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Riley scowled. “She was so proud of her scheme. We never should have let her get between us. If we’d kept you by our side this whole time, Kelly and Damien wouldn’t have been able to do those… things to you.”
My stomach churned as I thought about Mrs. Crawford’s prideful face and remembered what Kelly had done. “What happened after that?”
Ryan smirked. “She likes to go around and flaunt her wealth, but in name she doesn’t actually have much. It’s our dad who controls what she spends. We basically told him we’ll let go of Treston if he doesn’t stop her spending, and revealed to him what she’s been doing all these years. My mom can’t do anything to us now.”
“That’s great.” Relieved, I placed a hand at my chest. Ever since she confronted me, thinking about what Mrs. Crawford would do next preoccupied half of my worries.
Ryan nodded. “Yep.”
He blinked at me. I blinked back. Now that all this was settled, did we go back to normal? But doing that seemed too abrupt. What now? “So—”
“We want to give you this.” Ryan pulled out a red box from his pocket. He opened it. Inside was a huge piece of shiny rock, decorated with other cuts of diamonds. The thing belonged to royalty. “After we found out, we were planning a huge proposal to get you back. But Tyrone called with the news before we could.”
Unsure, I reached out and grazed my fingers over the ring, trying to absorb what it meant. “I don’t know what to say.”
Without asking, Riley took the ring from his brother and held it above my fourth finger. “After this incident, we realized how precious the time we have with you is. We can’t wait any longer. I don’t want you to be far away from us, Scarlet. These days, I keep thinking something is going to happen. I need to protect you, and make sure you’re safe. We need to have you close.”
I pursed my lips. “Shouldn’t I have to say ‘yes’ first?” His fingers were half an inch away from slipping the ring on.
He captured my mouth with his soft lips. I nearly forgot how much I enjoyed kissing him. “Then say it.”
My chest constricted. Everything moved too quickly, and my head reeled. The two of them had spelled nothing but trouble ever since I’d met them, but they’d made me happier than I’d ever been.
Quickly, almost on impulse, I said, “Yes.” My heart nearly exploded when it became clear what all this meant. I hugged Riley, and Ryan put his arms around the both of us. “Yes, yes, absolutely,” I muttered, hoping I’d made the right decision.
***
Two weeks out of the hospital, and I had a huge wedding to get ready for. I tried to tell the twins time and again to take things slow, but they insisted we had to be wed as soon as possible. Ryan and Riley had been extra attentive—sometimes too attentive—ever since the shooting incident. I could tell they still held it against themselves, though it wasn’t remotely close to being their fault.
They’d hired the best wedding planners and did most of the errands themselves, insisting I shouldn’t work too hard because I was in recovery and had a baby. All I had to do was sit back, relax, and decide on what kind of services I wanted.
I could really get used to this.
Kelly and Damien had been handed over to the police. They were looking at over ten years in jail for battery and kidnapping. Good news for them was they didn’t have to worry about the loan sharks any more, not with the police watching their backs every second of the day. I considered paying them a visit, just to reprimand them and gloat. Then I decided people like them didn’t deserve my time. I had a much brighter future to look forward to.
Sometimes I’d feel sorry for Damien. He was pulled into this by his blind love for Kelly. But I had to admit I wasn’t that benevolent a person. Each time I remembered how he’d held me down and run his dirty fingers over my body, pure hatred for him resurfaced.
Our wedding would be a small, unannounced wedding. Sadly, the twins and I weren’t able to make it official, since polygamy isn’t a big thing in our society. We’d be having our own little private affair, far away from the press.
I was going through the invitations when one in particular made me pause.
Frowning, I called, “Ryan, come here.”
He was sitting across the living room, reading his mystery novel. “Yes, princess?”
“Why is your mom invited?”
“Because she’s family?”
I raised a brow. She had tried every possible means to get the three of us separated. I wasn’t buying that lame reason.
Ryan licked his lips. “Okay, I know you hate her, and we don’t like her very much either, but it’s a formality. We can’t exclude our own mother from our wedding.”
