her and walked off to socialize with others.

Austin held his little girl close to him as he played with her.

He loves her so much.

Milan is so pretty and she reminds me a lot of Austin when it comes to her funny personality.

Lani sat next to them and joined in on the play.

Such a happy family!

I'm so happy for them.

Oliver ran around with his little sister on his back, being careful to not fall.

Danielle held on to her brother and squealed in excitement.

Jen's kids.

I heard arguing and saw Jennifer with her husband Timothy.

They do this regularly.

But they always patch it up in the end.

Griffin was approaching me with his wife next to him. She held his hand tightly as if she would get lost.

I understand, Luciana hasn't known everyone for nearly as long as I have or the other wives.

Their daughter was on her dad's hip.

Jeanette is a bit spoiled and Griffin gives her everything she wants.

But she's still a cute little girl.

I waved at them and then Luciana saw Jen.

Luciana loves Jen, She hurriedly rushed towards her pulling Griff with her.

I returned to my own family and kissed Ethan as we sat at the table.

Looking at everyone's families and how we've grown from what we used to be was heartwarming.

I'm so proud of us.

All of us.

Layla who sat in front of me dropped her fork to the table and stood abruptly.

I turned around and saw her.

That's unexpected.

I haven't heard from her since the argument. She was no longer a piece of my life.

Liam stood with his wife protectively.

I stood up and turned around.

"Emma? What are you doing here? Who invited you?"

"Now Dakota, I thought this was a get-together for friends and family! We used to be so close. And now look at the lot of you! I didn't even know you had kids and I see some unexpected couples. Liam and Layla? Wow!"

"Emma this is my brother's home so I will ask again. Who invited you?"

How does she know my brother's address? I'm worried for him. So, if she doesn't answer me I'll just kick her out.

I gasped when I noticed her guest.

"Surprise!"

She shouted excitedly as if we were all friends.

"You're pregnant?!"

"To answer your question I saw where you were on Lani's Instagram post. I saw everyone in the background and wondered where my invite was. After a bit of stalking, I saw her address in one post. Anyway, now that I've informed you terrible people that my life is going great, I'll leave. Zach is waiting for me."

She at me and settled back into the passenger seat of a car before it drove away.

It took a while for the party to get back on track but we had an enjoyable evening in the end.

Once we were home, I put the kids to bed and sat down in my office.

So, my life took a turn for the better.

Ethan's in the NFL, we have a happy family, and I'm finally an author you know when my name is brought up.

I signed the ending of my book and closed it.

With love,

Dakota Banks.

Author of At My Lowest.