“Not one single thing,” Edward says, leaving the room. He slams the door behind him as he leaves, and the baby’s fussing comes through the paneled wood as they disappear down the hall.
“Idiot. I told him not to make loud noises around the baby. He never listens.”
I walk over and stand in front of her. She’s acting like she’s too busy with her buttons to look at me.
“Mia. What is going on with you two?”
“Nothing, like I said.”
I take her by the arms and shake her a little. “Hello? Are you in there? Look at me.”
She looks up and her eyes are swimming with tears.
I immediately take her into a hug. “Babe, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
Her body trembles with the emotion she’s holding inside. “I’m just … just … happy for you.”
I pull back to see if she’s telling the truth. “This feels a lot more like sadness,” I say when I notice her refusing to look me in the eye again. I bring her to me again and rub her back. “Edward did something, didn’t he?” The fury begins to build in my chest. If he hurt my best friend, I will kill him. He might be William’s best bud right now, but I don’t care. Mia is mine and she doesn’t deserve to be hurt by any man.
“Yes. He did. But it doesn’t matter, does it?” She sniffs loudly and backs away from me, wiping under her eyes. “Shit, I ruined my mascara, didn’t I?”
I shake my head. “You’re just as gorgeous as ever.”
She laughs and points at my chest. “Talk about gorgeous. You’re going to get pregnant again tonight looking like that.”
My face goes pink. “Ha, ha.” I stare at her red eyes and go sober again. “Are you going to tell me what he did?”
She shakes her head. “It seriously does not matter. Come on. Let’s go get you married.”
Today is not the day for best friend/brother-in-law drama, so I’m going to let it slide for now. But when this is all over? You bet your butt I’ll be all up in their business finding out what happened. No way is Edward going to get away with making my best friend cry.
We leave the upstairs for the backyard of Frank’s house. He granted my wish and didn’t spend a single penny on flowers. I told him his own garden had more than enough for me. I think all of us wanted to avoid bringing up the painful memories caused by Ingrid’s wedding event.
Frank has told me many times how much he appreciates me and all I’ve done for his family. Aside from having a baby who they all adore and attending all the brunches that Frank has hosted, I’m not sure what I’ve done exactly, but for Frank, apparently, it’s a lot.
He’s almost back to his old self, albeit a slightly kinder, gentler version of the man. William swears it’s the baby that’s caused it. I think it’s both the baby and Frank’s broken heart. He will probably never forgive his son for showing him the ugly side of human nature. For a man like Frank, knowing his weakness allowed him to completely misjudge a person is devastating. It has humbled him to the point of making him into a different man. William is happy about it. Me, I’m not so sure, but only time will tell if this is a permanent change.
Guests are seated in white folding chairs out in the lawn under a white tent. Two ribbons strung from the last chair to the first mark the aisle I’m to walk down. At the end of it I see William and his brother. Frank is there as well, holding the baby.
“I’m nervous,” I say, as butterflies set up battle formations in my belly.
“Don’t be nervous, babe, I’m right here.” Mia links her arm in mine and pulls me forward.
“But …” I stop and indulge a moment of panic.
“But nothing,” Mia says, pulling me along. “You are about to marry the most perfect guy you will ever find. He loves you, he’s got gobs of money and excellent business instincts, and he makes seriously adorable babies. What more could you possibly want?”
William sees me coming and a slow grin spreads across his face. He is the most handsome guy I have ever known. “You’re right,” I sigh, this time with happiness. “He does make adorable babies, doesn’t he?”
Baby Edward chooses that moment to let out a mighty wail, and my milk immediately drops in response.
“Oh, shit,” I say, feeling the drip, drip, dripping start.
“What?” Mia asks, whispering.
“My milk is leaking!” I whisper-yell back.
“Don’t you have one of those pads in?” she asks, sounding panicked.
“Yes!”
She stops walking and looks at me. “Then what’s the problem?”
I think about it for a second and then smile. “I don’t know.”
She laughs. “Come on. No more stalling. Time to get married.”
The small quartet that we hired starts playing a beautiful song that William chose for us.
“I’m getting married,” I say, in an almost dreamlike state.
“Yes. You are getting married,” Mia says, just steps away from William now.
“What if I screw it up?” I ask, sweat popping out on my brow. I feel light-headed.
