Page 11 of Tainted Tempos

Kimberly drops her head into her hands.

Levi snorts.

Allegra watches Mckenna with shrewd eyes and nervously chews her bottom lip.

I raise our joined hands to show off our rings.

Jess slow claps. “Congratulations.”

Derek scoffs. Mckenna flinches.

My anger fucking balloons. “Take it easy,” I spit out, shooting Jess and the rest of the room a look.

It’s bad enough that Mckenna looks like she’s about to pass out. She may resent the hell out of me, but I won’t have my team, or my bandmates, taking shots at her expense.

Kimberly brushes her hands through her hair and looks up. “You need to go on a honeymoon.”

“What?” I bark. There’s no way I heard her correctly.

Everything is falling the fuck apart and Kimmy’s advice is to take a goddamn holiday.

“Seriously?” Jameson asks.

Kimberly’s on her feet, pacing before the couch and nodding vigorously. “Yes. We can salvage...this.” She gestures to Mckenna and me. “You need to get out of town.”

“Lay low.” Aiden picks up her thread. “Go to a romantic beach destination.”

“We paint an image of you guys desperately in love,” Kimberly continues.

“That you couldn’t wait to celebrate and start your lives together,” Aiden concludes, his tone measured, his expression thoughtful.

“Fiji,” Kim announces.

“Hawaii,” Aiden tosses out.

The beaches of Costa Rica, the water that soothes my soul and heals my demons, flicker to life in my mind. Mentally, I pull in a lungful of the salty, humid air, and the breeze from off the ocean wraps around me like a wave I want to fold into.

I glance at Mckenna. She can decide. I’ll take her anywhere. A beach, the top of a mountain, the center of Europe. I just wanther to tell me. I want her to stop looking lost and heartbroken and give me some of her signature sass.

I want her to be in this with me.

Where is my girl? Did marrying me break her?

“You pick,” I say quietly, squeezing her fingers. “Anywhere you want to go...”

Mckenna looks at me. Her navy eyes are dull and wary. Her mouth is pinched, and her eyebrows drawn, almost as if she doesn’t understand the question.

“The Azores,” Allegra volunteers, mentioning the collection of Portuguese islands. She stares at Mckenna, as if willing her to remember something. “You always wanted to go,” she says softly. “It was on your bucket list our sophomore year.”

A flicker of recognition sparks in Mckenna’s eyes, and her lips part.

It feels like I got kicked in the fucking chest.

“The Azores?” Jess asks.

But Kimberly is pacing again. Nodding. “I like that. It’s not too glitzy or generic. It speaks to her personality and life outside of the industry.” She points at Mckenna.

“I can see it too,” Aiden agrees. “The two of you on a hike, hanging on the beach, some delicious seafood dinners tossed in.”

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