Epilogue

Soleil lay back on her pillows, exhausted by the labors of childbirth. Through the haze of pain, she could hear her child wailing, full of life. Soleil held out her arms for the precious life she had just brought into the world.

Soleil took the crying infant from her mother's arms and was filled with pride and love. He had ten tiny fingers and ten tiny toes. A mop of black curls spiraled around his perfect head. His long legs kicked out from beneath the blanket, and she knew he would be tall like his father.

She thought back on all the hardships she had faced in America, and felt blessed to have this little miracle in her arms. He was the beauty that arose from all the ugliness.

It felt good to be home, with her mother beside her while she brought him into the world. A feeling of homecoming had washed over Soleil upon her arrival. When she saw her parents for the first time in over six years, Soleil could not stop crying or let them go. They sat holding each other for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, she remembered Alex and Hope standing next to her, and introduced them to her parents. Imani and Dominique welcomed their new son-in-law and granddaughter with as much love as they had their daughter.

While they talked and caught up on what had happened in each other's lives, Soleil learned that her mother and father had stayed in America for a year after she had disappeared. They had looked for her from sun up to sun down. After a year of searching and with no new clues to her whereabouts, they returned to France, heartbroken.

In the time since their arrival in France, Alex had taken over her father's shipping company under Dominique’s guidance, while Soleil had taken over the duties of the house and helping her mother. That is, until she went into labor this morning.

After the birth was finished and everything was cleaned, Alex and Dominique entered the room with Hope on their heels. Alex watched as his son slept peacefully in his mother’s arms. He walked over and sat next to her on the bed, kissing them both on the forehead.

“You have a fine son. He will grow in a strong young man,” Dominique declared with pride as he wrapped his arm around his wife’s waist.”

“That he will,” Alex replied. “We shall have to send word to Charles and Virginia so they can visit.”

“We will take care of that for you. Rest and enjoy your new son. We will return later,” Imani said, before ushering her husband out of the room.

Hope climbed up onto Alex’s lap and reached out to stroke her baby brother's cheek. "He looks so wrinkly."

Alex and Soleil both laughed. "Well, he has been floating around in Maman's tummy for a long time."

Alex bent down to kiss his daughter’s forehead. "I am glad to hear it. You have a heart as large as your mother’s. I must say, I never thought I could fall in love yet again, but I fear I have done so with my son. He is beautiful, and I love him and his mother for giving him to me."

Soleil smiled up at her husband. She loved him with all her heart, and now she needed nothing more.

HEY HEY HEY! WE HAVE come to the end of this book, but not the end of the story. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I loved writing it. This story has lived in my heart for YEARS and I am so glad to share it with the world.

You got a glimpse of Charles and Virginia in this book, and if you want to see how the adventurous romance of theirs unfolded pick up their story The Cost of Atonement today! Flip a few more pages to read the first few chapters of the book, because I don’t know about you, but I am a huge fan of try before you buy...lol

And coming January 2019 you can see little Hope all grown up and navigating her own journey to love in The Cost of Rebellion. Pre-order yours now.

And before I forget, reviews are the most powerful tools in my arsenal when it comes to getting attention for my books. Much as I’d like to, I don’t have the financial muscle of a New York publisher. I can’t take out full page spreads in the newspapers or magazines. (Not yet anyway).

Honest reviews of my books help bring them to the attention of other readers. If you’ve enjoyed this book I would be very grateful if you could spend just five minutes leaving a review (it can be as short as you like).

Also, I occasionally send newsletters with details on new releases, special offers and other bits of news. And who knows, maybe you’ll get a free copy of a new release. You can sign up by clicking here: Newsletter Signup. Or you can join my (Facebook group) where you will find a copy of the deleted chapters of how Soleil and Alex met in their youth and what happened when she was abducted. Moreover, you will get to hang with me and get sneak peeks of my WIPs.

I learned a lot of very interesting information researching for this book. Below is a list of some of the sources I used to breathe life into this story. If you are interested in learning more about life and laws in the post-Civil War south, I encourage you to check them out.

Richter, Jeremy W. “Alabama's Anti-Miscegenation Statutes: A Short History of Anti- Miscegenation Statutes.” Jeremy W. Richter, 20 June 2017, www.jeremywrichter.com/2017/05/05/anti-miscegenation-statutes/.

Costly, A. (2018). Southern Black Codes - Constitutional Rights Foundation. [online] Crf-usa.org. Available at: http://www.crf-usa.org/brown-v-board-50th-anniversary/southern-black-codes.html [Accessed 18 May 2018].

Novkov, J. (2017). Segregation (Jim Crow). [online] Encyclopedia of Alabama. Available at: http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1248 [Accessed 18 May 2018].