TWO YEARS LATER

Ashley's POV

I got sidetracked. I opened my laptop expecting to spend only a few minutes making final adjustments, but I ended up spending over two hours. I was launching my new cleaning service, and we were set to open in less than a week. Everything had to be perfect.

I fiddled with my wedding ring anxiously as I finally emailed the documents. At least I had everything done. All I had to do was wait and everything would be okay.

Closing my laptop, I realized that I had come here to the kitchen to prepare the baby's formula. I had completely forgotten about that. I can't seem to get anything right lately.

The entire kitchen floor and living room were covered in toys, and we were having guests over in just less than two hours. Not to mention, my hair was a mess and I was covered in baby food.

I rushed to the counter to prepare the formula. I felt a little bit nauseous and lightheaded. Maybe it was the anxiety from everything that was finally getting to me.

Tristan wrapped his arms around me bringing me to a standstill. "You should slow down, you look so stressed out." He whispered over my shoulder.

"I have to get the baby's bottle ready," I answered as I continued to move.

He spun me around to face him. "I already made two extra bottles an hour ago. Have you already forgotten?" He asked.

I sighed. I would have remembered if my mind wasn't so distracted.

"Now, what is really bothering you?" He asked.

"I guess I'm just anxious about everything at work. I have a lot riding on this," I answered.

"I've read your business model and it was pretty good, you'll do just fine. You have nothing to worry about." He assured me.

I chuckled. He always knows the right things to say.

He took the bottle off the counter and finished with the formula. "Now, why don't you tell me about how you spent your day yesterday?" He asked.

I was hoping we wouldn't get to that, especially with everything that has happened recently.

"It was good," I answered dismissively, walking around the island.

"It was just good? I was hoping to hear every detail about how you spent your day with him." He added. I couldn't believe he was choosing to be petty. "Why do you even spend so much time around him?" He asked.

"He doesn't have any friends," I answered.

"How is he supposed to make any if you are constantly visiting him at his house for tennis matches? You should stop hanging around him so often," he answered turning his head away in disgust.

"Firstly, it also happens to be your parents' house. Secondly, he is twelve and he is also your brother. You are overreacting." I answered. I don't know why he was acting this way. Tyler has been a great new addition to the family. Besides, it's been two years.

"I just don't like him. Is it terrible of me to want to punch a twelve-year-old kid in the face?" He asked.

I nodded. "You are just mad that you never had to share your parents and now there is someone else in the picture. I've been doing it for more than half my life, you'll be fine." I assured him.

"Since you are in the mood to tell me about my brother, why don't we talk about your other sister?" He added.

That was a low blow.

"We are not related," I interjected.

"You know, all of your doubts could have just been solved with a simple DNA test," he answered.

"I know, my father feels a little bad about not being as involved in her life either and allowing her monstrous mother to raise her. He said it wouldn't change anything. There was no way she would have ended up normal with a mother like that." I answered.

"That is incredibly naive of your father. He was just given a ticket to get rid of a daughter like Madison and he won't even take it." He said.

"Don't be mean," I answered. "Besides, she is still your grandma." I chuckled.

He turned away in disgust. "Only for as long as my grandfather is still alive. Besides, I'm no longer related to him either." He answered. "The entire family will be arriving shortly for our housewarming party. How about you deal with the food situation? I'll have someone clean up the house and deal with the baby." He suggested.

He turned to leave when I stopped him. "Tristan, how do you turn on the stove again?" I asked sarcastically. I'd cook but I hated to, besides, he was so much better at it.

He shook his head at me. "You get the baby bathed and I'll deal with everything else." He answered.

I smiled as we switched places.

"Cyrus has been usually quiet. Where did you put him to sleep?" He asked.

"I thought he was with you this whole time," I answered alarmed.

Tristan stood frozen, analysing my face as if I was trying to pull a prank on him. "He wasn't with you?" He asked.

My eyes widened. "We lost the baby?" I exclaimed. "We are the worst godparents; how did we lose a one-year-old? Ivy will never let us babysit again." I panicked.

"We should calm down and try to retrace all of our steps," he suggested.

This is why we don't have any children.

We had just recently earned our baby-sitting rights and now it looked like we had just blown them. After Ivy's first miscarriage, she was devastated. How were we going to tell her that we had lost her child?

