Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight. It is the property of Stephenie Meyer. No infringement intended.

Author's Note: A big thanks to PTB for their beta-ing services.

This is the last chapter before the epilogue so I hope you enjoy it!

Ayden returned to teaching in April and finished out the school year with her students. While Ayden and I were at work, Martha, my commander's wife and Ayden's close friend, watched Jackson for us.

Jackson was two months when we learned that Bella and Edward were expecting their first child.

"Oh, that's so exciting!" Ayden exclaimed. "The prego bug has finally bitten Bella, too!"

"I know. Now we just have to wait for Alice," Bella replied as we talked on Skype.

Ayden snorted. "I don't think Alice will slow down in the fashion world long enough to have a kid."

Edward nodded in agreement, and Bella shrugged. "You're probably right, but then the whole group would be married with kids."

"When are you due?" Ayden asked Bella.

"Late September," Bella answered.

"We knew Bella was pregnant when you had Jackson, but we didn't want to take away your spotlight, so we've waited a bit to tell everyone. Charlie knew in January though."

"Oo, I bet that was a fun conversation," I joked with Edward.

Charlie had always had a hard time letting his only baby girl go to Edward.

"Yeah, it wasn't as bad as when I asked permission to marry her."

Ayden spent the summer playing with Jackson and taking tons of pictures which she made into beautiful scrapbooks. I loved coming home from work to my wife and son. Jackson continued to amaze both of us as he grew and learned to roll and crawl around the floor. My wife was in hysterics one night as she watched Jackson crawl and Simba scoot on his belly behind him around the living room.

His dark hair had fallen out when he was a few weeks old and slowly grew back a honey shade of blond. Ayden just laughed. "Of course our son was going to look just like you. I should have known the dark hair wouldn't stick around. He's too much like his father," she had said while running her fingers through Jackson's hair after his bath one night.

In July, Rosalie announced that she was pregnant with her second child.

Bella gave birth to a baby girl, Carlie Renee, two weeks after her birthday in September. Ayden was bummed we couldn't be there, but Edward sent us pictures and the little girl was adorable with chocolate eyes and her father's copper hair.

Rosalie's pregnancy announcement sparked a desire in Ayden that she announced to me late one night after Jackson was put down in his crib and fast asleep.

Ayden was curled against my side, her fingers drawing circles across my bare chest. It had been a long, rough day and Jackson, who had been sick all week, was finally getting better. We were hoping he would sleep through the night.

"Jas?"

"Yeah, darlin'?"

"I've been thinking…"

"Oh, boy," I teased, earning me a swat to the chest before she resumed tracing patterns on my skin.

"Seriously, Jas." Ayden rolled so she was lying on my chest and propped herself up to look at me. "I want to try and have another baby."

That was not what I was expecting her to say, so I sat in shock for several moments. "Um… I… well. I don't know what you want to me say, Ayden."

And that was a first.

Ayden and I both knew we'd have more than one kid, but I always thought it would just happen. I didn't know we'd have to talk about it first. I was good with the getting her pregnant part, not discussing it.

My wife giggled at me. "I don't expect you to talk," she whispered before slamming her lips to mine.

I moaned against her mouth and gripped her hips with my hands. It was then I realized my wife hadn't worn panties to bed under her t-shirt. The little minx had planned this very well.

That was the first night we started trying to get pregnant with baby number two. Ayden decided to take the year off from teaching so she could stay at home with Jackson.

In October, Ayden figured out she was finally pregnant, and we were both so excited. This time, there was no hiding it. When I came home Ayden jumped into my arms with a loud screech.

"We're pregnant!"

"Really?"

"Yes! Yes, I'm pregnant again!"

"We're going to need a bigger house," I told her, setting her down and scooping my son up.

"Da!" Jackson squealed happily.

