Epilogue

Thirteen years.

That's how long it had been since Trevor and I had said our 'I do's', but if you counted when we had dated and the time apart, sixteen years.

They had been the most happy-filled, fun, exhausting, infuriating, and most loving thirteen years of my life. They had been bountiful thirteen years too, in every aspect of the word. Bountiful in love, experiences, knowledge, and they continued to be bountiful. But, not everything had been smooth sailing in the entirety of our years together. We had hit bumps on the road, had our share of arguments, nights where his silence was deafening, days where my coldness towards him felt like we'd been transported to the coldest part of the earth, but we always managed to come out victorious and stronger on the other side.

We had lost Billings roughly four years back and it had been the hardest on both Theo and I. Billings was the one we always leaned on when we were feeling sad, when we needed comfort, or when we just needed some good, judgment-free loving. Theo and I sought comfort in each other or in Trevor or the boys.

They'd been gems and they knew how much Billings meant to the family and we mourned her and kept her memory alive. Last year, we brought in our newest member, another rescue German Shepherd with the name of Judd. He'd been nine months old when brought to me, but just like Billings, he'd been retired early from his training.

Our brood had grown, and how much had they grown…

Theodora Juliette—our firstborn—was now a beautiful, outspoken, and strong-headed fifteen year old. She had followed my footsteps into playing softball, and like me, her accolades kept growing by the season. Physically, she was the embodiment of me at that age: long, wavy hair, curvy body frame, and wreaking havoc with her father's heart. The only thing that Theo hadn't gotten from me was her personality, which at times it seemed to be completely mine and others, it was as if she was a walking female version of her father.

Then came Oliver Elijah, our now thirteen year old. Much like his father, he had his beautiful blue eyes, and for his age, he was already towering over both Theo and I. I'd birthed another Trevor Langan and as much as I loved it, it bothered me to the core. The only thing I had passed down to Ollie was a little melanin and his wit; otherwise, he was his father's son. Sports were a big thing in our household so while Theo played softball, Ollie indulged in basketball during the winter, and baseball during the summer.

Three years after Ollie; came Maximus Noel. Maximus like Maximus Langan, Trevor's paternal great-grandfather and Noel, like Noel Diaz, my father; he was sure to be the lawyer out of the three. Just like Ollie, he sported Trevor's eyes and for a ten year old, he carried his height too, but this time I'd passed on more than just some melanin. Max was me, and though all three of my children were my favorite, Max and I could laugh at things that Theo, Ollie, and I couldn't laugh at. And, like his brother, he participated in the same sports.

It was beautifully rewarding to watch Trevor and I through our children, and like he once had said, our children were good looking and having two teenagers and a pre-teen in our home was a living testament that parents could never be sane during this time.

Trevor had dropped off our children at Léman Prep where the entirety of the Langan brood currently attended.

Emily was now studying in Boston to follow in her mothers' footsteps, Zachary was a Columbia student, Wallace and Wyatt Langan were fourteen, and Joshua Cabot was ten, just like my Max. He would do school drop-off and afterwards the kids collectively decided with whom they wanted to go home with that day and would walk to our jobs, since we weren't far from their school. They knew when Papa had court and knew when Mami would be working late on a project or event.

I was on my way to Trevor's firm to discuss a particular anomaly with the RBE account. I had parked on the underground garage and used my provided keycard to access the service elevator. I used the same keycard to open the magnet that gave access to the office and I waved to Jeanine. After all this time, she was still with the firm. I walked towards Trevor's office and smiled at his assistant.

"Mrs. Langan, how are you?"

"Hey Gemma, I'm doing great. How are you?"

She sighed, "Busy! Trevor and Robert have a collective case coming up, and the clients are stonewalling."

I cringed, not missing for a second the amount of work those two would put on both Tristan and I. "I remember those days," I tittered. "Jeanine always has migraine medication if you need it."

We both guffawed, "Oh, I learned that rather quickly."

"I'm sure," I responded, running my fingers through my hair. "Is he in?"

She nodded, "Yes, he's on the phone though, but I'm sure he'll end the call as soon as you walk in. You two have a meeting, right? Should—Should I hold the calls?"

I smiled and looked down at the young girl. Gemma had come to Trevor through a temp agency for young mothers. It was up to the employer to whether or not keep them, and Trevor had fallen in love with her agility and eagerness. "Let me ask," I mentioned quickly, turning to knock on Trevor's door.

I pushed it open without waiting for his consent and watched as his face brightened at the sight of me. "Uh, I'm going to have to call you back, Lenny. Yea, something important just came up," he nodded and smiled. "Yes, definitely. Take care," he hung up and stood. "Baby," he breathed out, running his hand down his tie.

