Page 110 of Takedown

“I have a job now, thank you very much, William. Do you want to tell everyone how I supported you when—"

“It’s Mel’s night,” I announce, cutting off whatever Diane was going to say.

She exhales and sits back in her chair. The waiter returns with our champagne. I make sure to hand a glass to Diane. My eyes lock with hers, and when she smiles at me, I don’t return it.

“Don’t change the subject. We want to hear the story about you two,” Elizabeth insists.

“Oh, well, all everyone needs to know is—” Mel abruptly stands up, cutting me off in the process. She runs to the front of the room. I raise my eyebrows and catch her eye, and she winks at me. I lean back in my seat, eager to see what she does next. Mel does not like to be the center of attention.

“Speech!” Ananda yells.

We’ve been here for hours, and no one was shy about taking advantage of the open bar. Everyone quiets down and waits. A bout of shyness hits Mel, and she looks down at her feet, but she soon straightens up.

“So, hi.” She lets out a nervous giggle.

“Hey, smellie,” Jason yells.

“It’s Melanie, loser. Melanie Flynn to be exact.”

The entire room cheers, including me, who yells, “Tell them, Mel!”

“What did she say? Flint? Flint Michigan?” Uncle Finn asks the room.

“So, I want to say something. A few months ago, I married the most amazing man.” My heart starts to thump, and the drink in my hand only makes it halfway to my mouth. “It was unconventional. We went to Vegas for my dear friend’s wedding, and we got married ourselves.”

All the hushed murmuring in the room stops. “So, what does a new bride do when she wakes up next to her new husband?”

“Oh, God. We don’t want to know,” Jason shouts.

“Well, this one freaked out, ran out of the room, and got on the next flight out of Vegas. I convinced myself he’d wake up and regret it. And I just couldn’t face that. But he came for me and no matter how hard I fought back or pushed him away, he was there, fighting for me. Fighting for our marriage.”

“That’s probably because he begged you to marry him,” Ananda yells.

I smile at that and wait for Mel to agree or to make a joke, but she surprises me. She catches my eye and smiles. “I’m going to make a confession, stud.” She winks at me and turns back to the guests. “So, I’m going to tell everyone something that only Adam knows. He didn’t ask me to marry him.Iaskedhim. Actually, I threatened to marry him and tie him to me for life. It was a moment of complete madness. Do you ever want someone so badly, you think you’ll go mad if you don’t have that person? I did. He was mine. From the moment I first saw him working out in the backyard, he was mine. And I was his. I was done fighting it. I’ve never felt so much acceptance. Never had someone who is on my side through everything. I could set this room on fire, and he’d support me.”

“Let’s not try that, darling,” my mother says.

“My point is, I have the best husband. And yes, I asked him to marry me because I wanted him, so I got him. It wasn’t conventional or planned, but it’s still the best thing I’ve ever done.” All the women in the room cheer. “That’s just a small part of our story. The other parts are just for me and Adam. I love you, stud.” She walks back to our table. I stand up and she runs into my arms.

“Did I ever tell you how much I love liberated Mel?” I kiss her until she’s breathless.

Epilogue

“What do you think?” Jennifer stands behind me, and I smile at my reflection for the hundredth time today. I’ve been smiling since I woke up this morning in Adam’s old bedroom. All the women spent the night at Molly’s last night after leaving the rehearsal dinner. The men, including Uncle Finn, went to Ethan and Tara’s place in the city. “I can add a little baby’s breath.”

It’s an elegant, loose side braid. She weaves baby’s breath down the sides and pulls out a few loose tendrils.

“You look beautiful, darling.” Molly starts to cry again. She puts a hand on my bare shoulder. “I trust my son. Always have. And look at what he did. He found the perfect woman for him. Don’t make me wait too long for my grandbabies.” She manages to mention grandchildren in every conversation lately.

The door to the bedroom opens and my four bridesmaids walk in, wearing matching cornflower blue dresses. The dresses are strapless with a sweetheart neckline. They cinch at the waist and have a long slit on the side.

“Oh my God, you’re so beautiful, Mellie.” Alex touches my loose braid, and our eyes catch in the mirror. “Jennifer, you’re amazing,” Alex whispers, probably to ensure my mother doesn’t hear. Molly invited my mother here last night, and to my surprise, she agreed to spend the night despite knowing that Jennifer would be here too.

“She is,” Tara agrees.

Ethan and Tara invited not only Molly and Finn to their wedding but Jason and Alex too. They extended invitations to my dad, Jennifer and my mom. No one turns down a wedding invitation from a billionaire. I was kept so busy as part of the wedding party that there was no time for me to worry about my mother’s presence.

I can’t say that our relationship has changed. I’ve been so busy these past few months with my wedding, work, and preparing for law school next month that I’ve had no time to dwell on our relationship or lack thereof.

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