"Hey, little man. You're going to have a baby brother or sister in nine months."

~~~ACM~~~

We had Jackson's first birthday party in Fort Irwin before I was given transfer orders to a new base. Ayden was bummed at first until she learned we would be stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington which was an hour away from Seattle and twenty minutes from Tacoma. We would be near Rose, Emmett, Peter, and Charlotte.

Ayden couldn't wait to move.

We decided to live off post so we could find a home that we could grow into. Ayden said she wanted at least one more baby after this one came. So Rosalie house hunted for us, taking lots of videos and pictures of the houses Ayden found online.

After several duds, Ayden and I fell in love with a house that was outside of the main city of Tacoma, closer to the base. It was a gorgeous log and stone, two-story house with a master and two bedrooms on the first floor and three other bedrooms upstairs. The downstairs bedrooms shared a bathroom, and there were two bathrooms upstairs. The house also had a finished basement that we were going to make into a playroom for the kids.

We moved into our new house in February and had Tyler John's third birthday party there.

Ayden and I were both happy to be near our family again. We spent lots of time with Peter, Charlotte, Emmett, and Rosalie now that we were all close to one another. At least twice a week we all came to one house and ate dinner together.

Emmett and Rosalie's second son, Ryan David, was born in March.

Our group finally all came to live close together when Bella and Edward moved to Seattle for Edward's new job at one of the hospitals. Bella was thrilled because this also put her closer to her father, who was able to see his granddaughter more often. Bella found a job with a publishing company where she could work from home three days a week and only had to be in the office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

June brought with it the birth of our daughter Emma Rose. Rosalie had been moved to tears when Ayden asked her if we could use her name one night while we were eating dinner at Peter and Charlotte's house.

My little Emma was a tiny thing compared to her brother, weighing only five pounds and seven ounces. She had beautiful blonde wisps of hair and blue eyes.

Since Charlotte owned her hair salon, she was able to watch Emma and Jackson for us when Ayden found a teaching job and went back to work in August. Tyler John loved having his cousins to play with. Bella would also come over on her days off to help Charlotte with the kids while she had appointments with her clients.

~~~ACM~~~

"Is that everything?" I asked Ayden as I shut the cover of my truck bed.

"I think so. Do you have the playpen?"

"Yes."

"The lounger for Emma?"

"Yep."

"Jackson's bag of toys?"

"Of course."

"Did you–"

I cut her off by spinning her around and placing my finger against her lips. "I packed everything you set beside the door or told me to pack."

She nodded against my finger and kissed it. "Okay. Then we are ready to hit the road."

Ayden and I got Jackson and Emma into their car seats and then loaded ourselves into the truck. "Did you pack the presents?"

I sighed at my wife, but smiled when I spoke. "Of course, darlin'."

She giggled. "Just checking, Jas."

Our family had decided that we needed to spend the holidays together this year, so we were all meeting at the cabin in Tahoe.

Shortly after Emma was born, Ayden's parents decided to remodel the house and make it larger, seeing as how all of the families were expanding. The already large house now had an added two bedrooms, two more bathrooms and an extra playroom made just for the kids. The two bedrooms became the kids' rooms. Each room had two sets of bunk beds that were built into the far wall of the room, leaving lots of space for the kids to play. One room was done in blues and the other was done in pinks for the girls.

The only couple who would not be joining us at the cabin were Alice and Demetri who were spending Christmas in Paris. Bella believed that Demetri was finally going to ask Alice to marry him, and I wished the man the best of luck with Alice.

When we made it to the cabin, much like the first time Ayden and I met, we were the last to arrive.

The kids were shy around each other for all of about five minutes before they were ordered by Charlotte and Rosalie to take it to the bedroom to play.

The first night at the cabin, the men were sent out to find a real Christmas tree to cut down and bring back. The next day was spent decorating the tree while watching Disney movies and playing games with the kids.

This vacation was certainly different from the first time we came to Tahoe, but it was wonderful to see our growing families together.

On Christmas Eve, after the kids had been put to bed, Charlotte made an announcement.

She and Peter were finally expecting their second child.

"The baby bug just keeps getting passed around," Rose said as she sipped her drink.

"This explains the lack of alcohol in your Bloody Mary's. Will we ever have a time when we can all drink together?" Ayden questioned with a smile.

"Not if your husband keeps knocking you up!" Emmett added.

"Be careful Emmett or you'll be next with number three," Edward replied.

"Oh no, you two need to catch up. Now that Char's pregnant again we all will have two. You still only have little Carlie, and she doesn't even make a big fuss on her worst days. You need a boy, or two!" Rosalie exclaimed.

