Broken Until You

EPILOGUE

~ TEN YEARS LATER ~

Autumn

I stared at my computer screen, looking at a photo Grace posted on her Facebook.

It was the picture of her, Ruby, Lila, Taylor and I on graduation day. The caption said: 'can't believe this was ten years ago today! I miss these guys so much ❤️!'

I closed my eyes and smiled, remembering that day like it was yesterday.

Man...I miss them like hell.

I haven't seen Grace, Ruby or Lila since the summer of senior year. We have been so busy but I was able to catch up with Taylor four months ago for coffee. Taylor has a boyfriend of three years and became a fashion designer. Grace, according to her Facebook, has two kids and is married to her high school sweetheart, Jake Lahey. Ruby and Lila on the other hand broke up the summer of senior year because they didn't want a long distance relationship, but I don't know if their together now.

And as for me...life's been pretty damn good if I do say so myself.

My office door creaked open.

Turning my desk chair, I smiled at the receptionist. "Hello, Valarie."

She smiled, "good afternoon, Mrs. Becker. There's someone for you on line two."

I nodded. "Got it. Thank you."

Valarie closed my office door shut. When she left, I picked up the phone.

"Hey, beautiful," the person on the other end greeted.

"Hello." I blushed. Six years of being married to Ryder and he still makes me blush like when we first met.

"Why did you call me on my work phone? I have calls to make, you know," I reminded him, since I was still at work.

"I know, but you don't answer your cell phone at work, but you do answer your work phone."

I smiled to myself. Oh, Ryder.

I could hear him sigh heavily. "I just...I miss you so much. I just needed to hear your voice."

My eyes flickered over to the picture frame I had on my desk. Picking it up, I admired the photo. It was of Ryder, our kids and I on a trip to Disneyworld.

"I miss you too," I said and sighed as well.

Ryder is on a business trip in France. He has been gone for two weeks. What's great for me is that he gets back tomorrow, so I won't have to take care of the kids alone. He is one of the best doctors in America and gets to travel around the world to help people in need of treatment.

"How are the kids?" he asked.

After college, Ryder proposed to me and we had a beautiful wedding – a day I will never forget. A year after our wedding we had our first child, Bradley. One year after he was born, we had another child, Lucy. And two years after Lucy, we had our final child, Elena.

Pressing the phone up to my ear with my shoulder, I began to multi-task and start typing on my computer.

"Good. Bradley is at soccer practice and Elena and Lucy are at home with the nanny."

"Who's going to pick him up from soccer? That's my job." Ryder huffed, upset he couldn't pick up our son. Ryder and Bradley loved to spend father and son time together. Their bond was unbreakable.

"Fatima will do it. Don't worry, you have all next week to pick him up." Fatima is the name of the nanny who watches our kids since Ryder and I both have jobs.