“Are you ready?”
“Hell, yeah. You?” I asked Danny. We were having a dual wedding in the downtown courthouse. It wasn’t the wedding Erica deserved, but it was what she asked for. And I’d give her anything she asked.
“I can’t wait. I’ve been in love with her for two long years. That bastard will be in for a surprise come Monday,” Danny said, rubbing his hands together. Gregory Finch had been up to a lot of illegal activity. Danny wasn’t a potential replacement; he was an FBI agent undercover to reveal Finch’s criminal money laundering. In the process, he’d fallen in love with Patricia. It was against protocol, but they allowed it since Danny was retiring.
Everything Danny had uncovered was what Gregory willingly gave him, which there was insurmountable evidence for. The arrest would happen after Danny revealed that he married Patricia. They wanted to see his reaction. Fuck, I wanted to see his reaction. They had him on charges of trying to sell Erica to Danny. That’s why the wedding was even more proof that Danny hadn’t participated in that scheme.
“Let’s do this.” We walked out of the room to the two most beautiful women in the world. They were wearing matching white dresses, except Erica’s went down to the floor whereas her mother’s only went to the knee.
“Perfection. Thank you for agreeing to marry me.”
“Thank you for asking.”
Thirty minutes later, I now had my bride and Danny had his. “Are you ready for a private dinner?”
I set it up at my condo. The limo drove us to my building, and we led our women to the elevator. Once the doors opened, I felt butterflies in my stomach. What if she didn’t like what I set up?
“What’s wrong, Adrian? Why are we here?”
“You’ll see.” I opened the door to my condo, and it looked like a restaurant inside. “Welcome to Chateau Greco. I’ll be your server tonight, Mrs. Greco and Mrs. Brady.”
“It’s so pretty,” Erica squealed. The entire living room had been rearranged to fit a romantic round black booth and table with white linens, candlelit lighting with roses everywhere.
“This is wonderful. Thank you, Adrian,” Danny said, clapping my shoulder and giving it a squeeze. I looked at Patricia, and she was in awe.
“Please, let’s have a seat and enjoy our dinner.”
We scooted into the booth with the ladies in the center and us guys on the end. They giggled and smiled at each other. “Would you all care for some wine?” the server asked.
“Um…I’m sorry, but I can’t have any.” We all turned to her mother and then watched Danny’s face as it transformed into a giant grin.
“What? Are you serious, Patricia?”
“Yes. I know. I’m too old to be having a baby.”
“The fuck you are. God, I’m so happy.” He grabbed her face and kissed her roughly. I looked at Erica, gauging her reaction. Her mouth was still hanging wide open.
“Are you okay, love?” I asked, causing Patricia to spin toward her daughter.
“Oh goodness. I’m sorry, Erica. I thought you’d be okay with it.”
“No, I’m the one sorry. You caught me off guard. Congratulations, Mom, Danny. This is wonderful.” They hugged tightly and when they pulled apart, Erica asked, “Do you know if I get a brother or sister?” I could feel the tension as it left my body. I didn’t want her night ruined. Instead, we had a lot more to celebrate.
“I don’t know yet. It’s way too soon, but we have an appointment next week.”
“So instead of wine, what would you like to drink?”
“I know this sounds crazy, but do you have any chocolate milk?”
“Actually, we do. Erica loves it.” I addressed our server. “Middle shelf in the pantry.”
He nodded and left, setting the bottle of wine on the table. Once we had our drinks, Danny stood up. “I’d like to make a toast.” Waving his glass of wine around, he continued, “I’d like to thank our lovely hosts for providing this wonderfully special dinner, and to my wife…you are more than I could have ever dreamed of. When you told me that you felt the same way, I didn’t think I could be any happier. I was wrong. Today topped it. You’ve made me a husband and a father all in one day. Thank you, my love.”
He sat, and we clinked our glasses together. Just then the server brought our platter of appetizers.
“Ooh, these look so good. I can’t believe you did all of this.”
“Well, I didn’t cook the food. I just wanted something special away from prying eyes.” I stole a kiss and then helped her fill her plate with a few small finger foods. The bacon-wrapped vegetables were my favorite. By the time the meal had been served, all of us were stuffed.
“Goodness, we ate so much. We’re going to have to hit the gym.”