Destiny Revealed (21 page)

I still wasn’t ready to be a mom. But there I was, twenty
years old in the delivery room, in the middle of a serious
contraction. I squeezed Nick’s hand so hard I would’ve
broken it if he weren’t a werewolf.

Apparently, life had other plans for us. In the end, it
didn’t matter that we were on birth control. Nick was more
excited about it than I was. Even now, his face practically
glowed.

My grandparents had flown in the week before so they
could be there for the birth. Mamma and Nonna were on
the sofa against the window chatting away. Our friends
were milling around in the hallway. “Will you tell them to
shut up?” I practically shouted. “I’m trying to concentrate.”

Nick called to Rene just outside the door and told him
to take everyone to the waiting room. My water had broken
three hours earlier while we were at Aberto’s having lunch.
I apologized profusely for the mess, but Daniela shrugged it
off and rushed us out of there.

Mamma and Nonna stopped talking in the corner,
having heard my outburst. “Do you need something for the
pain?” Babbo asked, walking in to the room. Even though
he wasn’t an obstetrician, he was delivering our baby girl. I
wasn’t sure how I felt about him seeing me this way, but it
was too late now.

Once the contraction had passed, Nick placed a wet
washcloth on my forehead. “No, Babbo. I want to do this
on my own,” I answered.
“Even now, a stubborn one,” he chuckled.
“I wonder where she gets that from,” Mamma came

The last two years had been peaceful. Nothing left to
stand between Nick and I. Dash and Helene were newly
bound now that she had graduated from high school. Luca
finally moved out and no longer worked at Monte’s. He
was renting the studio apartment above the tattoo parlor
where Etienne worked and had quite a successful
photography business.

Pietro and Gabriela came that summer after Gia was
killed. Gabriela decided to permanently move to Arizona
and now lived in my old room at my parents’ house. She
and Rene started dating shortly after and were still together.
Pietro went back to Italy after the summer because of his
girlfriend.

And Ky, he decided to leave. He ended up moving to
Italy to live with his grandparents, and every so often
would send me an email to let me know what was going on
with him. After he killed Gia to save me, Nick backed off
and was okay with the emails. Only once did I write back,
to let him know I was pregnant.

“Soon,” Babbo said. “She is almost fully dilated.”
“Ack, I don’t want to know that,” Luca cringed and left
the room.
“You are doing so awesome,” Nick whispered as he
brushed the strands of hair off my face that had stuck from
sweat. Despite the pain, I smiled at him. He was going to
be the best father. He took such good care of me during the
entire pregnancy and constantly talked to the baby and
rubbed my belly. It was incredibly sweet.
“I need to push,” I said through gritted teeth. Babbo
checked me one last time and told me to go ahead. Mamma
and Nonna were standing by the bed, but not too close so as
to give me some space.
After about thirty minutes of intense pushing, baby
Alessandra Hecate Bartolini was born. The moment Babbo
put her on my belly, I finally felt it. I was instantly in love
and ready to be a mom. I looked over at Nick and his eyes
were full of happy tears. Mamma and Nonna were both
crying as well.
Luca stuck his head in again, “Can we come in yet? I
hear crying.”
“Give your sister a few minutes,” Mamma chastised.
Fifteen minutes later, everyone flooded in to the room.
“Me first,” Luca said. “I’m the uncle.”
Nick was holding her, wrapped snuggly in a blanket.
“You can look, but it’s still my turn,” Nick smiled down at
Alessandra.
“I can’t believe you guys made a person,” Dash chimed
in, pushing his way through for a better look.
“Oh, I want one,” Nat smiled at Jack. Jack turned white,
but Nat didn’t notice. She just looked over Nick’s shoulder
and cooed at the baby.
I was completely worn out, but as I looked around the
room at my pack and coven, I could’t help but smile. This
was what life was all about—la mia famiglia. And I was
ready to begin our next adventure together.

First I need to thank my family for putting up with me
missing in action for long stretches of time. My sweet boys
for coming in to my cave to let me know they still exist,
love me and miss hanging out with me. For their stolen
kisses and entertaining songs and dances. To my dad Larry
for always being the first one to read my stories and give
his honest and helpful opinion. Thanks to my friend, Amy
Rice for her feedback and support. And lastly, to my friends
who encourage me and read my books. It was hard for me
to say goodbye to Nico and Sofia. They became my
favorite characters that I’ve written so far and I hope you
enjoyed reading their tale as much as I did writing it.