“You won’t screw anything up. That’s Edward’s job. Now go be with your husband and be happy for the rest of your life.” She stops at the end of the aisle and kisses me on the cheek. “This is your happily-ever-after moment. Soak it up. Enjoy it. This moment will live on forever in your mind, trust me.”
I grab her and squeeze her around the neck. “Thank you, Mia. I love you.”
“Love you too.” She detaches herself and moves off to the side, taking her place as my maid of honor.
“You came,” William says. He holds out his hand for mine. “I wasn’t sure it would really happen.”
I lace his warm fingers in mine, cringing a little inside at the fact that my hand is so clammy.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” I say, meaning every word.
William and I stand at the altar, facing one another, holding hands. Frank is behind William with the baby and Edward is there as well. He is looking at the ground, his expression serious. For a split second I think he has something devious planned, but then I let that thought go. Edward likes me a lot. He wants me to marry his brother. He’s said it at least three times in the last week.
“Are you ready?” William asks. He seems nervous, maybe afraid I’ll say no.
I smile, seeing him and his family with our baby behind him. It’s a wall of love, one that no enemy will ever be able to breach. “I am ready.”
“Excellent,” William says, turning to face the priest. “Get on with it then, quickly, before she changes her mind.”
I giggle through the entire ceremony, ready to burst with nervous happy energy, until the moment William adds a ring to my glittery diamond.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
William takes me in his arms and looks down at me, his eyes shining with unshed tears. “You are, quite simply, the most beautiful woman I have ever known, Mrs. Stratford. You have made me the happiest man alive. I’m ever so grateful that just one night was not enough for either of us.”
“Shut up and kiss me, William.”
“I hear and obey,” he says, lowering his lips to mine.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
BONUS CHAPTER : A conversation between William and Edward
“EDWARD, AS YOU KNOW I’M to be married in a week’s time.”
“How could I forget? You remind me every Sunday. You really must work on this, William. Jennifer will have your winkle wrapped around her little finger in no time if she knows how embarrassingly eager you are.”
“I’m reminding you for a reason, not because I’m eager.”
“I know, I know, so I won’t forget. I’m not a dolt, you know. I do know how to use a bloody calendar.”
“It’s not because I think you’ll forget. It’s because I’m concerned that you’ll make another grand entrance, and then I’ll end up with a frantic bride on my hands. She’s consumed by a mother’s fe
ars and the hormones are, let’s just say, plentiful; I’ll not have her back on bed-rest because you can’t be a normal, boring guest at a wedding.”
“Are you referring to Father’s near miss, by any chance?”
“I am.”
“What I do for this family … never appreciated. Not even once.”
“Oh, I appreciate the final result. Watching Ingrid being tossed out on her arse was one of the loveliest days I can remember ever having. But the way in which it occurred … that I could live without on my own wedding day.”
“Yes, well, I have apologized at least ten times for sending your ladybird to bed, haven’t I? And it wasn’t my fault Ingrid lost her marbles and caused Jennifer to fall down the stairs. Father shouldn’t have let her in the house in the first place. She’s a fucking looney.”
“Are you going to tell me how that tape came to be about?”
“You sure you want to know?”
“No, I’m not. In fact, I change my mind. Don’t tell me.”
“It began when you left the company …”
“Really, Edward, feel free to keep this tawdry tale to yourself.”
“As you know, I left for Scotland with my nose in my bum, trying to figure out which end was up.”
“That brings to mind a lovely picture. Thank you for that.”
“Weeks went by and I began to get inklings about what had gone sixes and sevens.”
“Inklings?”
“Yes, inklings. Little clues, here and there. I believed something deliberate was happening, but I couldn’t determine who was responsible.”
“I don’t see how Ingrid could possibly figure into any of this.”
“She wasn’t the one causing the issues in Scotland, of course, but with you gone and Father besotted, it left Ingrid an open door.”
“No. I don’t want to hear any more.”
“Father invited her to look over our financials.”
“I’m not listening. Truly, I’m not.”
“She told him, and I learnt this through Rachel, that she could see exactly what was wrong and that I just needed a little guidance from her to set things right. That’s when I knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That she was looking for a good rodgering by yours truly.”
“I feel the lurgi coming on. Look, I’ve a swollen gland right here on my neck. Feel it.”
