His brows furrow at the mention of his nemesis. “Have a good life, Skyla. Make Logan a father. Build a family with him. Actively seek joy on this miserable planet. Before you know it, life will be over and all will be revealed, every intention, every pretense, every purpose under heaven. It might not be what it seems and you might be tormenting yourself for nothing.”
I glance back and spot Lexy hovering over the wicked bride. “I wouldn’t saynothing. At the end of the day, Gage Oliver destroyed my heart in ways that not even my worst nightmare could have imagined, and when you factor in the fact Chloe is the boys’ new stepmother—life is pure hell. Finding joy in this world feels both futile and unnecessary. I want to feel hate, I want to cradle it and make it work for me. If Gage taught me anything, it’s that joy and happiness are both fleeting and fickle. I could pour my entire heart into Logan, and who knows? One day he might just fight Gage for Chloe, kill the rest of my people, and try to declare himself a king of his own dominion. Hate is loyal, faithful, and it fuels me to do the things I need to do, like giving your people the boot and taking my rightful place in the heavenlies.”
We enter the threshold of the very room where Gage Oliver, my Gage Oliver, lost his life when he had his good senses decapitated from the earthly frame that I loved so much.
The music changes clip, slower, more pronounced.
Wes gives my hand a quick pat. “Good chat, Skyla. You’ll find happiness again. I know you will.”
Wes walks me down the aisle and Gage watches, his jaw clenched, a storm caught in each eye. He looks angry, annoyed, his lips flickering, unsure if he should spare a smile. Logan catches my eye and tips his head as if to sayinteresting move. He’s not impressed, nor should he be. Nobody in their right mind should be impressed by this circus.
I get to the front and walk up the steps of the unholy altar they hauled in and festooned with far too many hothouse flowers.
Gage turns his attention to the back, his body rigid, not breathing. He’s choosing to ignore me, taking the high road, and it stings far greater than I had imagined. Chloe is next, her father by her side looking regal and a tad too proud. But Chloe gleams. A dark jewel in this demonic night, Chloe’s beauty glitters like a thousand fallen stars, her face radiating all of the glory and ecstasy that a new bride should. Her dress is gorgeous, as if it were fashioned together by angels, and it very well might have been. She steps up, acknowledging me first with a bittersweet smile, and the irony is not lost on me. Before I can study Gage’s reaction to his new bride, the boys run down the aisle shoutingMommy!Daddy! in turn, and it stabs me in the heart. Half the room gasps as much as they titter.
Barron runs into my arms and Gage scoops up Nathan.
“No,” I say, quickly taking Nathan and setting both boys at my feet. There is no way in hell he’s going to renew his crooked vows while holding my child. The boys run in dizzying circles while Demetri vomits his spiritual spiel, a quickening of words, far too garbled for me to understand. The room begins to sway. It’s as if all of creation were groaning, moaning right along with me as I witness the travesty all over again.
Chloe spouts off an enthusiasticI doand Lex cheers so loud I make a mental note to clobber her later.
Demetri poses the same twisted question to Gage. “Do you take Chloe Jessica Bishop to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
He looks to me a moment, and I see it, the grief in his eyes, alive and well, and tugging at his blackened heartstrings.
He refocuses his attention on the bride at hand. “I do.”
Demetri nods. “You may kiss the bride.”
Gage examines me fully for the first time since I walked down the aisle wearing the discards he left in my bedroom when it was still our bedroom. And all of that hatred bullshit goes out the window.
Get on your knees, Gage. Beg my forgiveness. Love me. Love me again like never before. We can throw all of this madness into the fire, burn it to ash and rubble.
“Gage,” Chloe hisses, her dark eyes darting to mine, filled with fear and venom.
Gage flexes a loose grin before leaning her way. Gage gives an inch and Chloe takes a mile, wraps her arms around his neck, and hijacks him into one heck of a kiss. The room erupts into cheers and I step off the stage, wondering how in the hell Chloe took the leading role from me.
10
Gage
When the world around you is burning, trying to douse the flames with a bucket of water doesn’t do a hell of a lot of good. And that’s what I did when I spoke to Skyla while we patiently waited for this travesty to begin. As soon as she saw me, I knew it was do or die, channel Wes, and/or walk out the door with her—and believe me, it took everything in me not to do the latter.
Demetri strides up, that signature grin of his frozen over his features. “A word with you,” he says, ushering me over to the corner while the room breaks out into a buzz as Wes poses with Chloe and the kids for pictures.
Demetri’s dark eyes burrow into mine, twin ticks looking to suck the living life out of me. “I am not amused by your antics.”
“Good.” I take a deep breath and search for Skyla in the crowd and find Laken and Coop comforting her with Logan just striding up on the scene. I’m betting Logan gave Wes a piece of his wrath beforehand. I’d expect him to. “I’m not here to amuse you. I gave you the victory—usthe victory we needed. Isn’t that enough?”
“Wesley was looking forward to entering into unholy union with his betrothed.” He scowls in the direction of the altar where Lexy Bakova barks out orders at the boys. “And now he has entered into a union with his ex-wife, twice on our behalf.”
“Since when do you care about Wes?” I shoot Coop a quick glance and note his hand is gliding up and down Laken’s back as they share a laugh about something. No sign of Logan or Skyla. You go, Coop. Do your thing. I glance to Wes and my heart breaks for him.
Demetri steps in front of me, blocking my view of the circus at hand. “Since when don’t you?” He studies me a moment, hard and unyielding. “The coronation requires your very soul to participate. Attempt a shenanigan like this one and prepare to be called out on the matter.” His eyes scour each of mine. “And then she will know the truth and your little parody will be over.” He shakes his head just enough. “While your insistence that she steps up to battle is noble, it is yet another foolish endeavor on your part.”
“She won’t win.”
“The devil thought he couldn’t lose either.” He takes off and his words resonate in his wake.
