Well, fuck me. I made good time getting to the airport. Parking at the curb, I jumped out and went to find my woman. She must have been watching for me because she met me right inside the door, with Nathan at her side. He had gotten a lot bigger since the last time I saw him. I looked down at Annabelle. “You okay?”
“Yeah, we’re fine. I’m just pissed that someone did that to your car. I’ll pay to have it towed and for the repairs,” she said.
“You will do no such thing. I brought Badger with me and he’s already arranged to have it towed back to the clubhouse tonight. Anything you need out of it before we go?” She shook her head. “All right, let’s get you in the car and get back home.”
I wasn’t about to tell her what happened to Edge. Reason number one being she didn’t know I had a tail on her. Reason number two, I didn’t want her feeling as uneasy as I was.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Phoenix
The day of the wedding was a whirlwind of activity. Ember wanted to have the wedding ceremony outside by the small lake on the clubhouse property. For the reception, she arranged to have a massive tent set up by the lake. Needless to say, the gates were opening and closing from the crack of dawn with delivery after delivery of wedding shit. The girls were at Ember’s house helping her get ready and the brothers were helping out around the clubhouse to get things set up.
Pop and Gram arrived mid-morning. I was surprised that Gram didn’t go over to the farm to help the girls, but she informed me that a woman needed to oversee the setup and decorations and she was that woman. Pop, of course, hung back with me. “What are you not telling me?” he asked. The man had an uncanny way of reading people.
I sighed. “I don’t want to make a big deal of it, okay?” At his nod, I told him about the bachelorette party and Annabelle’s tires being slashed. “On top of that, Luke’s been helping me search for her parents. He mentioned an unidentified body found years ago as a possibility and Annabelle agreed to give a DNA sample for comparison. He called yesterday to tell me it was a match, but I haven’t shared the news with Annabelle yet.”
“Anything on her father?”
I shook my head. “Nothing yet. All of it’s got me on edge. I’ve been keyed up since I found her, waiting for someone or something to take her away from me again, and I think that’s clouding my judgment.”
“It doesn’t sound like it’s clouding your judgment. You’ve not jumped to any conclusions or made any outrageous accusations. You’re being cautious and waiting for more information. Sounds exactly like what you would be doing any other time,” he said, patting me on the shoulder.
“Thanks, Pop. I needed to hear that.”
Blessedly, the day progressed without incident. When it was time for the ceremony to begin, I waited outside the tent for Ember to exit with her bridesmaids. She was the last to step out and my breath caught in my throat when I saw her. Her hair was curled and piled on top of her head in some fancy updo, but that was where the fancy ended. She had on very little makeup and was wearing a simple white dress. She looked like she should be running through a field of wild flowers.
“Dad?” she asked when I continued to stand there speechless.
I cleared my throat. “You’re beautiful, baby girl,” I whispered.
She shook her finger at me. “Not another word. If you make me cry, my eyes will be all red and puffy when I walk down the aisle and that is not happening.”
I laughed. “All right, let’s get this show on the road.”
We were poised at the end of the aisle, waiting for our cue to go, when she whispered, “Thanks, Dad, for finding Mom.”
I walked Ember down the aisle and struggled to keep my emotions in check. My baby girl was a beautiful woman and an amazing person.
When we reached the altar, I turned to face her. Speaking quietly so only she could hear, I told her, “The day you showed up at the clubhouse was one of the best days of my life. Without your strength and determination, I wouldn’t have you, your mother, and your brother in my life. There are no words to express how proud I am of you. I love you, baby girl.”
I kissed her cheek and turned my eyes to Dash. Loud enough for everyone to hear, I made my obligatory fatherly threat. “Hurt my baby and I’ll cut your balls off before I kill you.” Laughter erupted from the guests while I turned and took my seat.
Once again, I struggled to control my emotions when I caught sight of Annabelle. She had spent most of the day helping Ember and the bridesmaids get ready, so I hadn’t seen her in several hours. She looked stunning in her champagne colored dress with black lace detail. And her shoes. She was killing me with the shoes. Shiny nude colored pumps with at least a five-inch heel. I sat down beside her and kissed her cheek as well as discretely nipping her ear before pulling back.
Wrapping my arm around her shoulders, she leaned into me as we watched our daughter marry the man she loved in front of her family and friends.
Once the ceremony was over and the guests were starting to head to the reception, Gram rushed to Annabelle and swept her into a huge hug. “Oh, Annabelle, my sweet girl! I was afraid I’d never see you again!”
“Mrs. Black!” Annabelle squealed and returned Gram’s fierce embrace.
“Oh, none of that. You call me Gram, just like you did years ago.” Gram let go of Annabelle and took a step back to study her. “Still as beautiful as you ever were.” She grabbed Annabelle’s wrist and started to pull her away. “Come with me, you and Phoenix are at our table. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”
“Hang on a second there, Dolores,” Pop chimed in and pulled Annabelle into a hug. “I sure am glad you’re back in these parts, sweetheart. Is this your youngest son?” he asked, nodding toward Nathan.
“Yes, sir. This is my son, Nathan Davis. Nathan, these are Phoenix’s grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Black.”
Pop shook Nathan’s hand while keeping one arm around Annabelle. “Pleased to meet you. Phoenix tells me you just signed a contract with an MMA league on the west coast. Your mom must be mighty proud of you.”
