Alex rose from his seat and thrust his hand forward. “And we’d be happy to be at your wedding.”
I grinned at him as I gave his hand a hearty shake. “Aww, thanks, buddy. I can’t believe it’s happening, to be honest. I feel like it’s not real.”
I huffed out a breath, the butterflies in my stomach fluttering again. “But it is…and we only have an hour or so to get ready.”
“I hope I can borrow a dress. A royal wedding wasn’t exactly what I expected when we hopped on the plane,” Ava said as she pulled me into a hug.
“I’m sure you can,” I said as I tightened my grip around her, wondering if I’d finally found my happily ever after. “And thanks to you both for supporting me.”
“Of course, Doc,” Alex said with a clap of my shoulder as I pulled back from Ava. “Sounds like it’s going to be a wild few weeks for you, though.”
“Does it have to be tonight?” Ava asked. “I mean, surely, you want to call your family.”
“I hadn’t thought of it, and yes, it needs to be tonight.” Even if we could move it, I didn’t want to. I was literally waiting for the other shoe to drop and this to all be canceled. That was normally my luck. “But it’s fine. I don’t need anyone else here. Just me and Nattie. And you guys, because you’re my friends.”
Ava rubbed my arm. “Well, we’re happy to be here for you, and I’ll take plenty of pictures for you to share later.”
“Thanks, Ava,” I said.
She raised her eyebrows, sucking in a deep breath. “Well, I’m going to go see about wrangling some appropriate clothing for this. Are you two good here?”
“Actually,” I answered, “I’ll go with you. Because I don’t exactly want to get married to my princess in jeans and hoodie.”
We hurried from the room, finding a staff member waiting for us in the hall to arrange clothing. Within the hour, we had it and I was buttoning my crisp white shirt before I fiddled with the silk bowtie.
No matter how many times I tried, I couldn’t get it to work. I’d have to ask Ava for help. My sweaty palms just wouldn’t do it justice.
I wiped them against my pant legs as I stared in the mirror. Every doubt I’d ever had about myself crept back into my mind. I wondered if I’d be left at the altar. My mind just refused to compute that this would be my path to happiness.
Yet, I couldn’t shake the image burned into my brain of the tears shining in Nattie’s eyes and the soft smile on her lips as she nodded in response to my proposal before she choked out the word, “Yes!”
Would we divorce once the problem with her father was solved? If we even married, my mind said.
I slid my eyes closed, biting into my lower lip. The creak of the door drew my attention. I opened my eyes, snapping my gaze through the mirror to the door. I expected Ava, but instead, my heart stopped for a moment when Nadia strode in wearing a fitted black, satin gown.
“Hey,” I said, my throat tightening. I assumed she was here to give me the bad news: my wedding was off. My services were no longer needed.
Or maybe that they’d still like me to revive dear old Dad, but instead of being a member of the family, I’d just be a prisoner of the secret lab and then disposed of when my work was complete.
“Hello, doctor. We need to have a word.”
I licked my lips, shifting my weight from foot to foot. “Okay. Although, it’s getting late. We really should get going. I’d hate to miss my own wedding.”
I chuckled more than I should have, but her expression remained serious.
I cleared my throat, wiping any trace of amusement from my features as she crossed her arms.
“You’ll make the time.”
“Right,” I said as I grabbed my tie and tried to finish it again. This time, it went even worse than the previous attempts thanks to my shaky hands.
“Can I trust you, doctor?”
I swallowed hard, ripping the fabric from around my neck. “Uhhh, is that a trick question?”
“No,” she answered as she stalked closer to me, taking the black material from my hands and sliding it around my neck.
My muscles tensed as she started to tie it. “I mean, yes?”
