Ellie's Flames BOOK 2

Epilogue- 10 Years Later

The curly-haired girl currently hugging Carlos' leg tightens her grip before backing away, beaming at the both of us with her wide smile, missing her two front teeth.

Carlos kneels and taps under her chin. "Stay safe."

"I will!" My oldest daughter, four-year-old Janessa, promises, embracing her father one last time before turning to me and standing on her toes to kiss her baby sister, Serene, on the forehead. "Bye, Reenee! Have fun at home all alone while I go to school!"

"Preschool." I remind her. She smiles at me, her babyish hands clasped in front of her. I don't think there's a single thing that could dampen her mood at this moment. I can tell she's waiting for me to say something else, some sort of go-ahead to run away from me and join her friends.

I laugh. "Just have fun."

Her dimples deepen, almost blending into the army of freckles on her face. Much like her dad, she has black-and-white hair. Except where Carlos' black roots stop pretty quickly, only the tips of her wavy hair are white. She has my brilliant blue eyes, a strange mix of electric and ice that looks bizarre on me but perfect on my daughter.

Janessa demanded that she pick out her outfit today. Denim overalls with blue fiery designs all over, a pair of red ladybug rain boots complete with antenna on the toes, and a striped black-and-red shirt under the denim.

"Love you, mommy!" She squeals, slamming into my legs. I barely keep my balance, and Serene fusses in my arms.

"Jenna." Carlos reminds her gently.

"Right. Sorry. No wakey the baby." She says sheepishly. I laugh, rubbing my hand through her hair.

"It's all right. Now go have fun." I assure her.

She giggles, backing away and swooping down on Dude to kiss his nose. "Bye, Doodie!" Then with a final cheerful wave, she tears away from us toward the smaller section of the palace that serves as the preschool.

"I hate that." Dude mumbles once Janessa's out of earshot, her two pigtails flying behind her. I can see her waving ecstatically at Mal and Ben's daughter, Isla, who has very easily identifiable brown hair with neon green and purple streaks. Those two are the best of friends, practically inseparable as a group with Lonnie and Jay's son, Max.

"You know you love it." Carlos tells Dude, grinning slightly.

"I do." Dude sighs grudgingly. "Tell her to do it more often."

Carlos laughs, moving to my side and putting an arm around my shoulder. "Okay, Dude. We'll do that."

"Thank you. Now if you don't mind, I'm going back to the car." The small dog trots over to our car, hopping in the front seat. Age hasn't affected Dude much. From what we can figure, something about his time with my powers has lengthened his life so he'll live about as long as a human, a little less.

Carlos smiles, watching Janessa chatter away with Isla happily, soon joined by Max, who is dragging Endora's daughter behind him. Eleanor is a small girl, with slightly duller hair than her mother, coming from her dad's side. Who would've thought that Endora would end up dating, then marrying, Chad Charming? After his experience with Audrey, he got smart and humbled a bit. He's still a bit egotistical, but Dori's always there to pull him back down with her even bigger ego.

Carlos gently shakes my shoulder, watching Janessa show off her cartwheels to her friends. "I'm sure glad our daughter got my powers."

I snort, barely containing my laughter. "Your powers? You don't have any, Carlos!"

"True. But I got the most beautiful woman in Auradon under my spell." He says, kissing my cheek.

I laugh. "Don't let Evie hear you say that."