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“You better not,” I warned.
“Or what?” he said, as he wriggled his eyebrows.
I licked my lips as his face drew close. Grey’s powerful aroma overwhelmed that of the delicate flora surrounding us. His eyes flickered with cinnamon-brown warmth as he looked into mine.
“It’s okay,” he said with a wink. “You can kiss me now. Everyone will know soon enough.”
Feigning displeasure, I pressed my palms against his chest and gave him a little shove.
“You wish! Jerk.”
With that, Grey clapped his hands together and let out a chuckle. Still smiling, he gestured towards Katy.
“Katy, my dear. Come with us.”
Grey turned towards the ballroom and offered me his arm. Hooking my hand inside of it, I crossed the threshold back inside with him and as we did, he leaned in towards me. After placing a single, soft kiss on my cheek, he gestured towards a stage in the front of the ballroom.
“Excuse me for a second, baby.”
As Grey walked away, Katy approached. “What’s he doing?”
I shook my head. “I dunno.”
Just then, Grey hopped up on to the stage.
“Everyone!” Grey bellowed as he turned to face the assembled throng. “Can I have everybody’s attention?”
As he began to speak, a hush fell across the room. Everyone turned and looked in his direction.
“Thanks folks,” Grey said. Just then, he looked in my direction. “Maddie, come join me.”
Katy trailed behind as I made my way to the stage. Grey continued to speak.
“Now as most of you know, we’re here to celebrate completion of the film. I want to thank every single one of you for doing such a great goddamn job. I’ll tell you. I’ve got the bug now. Working with all of you has me in love with movie making. So again, thank you all.”
As he finished, a wave of applause broke out and went on for a few moments. As it did, I climbed up on the stage and joined Grey just as he gestured for them to stop.
“Thank you, thank you all very much.” he said with a nod. Just then, he turned to face me and continued, “But as it so happens, movie making is not the only thing I’ve fallen in love with here in Tinseltown.”
I felt my chest flush red as he paused. A lump gathered in my throat. Grey leaned in and kissed me on the cheek again.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered.
After flashing a quick smile, he looked out towards the partygoers.
“It is with great pride that I announce before all of you here tonight, my engagement to Maddie Olsen. She has done me the great honor of agreeing to become my wife.”
Once again, applause broke out, only this time much louder. Tugging a strand of hair behind my ear, I kept my attention riveted on Grey. I didn’t dare look as I felt the nearly five hundred pairs of eyes in the room glued on me. If he hadn’t been up there with me, I might have fainted. Instead, I managed to keep my composure as he quieted them again.
“Maddie,” he said as he did a half-turn in my direction. “Here, come stand next to me.”
I nodded and walked towards him. As I did, he looked past me towards Katy.
“Katy,” he said with a nod. “You handled that thing we discussed?”
She smiled and nodded. “Should I take care of it now?”
Grey smiled. “Yes, I think we’re ready.”
I frowned as Katy disappeared from sight, making her way behind the stage.
Baffled, I turned towards him. “Ready for what?” I whispered. “Grey, what’s going on?”
“Maddie,” he said with a wink. “Shut the hell up. Smile and enjoy yourself.”
Grey turned his attention back towards the crowd. “Just one second folks.”
As he finished talking, Katy reappeared and I did a double take. Because, she wasn’t alone. For trailing right behind her were my mom and dad. My hands shot to my mouth as I covered it. I snapped my head in Grey’s direction.
“I hope you don’t mind, baby.”
Tears clouded my gaze as I turned back to look at them. With Katy’s help, they made their way up on to the stage and without wasting a second, I ran towards them.
“Mom? Dad?” I gasped. We hugged for several seconds before breaking free from one another. I leaned away from them, doing my best to keep the salty rivulets from completely ruining my makeup.
“W-What are you d-doing here?”
Puzzled looks flashed across their faces. They glanced at one another for an instant before turning back to face me. My mother reached in my direction and touched my arm.
“Dear, what do you mean?” she began. “Where else would we be?”
My father nodded as she spoke. “Yes, sweetheart. We wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
I felt as if I might pass out. I still couldn’t believe they were even here. In all the years I’d been in Los Angeles, I’d hardly spoken to them and now here they’d come all this way. And for what? I had no clue. So I asked.
“Miss… what?”
As we spoke, Grey appeared from behind us.
“Mr. and Mrs. Olsen,” he began. “Thank you for coming. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Talking on the phone is such an impersonal thing. It’s great to have a face-to-face, at last.”
Talk on the phone? What the hell was Grey going on about?
“Wait, wait.” I said as I raised my arms. “Grey. How do you know my parents? Phone conversations about what?”
Just as I finished speaking, Grey nodded at my father. “Mr. Olsen. Are you ready, sir?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
“Okay then.” Grey nodded.
As Grey spoke, my father hooked his arm inside of mine.
Baffled, I turned towards him. “Dad, what is happening?”
He smiled and nodded towards Grey who had walked several feet away from me once again, taking a position in the middle of the stage. As he did, the throng began to draw in around us, gathering close.
“I don’t need to wait any longer, Maddie. I hope you feel the same way.”
Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!
My eyes heated with liquid. If not for my father holding me, I would have blacked out. This couldn’t be happening, it wasn’t real!
“Maddie, dear,” my dad said, as he leaned in towards me. “Are you ready?”
Unable to speak, I fought to swallow a ball of joy down my throat.
“Yes,” I whispered. And then, I couldn’t help myself. The tears escaped and there was nothing I could to stop them. Or rather, there was nothing I cared to do. With my father’s steady hand, I wobbled my way towards Grey and as I arrived, Armando appeared from out of nowhere.
“Mr. Sinclair,” he said with a polite nod. “Miss Olsen.”
“Armando?” I said with a rasp. “What are you doing here?”
Grey chuckled. “Well it seems our trusty employee also happens to be Justice of the Peace. Isn’t that right?”
Armando smiled as he looked at us. “Yes, sir. That’s correct.”
“Justice of the Peace?” I stammered, as I looked at Grey. “Do you mean? Right now? Tonight?”
Grey looked at me as if I were insane.
“Yes, Maddie. That is, unless you have something else you’d like to do.”
As he finished speaking, he turned back to face the crowd. “You folks would like to see a wedding, wouldn’t you?”
The entire throng began to hoot, holler and clap in approval.
Grey turned back towards me. “Listen to that, Maddie. You can’t go around disappointing your fans. You’re a star now and it’s time you start acting like one.”
And then as the applause died down, I felt my father’s hand fall away from my arm. Before he walked away, he kissed me on the cheek.
“I love you.”
I nodded, tears flowing fresh once more. “I love you too, Dad.”
And with that, Grey took my hand in his. With Armando’s blessing and a final kiss to make it official, I fell into Grey’s embrace for the first time as husband and wife. The room broke out into wild applause as our lips met.
But as it always was and will now forever be, we joined together as one, in bliss, at last.
