Page 52 of Secret Dynasty

My hands sought purchase on the felt fabric but in the end, he undid me with his tongue, leaving me a boneless heap on the billiards table. When he got to his feet, he reverently lowered the gown back over my legs.

“Now you’ll always think of me when you wear this dress.” He slid a hand under my back and lifted me, leaning to capture my mouth with his own. His lips moved slowly and when I began to lose control, he pulled away. “We don’t want to mess up your lipstick.”

As if his words were a summons, Camille’s melodic voice called from the hallway. “Kerrigan? I think we need to get started.”

“Fuck.” Holden helped me to my feet and I smoothed the skirt as best I could. Holden dabbed at a smudge of lipstick at the corner of my mouth. The door opened and we moved quickly away from each other. By the time Camille looked inside, he was back in his spot at the bar with a fresh drink in hand.

“Are you ready to try again?” Her eyes scanned the room suspiciously.

“Yes, I think the Scotch did the trick.” I smiled brightly, feeling lighter than I had all day. I would do as Holden asked. I would wear this dress for him and capture the joy he’d given me.

Camille and I made our way into the hall. We’d only gone a few steps, when she stopped me.

“Hold on,” she said quietly, stepping behind me.

I froze when she began to swiftly re-pin my hair.

“There,” she said with a secretive smile. “Some curls came loose.”

“Oh,” I feigned surprise as she inspected my make-up.

“Do I need a touch up?” I asked, hoping she didn’t notice the strain in my voice.

“No.” She shook her head. “You’re glowing like a bride should.”

“Camille…” I searched for an explanation, but she winked at me.

“Every girl must have her secrets,” she said.

I nodded and followed her back to the solarium, leaving my biggest secret behind me.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

“I can’t believe you didn’t have a hen party,” Eliza whined as she lay splayed across my bed.

I shrugged, doing my best to look like I didn’t care. “There wasn’t time.”

“Because Spencer couldn’t wait to put a ring on it?” she teased. “Not that I can blame him.”

“Everything just happened so fast,” I said.

Eliza had arrived the night before, just in time for the wedding. Despite my insistence that she let me continue to send her rent, she refused. That meant she’d had to take every shift she could, so she could afford to come for the wedding. Thankfully, she let me pay for her bridesmaid dress. I suspected she would faint if she knew how much the designer gown cost, even off-the-rack. In return, she’d been relentlessly cheerful, since she arrived, delivering constant reassurance rather than her usual tough love.

We hadn’t talked much since the DNA results confirmed I was Kerrigan. But if she was weirded out by them, she was doing a good job covering it. Other than the occasional teasing, she treated me exactly like she had in West Bexby.

It was a relief to feel normal again.

“I just feel as though I failed you.” She fiddled with the tassel of a throw pillow. “You’re getting married without a proper send-off.”

I didn’t want to know what Eliza considered an appropriate farewell to single life.

“It’s not like you could have come to a hen party anyway,” I pointed out.

“I would have found a way. Someone to cover my shift, bribery, human cloning. I will never shirk my best friend duties again. Whatever it takes. I’m there for you, girl.”

I cracked a smile as I considered everything Eliza had done for me in the last year.

“So, your mouth can still form smiles,” she said, sitting up and clutching the pillow. “I was beginning to get worried.”