**
From where Asher and Mia sat on the swing on the front porch a week later, they had a perfect view of the sun as it dipped behind the crests of the mountains off in the distance. The sky was awash with the colours that could be found at the heart of a fire. Mia watched them and thought about how well they meshed with the colours of the fire that burned in her core with love for Asher.
She took a drink of her beer and looked over at Asher. Taking a hold of his hand she said, “I love you.”
He squeezed her hand and smiled. “I love you too.”
“I’m so happy. This is the way that things were supposed to be all along. Your parents would be so proud of you.”
He looked back at the sunset and took a drink of his beer. “I hope so,” he said.
“They would be. Look at me. You stepped up to your responsibility for your son. You stepped up to your responsibility to the community. You’re strong and loving and smart. You’ve overcome so much. They would be so proud. I know I am.”
He slipped his arm around her. “I’m glad that you are. All I live for is you and Axel now. Your opinions are all that matter.”
“Axel is crazy about you, you know.”
Asher nodded. It was easy to tell with Axel. He was like his mother and he didn’t hold his feelings back. “I can’t even describe how happy that makes me. I’m overwhelmed by it.”
Mia was nodding. “You don’t have to explain it to me. I feel the same.”
“You did an amazing job with him. I’m proud of you, and you should be proud of yourself.”
She giggled and said, “I am.” Asher loved to hear her laugh. It was truly music to his ears.
He pulled her in against his chest then and leaned down to kiss her. Axel walked out just in time to see their lips touch. “Really guys! Get a room, will you.”
Asher and Mia looked up at him and laughed. Axel came over and hip chucked his dad and sat down in between them. “Hey Dad, I was wondering. Maybe you could teach me your moves?” He threw out a couple of air punches to make his point.
Asher put his arm around his son and pulled him against his chest. Kissing him on the side of his head he said, “I’ll teach you anything. I love you so much, Axel.”
“I love you too, Dad.”
One Year Later
Asher broke every speed law created on his way to the hospital. He had been out at the ranch helping with the rebuilding of the new stables for Lucille and Randy. The community had come together and built them a brand new barn not long after the fires. They put in a stable about four months later and last month they’d broken ground on the second one. It was almost complete and Asher had been spending most of his Saturday’s there helping. He had gotten the call from Frank telling him Mia was at the hospital and he made the thirty minute drive in ten. He left his car in the tow away zone and ran inside. He ignored the volunteer at the counter, who asked if she could help him and ran up the stairwell to the second floor. As soon as he burst through the door he nearly ran head-first into Frank.
“Hey! Where is she?”
Frank smiled. “Calm down, she’s doing fine.”
“She’s two weeks early!”
Trying obviously to suppress a smile Frank said, “That’s normal with a second child. She’s been checked and she’s doing fine, and so is the baby. Here’s her nurse now.”
The young nurse in blue scrubs and a blue hair net pulled her mask down off of her face and asked, “Mr. Fury?”
“Yes, how is my wife?” He loved saying that, ‘wife.’ He and Mia had been married for eight months now and every one of them had been a new adventure.
The nurse smiled. “She’s doing great. Her water just broke and she is dilated about two centimetres. You can put on that paper gown there by the door and wash your hands and go on in.” Asher thanked her and did what she had told him to do before going in to see Mia. She was lying in the bed looking as pretty as always, even in the middle of labour with her hair sticking to the sides of her face. Asher had no idea how she did that. She didn’t even look nervous. He felt like he was crawling out of his skin.
“Hey baby! I’m sorry it took me so long to get here. I shouldn’t have gone today…”
She placed her fingers against his lips softly and said, “Shh, it’s okay, you’re here. We weren’t expecting her today. She’s going to be like her father and show up when she’s good and ready.”
Asher grinned. He and Mia had opted not to know the sex of the baby, but Mia had been calling her a ‘she’ all along. He hoped that she wouldn’t be too disappointed if they ended up with another boy. “That’s my girl,” he said with a grin. He kissed Mia and asked her, “Is there anything you need?”
She smiled again, “An epidural,” she groaned.
He laughed. “I thought you wanted to do this ‘au natural.’
“That was before I remembered what this felt like. I haven’t done this in over eighteen years. The memories faded but they’re back now, in full force.”
“Well then you can have whatever you want,” Asher told her.
“Did you call Axel?”
“Not yet.”
“Call him.”
“I thought I’d wait until the baby was born.”
“Call him now!” She was in the midst of a contraction and Asher decided it wasn’t the best time to argue with her. He waited until she got through that one, gave her some ice chips and went out into the small lobby. Dean was sitting with Frank now.
“How’s she doing?” Frank asked.
“She wants an epidural.”
Frank laughed. “She does not. She said that with Axel too and refused to take anything.”