"We're good with just one for now," Bella stated.

"For now," Peter repeated ominously, sending the room into laughter.

~~~ACM~~~

"Do you remember our first night here?" Ayden whispered late Christmas Eve night.

I rolled from my back to lie on my side and face Ayden. With my left hand I lightly traced the curve of her breast down to her hip and back up to finally cup her face.

"Of course I do. I could never forget how badly I wanted to fuck you when you dropped that green robe and showed off those little red shorts and tank top. I've never loved the color red more than I did in that moment." My hand trailed down her neck and across her breast.

Ayden giggled, and I shushed her. "I was scared, and I asked you to stay with me."

"And I thought I was going to die, trying to keep my hands to myself." I let my hands drift further down my wife's toned body. She always got back into tip-top shape as soon as she was cleared by her doctor.

"You didn't," Ayden replied with another giggle, and my hand stilled as it splayed across her stomach.

I raised my eyebrows in shock; I didn't know Ayden ever knew we had, at some point during the night, drifted to cuddle together.

"It was around three in the morning. You draped your arm around my waist, and it startled me slightly awake. You felt so warm, and you looked so peaceful that I just shifted closer to you. It felt really good when you tightened your grip."

My hand reached its goal between my wife's legs as I pressed my mouth to hers. She moaned softly as I teased her body like only I knew how.

"Oh, Jas," she groaned as my fingers slipped inside her. Her hands gripped my shoulders and her back arched.

I removed my fingers and gripped my erection, pumping it a few times with my hand, before guiding it to slide into Ayden's slick heat. We both moaned, and her eyes fluttered close.

"Shit," I whispered when she rolled her hips.

"Please, Jas," she begged as I rocked my hips slowly.

"Please what, darlin'?" I asked her.

She whimpered as I stilled my movements. "Jasper, fuck me like the first time we were here."

Her words sent me over the edge, and I thrust hard into my wife, causing her to cry out in pleasure and arch her back.

I silenced her with my mouth, worried we would wake one of the kids and continued my relentless pace. Even with our tongues locked in a sensual tango, Ayden still made a soft whining noise in the back of her throat as we moved together.

I rose up and effortlessly flipped Ayden to her hands and knees. I wrapped my hand in her long ponytail and used my free hand to grip her hip as I started a tortuous rhythm.

"Jasper," Ayden purred as she pushed against me.

"Oh yes, darlin'. Come for me like you did that first night. Shit, you looked so pretty riding my cock that night, just like you do now. All wide eyed and blushing, but not with one hint of shame. No, this color is from pure ecstasy as I fuck you," I whispered hoarsely to her.

Her muscles tensed, and then I felt her tighten around my cock before her orgasm shot through her body and forced mine from my own body.

Ayden collapsed on the bed beneath me, and I rolled to my side so I didn't crush her.

"Holy shit, Jas."

"You can say that again."

Ayden just snorted and tucked herself into my side.

"We have to put clothes back on in case one of the kids comes in here."

"Last time we didn't have to worry about anyone but your brother," Ayden joked.

We put on pajamas and quickly fell asleep wrapped in each other embrace.

Christmas morning was a blur of presents and a wonderful breakfast made by Bella and Ayden.

Ayden was ecstatic when she was able to add another charm to her necklace that I had gotten for her the Christmas just before Jackson was born. This charm was a capital 'e' with a pearl at the edge, for Emma. She added it to the necklace that she always wore, and I fastened it back around her neck.

The rest of our trip was spent playing outside in the snow with the older kids and spending time inside with our family.

~~~ACM~~~

In August, my beautiful niece was born. Carolyn Elise was just like her mother with blonde hair and pretty hazel eyes.

Ayden loved being able to take care of a new baby again when she was with Charlotte, but we had decided to wait at least another year before trying for another baby.

We were hoping to get away from toddlers if only for a little while. The terrible twos, as they were so lovingly called, had nothing on my two hellions some days. Screaming was normal and timeouts happened often and most times unwillingly. Most days were wonderful, but those bad days were something else.

Ayden was the main disciplinarian, but when dad had to step up, Jackson knew it was game on. Dad was the fun one, but when it came right down to it, the boy knew damn well that dad was meaner than mom.

