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Chapter 8
Luca
Being as careful as I could, I placed Violet on the end of our bed and slowly stepped back. That dress was too much. It only enhanced every drop of beauty that exuded from the woman before me. Even with tear streaks down her pale face and smeared makeup around her eyes, she was so gorgeous it took my breath away.
“It’s just us now,” I promised when I saw the tears had started to glitter in her purple eyes once again. “They all left, baby. No one can see or hear you cry except for me.”
We’d all arrived back at the house at the same time, Violet, her mom, and Dallas in my SUV, and everyone else in the one Aunt Emmie had rented, with Marcus behind the wheel. Lyric and his four kids had already gone to Shaw’s, but apparently not before he’d told Dad how Mom was acting at the dress shop.
He, Uncle Nik, and Uncle Shane had all been about to drive into Nashville to confront her when we’d gotten home. I’d carried Vi up to Brady’s apartment and asked her bodyguard to watch over her. Even though he’d had the day off since Aunt Emmie had brought both Marcus and Rodger, I needed him to protect my woman—if only from herself—while I dealt with Mom’s bullshit.
Things hadn’t been pretty. Dad had stood there, listening to Lucy and Aunt Lana tell him what Mom had said and done before, during, and apparently after, the dress-shopping adventure. If it weren’t for his swirling, ever-changing brown eyes to show me the emotional maelstrom that was happening in his head, I would have thought the man had turned into a statue. There wasn’t even a sign that he was breathing, which had worried me for a moment. But then Lucy had finished and crossed her arms over her chest, sending Mom a look full of all the disappointment, disgust, and anger we were all feeling.
And that was when he’d finally sucked in a deep breath and slowly released it. “Luca, I’m sorry for everything your mother said and did today. There’s no excuse for the way she acted.”
“You’re making it sound like I’m the child here, Jesse,” Mom grumbled. “Luca and Vi—”
“Are grown adults,” he said in a quiet voice. “Who have their own lives. Their own family. It isn’t our place to step in and make demands about anything. Today, you hurt Violet, and now our son wants nothing to do with you. I can’t say I blame him. I’m beyond disappointed in you, Layla. But we’re not going to talk about this here. We’re going home.”
“Fine,” Mom huffed. “Everyone is just making me the villain anyway. All over a stupid dress.”
“Exactly!” Dad barked, losing his cool for only a moment before schooling his features and lowering his tone again. “Exactly, Layla. It was just a dress.Her dress. Not yours. She is the one who will be wearing it. Not you. No one but Violet. If she wants to wear a goddamn plastic bag down the aisle, that’s her choice. It’s her wedding.”
“Our son’s too! And at least the plastic bag would have been white!”
Squeezing the bridge of his nose, Dad exhaled his frustration. After getting himself together, he turned to give me a tight hug. “I’ll call you.”
I hugged him back, but the embrace was over quickly. Turning, he made apologies to Aunt Harper and Uncle Shane, both of whom had stood off to the side, watching us. It was obvious Uncle Shane was livid, but he accepted my dad’s apology without sparing Mom so much as a glance.
Aunt Emmie and Uncle Nik got my parents out of there, leaving Vi’s mom, dad, my sister, and Aunt Lana behind with Aunt Dallas.
“We’re going to go too,” Uncle Shane said after a tense pause, during which we all just stood there looking at each other. I didn’t know what to say, and apparently neither did anyone else. “We came in Vi’s jet, so we’ll take it back. Lana and Lucy, do you want to come with us, or stay for a few extra days like we planned?”
“No,” Aunt Lana said with a grimace. “This shitshow was exhausting enough. I miss Drake. Plus, Luca and Vi need some time alone to decompress after the craziness that has become Layla.”
Lucy gave me a long hug. “Tell Vi I’m sorry about today. I’m still in disbelief over everything, but I could tell Violet was hurting. Let her know that if she needs to talk, we’re only a phone call away.”
“I don’t like leaving without telling Love Bug goodbye,” Uncle Shane said with a sad shake of his head. “But I don’t think I should be around her while I’m this pissed off. Give her extra cuddles and kisses from us when she gets home.”
“I will,” I promised. “Let me get Vi and talk to Brady. He can drive you all to the airport if you really want to go home.”
“I think it’s best for everyone right now. Emotions are high, and we don’t want to upset Vi more than she already is.” Aunt Harper gave me a gentle hug. “We love you both so much, Luca. The way you took care of Vi today, I was so proud of you. Cutting your mom off must have hurt you deeply. I just hope that Layla gets her shit together and starts acting like the old her before the wedding.”
“The change in her has been slowly coming on for a while now,” Aunt Dallas murmured thoughtfully. That she’d been quiet for so long surprised me, but it wasn’t unusual when she went into nurse mode and tried to analyze a situation from a medical point of view. “I think she should see a psychologist. Or maybe the menopause has fried her brain. Either way, I suggest she seek medical attention.”
“I told her that three months ago when she kept having mood changes at the drop of a hat.” Aunt Lana shook her head. “She yelled at me and stormed off. We didn’t speak again for over two weeks. Jesse is going to have to insist that she see her doctor, because the way she was acting today was insane.”
After Brady drove them to the airport, I’d carried Vi up to our room. The day was ruined, but I couldn’t draw my eyes away from her in that wedding dress. My throat tightened with emotion as I dropped to my knees in front of her and cupped her face in my hands. “I’m the luckiest motherfucker in the world. Not only do I get to marry the most beautiful woman in the world, my best friend, the other half of my soul. But I get to strip her out of this amazing dress. Twice.”
Despite the tears still glazing her eyes, she lifted her lips in a ghost of a smile. “Yeah, you are pretty lucky.”
“Damn straight. I have you and our love bug. Life couldn’t get more perfect than that.” I brushed my lips over her brow, then her temple, working my way down to the corner of her mouth. “My life is complete with you and our daughter.”
Her hands covered mine, and she pulled back until our gazes locked. “What…about… What if we had more kids?”
My eyes widened at her question. “You want more?”
“Don’t you?” she whispered.