“Speaking of Axel, she sent me out here to call him. I’m going to tell her I left him a message. If you go in there, don’t tell her any different.”
Dean raised an eyebrow and said, “I hope you’re not talking to me man. The closest I want to come to labour is about an hour after it’s over and the baby is wrapped in its Mama’s arms.”
Asher laughed. “Coward.”
Frank smiled and raised an eyebrow and said, “We’ll see how brave you are when she’s ready to push.” Asher had taken Lamaze classes with Mia and he had watched all the videos, he didn’t think it would be that bad. He was wrong.
Twelve hours later his arms were scratched and reddened from her grip on them. She had called him a few names he had never heard come out of her pretty mouth and he was pretty sure she said he was never allowed to touch her again with that ‘thing’ in his pants. By the time it was over, he wanted an epidural.
Then suddenly, the cries of their beautiful daughter filled the room and his perfect angel Mia was back. He watched in awe as they laid the crying baby all coated with mucus on Mia’s belly. He couldn’t even begin to describe the feelings that were assaulting his body if he tried. Then when the doctor handed him the scissors and let him cut the cord attaching his baby to Mia, he thought his heart would explode.
When they took her to clean her up Asher almost insisted on going with her. She was so small. She needed her daddy to look out for her. Mia had sensed his tension and put her hand on his arm gently. “They’ll bring her back,” she told him with a smile.
“They better,” he said. Then he smiled at Mia and kissed her softly. “Did you see what we made? I’m so proud of you. You handled that like a champ.”
She laughed. “I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
He looked down at his arm and shrugged. “I could have used you in Afghanistan.” She laughed and Asher said, “I’m totally serious.”
They wheeled Mia to another room while they cleaned up the baby. By the time they brought her back, Frank and Dean were both allowed to come in and see her. Frank told them that people from the Bar and Grille and other friends and neighbours were filling up the lobby and blowing up his phone.
As the nurse placed the baby in Mia’s arms, she looked at her father and smiled. “Say hello to your granddaughter Daddy. This is Lily Norma Fury.”
Frank’s eyes filled with tears. He looked up at Asher right away to see what his reaction was. Asher and Mia had decided months ago if she was a girl, she would have both their mother’s names. Asher smiled at Frank and said, “She looks like me, huh?”
Dean squinted down at the baby and said, “She kind of looks like me.” He looked up at Asher and grinned. Asher gave him a slap on the shoulder.
“I think she looks like Axel,” Mia said.
“Good because I didn’t just spend ten hours on an armoured transport to see a kid who looks like Dean that’s for sure.”
“Axel!” Mia’s smile lit up the room with her daughter in her arms and her son standing in the doorway. He was in his full dress uniform. Asher grabbed him up in a hug. He was a member of the U.S. Airforce now. Asher had given him a hard time about that, but only jokingly. He was so proud of his son that he could bust wide open just looking at him. Axel had only been out of basic training for a few months and was stationed in Albuquerque at Kirtland AF Base. He would be leaving for Germany in a month and Mia had been beside herself thinking he would leave without meeting his sister. Asher happened to know his commanding officer, very well. When Asher called him that morning, Axel had been granted a three day pass and transportation on a truck carrying supplies to another base down south.
“Hi Mom.”
Mia had tears in her eyes. She hadn’t seen Axel in almost six months. “Look at you. Oh my God you’re so handsome.” She hugged both of her babies together at once.
Dean waited until she let go of him and then he said, “It’s because he looks like me.” Asher punched him in the arm before taking the baby out of Mia’s arm and placing her gently in Axel’s arms.
“Axel, meet your sister Lily Norma Fury.”
“She’s perfect,” he said, staring down at her. He looked up at his mom and dad then and said, “You two sure do make gorgeous kids.”
Mia laughed through her tears. “We sure do,” she agreed, squeezing Asher’s hand. “Maybe we should make a few more.”
Asher laughed nervously and said, “Let’s see how my arm heals first.”
**
Six months after Axel’s ‘accident’ and just before he enlisted in the Air Force he went to court and testified against James Proctor. There were fifteen other ‘witnesses’ there from the community to testify as well. He was ultimately found guilty of assault with a deadly weapon, assault on a minor, causing bodily injury to a minor, reckless driving and driving on a suspended license, as well as, attempted murder. He was sentenced to fifteen years in prison. He was still waiting on the trial for the drug trafficking, extortion and money laundering charges the FBI brought against him. His brother, Michael, had pled guilty and turned state’s evidence against the rest of them. Michael would be spending five years behind bars in exchange for his testimony against the other three. Randall and Victor both ended up pleading guilty as well to keep their own flesh and blood from making things worse on them. They each ended up with ten years prison time and the whole family flipped on James who after spending his time for the assault on Axel would have to do another consecutive twenty-year sentence for his crimes against the community.
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