Page 145 of The Fiancée Farce
Most nodded solemnly in agreement.
“Gemma, dear, as I have known you your entire life, I fear I’m biased on the matter of whetherbymeansonorbefore, so I’m going to turn it over to the board for a vote.”
They weren’t out of the running yet.
“This is bullshit,” Tucker cried. “Dad, tell them.”
“Tucker—”
“Tell them.”
“Oh, be quiet.” Brooks stood and plucked the bottle of champagne from Teddy’s hand. “You’re giving me a headache. Go, on, Buster. Before Tucker has a conniption.”
“Right. Before we begin, I will say that as of this very moment, though you have yet to satisfy the terms of your grandfather’s trust to the letter, I believe you’ve satisfied them in spirit.” Mr.Barnes’s eyes crinkled as he smiled and Gemma’s grip on Tansy’s fingers tightened.
“Thank you,” she whispered, lashes fluttering as she blinked fast and hard.
“All those in favor of considering a marriage that takes place this day, before the conclusion of this meeting, to satisfy the terms and conditions of Hieronymus Wilhelm van Dalen’s trust, say yes.”
This was it. Tansy held her breath and squeezed Gemma’s fingers.
“Hell yes.” Brooks grinned.
A chorus ofyeseswent up around the table. Tansy tried to count them, but there were too many. As far as problems went, it was a good one to have.
“As a matter of formality, those opposed?”
Victor, Sterling, and a handful of board members, fewer than five, murmured their dissent.
She did the math. Even if Mr.Barnes was looking for a two-thirds majority, they had it. Theyhad it.
“Holy shit,” Gemma murmured. “Oh my God.”
Her thoughts exactly.
“And theyeseshave it.” Mr.Barnes smiled. “Now, without further ado—”
Tucker stood, chair crashing into the wall. “This is unbelievable.” His nostrils flared, face turning red. “You’ll be hearing from my lawyer.”
He stormed out of the conference room, slamming the door behind him, leaving a trail of glitter in his wake.
Sterling’s jaw worked, and beside him, Victor fumed silently, hands curling into fists atop the table.
Mr.Barnes coughed. “Not to rush things along, but do either of you mind cutting to the chase? We really do have a full agenda to discuss after this...”
Gemma turned. “Tansy?”
“I just want to marry you.”
“All right, then. Let’s see if I can remember how this goes... uh, thank you all for joining us as we share in this wonderful if not unexpected occasion. Today we’re here to unite Gemma Lise van Dalen and Tansy...” Mr.Barnes winced. “What’s your middle name, dear? I’m afraid I’ve forgotten.”
Tansy laughed. “Elizabeth.”
Gemma reached out and thumbed away a tear Tansy hadn’t even realized had fallen.
“We’re here to unite Gemma Lise van Dalen and Tansy Elizabeth Adams in marriage.” Mr.Barnes cleared his throat. “Suffice it to say, I think I’ll skip the part about objections and get right to it. Do you, Gemma, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to live together in matrimony, to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, in good times and in bad, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?”
Gemma beamed at her. “Hell yeah, I do.”
