Tessa's Home

Epilogue

One year later

"Pass the salt, please," Hugh asks, reaching for it.

"Who wants my peas?" Tyler says, looking around at everyone.

"Eat your vegetables, Tyler." Mikhail narrows his eyes at his youngest boy.

"They're gross!" Tyler yells, pushing his peas around on his plate.

"Dad! Milo's being gross!" Mavok yells from the other end of the table, scrunching his face up at his twin.

"How old are you two?" Carl asks, watching as Milo chews his food and then opens his mouth to show Mavok.

"So, there's this girl, Penny, and we used to hate each other to bits, but she's actually kind of-" Tessa starts, turned towards Arianna who's sitting next to her.

"Tee! Takes my pees!" Tyler yells, lifting up his plate.

"Eat them, Tyler," Arianna gives Tyler a pointed look, and Tyler grumbles, annoyed.

He shoves a forkful of peas in his mouth and scrunches up his face in disgust.

"How are you still so childish? You're about to turn eighteen, for fucks sake," Payton says, scowling at Tyler. Tyler throws a pea at him and Mikhail smacks him over the head for it.

"Don't throw your food," Mikhail says, holding back a smile.

He watches all of his children, his grown boys and beautiful daughter, as they all chaotically eat dinner.

Then, he looks over to Arianna. He watches her interact with Tessa like they're best friends and it makes his heart swell.

Arianna and Mikhail have a complicated relationship. While they both know they love one another, they have their reasons to stay away.

Mikhail, for one, still loves his late wife dearly. She's in every single one of his precious children and he knows he'll never stop wishing she was alive.

But he's found love in another woman, and even though it makes him feel guilty, he's stopped denying it.

It's a different love, though, and his feelings are conflicted. And his kids. His beautiful children.

What would they think if he got with Arianna? Would they hate the idea? Would they think he's replacing their mother? Would they start hating him because they think he never truly cared about Diana?

Arianna has her own fears, too. She's built such a wonderful relationship with each and every one of Mikhail's children. She's scared of breaking those relationships by dating their father. She's scared they'll hate her, shun her, wish her gone.

Not to mention the commitment of it all. Dating someone who she imagines she'll marry one day. Dating someone who has seven children. Becoming a mother-figure to a bunch of grown kids, and the fear that she's putting her foot where it doesn't belong.

"Dad?" Mikhail looks up to his eldest son. "What time are we gonna head out?"

Mikhail glances down at his watch and then shocks, standing up hurriedly. "Right now. We're already late."