I panicked as I heard Cyrus crying in the living room. He had just woken up. We had laid out a bunch of pillows on the floor for him to sleep and play around but it had slipped our minds. He arrived here last night; we were sleep deprived and were already acting like we'd had him for three months. Was this what all parents had to go through?

I picked him up relieved as I hugged him tightly and took him upstairs for his bath.

Paisley, our house helper arrived later on. With her help, it took just a bit over an hour to get the house prepared for the housewarming. It no longer looked like a playground. Most importantly, I wasn't dressed in anything smeared with baby food.

Ivy and Marcus were the first to arrive followed by Luke. It still felt strange sometimes having Marcus as a close friend, but we've gotten to know each other better.

Soon enough, our house was filled with most of our family members with everyone laughing and getting together.

Layla didn't spare to brag that the interior designer she recommended did a good job on our house.

Vincent couldn't make it. I haven't seen him in a while. Last I checked, he got married in secret and surprised the whole family.

It wasn't just about our housewarming. In a few days, Katy was going on a trip for a month and we wouldn't see her for a while. Sometimes it's surprising to think that two years have already gone by.

I walked to the kitchen to get the rest of the snacks; I hadn't realized that my mother was right behind me.

"You have a wonderful house. The two of you really choose well." Mom commended. "You should probably prepare some other snacks for your sister. She is gluten-free these days," she added.

"Don't you think that the house is a little too big for just two people?" She asked next.

"I already went through that argument. Tristan said he was claustrophobic and had to stay in a big. So here we are." I laughed. I knew that wasn't what she was getting at.

She cleared her throat waiting for her next cue to speak. "When the two of your got married, you were away for a year honeymooning all over Europe. I thought that now that you guys have come back and decided to settle down it would actually mean that you would settle down..." She said.

"Mom," I said cutting her off.

"You'll be thirty in a few years. You've already wasted more than half your eggs. What are the two of you waiting for to have a baby?" She inquired.

Not this again. I just got Layla to stop.

"We are not having any kids now because that's not part of our plan. We have so many things that we would like to do first, then we will think about having kids." I answered. I was already thinking of taking up some classes, a baby was definitely not part of the plan right now. Tristan and I have already spoken about this.

"You have been married for a year." She sighed. "You know, I told you I wouldn't concern myself with anything regarding your marriage but now I have to be worried. I can't help but think that something is wrong. You are probably at that stage where you are too comfortable and already wearing mom jeans." She continued.

"Why don't you just continue not concerning yourself in our marriage," I answered.

I picked up the tray filled with biscuits and left the kitchen.

I took a few breaths to calm down. I was tired of having people ask me when I was going to have children.

I already felt lightheaded. I was getting myself worked up over nothing.

I placed the food on the living room table.

I sat beside Layla who was scrolling through her phone.

"You look so tired. You've been overworking yourself," Layla commented.

"I'm fine," I answered leaning back.

"I have something that I need to show you." She said enthusiastically. She pulled out her phone and then went straight to the pictures. I should have seen this coming because she started going through her collection of Tristan's baby pictures. "Tristan was so cute as a baby, it's hard to believe how quickly he grow up so fast. Don't you think it would be so great to have a little one that looks just like this?" She paused at one of his pictures in a superhero costume. "You know, I actually brought a framed picture for you. Just tell me where to put it." She said.

Tristan came to my rescue, sitting in the space between Layla and me. "Mother, I need you to respect our decision. I don't see how any of this concerns you." He jumped in.

"You mean to tell me that this thing is a choice?" she asked pointing at the two of us.

Tyler approached us and snaked his arms around Layla. I could see how he had everyone wrapped around his finger with his big brown eyes. He was easily going to be a heartbreaker when he grew up.

"Do you even know why you are choosing not to have children or is this just an impulsive decision you are making?" She asked.

Tristan remained silent while Layla waited for an explanation. "Because children are a very big responsibility, and we are just not ready for that. And they need the two of us to be financially stable. A lot of people end up in a lot of depts." I answered.

"You mean, we'll end up bankrupt because of a baby?" She asked. That was probably a dumb reason. "If you think you'll end up broke because of a baby? Then fine, how much do you two need so that you can make me a grandmother?" She asked.

"That's not the point," Tristan jumped in. "If you don't like our decisions, feel free to leave at anymoment." He pointed to the door.