I used my thumb to point over my shoulder, "Hold calls?"

"I don't know, should we?" I saw that rogue glint in his eyes; the one that our children would have in their eyes right before using the garden hose to spray either one of us with water, or right before plastering batter all over each other's faces.

I smirked and turned, "Hold calls, unless they're extremely important."

Gemma nodded and smiled, turning in her chair to continue working on her task.

I crossed the threshold and closed the door and when I turned, he was already standing in front of me. He hummed and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me flush against him. We stared at each other for heartbeats, just basking in the radiance of our love. He smiled down at me, bringing his left hand to my neck while gently rubbing his thumb against my pulse point. I shuddered at the feel of his hand against my skin and he chuckled softly, leaning forward to claim my lips seductively. Even after all these years, we both still possessed the power to make the other putty in our hands. It was infuriating to say the least, but I wouldn't want that to change for the world.

I sighed and pressed my lips thrice more on Trevor's after being released from his hold. I nipped at his bottom lip and forced myself out of the man's embrace, "I came here to work, not to smooch on you, Mr. Langan."

Trevor chuckled and ran his hand through his hair, walking back to his chair, "Who says we can't do both?"

I hummed, sitting across from him, watching him train his stare from my shins to my thighs, and up my torso, "But, what about your wife?"

"Hmm, I know how to make her see my way," he flirted.

"That's what you think. You do know reverse psychology exists…" I tittered.

Trevor shook his head and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his desk, "I love those pants on you, Noa."

I snickered and threw my head back in laughter.

I was wearing cobalt high waist palazzo trousers with a white three-quarter-sleeve bodysuit. My hair was down in loose waves and my makeup was done lightly, "I know, don't they make my ass look amazing?"

Trevor parted his mouth and smiled, but before he could answer my phone begun ringing in my purse. I turned on my waist and leaned to the chair next to me, reaching inside my purse for my phone.

I furrowed my brow and answered. "Noa Langan," I said, watching Trevor sigh and bite his lip. To this day, he enjoyed the idea of my name attached to his.

"Mrs. Langan, this is Principal Cardenas from Léman Prep."

I turned towards Trevor and winked, glancing at my wristwatch. It was barely ten thirty, what could possibly be going on at the kid's school? "Good morning, Principal Cardenas. How can I help you?"

"Good morning, I have two of your children sitting in my office. I was wondering if you could come down? I'm calling your husband as well, unless you can reach him before I can."

"Definitely, we'll be there in… let's say, fifteen minutes?"

"Perfect! I am so sorry to bother you with this."

"No, no, it's ok. I'm sure we'll find out why they're sitting in your office very soon, Principal Cardenas."

"Thank you," she conceded before hanging up.

Trevor had his brow furrowed, "What's going on, Noa? Why do we have to go to the kids' school?"

I sighed, "I don't know, but let's go. Whatever it is, it sounded important."

Trevor shook his head and grabbed his belongings, standing, and walking out with me.

We rode together in Trevor's Escalade down to lower Manhattan where the school sat. I fidgeted with my wedding set and worried my bottom lip. What the hell did those Langans do to be sitting in the Principal's office?

Trevor noticed my inner turmoil and reached over the console, slipping his hand in mine, taking my place in fidgeting with my wedding set. We parked in the garage near the school and walked together towards the building. Once there, we found our way to the Principal's office. The secretary directed us through and upon entering, Oliver looked at us and hung his head, standing and walking towards the opposite wall, and leaned on it. He had blood on his shirt and hands, what the hell was going on?

Theodora on the other hand, had not lifted her head from her shoulders. I sat down next to her, where Ollie had previously sat.

"Mr. and Mrs. Langan, welcome," I smiled and felt Trevor stand behind my chair. "So, one of our teachers had to pry off Oliver from Ezra Emerson—a student in Theodora's grade. Oliver, Ezra, nor Theodora would like to share the reason behind this altercation. Ezra is on his way, with his parents, to the emergency room. Oliver broke his nose and his teeth cut through his bottom lip, he'll need stitches," he finished, gesturing to his lip where Ezra would be requiring stitches.

Trevor sighed through his nose like a bull, "Ollie, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

I glanced at the wall where Oliver was leaning with his head hung and saw as he shook his tussled mane. Trevor sighed once more and before any of us could say anything, Principal Cardenas spoke once more. "Mr. and Mrs. Langan, the Emersons want to press charges against Oliver," he looked down at his desk and grabbed a card, extending his arm for Trevor to take. "This is their number. Theodora commented that you were an attorney as well."

As Trevor had his exchange with Principal Cardenas, I looked at my children.

