Chapter 19

19

Mira

"What?" Edward whips his head around to look at his grandfather. Whatever he sees there has him turning to look at the conservatory. And that has him tightening his jaw. He’s gritting his teeth so hard the muscles of his jaw flex. I follow his line of sight, take in the group gathered inside, a-n-d, the breath whooshes out of me.

"We…we’re getting married, right now?" my voice comes out shaky.

"Why wait until next week, when you can tie the knot now?" G-Pa’s tone is satisfied. He glances toward us, then seems to falter. "I hope it’s okay I invited your friends and arranged for an officiant?" He waves a hand toward the be-spectacled guy I don’t recognize at the far end of the library in front of the lit fireplace.

"I assume you didn’t want a priest presiding, Edward?"

"Nice of you to take my wishes into consideration." His tone has a biting edge which cuts through me.

"You’re welcome," G-Pa says in a mild voice. "Mira, I arranged for your friend to get your wedding dress made."

"My wedding dress?" I ask faintly. What is happening? Are we getting married, right now? Given I recognize the people in the room who’re all dressed up in their finest and who’re looking at us with big smiles on their faces, I’d say my question is rhetorical. But I’m not ready. I wasn't ready for getting married in a week. And I'm absolutely not ready to get hitched within the hour. I tighten my hold on Edward’s arm. He must feel the pressure of my grasp, must sense the nervousness that, no doubt, vibrates off of me like I’m an off-balance washing machine on the spin cycle, for he places his big warm hand over mine, and it's at this point, I notice my fingers are freezing.

He lowers his head to mine, and under the pretense of pressing a kiss to my temple, whispers, "Breathe."

I try to comply, but my lungs burn. I shake my head. This must be a dream. We’re getting married. Right now. Right. Now. My guts churn. A bead of sweat slides down my back. My muscles seize up.

"Take a breath for me." His hard voice cuts through the chaos in my head.

I suck in air, and this time, oxygen rushes to my head, and I sway.

He tightens his hold on my hand. "You will not faint."

His voice is harsh and emotionless, and exactly what I need right now.

"Keep breathing," he orders.

I do as he says. Focus on my breathing. In-out-in.

"Good girl." The words are spoken in a low voice only I can hear. My toes curl, and heat courses through my belly. I blink and manage to focus on the faces of the people in the room. Summer and Sinclair, Penny and Knight, Abby and Cade, