I walked over to the drawer where I knew Luc kept a spare gun, and placed Gabe's gift beside it before closing the drawer again.
"Good idea," I agreed, walking back to him and pulling him into a hug. "Thank you."
"For all our sakes, you keep yourself alive. Luc's a lot more tolerable now he has you," Gabe laughed. We walked out of the living room to see more people had arrived for the party.
Dom caught sight of us and called, "Mia, Xavier is looking for you. He's out back."
"Thanks, Dom." I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before walking through the kitchen and out onto the grounds.
Lights had been strung up among the trees making the bare branches almost look magical in the dark winter evening. There were plenty of people outside that stopped to congratulate me and ask to see the ring and hear the proposal story. Eventually, I managed to make my way to the makeshift bar that had been set up, where Xavier was sitting.
"I should offer my congratulations," Xavier said. He got up from the seat and kissed me on each cheek.
"Thank you so much."
"I'm glad to see Lucas is making an honest woman out of you. Would you like a drink?"
"Sure."
Xavier took a glass of champagne from the barman and handed it to me. I took a sip, feeling the bubbles travel down my throat.
"Dom said that you asked to see me," I said. "Luc wasn't with me but I could find him."
"No," he cut me off. "I actually wanted to see you alone."
I suddenly felt nervous.
"Mia," Xavier said, looking at me. "Lucas means a lot to me and my family. You know this."
I gave a small nod. Xavier had told me that Luc and his reputation were important.
"He obviously saw fit to bring you into this family and to make it a permanent decision."
"Xavier, if this is about loyalty..."
"Don't hurt him, Mia."
I was shocked at the words, not only because I wouldn't dream of hurting Luc but because how genuine Xavier seemed when he said the words. This wasn't a threat but a plea.
"He's had a difficult few years with everything. Luc deserves something good in his life. He deserves someone, but don't hurt him."
"I would never..."
"Things might get difficult at times and he'll need you," Xavier told me seriously. "Maria left Charlie and it broke him. He let her go because he loved her, but he wasn't quite the same. I don't want to see Luc suffer the same thing."
I felt a hand on the small of my back and turned to see Luc join us, a grin plastered on his face. "There you are! Xavier!"
They shook hands and Xavier congratulated us again before walking away.
"Shall we go take a seat?" Luc asked me and I nodded.
We joined everyone at the table, and I couldn't believe just how many people had joined us for the night. The staff brought food out and we chatted to friends as we made our way through the courses. After we finished the main course, Xavier rose to his feet, all attention turning towards him.
"It really should be Charlie or Maria doing this, but considering they can't be here with us tonight," Xavier said, his voice carrying through the crisp evening air. Luc took my hand under the table and squeezed gently.
"Friends," Xavier continued. "We are here and happy to celebrate the engagement of Lucas and Mia. I'm happy they've made the decision to marry without me having to fire a single shot."
There was a chorus of laughter around the table and I laid my head on Luc's shoulder.