Oliver was leaning against the wall, gnawing at his bottom lip, an inherited trait from me. His school uniform was bloodstained and askew. What had happened? I looked at Theodora and noticed that her hair was down, she didn't leave the house with her hair down… she had space buns. I extended my hand and ran my fingers through her hair, tucking it behind her ear. As her face came to view, I noticed her red cheek and sliced lip.

"Mami, no!" she defended quickly.

I gasped loudly, recoiling my arm from her brown waves. "Trev—Trevor," I heaved.

"Theo!" he grumbled loudly.

"Theodora," Principal Cardenas spoke in unison with my husband. "What happened to your face?"

Her cheeks were tear stained and she looked up at the older gentleman across from us. I felt the anger course through my veins. Who in their right mind had laid a hand on my daughter's face?

Theo looked at me with pleading eyes, "Did Ezra do this to you, Theo?"

Theo nodded slightly and Principal Cardenas shuffled about his desk, grabbing his office phone, and speaking indistinctly. Once he finished, he informed us that both Ezra and Oliver were to be suspended from school. He did not disclose how long it would be for Ezra, but for Oliver, it was to be three days. Today was Wednesday, meaning that Oliver would not return to school until Tuesday of next week, and he was responsible for all the schoolwork missed.

We left together and rode to our home in Jersey City in complete and utter silence. Trevor and Oliver were silent because of their anger, Theodora was silent because of her shame, and I was silent because if I said something, I feared that the boys' anger would seep and invade the cabin of the Escalade. Theo was already grasping at straws and if I wanted to know what had happened, I was the one that needed to steer the conversation.

We arrived at the house and the kids shuffled inside. "Living room. Now," Trevor mumbled under his breath.

I sighed and gave the kids a thin-lipped smile. Theo and Ollie sat next to each other on our plush L-shaped couch. Ollie leaned back and sighed whilst Theo ran her fingers through her hair, "Theo, mami, what happened? And, don't think for a second that you can lie about this, Theodora."

Theo sighed and nodded, "Mami, could we please talk about this in private?"

"No! You don't get to have a choice at privacy, Theo," Trevor grumbled loudly.

"Trevor," I warned, glaring at him.

"Noa, are you shit—"

"Not now. I want the facts, and I want them now. We can discuss the details with Theo later," Trevor parted his mouth and huffed, shaking his head vehemently. "Theo, we can have that conversation alter, but right now one of you better tell us what happened."

Theo and Ollie exchanged glances and Theo smiled lightly, nodding. "We were in between second and third period. It's the only time during school that I see Theo between classes other than lunch. We always tease each other," Ollie chuckled. "I saw Ezra grab Theo by her arm and drag her behind one of the pillars so I followed them. Why would he be touching her like that?" he mused with his eyes narrowed. "They were mumbling to each other and then he pushed himself into her so Theo yelled out 'stop' and she shoved him, but the son of a bitch slapped her."

"Jesus," I said breathily.

"Watch your mouth, Oliver Elijah," Trevor said from behind me.

"Sorry, Papi," he breathed out, leaning forward to look at Theo. "I just lost it, so I punched him. I didn't stop until Theo grabbed my arm and I saw she was crying. Mami, no one touches my sister! You've always said that it's my job to protect her. And, I don't doubt Theo could've done something, she had enough fire in her eyes to react, but you don't touch anyone without their consent, right? Right?"

I glanced back at Trevor with a smirk, noting the curl of his mouth at the corners. He shook his head and placed his hands on his hips sighing. "That's right, Ollie," he said, walking forward and opening his arms to Oliver.

Oliver stood and walked in his father's embrace, wrapping his arms around his father's frame. Trevor kissed and ruffled his hair, "Upstairs, young man. Make sure you leave your clothes in the laundry room."

Ollie nodded, "Am I grounded?"

I giggled and shook my head, "That will be determined on whether or not I can take the blood out of your uniform, Oliver."

He smiled and walked away, not before placing a kiss to Theo's red cheek. Now to have a conversation with Theodora, boy that would be fun…

I placed my hands on my hips and deflated, walking the short distance to sit next to my daughter, "Talk Theo, we're listening."

"Papa," she begun tentatively. "You can't get upset. More than you already are, anyways."

Trevor scoffed and paced the area next to our coffee table. "TJ, if you don't begin explaining why in hell that boy put his hands on you, so help me God…" he finished loudly.

She nodded and bit her lip, wincing at the cut, "Careful, ma."

She smiled, gathering her hair at her crown, and tying it, "We were dating."

"You what?" Trevor asked with incredulity.

"He was my boyfriend," Theo simplified.

"Noa, did you know about this?"

I smiled and shook my head, "No, but it was bound to happen, Trev. She's fifteen… and beautiful."

"Not the time for jokes, Noa."

I rolled my eyes, "Relax."

