Lake (Trinity Academy 3)

Which reminds me, we need to talk about the wedding.

I go to turn off the light and walking back to the bed, I toss the covers back and sit down on the mattress. I reach over and grabbing hold of Lee’s waist, I pull her toward me. She lets out a cute startled sound when I lie down and wrap my arms around her.

Her wide eyes shine in the nightlight, and her body is tense against mine. Seeing her like this only makes me feel more protective of her.

“Breathe, Lee,” I remind her when it sounds like she’s holding it.

She lets out a slow breath, but then I reach for the covers, and with a burst of air, Lee whispers, “Eomeo!”

“Let’s talk about the wedding,” I say. “My mother will be making most of the arrangements. Are you okay with that?”

She nods, and I feel her slightly relaxing against me.

“This coming Wednesday we’ll have dinner with my parents. It’s kind of a tradition.”

She nods again, and I feel some of her hair tug under my left arm. Moving my arm, I gather all her hair with my other hand, which has her whispering, “I usually braid it, but I forgot tonight.”

“Yeah?” I pull my arm free from under and get up. “Where’s your brush?” I ask while I walk to the bathroom and switch on the light.

“It’s on the counter by the sink. There’s a hair tie wrapped around the brush.”

Seeing it, I quickly grab it and walking back into the room, Lee sits up.

“Turn the other way,” I say as I sit down.

Surprise flashes across her face, but she turns her back to me.

“This is my first time, so I can’t promise it’s going to look good,” I murmur as I pull the brush through her hair before I separate the silky strands into three groups. I weave them together until I get to the end, and after tieing it, I sit back and admire my first attempt. “Not bad, I think it should hold until morning.”

She glances at me from over her shoulder, and the sight steals my breath.

Her exotic features are illuminated by the light shining from the bathroom, and it makes her look mysterious and delicate.

She pats her hand over the back of her head, and then she smiles. “Thank you.”

I could sit and stare at Lee all night, but she needs her sleep. I get up and place the brush back on the counter, then turn off the light and get back into bed.

This time Lee’s more relaxed, and when I open my left arm, she scoots closer and lies down, resting her head on my shoulder.

I wrap my other arm around her lower back and let out a breath before I say, “When I spoke with Je-ha, he said he wants us to get married at an earlier date.” I intentionally use his first name, so Lee will know exactly what I think of him.

“He did?” she asks, tilting her head back and looking up at me.

“Are you okay with that?” I ask.

She nods, then whispers, “That would make you my guardian, and he won’t have a say in my life any longer.”

I know it’s not her only motivation for agreeing, but I still ask, “Is that the only reason why?”

“No.” She snuggles her face against my shoulders, then continues, “It would be my honor to become your wife.”

As formal as it sounds, I know the meaning behind it, and it fills my heart with peace. Honor and dignity are the most important qualities of Lee’s life. For her to say it would be her honor means more to me than hearing her say she loves me.

I press a kiss to her hair. “It’s now the end of February. I have to start studying soon if I actually want to graduate. How do you feel about getting married in two weeks?”

She glances up at me again, and a smile curves around her mouth. “I’d like that. Will we stay here after the wedding?”

I nod. “Just until I graduate. After that, we could go to Africa with Falcon and Layla as part of a honeymoon.”

“Jinja?” Her eyes widen with excitement, and it makes me chuckle.

“Yeah, really. I want to talk to Mr. Shepard, Layla’s father because he travels for a living. I think that might be something I’d like to do. Learn about different countries, experience their cultures… I want us to be free.”

Lee turns onto her stomach and rests her upper body on her forearms. “What about Falcon and Mason?”

“Mason’s starting work soon after graduation and Falcon’s already started a business. We can get a house close to them,” I grin at the idea. “Like a home base, we can always come back to.”

Emotion washes over her face as she admits, “I really like that idea, Lake. You make our future sound wonderful.”