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The massive room was mystical, ethereal, almost as beautiful as Arianna herself. It smelled and looked like a Christmas garden full of pine, cinnamon, poinsettias, and other white and red Christmas flowers he couldn’t name. He lost track of how many towering pine trees they’d brought in but was stunned by the twenty-foot tall ‘trees’ made of stacked bright-red poinsettias.
There was so much white airy material floating around, and the lighting was only the natural light from the windows and fairy string lights everywhere. The entire scene was ideal for a royal wedding and felt intimate and warm despite the huge area.
It was also a nightmare from a security perspective. He didn’t envy General August or Lieutenant General Prescott or the dozens of royal guards he saw on duty. Interestingly, Levi was not there. Not that Brad was rushing to see the man.
Brad had lived in huts with dirt floors and a few homemade decorations for the past eight years. He wasn’t much for opulence or showy displays, but even he was impressed and could feel the magical perfection of Arianna’s ‘epic performance,’ as she’d called it.
He and Mason sat on either side of Arianna, waiting for the wedding procession as if they were regular guests. Arianna hadn’t wanted to sit, worried about every little detail, but after she placed the long, silver, fancy embossed wedding knife next to the insanely towering wedding cake, she’d looked around with satisfaction. The princes’ wives had finally convinced her everything was perfect and that they would walk out at the right moments. They encouraged her to sit down and ‘savor her hard work’ before the ceremony started. Brad and Mason both agreed and escorted her to their seats.
Now, Arianna shifted uneasily in her seat. Brad could feel the apprehension radiating from her and see the checklist ticking through her head.
Maybe it wasn’t his right, but he reached over, wrapped his hand around hers, and leaned in close.
She startled, looked down at their clasped hands, and up at him.
“It’s absolutely perfect, Ari. Almost as angelic and beautiful as you. You’ve done the work of ten specialists and done it with precision, flair, and beauty. You should be very proud of your accomplishment, especially finishing the process from a computer and a bedroom. This will be lauded as the wedding of the century.”
She smiled, relaxed slightly into her seat, and squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
He wanted to say more, to hug her. Things were still unsettled between them, and that was all on him. Could he do as Mason had asked? Tell her the truth about why he left and see if she could someday forgive him and consider dating him? His gut churned simply thinking about it. She’d hate him as much as Captain Levi Favor did, and nobody could blame either of them.
The music started and Arianna tensed again. Amazingly, she didn’t withdraw her hand. Her grip grew firmer, accepting the support he offered.
Mason was checking their surroundings, but he looked at their hands and then gave Brad a sly wink. Brad smiled and then focused on checking their surroundings as well while the many, many bridesmaids and groomsmen were led down the aisle by the adorable young princesses—Princess Sunny and Princess Kiera.
It was tough to know who could be dangerous. He catalogued every man who was slight, shorter than average height, with brown eyes and brown hair. General August had sent them the video footage from the ball of the man approaching Arianna, but he could have altered his appearance by now.
Nobody appeared dangerous, but he wished he could scan each of their faces into a facial recognition program. It wouldn’t help though, as whoever the Gifted Genius was, nobody had a solid profile or a name on him.
He stared at the king and the lineup of princes and princesses on either side of King Nolan and the vicar. Famous, extraordinary, yet benevolent people.
There wasn’t a price tag that could be put on this experience for the people around the world who would die to be here. And here he was, Brad Rivera, a private in the Augustine army, sitting at the biggest social event of the century next to the woman who had pulled the entire thing off. He was very proud of Arianna, and very aware that he hadn’t earned a spot amongst the people she mingled with on a daily basis.
Brad glanced back at the royals and noticed the king shifting nervously from foot to foot. King Nolan always appeared so confident. Seeing the renowned king exhibit some nerves made him feel relatable.
The music played for the bride to walk down the aisle. They all stood at the vicar’s request. Unfortunately, Arianna took that as her cue to release his hand.
His eyes darted around for danger, but he was as intrigued as anyone to see Lieutenant General Prescott escorting his mum, Madeline, down the aisle. The bride was a stunning and elegant lady, radiantly beautiful in a long, classy white dress.
She walked past them, and they all turned. The lieutenant general handed his mum off to the king of Augustine and all the king’s children beamed. The king’s grin was huge as his bride leaned in and whispered something for only him to hear.
The deep love the king and future queen shared seemed to radiate and fall like dew on the crowd. He heard women sigh.
Leaning closer to Arianna, he glanced down at her. She smiled up at him.
The entire crowd was silent, as if holding their breath or cataloguing this moment of love, beauty, magic, and their opportunity to be part of it. Arianna had orchestrated all of it. Except for the king and queen falling in love.
Arianna turned her attention back to the wedding party as the vicar started speaking. Brad stared in awe at the majestic royal family, all lined up and watching their father marry their future mum. Brad felt like he was on the edge of a movie set, yet it was all so real and genuine. The loving, smiling, and huge family displayed before him was as out of his sphere as the elaborate castle and admired monarchs.
The wedding progressed quickly. Brad checked for danger and was hyperaware of Arianna close by. She was obviously still keyed up, checking each moment to make certain it went according to plan. When King Nolan kissed Madeline, an Oscar-worthy kiss that made everybody cheer, and then they sauntered down the aisle, beaming with their hands clasped, she seemed to relax a bit.
“You did it,” Brad said. “The most epic and beautiful wedding of the century.”
“I did.” Her smile was radiant, and she seemed to bask in the moment and his praise. “Now let’s go make sure everything is perfect for the dinner, reception, and dancing.”
Brad chuckled. “It will be. You planned it.”
She only raised her eyebrows, grabbed her huge purse, and slid away from the wedding crowd. He and Mason took up pursuit. They stayed by her side like shadows—or stink on a skunk, as Mason would say—throughout the dinner, speeches, reception, dancing, cake cutting, throwing the bouquet, sending off the king and queen with sparklers, flower petals, and confetti thrown everywhere.
