Page 59 of Conflagration
I look across the yard to where the wedding party is standing by the back door. Branson’s joking around with Cohen, and I think back to when I first met him. The difference is striking, and part of me feels saddened that he missed out on so much time while being on the outs with his family. But seeing him now, full of laughter and love for his brothers, I couldn’t be happier for him.
Turning back to Shane, I give him a warm smile. “I’ll do everything I can to keep him as happy as he is now.”
AFTER THE run-in with Shane, I spend dinner sitting with Branson’s parents, Andi, and the Wellington grandparents. As Branson predicted, his grandma Kate is more than curious about me and my courtship with her eldest grandson, asking question after question. Fortunately, most questions are about the future.
“When’s the wedding?”
“We haven’t set a date yet.”
“What are you waiting for?”
“Well, the accident threw a wrench into our plans, and we decided to wait to do any planning until Branson was back on his feet.”
“Where will you honeymoon?”
A small smile forms on my lips as I answer her. “Branson and I are keeping that one a secret so we have absolutely no distractions then.”
Amelia’s eyes light up as she leans in to conspiratorially whisper to her mother-in-law, “Hear that, Kate? Maybe they’ll be the first to make me a grandma.”
Andi tries to mask her laugh with a cough, and I give her a glare, which causes her to laugh harder.
Amelia then turns to me and pats my hand. “You don’t have to worry about us, dear. We wouldn’t dream of interrupting your honeymoon.”
As I take a sip of wine, I raise my eyebrows at her over my glass. “Oh really? This coming from the woman who shows up unexpectedly at the most inopportune times?”
Amelia’s cheeks turn pink with a small blush, and her husband laughs out loud.
Grandma Kate beams. “I like this one. It’s nice to see Branson’s taste has improved.”
“Mom,” Branson’s dad growls.
Kate shrugs. “What? It’s the truth,” she says, a bit miffed at her son’s scolding. “Then again, it’s kind of the Wellington way. All you men are stubborn fools. It takes a strong woman to put up with you.”
“Woman, I may have to wear a hearing aid, but dammit, I’m sitting right here,” the eldest Knox Wellington growls. “Stubborn my ass!”
Andi and I exchange glances then burst out laughing. “Now I know where they get it,” I tease, causing Andi to nod in agreement.
Kate glares at her husband, and he leans in to give her a smacking kiss on the lips, which pacifies her. She pats him on the cheek affectionately.
I lean back in my chair, sneaking a peek at the wedding party table, and find Branson staring directly at me, a breathtaking smile on his face. He gives me a wink then turns to respond to something Cohen’s said.
I turn my attention back to the two older Wellington couples and my heart warms. I’m officially in love with this family. They’re warm and welcoming and so far removed from anything I’ve ever known. As warm as my heart feels, it also hurts. I have no idea how I’m going to say goodbye.
As the emcee announces that it’s time for the wedding toasts, I try to push the hurt away, but as Branson stands and toasts to his brother and Charlie, the tears form in my eyes. Excusing myself, I barely make it inside before they begin to spill onto my cheeks. Closing myself off in the bathroom, I press my hands against the counter and study myself in the mirror, thinking about how much my life has changed since the day I left Atlanta.
I’m not just in love with his family. I’m in love with him.
And I think he loves me, too.
I just don’t know if that will be enough, and I’m not sure how much longer I can do this before I’m left completely broken.
Taking a tissue, I wipe my eyes and fix my makeup, standing up and straightening my shoulders. As I look in the mirror, I muster up every ounce of strength I have and make a bold decision. Let’s face it. Whether I leave tomorrow or three months from now, I’m going to be left with a broken heart. But I’ll be a better woman having known, having loved, Branson. He’s helped me as much as I’ve seemed to have helped him. He doesn’t think he saved me, but he did. Not only from the wreckage, but from my life. Even if he doesn’t know it, he’s given me my life back, myself back, and I’ll never be able to repay him for that.
So instead of running before I get in too deep, I’m going to stay. Dig as deep as I can. And if I get buried in the process, so be it. He doesn’t think he deserves forever? I’ll do whatever I can to prove otherwise. The forever he deserves is with me. If, in the end, I lose? I’ll still have won more than enough to last me a lifetime.
I just hope I’ll be strong enough to deal with the fallout.
THERE’S SOMETHING about the way a man walks up behind his woman, slides his arms around her waist, and nuzzles against her neck. That bare crook, the soft skin, that ticklish spot. It’s entirely too intimate—the way my eyes roll back in my head at the contact. Yet, as the stubble from his five-o’clock shadow scratches my skin, I tilt my neck to the side, giving him more access, not wanting him to ever stop. His lips press a soft kiss against my skin, his teeth nibbling gently, sending a shiver of pleasure down my spine. I have to stop myself from releasing the moan that’s threatening to bubble up. Instead, a contented sigh escapes my lips, and I feel him chuckle against my skin as his hands splay across my stomach, pulling me into him until my ass meets his erection. Even though he’s cornered me on the edge of the lawn after having just finished his best man speech, we’re still in view of many of the partygoers, so I have to force myself not to grind against him.
