I laughed at the thought of our silly family. I had almost forgotten just how much they all loved cake. "I'm here now. I'm here." I laughed.
Dex laughed as he teasingly nudged Jace. "This guy is fooling you all. It was Jace that tried shoving his face in the cake." He reached out and placed his hand on Jackie's belly, before kissing her cheek. "Are you going to let your uncle pick on your brother, Olivia? Huh?" he teased.
"Guys," Zari whined. "It's my birthday." She threw her hands up and squeezed her tiny fist. "You guys always make me wait too long. It's not fair."
Jaxon jumped up on the chair next to Zari's and grabbed her hand. "Can I blow out the candles?" He leaned in and reached for a burning candle.
Jackie threw her hands out in front of her as Stacy quickly reached out and slapped his hand. "I don't think so, handsome." She placed Jaxon's hands to his sides and patted his head. "Keep her hands right there."
Jackie nodded at Stacy and exhaled. "Thank you." She placed her hand to her heart and took a deep breath. "That boy is going to give me a heart attack someday."
Jace placed his hand on his sister's back and smiled. "He's a boy, sis. He's tough. Now let’s get this cake eating started."
Lucky looked up from his bed and tilted his head.
"Not you, Lucky." I laughed.
Lucky got up and walked outside. That dog was spoiled as it was. Thanks to Zari, of course.
~•~
After cake, ice cream and gifts we all made our way back out to the backyard. A few of Zari's friends showed up and the kids were taking a swim in the pool that Jace had put in last summer.
I sat up from the lounge chair when I heard a whistle. Jace was standing in front of me in his favorite green swim trunks.
He grinned and reached for my hand. "Hey, beautiful." He ran his hands over my back and pressed his lips to my neck. "Will you go out with me?" he questioned.
I pulled away from Jace's grip and smiled. "Excuse me?" I laughed.
Jace pulled my body against his and cupped my face. "You're beautiful and I want to take you on a date." He smiled as he ran a finger over my lip. "What do you say? Is it a date?"
I felt my heartbeat quicken as I looked into his calming eyes. Everything about him was so perfect. Even though I had been with Jace for over six years, he still managed to make every day feel new. I knew that no other man could've ever made me feel the way that he did. I was on top of the world when I was with him. He made me the woman that I was today. The sweet, caring, loving mother and wife that I have become.
When he asked me to marry him five years ago, I almost fainted. I knew that my life would be complete with him in it. What I didn't know then, was that Zari would storm into my life and make it even better than I could had ever imagined. She was a lot like her father and I was glad for that. She was strong, sensitive and loving. They were both beautiful.
I smiled and reached for Jace's face. "I would love to go on a date with you." I pressed my lips to his and laughed.
"Gross," Zari screamed. "Why do you two always smell each other?" She crossed her arms over her chest and tugged on her purple swimsuit. "That's weird."
Jace and I both looked at each other and then back at Zari. "We don’t smell each other. We're showing each other how much we care." I smiled. "Now go play, baby girl."
Zari made a disgusted face and pulled out her wedgie. "So you have to smell someone when you care about them?" She walked over to Jaxon and grabbed his hand. "Come here so I can smell you."
Jaxon pulled away from Zari and stuck out his tongue. "Gross. Leave me alone." He took off running with Zari following close behind. "You can't smell me."
Stacy plopped down in my empty chair and laughed. "Come here, Avery. I want to smell you." She teased.
Jace laughed and slapped my butt. "Go play with your friend. I'll smell you later."
I crossed my arms and pursed my lips. "Real funny. Now our daughter is going to go around smelling people."
Jace waved his arm and took off toward Dex and Ace. "Nah. I'll explain it to her later. We'll let her enjoy the party for now."
Stacy and I both smiled as Ace looked over and waved at Stacy. Stacy had met Ace a few months ago and they had been inseparable since. She dated Will for a couple of years, but eventually found out that he was cheating on her. She hadn't really tried with another relationship until she met Ace.
Ace had showed up at the diner one day and Stacy was his waitress. He returned every day for a week straight until he had gotten the courage to ask her out. It was the cutest thing I had ever seen. It made me happy that she was happy.
"Isn't he adorable," she questioned. "I just want to eat him up. I'm going to have his beautiful babies someday."
I looked over at Ace and she was right. He was adorable and they would make beautiful babies. His curly blond hair and piercing blue eyes were adorable. He was definitely the perfect man for Stacy. "Does he know?" I questioned.
Stacy pulled down her sunglasses and looked me over. "Know what?" she asked confused.
I nodded over at Ace as he smiled. "That you're having his babies." I replied.
Stacy sat up and blew Ace a kiss. Then she leaned back and threw her glasses back on. "Not yet." She grinned.
"Avery."
I looked behind me to see my mother throwing her purse over her shoulder. "I have to go. There's an issue at the restaurant. Jan needs me to take care of it right away." She smiled. "That's part of running a restaurant, I guess." She threw her arms around me and then kissed the top of my head. "I love you."
I gave her a quick hug and shook my head. "Okay, mom. I love you too. I'll stop by the apartment with Zari later."
My mother nodded as she waved to Stacy. "Bye, dear."
"Bye, Joyce." Stacy grinned.
I looked around me as the kids laughed and played, the boys hung out in their little circle, and Jackie sat in the shade rubbing her belly. It was beautiful and it all happened in our house. It was perfect.
I moved into Jace's room, when my mom took over the apartment. By that time, Jackie was already seeing Dex and was mostly staying at his house anyways. It was the perfect time to get married and start a family. To start my new life.