Page 61 of Wild for the Knight

“I don’t understand.” His hand drops on top of Hannah’s to stop her from picking at her skin by her nail. “What was the goal again?”

“His mom died, apparently her last wish was to break your dad the way he broke her,” Abby says, her hand absently moving up and down my forearm. “He knew you and Tate were the strike point, if he could get to one of you...”

“He’d get to my dad.” We both nod. “What a freaking toolbag. So he what? Paid Kara to pretend to love me?” I honestly don't know. I wish I had asked him more questions, but with the pain from my ankle and the realization that Abby had nothing to do with any of it, his reasons were the least of my concerns.

“I don’t know, Greyson. I was in a bit of pain, so I didn’t really ask. We can visit him in jail, though. I’m sure he looks great in stripes.” I’m met with a playful swat on my arm before she goes back to tracing my veins.

My brother just shrugs, a testament to how good for him the woman sitting next to him is. Had this information been given to him a year or two ago, he’d spiral. He’d beat himself up for not seeing it. But now he looks unbothered. “Well, thank God that didn’t work out. Or I wouldn’t have met the woman of my dreams.” He wraps his arm around her shoulders as they lock in an intense stare-off, which makes me squirm in my spot.

I clear my throat, bringing their attention back to the topic at hand. “Look, I just wanted everything out before we talk about why I actually called you.” Hannah perks up as if she’s just remembering there was a reason for this.

“Spill!”

“Well,” I look down at the stunning woman in my arms. My smile is so genuine, it hurts to know I kept this part of me from all of them for so long. “I may have apologized... Profusely.” Abby snorts as she winks at Hannah through the phone, their soft giggles are music to my ears. “What I wasn’t expecting is that after we both got everything out, this one would ask me to marry her.”

Hannah’s jaw drops while Greyson shakes his head. “ABBY! That’s his job!” she yells at her best friend, but there’s no heat behind it. In fact, there are tears building in her eyes while Abby just snuggles deeper into my chest. Looking up at me with those beautiful doe eyes, I realize there isn’t a damn thing she could ask for that I wouldn’t give her.

My brother blinks blankly at us for a second before his laughter fills the room. “Why am I not surprised? She really proposed?”

I smirk. “Damn right she did.”

His eyes bounce between the two of us. “Unbelievable.”

I simply shrug, tightening my grip around her waist. “I got the girl, that's all that matters.”

“Listen,” Abby cuts in. “I know what I want, I saw an opportunity, and I took it.” That only makes my brother laugh harder, and Hannah’s shoulders shake in silent amusement. “There’s a little chapel here. We saw it last time, we were planning on getting married tomorrow.”

“I CAN’T BE IN GEORGIA TOMORROW, ABBY!” Hannah’s hands go flying as she scoffs.

“I wasn’t asking you to be. We don’t need witnesses here. We can get our license and get married on the same day. We already looked,” she says gently.

We watch as Hannah slouches against my brother. “You don’t want me there?” Her lip trembles, and Abby grabs the phone out of my hand, bringing it closer to her face as she resettles herself between my legs.

“I want you to plan a party, Hannah. In whatever capacity you want. But I don’t want to wait to marry the man I love when I can do it tomorrow.” Hannah sniffles, running her hand under her nose. “You’ve always known I wasn’t big on traditional weddings. We don’t have rings, though, so maybe you and Greyson can pick those out.” Well, that perks my sister-in-law right up.

“I mean, in all honesty, it tracks. You two are impatient as hell.” Hannah rolls her eyes in faux annoyance. “Okay, what are the specifics?” It’s my turn to take the phone.

She smiles as my face comes into view. “Small. I don’t care where we have it, it doesn’t matter when. Not while Greyson and the guys are out of town. Just make it, us, no one knows us better than you two.” I run through a list of things in my head, making sure I covered all the bases, quickly adding, “Oh, and please involve mom. I don’t want to die.” All four of us shudder as we picture Amy Wilder being on the outside of planning her second son’s “wedding.”

That would be an absolute nightmare.

“Can I ask you something?” My brother asks over Hannah’s shoulder. I nod, a smirk flashes across his face seconds before he says, “When you asked me how I did it after Kara, how I let Hannah in, were you talking about Knight?”

I narrow my eyes at him as the Tiny Pixie in my arms snickers. He gets a grunt in response, but only because my eyes snag on my woman through the tiny box in the corner of the screen. She’s glowing, or maybe that’s just how I see her now. As the best damn thing that’s ever happened to me. The love of my life, the future mother of my children, my best friend. My everything.

Chapter 34 - Abby

I’m standing across from Tate in a tiny wedding chapel in a podunk town in Georgia. Our hands are held between us, and a preacher is talking, but I can’t tell you a single thing he’s saying. My eyes are glued to the man in front of me, transported back to Hannah and Greyson’s wedding when I let myself imagine this very moment. Telling myself it was a fever dream, that there was no way we’d ever end up here.

There isn’t anything that could have prepared me for the storm that is Tatum Wilder. For him to be my knight in shining armor more times than I can count. The pain of losing him pales in comparison to the love I feel right now. My thoughts are interrupted by the clearing of a throat. I tear my eyes from his and meet those of the preacher. “Your vows, Ms. Knight.” I shiver. I may be a Knight now, but I’ll walk out of here, Mrs. Wilder. I can’t freaking wait.

My hands squeeze Tate’s as our eyes meet once again, “Sunshine,” he chuckles, eyes welling with tears, and I haven’t said anything yet. “There are many parts of life I’m ashamed of, parts of me I feel like I have to hide. Parts I’ve successfully hidden from everyone but you.”

I bite the inside of my cheek hard to keep myself from crying. “You saved me from a situation that could have gone from bad to worse for the second time. You strong-armed your way into being my friend in the most insufferable way. Insisting on going running with me, not letting me get lost in my head, and coming to the rescue anytime I called.”

I watch as the first tear trails down his face, a wobbly smile on his lips. “I knew I loved you the first time we made dinner together here, in Georgia, surrounded by our friends. I knew there was no one else for me when you dumped half your chicken on my plate, somehow knowing the portion I had wasn’t enough. I knew I was royally screwed when my best friend tried to set you up with someone else and it felt like my heart had been ripped from my body.”

My tears are flowing at this point, my hands shake in his. “The month we spent apart was the worst time of my life. Getting to know you, the real you, the one you hide behind a seemingly impenetrable wall, is the greatest gift I’ve ever been given, Tatum Wilder. There is nothing I take greater joy in than knowing and loving you, fully without question.” I take our plastic dollar store ring and slide it on his finger, only for it to be stopped at his second knuckle.