“Rachel immediately got on the line with me, keeping me updated as she listened in on their conversations. I tried to head them off, but it was no use. Father did whatever Ingrid wanted, led around by his cod, no doubt. Did I mention that I put poison on all the Jimson Weed in his garden? I did. Right after the wedding ended. The very next day. It’s all gone, every last leaf.”
“That’s a relief.”
“I thought you weren’t listening to my story?”
“Bugger off.”
“Right. So the next thing I know, I’m in Scotland and up to my bollocks in women. Ingrid on one side of me, Rachel on the other. Rachel and I couldn’t get away from that bitch, Ingrid. She was determined to hook her claws into the business and make it her own, not to mention what she wanted with my business, if you know what I mean. Whatever she could do to tie father to her more fully, that is what she wanted. Ruthless, she is.”
“I truly feel sick now. I’m not kidding this time. It’s not a gland. It’s a tumor.”
“Believe me, Brother, I know how you feel. Imagine how I felt. I wanted to kill Father, but at the same time I wanted to save him. We were going to lose the business in Scotland, perhaps — and for the record I still don’t know what the hell is going on there — but eventually the entire business would have gone into Ingrid’s hands for certain. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“You couldn’t?”
“Don’t look so surprised.”
“This isn’t surprise you see on my face. This is fear and disgust.”
“I did what I had to do.”
“I saw part of that tape. I’d say you went above and beyond.”
“Any job worth doing is worth doing well. I’ve a reputation to uphold.”
“Well, she certainly seemed to be enjoying herself, I’ll give you that.”
“She did. Until she realized she’d been taped.”
“When was that?”
“While she was still there in Scotland with us. I have no idea how she figured it out.”
“Did she try to get it?”
“She did get it. She broke into my hotel room and turned the place upside down. The original was on a thumb drive under my mattress. I was literally living a spy novel, and not doing a very good job of it. For a while there I thought all was lost, that I’d dipped my wick into the demon’s cesspool for naught, but luckily Rachel was there to save my sorry arse.”
“Rachel?”
“Yes, the daffy redhead. I adore that girl. Unbeknownst to me, she had made copies and sent them into outer space before I put the original under my mattress.”
“Outerspace? Are we to see your films on the next NASA mission, then?”
“No, I mean into some clouds. Whatever. She can explain it to you. She took it back down out of the internet or the clouds and put it on another drive for me to show to you and Father. I meant to do it sooner, but Ingrid was very good at keeping us apart. Did you know she sent someone to my apartment the morning of the wedding to waylay me?”
“She didn’t.”
“She did.”
“What’d you do?”
“I showed him one shouldn’t mess with England when England has a game to win.”
“Well done, Edward, well done.”
“I thought so.”
“And so you slept with the viper to save our father. To save our family’s business.”
“I did.”
“That is … impressive. I am well and truly impressed by you. Truly, truly. Whatever inspired you to such heights? Or depths … I’m not sure which is which anymore.”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m an uncle now. It’s a high calling. I have to earn the right to the title, make sacrifices on behalf of the family name and fortune and all that.”
“That you do. And I believe you have, Brother. In spades.”
“I have?”
“Most definitely so. Speaking of spades, you up for a game of cards?”
“You have enough money to wager against me?”
“I’ve a hundred quid. Should be enough to take you for everything you’ve got.”
“I’ll see that bet and raise you.”
“Oh, really? With what?”
“Loser takes the CEO position at Stratford Investments.”
“You’re on.”
SEE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WHEN EDWARD’S STORY GOES ONLINE! Check my website for details at www.ElleCasey.com.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Casey is a prolific American writer who lives in Southern France with her husband, three kids, and several furry friends. She writes in several genre and publishes an average of one full-length novel per month.
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OTHER BOOKS BY ELLE CASEY
NEW ADULT ROMANCE
Shine Not Burn & MacKenzie Fire (2-book series)
By Degrees
Don’t Make Me Beautiful
Rebel (3-book series)
/> ADULT CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
Full Measure (written as Kat Lee)
Just One Night (romantic serial)
YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Duality (2-book series)
YA URBAN FANTASY
War of the Fae (4-book series)
Clash of the Otherworlds (3-book series, follows War of the Fae)
My Vampire Summer
Aces High
YA DYSTOPIAN
Apocalypsis (4-book series)
YA ACTION ADVENTURE
Wrecked (2-book series)
Elle Casey, Just One Night, Part 1
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