Big ole crocodile tears and a quivering lip usually had Ayden giving in for minor stuff, but those little tricks didn't work on military dad.

Two months after our son's third birthday, I was given orders to deploy once again with my unit.

Leaving this time was harder than when it was just Ayden and I. Emma was still too young to really understand, but Jackson realized dad was going to be gone for a while, and boy, did my son ball his little heart out. Six months was a long time when you were an adult, it felt like a lifetime when you were a kid.

Seeing my son crying over daddy leaving had me in pieces, but Ayden assured me they would all be okay. I was glad that she had my family close to her now and wasn't thousands of miles away. Charlotte and Peter would be spending lots of time with her and the kids.

~~~ACM~~~

Missing my daughter's second birthday was hard. Missing Alice and Demetri's wedding was a blessing.

Ayden attended solo with our two kids, and even though she loved Alice to death as a friend, she couldn't understand Alice's need to have everything so extravagant. Which is exactly what Ayden said the wedding was–an excessive affair that was Paris themed with golds and pinks.

My return home in September was incredible. Coming home to Ayden that first time had been wonderful, but seeing my son sprint across the room as fast as his three-year-old legs could carry him was one of the best things ever.

"Daddy!" he screamed as I lifted him high into the air. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you, too, little man." I held him tightly to me and looked across the crowded room for his mother.

Ayden came up to me with Emma on her hip, and I wrapped my free arm around my gorgeous wife. "I missed you, darlin'," I whispered into her ear before pressing my lips to her temple.

Ayden turned her head and our lips met for the first time in six months. Oh, how I had missed my wife.

Sex with toddlers in the house was harder than I remember before deploying. The first night home I must have been lucky because after that it seemed like every time I would catch a moment alone with Ayden to ourselves, my son would come find us. He must have had a sixth sense for knowing when to keep his parents apart.

"I swear, Peter, he was sound asleep, had been for a least two hours. Emma was sleeping, too. I'm balls deep in Ayden while she's gripping the fucking kitchen counter when all of a sudden here comes Jackson round the damn corner."

Peter was already in hysterics as I told him the story as we watched the kids play in the yard while Ayden and Charlotte were inside making lunch.

His laughter just got worse as I continued. "We didn't even hear him! I've never lost an erection so fucking fast in my life. Ayden turned beet red, too, man, scared the hell out of both of us. Then he had to go and ask what daddy was doing to mommy with his penis."

Peter howled with laughter.

"Shut the fuck up, Peter. It's not even that funny!"

"Oh, yes it is, but you aren't the first. I had Charlotte doggie-style on the bed when Tyler opened the door one night. Middle of the night, too. Did you and Ayden finish once you got him back to sleep?"

"Yeah, in the bedroom… with the damn door locked."

Peter chuckled again. "At least you got to finish. It took me a week before Charlotte let me back in her pants."

Coming home brought many more changes to our lives. I learned that Alice and Demetri were expecting their first, and according to Alice, their only child in April.

Rosalie and Emmett were blessed with their third and last child in October, a month after my return. Ethan Cole was the third boy, and all of them looked just like Emmett. Rose was ecstatic, but about to pull her hair out at any given moment most days.

At Thanksgiving, Bella announced she and Edward were going to have their second child. Anthony Edward was a July baby and gave us all a huge scare when they lost his heartbeat and Bella was sent to have an emergency C-section.

Both of Ayden's pregnancies and deliveries had gone smoothly, and I prayed I never had to experience the worry and fear I'm sure Bella and Edward had the day their son was born.

Alice and Demetri's daughter was born in April as planned, and Alice named her Gabriella Selene. I thought the name was a little out there until we learned that Selene was Demetri's mother's name and his grandfather's name was Gabriel.

~~~ACM~~~

Exactly two days after Ethan's first birthday and a week before Ayden's, my wife gave birth to our second daughter and third child–Addison Grace.

Addie, as we nicknamed her, was born with and kept her mother's dark hair. Ayden was so happy that one of her kids would look like her.

I believed they all looked just like her, only with my hair, but she swore up and down that Jackson was all me.

A month shy of Addie's second birthday, Ayden gave birth to our last child. Gavin Ross was the spitting image of Jackson when he was born, and we both knew that Addison would be our only dark-headed offspring.

