He looks deeply into my eyes as he continues the story. “After the rescue, I looked for her. It wasn’t easy. I not only didn’t know her real name, she’d completely disappeared. The only thing I could tell the people my family and I hired was that she has one blue eye and one green eye, and a burn scar on her back, whichshe got while saving me. There was an ornamental wolf’s head in the cabin where I was being held, and it fell as Queen and I were making our escape. When she saw the head falling toward me, she pushed me out of the way and let it hit her instead.”
My mind works, and the pieces start to fall into place. My heart begins to hammer. Is he telling meI’mthe Queen he’s been looking for? It seems so unbelievable.
“I saw the scar on your back. It’s just like the one she got—the teeth from the wolf bust and the H in the center. For the Huxleys.”
“H? It isn’t an I?”
He snorts. “Who told you that? Haven’t you seen the scar yourself?”
I shake my head. “Not really. Only Doris and a couple of sitters I had saw it clearly. They all told me it was hideous and I should hide it from everyone to avoid disgusting them.”
Fury and revulsion burn in his gaze as he curls his lip in derision. “Well nowI’veseen it, and they lied to you. It isn’t hideous. It’s a physical manifestation of your bravery and character. Even as a small child you couldn’t ignore a person who was suffering. You were willing to risk your life to save someone else. That’s not shameful, it’s admirable.” He rests his forehead on mine. “Queen.”
I let out a soft sigh. The nickname runs over me like a sweet elixir.
“Lareina, I don’t want to get divorced. I want to be in your life, always. Even before I knew you were Queen, I wanted to be with you.”
The revelation both surprises me and warms my heart. Perhaps he subconsciously knew when he saw me in Vegas that I was his Queen. After all, while he was high on Harvey’s drugs, he called me Queen and promised to be my knight.
My heart near bursting with joy and love, I smile. “Ares, I was already going to stay with you until you get promoted, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
He places a finger over my lips. “I don’t want you to stay with me for my career. Not because of some deal we made. I want you to be with me because youwantto.” A rueful smile crosses his stunning face. “I lied about the firm making a mistake about my promotion. They didn’t. I told them I didn’t want it—”
“Youwhat?”
“—because I wanted a reason to tie you down. But then while you were lying here in the hospital bed, I realize that that would make me no better than your aunt. You should never be lied to or manipulated for someone else’s gain—not even mine. I want you tochooseto be with me. I want you tochoose us.” Holding my hand, Ares drops to one knee. “Lareina, my Queen, will you let me stay by your side, love you, cherish you and protect you as long as I live?”
Holding the fathomless blue eyes that shine with infinite love for me, I cradle his beloved face and kiss him. “Yes.”
Chapter Forty-Six
Lareina
A cloudless blue sky stretches over a verdant field full of flowers and the scent of fermenting grapes and grass. This is Ares’s and my second ceremony. It’s only fair to have our friends and family witness our renewed commitment to each other.
Ares is so handsome in a black-and-white tux. The formal wear fits his broad shoulders and thickly muscled body perfectly.My knight in satin armor.
I’m wearing a white backless dress. I’ve never worn anything like it before, but it seems fitting. After all, the scar doesn’t make me ugly. Ares is right. It’s a physical sign of my bravery back then. And honestly, I think it marked me ashis, just as the scar he got from the same fire marks him asmine.
Ares’s family beams with approval. Prescott slips Jeremiah five hundred dollars. He apparently wagered that “Queen” wasn’t real, and Jeremiah said she was. Jeremiah’s smile is extra wide. The woman loves to win. But Prescott doesn’t seem too upset as he sits with a hand swiping over eyes that are glistening with tears.
My friends Lucie and Yuna join us, along with Catherine Fairchild, who’s decided to champion my career. Even Barron Sterling shows up with his girlfriend Stella Lloyd, which causes quite a stir. Apparently, the elderly billionaire art connoisseur is capricious, private and autocratic. But he gives a great hug.
When the singer sings Sinatra’s “Love Is Here to Stay,” Ares and I have our first dance. Our lives are only going to get better.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Bryce
Ares dips Lareina to the Sinatra tune. A huge grin splits his face, and the old guilt inside me eases a tad.
I haven’t seen my brother this happy since the kidnapping incident. If he’d tried to drown himself in women or booze, I would’ve understood, but he’s led an ascetic, almost monk-like life, focusing on his career and not much else.
My phone pings. I look down. A photo from an unknown number. It’s Fiona, in a bride’s gown. There’s another ping—and a photo of a guy who I presume is the groom. Suddenly I stop cold and stare at the screen.What the fuck?
The smarmy face of Jude Morven stares back at me. I wanted to break it in high school and college, and I still want to break it.
–Unknown: Perfect groom for the perfect bride.
