Nothing to Lose (BWWM)

Epilogue

"Hurry up!"

"Are they awake?"

"No, LJ but can you hurry up? Please?"

LJ stopped mid action and like a chain reaction, everybody behind him bumped into each other. "Who is the grown up here?" He questioned, pointing a finger at the two figures in front of him.

"You are." They groaned simultaneously.

"So who controls the speed we go at?"

Sighing and sharing aggravated looks, the two smaller children mumbled at the same time, "You do."

"Glad we understand each other." LJ grinned at them before continuing the journey down the stairs as quietly as they could.

Trailing behind their older brother, one of the younger boys huffed. "Well since I'm second oldest, can I open my present first?"

"What? Leo, you're only four minutes older than me! Shut up!" The other young boy with the thick curls cried out.

"A lot can happen in four minutes, Lamar!" Leo said knowingly as they continued to follow LJ.

Leo and Lamar were born only four minutes apart and were only seven years old yet it felt as if they were fifteen. Both had bouncy dark tresses that were usually kept in cornrows but today they both had their hair out in an Afro.

The two boys had the same enchanting eyes that their father did but their nose and full lips came from their mother. Their skin was a perfect blend of their parent's hue, which made them a shade of caramel that complimented their inky eyes.

Lamar rolled his eyes at his twin as the three of them reached the spacious living room.

Bright decorations adorned some of the pieces of furniture, five stockings placed on the fireplace. The tree stood prominently in the corner of the room, tall and majestic. Blue and white was the theme they had gone for this year and the twins had had a blast decorating the tree with their dad. Below the tree sat piles of wrapped boxes, labels sticking out of them.

"Alright, everybody just grab one. Be real quiet and take one." LJ commanded as the twins ran forward to grab the largest box that they could manage with their tiny hands. "Okay who's going first?"

Lamar's hand shot up. "I am!"

"No, I am!"

"I think that I should go first." The loud voice behind them spoke, surprising them all.

Lamar and Leo looked at each other. "Uh oh," they chimed, dropping their presents on the floor and turning to face the source of the voice.

Vincent stood leaning against the doorway, smirking at the youngsters. With his hands stuffed in his pockets, he walked towards them.

"You just couldn't wait a couple more hours, could you?"

Lamar and Leo shook their heads, afraid of the consequences of their actions. "It was LJ's idea!" They exclaimed.

Luke's mouth dropped in shock as the children ratted him out. Just as he was about to threaten them, Vincent started to laugh.

"It may have been LJ's idea but you went along with it so don't throw your brother under the bus like that." He scolded gently as LJ looked at them smugly.

The twins stared wistfully at the presents they had dropped on the floor and Vincent shook his head, knowing exactly what they were thinking.

Vincent prided himself in being a firm but fair and fun father.

As soon as the twins were old enough to talk and scheme, he was always the one finding out their plans and punishing them. That's why they usually asked Imani for stuff before they asked him because nine times out of ten the answer was no.

Except for when they gave him the one facial expression they knew was his weakness.

It seemed as if everybody had figured out that the one way to get Vincent to do whatever they wanted was to pout.

As Leo and Lamar's bottom lip started to poke out followed by their eyes widening, Vincent shook his head with more vehemence.

"Don't give in to it, Vince!" LJ said.

Despite the two of them living together for over eight years, Vincent made sure that Luke always knew that he wasn't ever trying to take his fathers' place. They were friends but at the same time Vincent's word was final.

Leo and Lamar sighed heavily as their father cracked.

"Fine you can all open one. Just one but hide all the evidence before your mother finds out." He said as he rolled his eyes.

The twins high fived each other as they reached for the large gifts.

"I don't really mind to be honest." LJ murmured, lifting up the slender package and fingering it.

Vincent, with a large smile on his face, watched as they all opened their presents. It warmed his heart to see them jumping around with joy because they were pleased with their gifts.

Nothing made his life better than seeing all three of the most important children in his life filled with joy.

That was what he lived for.

Seeing them happy.

Being the one to make them happy.

"What's going on here?"

This time, they all froze. Even Vincent's face fell as he felt a presence behind him. "Hey mom." LJ greeted her, chuckling nervously as he attempted to hide his new Playstation 4 behind his back.

Leo and Lamar both tried to run and hide behind the massive tree but Imani saw them regardless. "Boys, what is going on?"

There was a silence as they all tried to avoid the blame.

"Dad said we could open one of our presents!" Lamar exclaimed as their father's mouth dropped open.

Imani raised an eyebrow at her husband of seven years. "Is that right?"

"Hold on a minute-."

"Yeah that's basically what happened!" LJ added as she slid an arm around his neck.

In turn, Vincent pulled her towards him and kissed her gently as the children groaned in disgust. "They're setting me up." He whispered against her lips.