Jackson was starting youth football and little league baseball. Emma was in dance and gymnastics, and Addie would be starting the next year. Ayden would return to her third grade classroom at the start of January, and our busy schedule would continue with four kids instead of three.

Ayden and I always found time for ourselves after the kids had gone to bed and before we both crashed. Some nights we ended up crashing as soon as the kids were asleep. Those nights were usually made up for in the shower in the morning, before the heathens woke up.

Alice and Demetri were the only ones who didn't live in the Seattle or Tacoma area. After having Gabriella, Alice had stopped working the runways and found a job with a big name fashion magazine company, and she sat behind a large desk and had an assistant bring her whatever she wanted. According to Edward, his sister was in hog heaven. She was also able to bring Gabriella to work with her.

The rest of the group continued to get together one weekend a month at someone's house for dinner and family fun. The other weekends were spent with our own families, trading off babysitting so a set of parents could have a night out to themselves, or in Ayden's and my case a night in.

~~~ACM~~~

It was the summer before our oldest son started middle school and the youngest would start kindergarten.

It was also my fortieth birthday.

As a family, we decided to leave the west coast and venture to the warmer waters of the Atlantic Ocean for a summer vacation. The women had found a gorgeous beach house that was massive and held all of us inside of its ten bedrooms.

Each group of adults had their own bedroom and bathroom with a king sized bed. The four oldest boys, Tyler, Garret, Jackson, and Ryan stayed in a room together. Carlie, Emma, and Carolyn were in another room. Ethan, Anthony, and Gavin stayed together and Gabriella and Addison were in a room.

To the outsider we looked like a hot mess with twelve kids running around, but the women in our family kept the hellions in line, and we had fun on our little private section of the beach that came along with the house we had rented for two weeks.

The back deck had an outdoor kitchen and grill. It also sat right next to the pool, so it was easy for the kids to stay occupied in the water while the adults prepared lunch or dinner or just relaxed in the lounge chairs.

It was the morning of my birthday and the sun had just begun to rise over the water as I leaned against the rail of the deck and enjoyed the quiet morning. Ayden silently joined me and wrapped her arms around my waist, her cheek pressing against my back.

"Good morning, old man," she teased quietly.

"Laugh it up now. It's your turn next year."

I turned to the side and pulled Ayden so she was flush with my chest. I kissed her beautiful lips and once again thanked whatever deity would listen for giving me such an amazing woman to call my wife.

"So what's on the agenda today?" I asked.

"Breakfast, ocean, lunch, ocean or pool, get ready for dinner. Everyone is going out to eat tonight, but after dinner Peter and Char said they would take our kids with them when the group goes to find a mini-golf place, so we could have the night alone."

Her last words were punctuated by her hand brushing my dick through the cotton fabric of my pajama pants. I moaned. "Sounds like a good plan."

"It does, doesn't it, Colonel?" she teased with a wink and a kiss before leaving my side and heading inside.

Twelve years with my beautiful girl and she still kept me on my toes. Throughout our years together, Ayden had called me Major during sex, mostly when the sex was less making love and more fucking. When I was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel Ayden didn't stop calling me Major, but my new promotion came with a new name, and Ayden had been slowly testing it. Although Major was still used the most often, sometimes, she would use my new rank.

Hearing my name now only kept me waiting impatiently for tonight when the kids would be gone for a few hours with our family and the beach house would be left to us. Tonight I was going to hear my wife scream my name, and I couldn't wait.

When I entered the house, the kids were eating pancakes in the middle of the living room watching Cars while the adults sat at the large table that sat between the kitchen and the living room. Ayden handed me a plate of food and graced me with one more wink before sitting down beside me.

As the kids finished breakfast and started getting ready to head down to the beach, my youngest girl climbed into my lap and smiled up at me.

"Happy birfday, Daddy!' Addie exclaimed. "I love you!"

"Thank you, baby girl. I love you, too."

Addie slid to the ground and shot off to her bedroom to put on her swim suit, and I looked up to catch my wife's eyes. She smiled at me from across the room, and I fell just a little bit more in love with her than I was the day I first met her in that crowded Sacramento airport.