He took her back to their apartment.
Phoebe watched him carefully. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“Other than hacked off? Yeah. I’m good.” Urian turned toward her. “What about you?”
“I have a headache, but other than that, I’m fine.”
A headache … that didn’t bode well. Urian tried not to let Davyn’s words infect his mind and panic him. Phoebe was fine.
She was. She wasn’t going trelos. His father wasn’t going nuts and he wasn’t playing with fire.
Everything would be fine.
Yeah, he didn’t believe it either.
March 19, 2004
Since Urian was supposed to be the sponsor for this godforsaken event, he opened the door to collect his sister-in-law. At the request of his wife and Cassandra, he’d worn his long blond hair down around his shoulders and he was dressed in an elegant black silk tuxedo. He didn’t know what it was about women that they liked his hair down, but … whatever.
If it made Phoebe happy and got him laid, he’d oblige her.
“Are you ready?” he asked Cassandra.
Standing in the bedroom, she was dressed in her wedding gown, with her long strawberry-blond hair down around her shoulders. She wore a silver crown intertwined with fresh flowers.
She fidgeted with her hem. “Is Wulf ready?”
He nodded. “He and Chris are waiting for you in the main complex.”
Kat handed her the single white rose that was wrapped with red and white ribbons.
Cassandra took the rose.
Phoebe and Kat took their places in front and led the way. Urian came into the room to offer Cassandra his arm so that they could walk behind them.
For some odd reason, Cass had wanted the wedding outside, but after much laughter and refusal, they’d finally rented the open merchant area. Shanus and several council members had gone out of their way to bring hydroponic plants and flowers to simulate a garden center. They’d even constructed a small fountain.
Cassandra hesitated as they entered the complex. Urian arched a brow at that. Given how pregnant she was, he hoped she wasn’t getting cold feet.
“I’ll take it from here.”
Urian inclined his head to his father-in-law, whom he had yet to meet, but Phoebe had warned him he’d be here for the event.
Cassandra gasped. “Daddy?”
“You didn’t really think I’d miss my baby getting married, did you?”
“But how?”
He indicated Wulf with a nod. “Wulf came to the house last night and brought me here. He said it wouldn’t be a wedding for you unless I came, and he told me about Phoebe. I spent last night in her apartment with her so that we could catch up and then surprise you.” His eyes teared up as he stared at her stomach. “You look beautiful, baby.”
She threw herself into his arms, or at least as close to that as she could given her distended belly, and held him tight. “Should we call the wedding off before you drown us in tears?” Kat asked.
“No!” Cassandra pulled herself together with a sniff. “I’m fine. Really.”
Her father kissed her cheek, tucked her hand into the crook of his arm, and led her to Wulf. Kat and Phoebe moved to stand behind Chris while Urian took his place by Phoebe’s side. The only other person present was Shanus, who stood back but watched them with a friendly expression that said he was more than happy to bear witness to the event.
Urian kissed Phoebe’s hand as he remembered marrying her, and he hated that she hadn’t had her father present for their wedding. To her credit she didn’t say a word about it as her father wrapped the ribbons around Cassandra’s and Wulf’s hands.
