Page 134 of Four Fiances & I

“Great, so as soon as the register is signed and I pronounce you husband and wife, the rest of you will stand from your seats and step forward.”

“They will already be standing. They are all my best men; they were always going to be beside me when I got married, whether it was to our girl or not.” I give them all a smile as Jason places a hand on my shoulder and gives it a squeeze.

“You’ve had our backs long enough; it’s time we had yours for a change.”

“It’s obvious you are all close, and not just because you all love the same girl,” Lucinda smiles before sniffing and looking back to the notes. “So as soon as you are all in front of me, I will say a few words about the five of you being here to have your relationship blessed in the eyes of those you hold dear, then …” she runs a finger down the page. “Ah, yes. You will all say a few words, as there are no traditional vows. Sean, you will go first, followed by Maximus, Jason and then Christian.” She looks up at us again. I can't help wondering if her face hurts from smiling so much. “Jaz is then going to say a few words before the maid of honour does a short reading. Then you are all free to enjoy the rest of your day. Are there any questions?” We shake our heads, looking around at each other, smiling as we relax and let ourselves enjoy the moment we’ve waited so long for.

Lucinda looks up to the front of the tent, where I spot Mrs Brown smiling; she gives us a little thumbs up before waving towards the house and rushing to her seat. Music starts in the background, coming from somewhere, and I take my place at the front of the aisle.

I don’t remember the last time I felt so sick from excitement and nerves. I know if I held my hand out in front of me it would be shaking like a leaf in the breeze. I look to my right at my three brothers, who all look as I feel. The four of us don’t look away from each other until Lucinda clears her throat. We all turn together to watch as little Luna comes into view with a big smile, looking beautiful, followed by the three bridesmaids. All of them look amazing as they smile and wipe at their eyes. I can't help but give the three of them a wink as I smile, but then the music changes and we all turn further around as the love of our life comes into view at the top of the aisle.

There she is, our world, our Jasmine, walking towards us in the most beautiful white dress and looking like an angel. No, an honest-to-god goddess. Any other word is an insult. Everyone ceases to exist; all I can see is my Baby girl. Her smile lights up her whole face as she walks gracefully towards us. I hold out my hand for hers, desperate to touch any part of her, feeling the happiest I ever had. But as she reached out and placed her hand in mine, somebody else's hand appears and stops her from touching me.

“Terry?” Turning my attention to my friend, sure, he must be trying to wind me up. But when I look at his face, I see it’s not Terry but Connor Grant, Jasmine's father.

For a brief second, he looks like the smiling, happy version of the man in the pictures Jasmine has in her room, but his face quickly morphs into the version which I saw before I put a bullet through his brain.

He looks at me with the eyes I now realise his daughter inherited from him; they don’t look scared or even reassuring like they did that night all those years ago. No, he looks at me the same way he looked at Tommy and Hardy, with pure hatred.

“Did you really think I would let this happen?” His lip turns up in disgust as I stare at him open-mouthed. “Did you really think I would allow you to marry my daughter? You, the man who killed me!”

“I didn’t want to do it,” I sputter, but Connor just shakes his head at me.

“And that makes everything okay? Everything that happened to my little girl was your fault.” He lets go of Jasmine's hand and takes a step towards me.

“All the years of her mother abusing her.”

He steps forward again as I step back from him. His eyes burning into mine as I’m unable to look away.

“All those men that went into her room. Each of them touching her, inserting themselves into her tiny body. It’s all because of you.”

Every step he takes towards me, I try to keep the distance between us, but he doesn’t stop advancing.

“Every scream, tear, and ounce of pain is your doing.”

My back hits the side of the tent, which has morphed into a brick wall, stopping me from putting any more distance between us.

“You took her one protector away, giving her mother all the freedom she needed to abusemybaby girl. So, give me one reason why I should let you marry her.”

“I love her; she is everything to me.” Tears fill my eyes, and I look over his shoulder and see her standing there surrounded by a bright light, which makes her look even more like a goddess. “You know I never wanted to kill you, but I had no choice. But there is nothing I wouldn’t do to protect her.”

“Prove it.” The venom in his voice has my attention snapping back to him.

“Wh _ what?” I ask, stumbling over the single word, which is lodged in my throat, threatening to choke me through the fear. It’s the same two words Hardy said after he asked me what I was willing to do to protect my brother.

Connor’s head tilts to the side as he grins at me, looking more evil than I ever thought he could.

“Prove it.” It’s Connor in front of me, but all I can hear is Hardy, the humour and demand in his tone.

“Ask anything of me, and I will do it,” my whole body starts to shake as I look back at my sweet girl. I know the answer before I once again hear Hardy's voice coming from Connor's mouth.

“Choose.”

Closing my eyes, I know what I’ll see when I open them, but even knowing doesn’t save me from the pain of what's in front of me.

Where my three brothers had been stood watching only moments ago, I find them now on their knees, hands tied behind their backs, all shaking and crying quietly. Behind each of them are people I never wanted to see again, each holding a gun to my brothers’ heads.

Standing behind Jason is Hardy, grinning like he did that night he held a gun to his head when I was fifteen.

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