Wyatt ruffled my hair. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Me, too, man. You’re retired, you’re getting married, and you look happier than I’ve seen you in years.” Asher nodded in agreement.
Jackson smiled. “Listen, about before, when I told you to stay away from Dean, I never should have done that.”
“You had your reason.” I waved a hand at him. “You were looking out for Dean, and I respect that.”
Cole tilted his head as he looked between the two of us. “You tried to keep them apart? But they’re so happy and in love.”
“I didn’t know, okay? I thought you were just trying to have a one-night stand. I thought your father was just out for a good time. I didn’t know they were going to fall in love. And I certainly didn’t think they Dean was going to have this huge sexual awakening.” Jackson blushed, then dropped his chin.
I gripped Jackson’s shoulder. “Everything worked out the way it was supposed to. I made mistakes because I was scared. And look at us now. Dean and I are getting married. If he decides to show up today.”
“Oh, trust me, he’s going to show up.” Jackson grinned. “So, I guess we’re family now, right? Brothers or whatever?”
I nodded. “I guess we are.” I hadn’t thought about that yet.
“Are you decent?” my sister, Sam, asked before she walked into the room. She smiled as she looked around the room. “Look at all of these handsome men. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t need any help getting ready, but you all look perfect. The suits Ezra made are gorgeous.”
“How’s Dean? Is he here yet?” I was still nervous he had changed his mind.
Sam reached for my hand. “He’s here. He’s hiding, so you can’t see him.”
“So, does that mean we should go outside and get ready?” Cole suggested. “Because you can’t keep your groom waiting, Dad.”
I took a shaky breath as butterflies took flight inside my body. That sounded like the best idea yet.
“Let’s go. I’ve never been more ready.”
DEAN AND I HAD FOUNDa beautiful house in North Carolina. It had four bedrooms, three bathrooms, and a sliding glass door that led right out to the gorgeous lake. When Dean first saw it, he looked like he had seen a ghost. I thought he hated it until he confessed he had dreamed about it. More than once. And I had told the realtor we would take it before we even stepped inside. We took our time moving in. Painting the rooms, finding the perfect furniture, and christening every inch of our new home. We had agreed that we wanted to get married here. That we wanted all our friends and family to be able to enjoy our day with us. So, we made sure Cole was out of school, that hockey season was over, and that NASCAR had an off weekend.
“You holding up okay?” Cole whispered as we looked out at the guests seated in our backyard.
I spotted Yolanda Frost, Dean and Maverick’s mother, as she spoke softly with Jackson and Tom’s parents, along with Tate. She was doing surprisingly well since moving here, living with Maverick and Jax, but I was still unsure of her intensions. It almost seemed too good to be true. We had asked Tate to be part of the wedding party, but he had declined. He didn’t like to be in the spotlight.
I smiled at my son. “I’m going to marry Dean. What do you think?”
Cole was my best man, just like I had planned. But I also had asked Jackson, Asher, Wyatt, and my sister Sam to stand up for me. One of our newer friends—more Dean’s than mine and a man who had dubbed himself Maverick’s bestie the secondthey met, Ezra Bardot, who happened to be a budding clothes designer—had made all of the clothes the wedding party was wearing today. And he had done a damn good job at it. The suit I was wearing fit better than anything I had worn for hockey. The black gown Sam wore clung to her body like a glove. I couldn’t wait to see what Ezra had designed for Dean. He had kept that a secret. No matter how hard I had begged.
“Oh. My God.” Speaking of the little drama queen, Ezra squealed when he saw us. “You all look perfect! I can’t even stand it!” He hurried toward me with his auburn curls bouncing against his head and grabbed my hands. “Are you nervous? Are you excited? I can’t wait until you see Dean, because when I say he looks amazing, I mean he looks ah-may-zing!” Did I mention Ezra was dramatic? He was a good guy, though.
I squeezed his fingers. “You did a great job, Ezra. Thank you. I’m not nervous, just excited to get married.”
“Princess, you can’t... Come on.” Carson Carey, Ezra’s fiancé, sighed as he scooped him up into his arms. “Sorry, he loves weddings.”
“CC, put me down!” Ezra struggled in Carson’s arms.
I smiled. “It’s fine, really. When are the two of you going to get married?” I asked.
Ezra’s cheeks bloomed pink.
“Whenever he sets a date,” Carson answered as he placed Ezra on his feet. “Come on. Let’s go sit down with Seth and Noel.” Who also happened to be Wyatt’s two husbands. Yeah, Wyatt was in a triad. That was something no one saw coming, but I was happy for my friend.
Asher grinned. “Down, boy. There’ll be plenty of that later.”
“Oh, like you’re not going to want to strip Saint’s clothes off the second you see him walk down the aisle,” Wyatt shot back.
They both snorted, then laughed. They stopped the second the music changed, and Archer, Killian and Matthias’s son,appeared. He was absolutely adorable as he walked slowly toward us, his blue eyes wide with fright before Matthias appeared in his line of sight. Then Archer giggled happily, moving as fast as his little chubby legs could go to get to his father.