"Boys..." Three heads turned to Imani's direction, fearful of what her reaction was going to be. "Hand me that gold envelope and go upstairs."

"What? Why?! I wanted to-."

"You can take another present with you."

The boys didn't have to be told twice. Reaching for the next largest gift, they all raced upstairs, leaving Imani in Vincent's arms with the envelope in her hands.

"Is that my present?" He asked, moving them so that he was seated and she was perched on his lap.

She nodded, biting her lip and handing it to him. "It's been so hard hiding it from you with your nosey self."

Vincent chuckled as he ripped open the envelope, only to stare at it in utter confusion.

Imani watched him in amusement, laughter threatening to bubble up and explode out of her.

With one arm still around her, he lifted the item and turned it over as if he had missed something.

"Dolcezza, you know I appreciate all of your gifts, right?" Imani nodded. "But what is this?"

Taking it from him, she sighed. "It's a pink colour swatch, Vincent."

Recognising it from the many times she had redecorated, his eyebrows furrowed further. "And why exactly do we have this?"

Imani would have expected Vincent to have clocked on by now. He was a clever man and it usually didn't take him long to latch onto her plots.

Not this time.

This time she was going to have to spell it out for him.

"Well, I need your opinion on what shade to paint the nursery."

"Imani we don't have a-."

And that's when he caught on. That's when his jaw dropped and his eyes lit up in excitement.

Instantaneously his hand went to her stomach and he cursed himself. How had he not realised?

Not one day went by where he didn't feel her body against hers. He should have noticed a change.

"You're pregnant?" He asked for reassurance, his grin widening and his heart racing in genuine happiness. "You're pregnant! You are-." He squeezed her tightly in a hug before remembering that she was with child and loosening his hold on her. "We're about to have a girl."

Imani cupped the side of his face, his beard tickling her palm as he leaned into her touch. "We are about to have a girl." She repeated, leaning her forehead against his and placing her lips over his.

Pressing his lips on her soft ones over again, Vincent pulled back and grinned at her.

Never would he have thought that he would be a family man but he couldn't begin to think of a life without Imani, LJ, Leo or Lamar.

The first time Imani announced that she was pregnant, he had been scared. Fear had hit him like a ton of bricks because he didn't know if he could be the best dad for their child.

When he discovered they were having twins, his fear had doubled.

However the moment he held the two of them in his arms, his fear was replaced with pride and love.

Those little boys were the best thing to ever happen to Vincent because right after that he got his head on straight and asked Imani to marry him.

The wedding had been a beautiful event and although he wanted his mother to be there to watch him, he knew that she was there looking down on him getting married.

"Finally it won't just be me in a house full of boys! I'll have a little girl to spoil and dress up and do all the things I've wanted to do." She stated, getting a faraway look in her eyes. "She is so going to have you wrapped her around her little finger."

"Like you do?"

Imani giggled because she knew it was the truth. From the moment she gave birth to the twins, anything Imani wanted, she got. She was sure he would have given her the moon and stars if she asked for it.

"Oh my God and the boyfriends. I feel bad for little Lily already. She's not only going to have you interrogating any boyfriends but she'll have Luke, Leo and Lamar."

Too busy speaking, she didn't notice as he stilled. "We're naming her Lily?"

"Of course. I think Lily is a beautiful name."

Vincent laced their fingers together and kissed her knuckle, feeling his heart swell for the woman sat on his lap. "I think it's perfect."

Happy that he had taken such joy in the news, Imani rested her head against his shoulder, her left hand on his chest. The rock he had given her glistened and she couldn't help but smile at how perfect her life was.

"Your dad and Heather said they might drop by tomorrow. Luc just keeps on getting bigger."

"I know, I tried to play fight with him the other day and his punch actually kind of hurt."

Although Vincent was still trying to fix his relationship with his father, he had created a special bond with his little brother. An unbreakable bond and the two of them were closer than ever.

He blamed it on the fact that Imani mentioned that perhaps Lily-Ann's passing was supposed to happen at the same time that Luciano was born. She stated that Luciano may have been Lily-Ann's soul living on through him and that had stuck with him for a long time.

The first year had been hard for Vincent to get used to Giovanni, Heather and Luciano being a family but with time, it got easier. Especially when his own family started to expand.

"Oh and Marco, Melisa and Elise will be coming later on in the day."

Marco was still yet to propose to Melisa but he still managed to prove to her everyday just how much he loved her and his two year old daughter Elise.

Whenever Vincent thought about just how far he as his cousin had come, it amazed him.

A wife and kids.

Vincent had a wife and kids.

Something he had convinced himself would never happen to him. Yet now, it was the best thing that ever happened to him.

He was happier than ever.

And he only had Imani to thank for that as she had given him everything that made him happy in life.

"Merry Christmas, Vincent."

"Merry Christmas, bella."