Throwing my head back, I laugh, long and hard, squeezing my father’s arm tightly in a hug. The doors swing open, and everyone turns to look at me while I laugh like a maniac.
Whoops.
Matthias narrows his eyes at my father, no doubt guessing exactly what he says, but when his gaze shifts to me, he freezes. The man has seen me in a wedding dress before, but something about this is different. We aren’t playacting or on guard, waiting for an attack.
It is just us.
Me and him and all the orgasms he still owes me for breaking my heart.
This is definitely a step in the right direction.
The music begins to play a soft instrumental rendition of “Without You” by Ursine Vulpine. This is our song. Our promise twisted into the words of the song like a creeping vine.
We are in this together.
Forever by each other’s side.
And that is all that either of us needs.
It is well past ten by the time everyone has said their goodbyes, and we are on our way to the airport. Matthias is finishing up some work on his laptop before we arrive at the airfield so that he won’t be required to work on our honeymoon.
Le sigh.
A honeymoon. Although the fucker still hasn’t told me where we are going. He even packed my suitcase so I can’t guess. I am hoping for somewhere warm and tropical, where I can drink margaritas all day by the pool and get a tan.
A real tan.
Not a Washington tan.
My phone beeps in my hand, and I turn it over to see who has texted me. I think it might be my mother, who I am still nervous about leaving on her own, but Matthias assures me everything is taken care of, and that Liam is going to watch out for her while we are gone.
That does nothing to assuage my anxiety.
She moved out of my father’s apartments over a month ago and into an apartment downtown. Matthias secured her a job as the assistant to one of the attorneys on his payroll. I told him she can be my assistant, but my husband has to go and be all logical about my mother needing her own space.
Whatever.
Guilt gnaws at me when I brush that statement off, because he is right. She is my mother, but she needs to have her own identity and be her own person. I am not a kid anymore, and I know that is hard for her. Sometimes I catch her looking at me with a sad sort of nostalgic aura bleeding heavily around her.
She missed out on so much of my life.
Not that it was spectacular or anything.
Still, all of those firsts are gone.
Sighing, I look down at the text on my screen. It is from an unknown number.
A picture of me in my wedding dress walking down the aisle pops up, and under it is a message.
Unknown
I’m so proud of you, big sister. You will always be my hero, but it isn’t safe for me to be around anyone right now. Stop calling. I love you. -K
I snort. Like that is going to happen.
Looking back at the photo, I realize that Kenzi would have to be right out the front window of the solarium to get this shot. Is she close by or is this using a telephoto lens? Either way, she is there for me. Again. Watching from the shadows.
Typing a message, I press send and toss the phone into my bag as our car comes to a stop outside of the small, private airport. I am not giving up on her, and I won’t stop looking.