Narrated by Paige:
Ten years later...
My life hasn't been easy, that's for sure, but I believe that only the strongest can withstand the tests that life puts before us.
My marriage is wonderful, our family is closer than ever, just like the friendship between our children. Over the years, we have raised them as cousins.
In these ten years, things have changed a bit. Mason and I had another child about five years ago. Lucas and Riley adopted older children, which is uncommon, but their explanation made me proud of them.
Riley fought alongside Lucas to win the hearts of those beautiful children, who, I must say, have now grown into hardworking and responsible young men. They are 24 years old now, joined our family 8 years ago, and have been the best brothers to Tyler and older cousins to our children.
On the other hand, Sarah and Ethan have two daughters, Lena, and Hannah. These girls are demanding and adorable, although they drive my friend crazy at times, as Ethan is completely smitten with them and grants their every wish. They are not far apart in age, and that's why they always conspire together to create mischief.
Emily is the best grandmother in the world. She always sees them and takes them for walks with my father-in-law. They don't need anyone else in their lives; they are loved and happy.
My father passed away several years ago. As for my mother, I don't know much about her, and I prefer it that way. We never had a close relationship, but I know she lives happily, indulging in every whim that comes to her mind.
Mason is the best husband, although he wasn't at first. Every day, he enchants me with gestures and words that make me love him even more. I used to think that the idea of falling in love every day and being rewarded for past mistakes would fade away over the years, but it hasn't. He continues to erase the bad memories and replace them with new ones. I've told him that it's not necessary, that all of that is in the past, but he insists on continuing with his actions.
Obviously, I'm not going to complain about his attentions, his gestures, and everything that comes with them. I love him, and I feel that the second chance we had was the right thing, even if not everyone understands that.
Our children are happy, and that fills us with joy. We can see that we're doing a good job with them, as they are the future of our love. It's not all good, though, as we have our arguments, and most of them are due to Mason's jealousy towards Maia. It's not like our daughter is very grown up, but still, Mason is excessively jealous of her. He has asked our little one to look after her at school, and that's not right.
Apart from that, everything else is wonderful. Our lives have become fantastic, and we wouldn't change anything from our past. On that, Sarah, Riley, and I completely agree.
Extra:
12 years later...
Narrated by Maia:
As you already know, I'm the eldest daughter of Mason and Paige, parents who have been the best example to me of what I want my life to be like when I find love, although I don't believe in it, at least not for now. My life has been happy and surrounded by a large and close-knit family.
Lena is my best friend, she's my sister at heart. We tell each other everything and we're always together, through the good times and the not-so-good times.
Tyler, being our age, is our chaperone, so to speak. He takes care of us, protects us, although sometimes he goes overboard with certain things. We don't always follow him around because we've learned how to be without Ty.
We love him, that's for sure, but sometimes we just want to be alone, have girl talks, and we can't have those freely with him.
My brother is a complicated subject. Now that we're all adults except for him, he acts more mature than any of us. He's causing our parents a lot of trouble with his pranks. He doesn't like having to stay at home when the rest of us go out partying or gathering as cousins. He always complains and gets angry because he wants the freedom that we have. I don't even want to imagine what he'll be like when he's old enough to do whatever he wants...