A knock at the door made us both turn.
"Come in," I called.
The door opened to reveal Gianna in a stunning burgundy gown, her hair in perfect waves, looking every inch the society princess she was.
"Oh my god," she breathed. "Angelina. You look fantastic" Her eyes filled with tears. "Damn it, I promised myself I wouldn't cry before the ceremony."
"Too late," Maya said, already dabbing at her own eyes.
Gianna crossed to me, taking my hands. "My brother is the luckiest man in the world. I hope he knows that."
"I think I'm the lucky one," I said quietly.
"You both are, but don’t tell him I said that." She squeezed my hands. "The cars are here. It's time. But Dez has a surprise for you." She stepped back into the hall and waved for someone to step inside.
My heart stopped.
Because walking through that door, all dressed in matching burgundy gowns with their makeup done and hair styled to perfection, were four women I never thought I'd see today. Charmaine, tall and lithe with deep mahogany skin and locs styled in an elegant updo that must have taken hours. Lisa, light brown skin glowing, her natural curls framed perfectly around her face in a twist-out that looked like art. Imani, medium brown skin, short natural hair sleek and sophisticated, wearing the most gorgeous smile I'd ever seen on her. Karla, rich dark skin, the shortest of us all, practically bouncing with excitement in her heels.
"Surprise," they said in unison.
I couldn't breathe or speak . I could only stare at my girls, my sisters, standing there looking absolutely stunning.
"How…" My voice broke. "How are you here?"
"Your husband is very persuasive," Charmaine said, stepping forward. "And also very thorough about making sure we'd be safe."
"He called each of us personally," Lisa added. "Explained everything. About your uncle, about why you'd cut us off, about the protection he could offer if we agreed to be here."
"He assigned security to each of us," Imani said. "Has had people watching us for the past month to make sure we were safe. And then he very politely asked if we'd be willing to surprise you by being in your wedding."
"He even paid for our dresses," Karla said, doing a little spin. "Custom made to match Maya’s."
How did they know Maya? I looked at Maya, who was grinning through her tears.
"I helped with the planning," she admitted. "But this was all Dez. He wanted you to have your people here. All of them."
My legs gave out. Charmaine and Lisa caught me, guiding me to sit on the edge of the bed before I fell.
"I can't believe…" I looked up at them, tears streaming down my face. "I pushed you all away. I disappeared for six months. And you just came?"
"Of course we came," Imani said, kneeling in front of me. "You're our sister, Angie. You think we wouldn’t understand why you had to protect us? You think we wouldn't move heaven and earth to be here for your wedding?"
"But my uncle?—"
"Is going to have a very bad day if he tries anything," Karla said cheerfully. "Because apparently we each have extremely competent and surprisingly attractive bodyguards who take their jobs very seriously."
"Plus," Charmaine added, "we're bridesmaids in a Moretti wedding now. I'm pretty sure that comes with some kind of diplomatic immunity."
I laughed through my tears, and suddenly they were all hugging me. Maya joined the pile, and we were crying and laughing and ruining our makeup together.
"Okay, okay, break it up," Violet called out, armed with makeup wipes and touch-up supplies. "We have six crying women and thirty minutes until showtime. Let's move, people!"
We separated, still sniffling, while Violet went into emergency repair mode with Gianna’s help.
"How did he convince you?" I asked, needing to know. "Really. What did Dez say?"
Charmaine smiled. "He said, 'My wife thinks she has to face everything alone. I want to show her she doesn't. Will you help me prove it?'"