"Fine, I won't say anything else or do anything." She paused. "I believe in divine justice. The things that are meant to happen will always find their way." She answered. She shook her head and then wrapped her arms around Tyler as if he was her last hope.

"Mommy, it's good that she keeps her options open in case she wants to get a divorce," Tyler added looking up at her.

Tristan shot Tyler a look who retaliated by sticking out his tongue. I'd be concerned about Tyler being here but I have a feeling he has probably heard worse.

Ivy and Katy were engrossed in their conversation otherwise they would have joined in. My mother returned my gaze with an 'I told you so' expression.

I wonder why I couldn't have a normal family, even just for one day. I wasn't feeling very well, maybe it was just time for me to call it a day and get some rest.

I must have gotten up a little too quickly because I fainted and fell right into Tristan's arms.

***

I must have a strong affinity for hospitals because that was right where I ended up. Apparently, I took a little too long to wake up so everyone drove me here in a panic.

That's what I get for operating on less than four hours of sleep for the past two weeks.

So there I was, laying on the hospital bed and getting sympathetic looks from my family while I tried to assure everyone that I was fine.

The room fell silent as the doctor stepped into the room.

"Could I please speak to you in private?" the doctor asked.

They'd probably try to listen in or something. Either way, they'll end up finding out. This was my only way of assuring them that I was fine. "It's okay, you can speak in front of everyone," I answered.

His body relaxed as a smile spread across his face. "Congratulations, you are pregnant." He announced.

I took a moment to take in the news. I was pregnant? No, this whole thing had to be a joke. I've been through far too much for me to be able to recognise a lie.

The room erupted into cheers as they struggled to contain their joy.

I was too shocked to gather a response. With a family like mine, there was a 99.9 percent chance that I wasn't pregnant. I didn't want to believe it. It would be far worse to realize that this whole thing was a prank.

I turned to look at Tristan for help, but he was just as clueless and surprised as I was.

"Congratulations, honey," Mom yanked me out of my daze with a firm hug.

I think I may have noticed Layla tearing up.

"Go and congratulate your brother," Layla said to Tyler who had been hiding behind her.

Everyone's attention was now on him and he approached my bedside. "All you had to do was wait for me for just six more years. How could you?" He said instead. He sighed defeatedly and then stared down at the floor.

"One day you are going to find someone very special, and you are going to be very happy," Layla assured him. She stroked the back of his head.

"Fine," he answered letting out another sigh. "I hope your baby only looks like her." He commented.

Everyone laughed at him.

It took a while for my room to clear up. The doctor said I needed to stay behind for some check-ups. By the time of my sonogram, it was just Tristan and I.

All it took was a picture of our little jelly bean on the screen for everything to finally settle in.

I was only starting to accept that I was pregnant. You can imagine how emotional I was when the doctor threw the next surprise. "Congratulations, you are having twins." He announced.

Tristan smiled as he held my hand firmly, our gaze fixed on the screen.

I couldn't believe it. Two little human beings were growing inside of me and I had no idea this whole time.

The doctor assured us that everything was fine and that I just needed to get some rest and take some vitamins. I was discharged later that evening.

I was laying down on our bed. I couldn't stop staring at the picture of my ultrasound.

And now that I've given it some thought, the idea of being a mother doesn't sound too bad. I could get used to it.

Tristan came in and laid down next to me. He extended his arms around me and smiled.

"This was your fault you know," I reminded him.

"Remember last time you said it was my fault when you had your period pains? Technically I did you a favour." He chuckled. "Besides, how else was I supposed to trap you into being with me forever." He answered. His grip around me tightened.

"I thought I was the one trapping the billionaire." I chuckled.

"I guess I fooled you all along." He answered. " I love you," he whispered placing a kiss on my forehead.

Although it was a bumpy ride, I wouldn't change any of the things that I have now.

THE END

_________________________________

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has stuck around to the end of the story with me. I'm eternally thankful to you. To everyone who dropped by with their comments, good or bad and their votes, you guys are truly who made this story what is it.

I loved every bit of writing this book and I hope you enjoyed it as well or even got something out of it.

I can't express how grateful I am for you all enough. 

Please drop by your comments on what your thoughts are on the story. If you have any questions or would like to share your favourite moment throughout the story please do that too. Constructive criticism is always welcomed. 

If you enjoyed it, please do share it with your friends and follow me if you wish to go on another crazy adventure with me.

Thank you guys and stay honest.