Caught Between a Mate and Love

EPILOGUE

SIX MONTHS LATER

A lot happened since the day we won. First off, Zack and one of his cousins moved to New York. Sarah and I made amends, sort of. I never really talked to her after that. But that was old news that didn't concern me any more.

Both Hannah and Debbie had their babies. Hannah had a baby boy that looked just like her, thank God, and whom she and Tony named him Joseph Paul Antonio after both my father and Hannah's and after Tony. Joseph Paul Antonio deLuca. What a friggin' mouthful. At least he was graced with Hannah's good looks, and I prayed their next baby would as well.

I was in the room with Debbie when she pushed Michael Maximus out. Michael, obviously for Mickey and Maximus because somehow, some day a long time before, they'd discussed the issue of having having an accidental baby and what they might want to name it. Debbie insisted her son be named Michael, but the daughter be named Sophie. Mickey, being the stupid boy he was, wanted his first son to be named something strong like Hercules or Maximus and his daughter something sweet like Anna, which wasn't as bad as Maximus in my eyes, but Debbie is Debbie. Anyways, he sort of looked like both of them. He had Debbie's messy hair and her smile, but everything else was all Mickey. I tried to visit them whenever they weren't staying with us.

Right. Us. Me and Chris. Alpha and almost official Luna of the Theodore clan. We were good and bad, when our PTSD kicked in, but we were mostly good.

I moved in with my mate not long after Mickey's funeral; I couldn't stand to be home any more and it was bound to happen. He had a huge house, the next state over. It was strange and new, and I wasn't sure I'd ever be used to it. Take every morning, as it was that morning.

I'd wake up first, mostly because my nightmares ended on schedule (fuck PTSD for that). I normally took a short shower, and did my old morning routine, but then, (mostly because my mom told me so) I made breakfast and coffee every morning. It's not that I never made breakfast, hell I used to serve it for a living, but now I had this marriage routine. And it's not that I never expected it, but a girl just can't be prepared for this straight away intimacy and seriousness. Anyways, after that Chris was off doing 'business,' which meant who-knows-what, but he left me with a huge house and nothing to do. I didn't have to work any more, the wedding was over, and there wasn't much left to cry about. I had nothing to do.

As usual, I was the bullet going straight into my enemy's brain, and before I could pierce his skin, I woke up, heaving breath. Chris was sound asleep, snoring, to be expected. I took a long shower, brushed my teeth and got dressed for another day of nothing, but thankfully another day of nothing with Debbie and Max. It was my turn to take care of Debbie, or as Debbie knew it, she wanted to bring Max to his aunt's for a week.

"Good morning!" I smiled at month-and-a-half old Max, who rested in his tired mother's arms. Debbie was sitting on a stool by the island on our gourmet kitchen. I feel like everything we own is huge and ridiculous, but it's all part of the perks of being mated to a very rich Alpha. At least Debbie didn't mind.

"Morning!" Felicity ran into me, nearly knocking me over, and definitely knocking the wind out of me.

"Felly, what did I say about sneaking up on me?!" I shouted at April's look alike. Her brother sleepily sat himself next to Debbie. I guess April was still asleep. Oh, yes, forgot to mention, my mate insisted on keeping his ex-wife and her kids in the house. I believe his exact arguement was, "I promised George." I had nothing to say to that.

"Sit your butt down, Mister," Debbie ordered Asher, after he tried to climb onto the island to lay down. I don't know why, but he always tried to lie on the cold marble when he had the chance. Felicity ran to the living room and turned on her morning television, with Asher right behind her, leaving me to work in my kitchen and Debbie to feed her son.

As soon as the breakfast of champions was created, (eggs, bacon, the whole shebang), Chris strolled in, jauntily might I add. Six months with PTSD, PMS-Y, cranky me and the guy still had a skip in his step. I served the kids on the coffee table in the living room, while my mate and best friend served themselves. When I returned, Debbie was smiling in her know it all smile, and Chris had a nervous grin.

"What did you do?" I immediately asked Debbie. She gasped and laughed in faux-shock.

"Trust me when I say, it wasn't me this time," She smiled, with a fork pointed at me and her son in her other arm. I crinkled my eyebrows at Chris. Whatever.

When I turned around to grab myself a strawberry, something sparkled, brilliantly. It was a gorgeous diamond ring, with a one karat diamond in the center of several smaller ones, ugh it was amazing.

"Christopher!" I gasped and turned around, still holding, to find he silently got down on one knee right behind me.

"Rita Marisa deLuca, the woman who could defeat an army, then move in with a divorced man, his ex-wife and her children and cook and clean for every body every day. The only girl for this old yanker, marry me," Chris said in his most earnest face. I smiled widely, looking from him to Debbie, who smiled excitedly back.

"God, stand up!" I shouted. I let him help me put the ring on the right finger as he stood up. "You old yanker."

"I love you, too," He chuckled and kissed me, without restraint. This was it. After nearly a year of heartbreaks and weddings and battles and deaths and births, me and Chris were going to set it in stone. Now the world and God would see that there was nothing else nature could give us that would make a better pair than Rita deLuca and Chris Theodore.

A/N: This is for everyone! Also, that's Rita's ring. Thank you for reading this whole story through, I hope I've left you all satisfied :). This was the first, non fanfiction story I've ever finished and it's strange to me. I really enjoyed writing this though. CBML helped me get back on the writing horse, and your support kept me going. One day I'll edit this thoroughly, but for now, I'm pretty happy with what I've got. Who doesn't love a happy ending?