Trevor mumbled under his breath and paused in front of us. "He's been hinting at 'taking our relationship to the next level', but..." she sighed. "Mami, you said that just because everyone else is doing it, doesn't mean I have to. And, you said that if I didn't feel ready, I didn't have to do anything I didn't want to do," I nodded and placed my hand on her knee, squeezing in comfort. "We had just gotten out of second period and he pulled me aside. He asked me if I had given it some thought—to us having sex. I told him no and that if it was going to be a problem that we could end it then and there. I think, this is what Ollie saw next, he told me that he would do anything to prove to me that I was more than ready for it and I told him no—again—and that we were done. But, he pushed against me and he, he," she sighed, rolling her eyes, "he was hard?"

Trevor seethed, "You're telling me that a fifteen year old boy rubbed his dick on your thigh, Theo?"

I rubbed my brow and braced myself for impact. "When you put it like that, Papi..." she conceded shyly. "Yes, he did, and it wasn't my thigh per se."

"Per se? Where did he touch you, Theo?"

Theo looked at her lap and up at me. "On my pelvis," she whispered, but it was loud enough for Trevor to do a one-eighty and swat his hand, sending flying a vase with flowers.

Theo and I both winced as we heard the crash and shattering of it on the floor. Trevor breathed out harshly, crossing the area quickly. He sat on the coffee table, leaning forward to grab his daughter's face in his hands, "I'm sorry, Theo. I'm so sorry."

Theo let go a few stray tears and she sniffled. "It's ok, Papa. He got what he deserved from Ollie," she tittered, causing Trevor to chuckle as he leaned his forehead against hers. "I shoved him; hard, and he stumbled backwards. He was so mad, though. I'd never seen him like that before," she renewed. "He slapped me hard, it still burns! I guess I busted my lip with the force of it."

Trevor tipped his chin to press his lips against her forehead twice, releasing her as he spoke, "What do you want us to do, Theo?"

She looked at me, her brown eyes shining with confusion. I leaned towards her, kissing her cheek gingerly. Leaning back, I caught her smile, "I want him to be held responsible, but I don't want this to ruin his future. He's a good person and maybe on terrible mistake shouldn't completely ruin his chances. I mean, Aunt Alex and Aunt Casey are always talking and this will be… sponged, right? Because of him being a minor. But, I also want to teach him a lesson."

Trevor and I chuckled in unison, shaking our heads. "Expunged," Trevor corrected. "Yes, his record would be sealed."

"So, probation?" she tried.

"You are your mother's daughter," Trevor husked, looking at me. "Leniency, but still get the point the across. Oh, the women in my life…"

"We keep you on your toes, don't we baby?" I shot back with a smile. "I'm proud of you, Theo. You fought back and you stuck to your guns, and your brother was right, you could've handled it yourself if he hadn't shown up. That's not love, Theo. No one should ever pressure you into losing your virginity, and you're still so young. You have plenty of time to have sex—"

"Yes, like when you're forty!" Trevor mumbled quickly.

Theo laughed, "That's so hypocritical, Papi!"

"Never mind that, Theodora," I continued. "You do it when you want with someone that you trust and someone whom you know won't devalue your experience."

She nodded, "Gracias, Mami. Te amo."

"Yo te amo más, preciosa," I replied, pulling her into my chest.

"Can I buy that gun now, Noa?"

"Over my dead body," I quickly retorted. "Plus, your son has two weapons that need to be addressed accordingly," I patted Theo's back. "Upstairs, Theo. We'll stay for a little while longer before we leave."

She nodded and pulled herself up, bending at the waist to kiss Trevor's cheek, "Te amo, Papa."

"I'll always love you more, TJ," he smiled, trailing her disappearing form with his eyes. Once Theo was safe out of earshot, he stood and sat next to me, pulling me against his chest and kissing my hair, "I love you."

"I love you too, baby," I replied, turning my face to press a kiss to his jaw.

This was what it meant to be a parent. This was what it meant to parent teenagers. We had done an incredible job raising our children. The values that were instilled in all three of them, we saw them flourish with each passing day. Raising three kids in today's society was hard. Everybody was influencing them in one way or another, but we had done our 'due diligence' as parents.

I snuggled into Trevor's side and sighed, feeling his lips ghost my skin.

"We gave them roots, and now they're growing wings," he mused softly.

"Indeed, baby. Indeed."

A/N: Thank you all for sticking with me and reading this. Wow! I am a little upset that this story has ended, but oh so happy that you all have enjoyed it. Be on the lookout, because as soon as this chapter goes live, there is a sequel story called 'The Langan Files', a series of one-shots following Trevor and Noa and their kids. They could be chapters that were cut off from the main story or just little things that come into my head. Make sure to read those!