Bubblegum

Epilogue

Jake sat in the basement of his home in Nashville, shaking his leg as he listened to the guitar parts he had been recording over and over. The headphones were starting to make his ears ache, but something wasn't right. Something was missing and he couldn't put his finger on it.

As he twisted and turned in the office chair, his eyes caught movement from the door. It had been closed, but now there was a small crack in it, and a pair of chocolate brown eyes peeking in. Jake lowered his headphones around his neck, and leaned back in his chair.

"Maeve," Jake called out with a small smirk. He watched as the door opened wider, and the little girl leaned with it, careful not to step foot over the carpet threshold to the studio. "What are you up to, monster?"

"I missed you." she answered, her voice quiet as she stared at him with eyes that looked just like his own. He now understood how Eden's resolve melted when she looked at him. Maeve had Jake wrapped around her tiny finger with just one look.

"You can come in, as long as you listen to me, and don't play with anything, okay?" Maeve nodded and scrambled into the room, eager to climb up into Jake's lap. "Daddy is working on new music, and I'm missing something. Do you wanna hear it?" Maeve nodded fast, her brown waves and curls flying everywhere. She loved music, and always wanted to be around when her uncles and Dad were working on something. She especially loved concerts, and watching them perform with all the lights. Jake unplugged his headset and lowered the volume, then played the riffs for his daughter, bringing his hands in front of her and playing air guitar while she giggled.

"Daddy plays good!" Maeve grinned, showing off the gaps where a few of her baby teeth had started falling out.

"Yeah he does." Jake spun around with Maeve in his lap, to see Eden leaning against the door frame, a smile on her face. "I go to use the bathroom for a minute and you bolted!"

"Sorry Mommy." Maeve hung her head. Eden pushed off from the frame and came into the room, kneeling so she was eye level with her daughter.

"It's okay, sweetie." she cupped the girls face in her hands so she would look at her. "Next time, please let me know you're going to another room, okay?"

"Okay." Eden grinned and after a pause, attacked the little girls face with kisses, making exaggerated 'mwah mwah' sounds and eliciting shrieks and giggles from her. When she stood up, she smoothed back Jake's hair, placing a kiss on his lips. "Still stuck on this song?"

"Yeah." Jake nodded, busying himself with straightening the bow he'd placed in Maeve's hair that morning.

"Why don't you take a little break? It's almost dinner time." Eden suggested. "Spend an evening with your favorite girls, and come back with fresh eyes tomorrow."

"You know what?" Jake smiled as he bounced Maeve on his lap. "That sounds like the best idea you've ever had." he turned back around, flipping everything off and hoisting Maeve up into his arms before standing and carrying her out of the room, passing framed gold and platinum records for both Greta Van Fleet and Eden's latest albums. "Besides, I think it's lasagna night."

"Lasagna!" Maeve cried excitedly. Much like her mother, she loved Jake's lasagna, and would ask for it weekly, if not daily.

"Wanna help me make mommy her favorite dinner?" Jake asked his mini-me. Maeve smiled and nodded, pointing to the kitchen and he followed. A few years ago, he'd had a daydream just like this, as he watched Eden eat his lasagna for the first time, in the kitchen of her Hollywood home, in the middle of plotting her big breakthrough. Making it with her in a home of their own, or with their child. As he tied the small apron strings around Maeve's back, and used the hair tie on his finger to pull her hair back, he couldn't help but smile.

Later that night, after cleaning up the mess of tomato sauce, cheese and béchamel in the kitchen, then cleaning up their daughter and putting her to bed, Jake and Eden laid tangled together in their bed, talking softly.

"Sometimes, I still feel like if I fall asleep, I'll wake up, and this will all have been a dream." Eden confessed softly. Jake held her hand between them, rubbing it gently and playing with her fingers. Her wedding band shimmered in the pale moon light that filtered in from the blinds on their windows. "That the last seven years didn't happen."

"I feel that way sometimes." Jake agreed. "I'm so damn happy, it all feels so unreal."

"I'm so lucky you were such an idiot and signed a contract to date me." Eden smirked playfully. Jake's jaw dropped and he let go of her hand, pushing her onto her back and climbing on top of her.

"Excuse me?" he chuckled, poking Eden in her ribs. "You also signed a contract to date me! You're an idiot too."

"You're right, you're right!" Eden giggled, swatting his hands away. When he stopped, she rested her arms above her head, gazing up at him in the moonlight. "We are two very lucky idiots."

"Now that, I'll agree with." Jake smirked, leaning down and pressing a kiss to Eden's lips. What started out as a sweet kiss soon turned hungry, and he ground his hips into hers. "Now, about that little brother or sister Maeve was asking us for..."