“Maybe he bought it for you.”
“No, he said he won it in a poker match.”
He chuckled. “Talk about a high-stakes game.”
“How is he?” I hadn’t talked to Heath much because he seemed busy. But I also suspected he wasn’t contacting me frequently on purpose, because he wanted to make our day even more special.
“Fine.” He moved his piece.
“I miss him…”
His eyes lifted to mine, a little soft. “Just one more day.”
“Yeah, but it’s already been five. It’s torture.”
“It’ll make tomorrow worth it.”
“Yeah…”
He made his next move. “Heath and I had a conversation.”
I rolled my eyes. “If you’re trying to scare off my husband, it’s not gonna work.”
“No,” he said quietly. “I told him I approved of him.”
I lifted my gaze. “Yeah?”
He nodded. “And I mean it.”
“Damien…” My eyes softened.
“You know I’m stubborn, it’s hard for me to let things go…but I’ve let it go. I think Mom would have liked him.”
“Yes. And Dad loves him.”
“He does. He wouldn’t have taught his chess otherwise.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re on board… That makes me really happy.” Now we forgot about the game altogether.
“I want you to be happy, and I can tell he really loves you.”
“He does,” I said with a smile. “He loves me as much as you do.”
He smiled. “Probably more.”My mother’s dress was elegant, with long sleeves and a bow around the waist. It wasn’t exactly my style, so I had the seamstress alter it until it was exactly what I would have wanted if I’d gone to a dress shop.
It didn’t look exactly the same—but it was still my mother’s dress.
Damien was in the driver’s seat of his SUV, my father in the front seat. Anna sat beside me in the back.
We pulled up to the house. It was a sunny day, looking like summer even though it was just a clear day in January.
Heath stood out front, wearing a black suit, his hands in his pockets.
I’d only seen him in a suit one other time—and he looked just as yummy as he did now.
His eyes were on the car, looking at the tinted windows as he waited for me to get out. We’d agreed to meet at the greenhouse, but he obviously couldn’t wait that long. His eyes were slightly squinted because the sun was in his face, and his brooding expression showed the emotion that penetrated his heart.
Balto and Cassini were near the door, his arm around her waist. He wore jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. Their eyes were on the car too.
Damien turned off the car. “I think he’s waiting for you, sis.”
I smiled and pushed the door open, slowly sliding to my feet until my mother’s heels hit the driveway. The train of my white dress slid off the seat and to the ground. It had thin sleeves covering my shoulder, a deep neckline that showed the tops of my breasts like it was lingerie, and then it trailed to my feet, the slit high in the front so he could see my legs from the thighs down. It was a much sluttier version of my mother’s dress.
When he inhaled a deep breath, it was obvious he liked it.
I took my time crossing the gravel so I wouldn’t trip. When I reached the front walk, I steadied myself before I kept going.
Without blinking, he stared at me, his face so hard, he had no expression at all. But the emotion in his eyes caught a subtle glare because of the sun, because of the moisture that built up in his gaze.
I’d only seen him cry once—and that was when he’d lost me.
I couldn’t take the long walk to him, couldn’t stand the eternity that would take. So, I gathered my dress and ran to him, ran up the pathway right into his chest.
He pulled his hands out of his pockets as he came toward me, moving quickly like he couldn’t wait either.
By the time I got to him, I was crying, ruining my makeup, ruining my hair. I jumped into his arms.
He caught me, his powerful arms sliding me to the ground so his hand could move into my hair, cup the back of my neck. He inhaled a deep breath as he kissed me, his other arm squeezing my waist as if he might break me in half like a twig. He didn’t care about my family in the car. He kissed me like no one was there at all.
When he pulled away, he looked into my face with wet eyes, like he wanted to take a moment to study exactly how I looked, memorize the fire in my eyes, the emotion in the tremble of my lips.
I cupped his face, my thumbs brushing the two tears that streaked down his cheeks.
He brought his forehead to mine, bringing us closer together. He closed his eyes as he held me, closed his eyes as he breathed with me, held me like it was just the two of us. There didn’t need to be a priest to read our vows, to make us husband and wife. Because we were husband and wife now…the second we touched.