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“Fighting for everything you need isn’t a bad way to live,” I said. “It makes you stronger.”
“Mandi has done enough fighting that battle,” Ryan told me. “I’m going to take care of that now.”
“What the fuck are you doing in the business anyway?” I asked, glad to have the opportunity to change the subject.
“Chief Operating Officer over Silver Springs,” he said. “Basically all the day-to-day stuff—IT, call centers, security—it’s not bad work.”
I let him go on about the family business for a few minutes, but then it was time to go to the cathedral. We both finished one quick shot of whiskey, and I brushed my teeth before heading back down the stairs.
“You sure you don’t want to stand up there with me?” Ryan asked. “You know I want you there.”
“Nah,” I said. “I’ll sit with Tria and try to come up with a toast that doesn’t involve that time you got your cock stuck in the zipper of your tux right before prom.”
“Hey now,” Ryan laughed, “that fucking hurt!”
“There they are!”
Chelsea stood at the bottom of the stairs with her graying hair coiled up into a fancy bun of some sort. Her bright red dress didn’t match the season so well, but it made her look stunning. Michael’s hair was slicked back, and his tie and cummerbund matched his wife’s attire, but I barely saw them.
Tria was near the door, and as soon as my eyes made contact with her, everything else disappeared.
Deep blue accentuated her cream-colored skin and brought out the deep brown of her eyes. One strap over her left shoulder left her collarbones and right shoulder bare, and the flowing sheer skirt showed off her beautiful legs with her feet encased in silver, high-heeled shoes.
She was covered in sapphires and diamonds, from the three-tiered pendant necklace to the large bracelet on her wrist to the drop earrings. There was even a sapphire and diamond ring on her right ring finger.
I lifted my hand up and made a motion for her to turn around. She complied, showing me the intricate nature of the back of the dress. The single strap over her left shoulder met with the two pieces of fabric coming from around her front and gathered together at her lower back in a slight V shape, leaving most of her back exposed. As she spun around, I saw the tiny clutch purse on her wrist and had to hold in a laugh.
I moved beside her, reached out to place my hands on her hips, and brought her against me. I leaned in close to kiss her right below her ear.
“You are so fucking beautiful,” I whispered in her ear. “With you here, I just might survive tonight. I know seeing you like this has made it all worthwhile.”
“I’m going to kill myself in these heels.” Tria giggled. “Carter said I could keep the dress, but the jewelry is on loan.”
“Well, you do have about four million dollars in gems around your neck,” I informed her.
From the look on her face, I probably should have kept that information to myself.
“I do?” she whispered. “Four…four…”
“Shh…” I breathed against her ear again. “Just on loan, right?”
“How much is the dress?” she whispered back.
“I don’t know shit about dresses,” I said. “I grew up with gemstones.”
“Oh…yeah,” she said. “I thought it was silver.”
“You tend to make the setting out of the silver and then put the stone in the setting. They all sort of go together.”
“You did that as a kid?”
“I made jewelry out of silver as a kid, yes. Set my first gemstone—a garnet—into a ring when I was eight.”
“Wow.” Tria looked up at me and gave me one of her more fantastic smiles. “You are always full of surprises.”
“Are you ready, Liam?” Michael’s hand rested against my shoulder. “Tria is absolutely stunning, isn’t she?”
“She always is,” I replied as I took her hand.
