It should not have been a surprise to me Matt was knowledgeable about that quote. In fact, if I was honest, Matt was probably the smartest person I knew. I winked at him and smiled prettily while depositing the luggage against the wall.

“Cheeky girl,” he muttered with a shake of head as Dan brought the rest of bags in. Matt glanced at his driver. “Thank you, Dan. I’ll take it from here.”

“Good hubby.” I quipped.

“Will you be needing anything more from me, Mr Bradley?” Dan asked.

“No, you’re free to go.” Matt replied quickly.

I waved goodbye to Dan as Matt shut the front door, then shrugged off my coat and hung it up. Oh, it was toasty warm inside the house.

“I saw the cars out front, George,” Matt eyed his butler. “Howmany people are in the house?”

“Eighteen, Mr Bradley.” George said. “They are in the salon awaiting your entrance.”

Matt grumbled while shoving the remainder of our bags against the wall. I checked out his ass on the sly. Nice.

“There are three members of your staff serving drinks,” George brought his employer up to speed. “And a selection of canapés prepared by your chef.”

“Are my parents here?” Matt did nothing to hide the brusqueness of his tone.

I tensed, waiting for the answer.

“No, Mr Bradley.”

The relief I felt was mirrored by Matt and I bit my lip to stop the sound of glee.

“Fine. Let our guests know we’ll be there in a short while.” Matt ordered before taking my hand in his.

“Yes, Mr Bradley.” George nodded once then turned on his heel.

“Damn it,” Matt tugged me closer. “Is it too much to ask for some time alone with my new wife?”

I chuckled and went up on tip-toe to kiss him. “I promise to rock your world later, hon.”

“Mmm,” Matt claimed my lips again. “I’ll hold you to that, poppet.”

“Here they are.”

We turned in unison to see Nathan coming down the hallway. George sidestepped him with a polite nod of head and continued on his way.

“You little blighter!” Nathan exclaimed, quickly closing the distance between him and Matt.

I stepped behind my husband of three weeks, not quite sure if Nathan’s expression was one of warm welcome or dangerous disbelief. He did have an obsession with weapons. What if he stabbed me for marrying his best friend? And was he calling me a blighter? I couldn’t remember the exact definition of the British slang but I was semi-certain it was used for guys not girls.

“Do I have you to blame for this invasion of my home?” Matt asked with a grin as they exchange boisterous man hugs.

“Speak to your sister,” Nathan replied. “It was her idea. Hello, Madi.”

I smiled my hello as Nathan reached for me, enveloping me in an awkward hug. Awkward because he was squeezing just a touch too tight and the kiss he pressed on my cheek was a tad too forceful.

“Get your grubby hands off my wife.” Matt grumbled while extricating me from Nathan’s grip. I exhaled in relief when free.

Nathan chuckled and slapped Matt across the back good-naturedly. “Honestly, Matt. Must you always try to out-do me? Trying to upstage my upcoming nuptials this month, weren’t you?”

Matt shrugged as he slipped off his coat. Starting my wifely duties, I took his coat and hung it up. There. I’d filled that quota.

“Eloping?” Nathan continued with a smirk. “How utterly provincial.”