Beep.
The fucking machine cuts me off.
With a huff, I throw the phone down. This is the happiest day of my life, and yet the three people I always imagined sharing it with aren’t here. Libby is dead. I still haven’t managed to find Maleah, and now Kenzi is in the wind as well.
So much for that.
Still, even with them not being here, I can’t help but love that he did this for me. Giving me exactly what I’ve dreamed of and didn’t tell me until precisely six this morning when he dragged me out of bed after eating me out within an inch of my life.
Who needs an alarm clock when you have a husband who can’t get enough of you?
At least this one isn’t a fraud wedding.
Apparently, he even got a real minister.
One who wasn’t bribed this time.
“You look beautiful,” my mother whispers, tears shining in her eyes as she takes me in. A vision in ivory. Matthias, the possessive, controlling asshat that he is, even picked out the dress. It is, begrudgingly, exactly what I have always dreamed of wearing. It is a delicate vintage lace ivory sheath with small, capped sleeves. My red curls hang loosely around my face, which has only the slightest hint of makeup on it. Exactly how I have always planned it.
“So do you,” I whisper softly, my voice hitching slightly. She wears a sage green maxi halter dress that clings to herdeveloping curves. She has taken on a good amount of weight now that she isn’t living off bottled nutrition. Her red hair, which was chin length while she was in a coma, now comes down to just above her shoulders in gentle ginger waves.
A sob threatens to crawl its way up my throat at the sight of her.
I never thought in my wildest dreams that my mother would ever get the chance to walk me down the aisle, and now I not only have her, but my birth father as well.
A loving family.
A dysfunctional, loving family, but a family, nonetheless.
“No crying, now,” she chastises playfully. “You’ll ruin your makeup.”
“Totally worth it.” I sniff.
She smiles softly at me and holds out her hand.
“Come on,” she whispers. “He’s waiting for you.”
“Maybe we should make a run for it?” I smirk. My mother laughs.
“I looked into that option for you,” she admits. “He has guards on every entrance and exit. Good luck.”
We laugh as she leads me from the room and into the large foyer of our new home. That is the other surprise he laid out for me. The man went and purchased a Queen Anne Victorian that is, admittedly, built in 2008, but it holds a perfect old-world charm that blends perfectly with his need for modern structure.
“We’ll move in right after our honeymoon,” he whispered in my ear. “Our house. Our home.”
I smirk when I take in the three other smaller buildings spread across the vast property he managed to secure in the middle of Seattle.
Matthias shrugged and said, “Well, this specific house is ours. The other ones are for the guys. And your mom if she wants it.”
It is perfect.
With a small smile, my mother hands me off to my father, who waits by a set of double doors that lead into the large solarium. He is wearing a sharp black suit, his graying hair styled neatly.
“Well, lass,” he winks at me. “You sure clean up well.”
“So do you.” I laugh and take the arm he offers me.
He leans down until he can whisper in my ear. “Now,” he whispers seriously. “There are four exit possibilities by door. Seven by window. We could easily take out a few of the guards before he notices. The twins offered to provide a distraction if needed, but time’s a ticking, sweet girl.”
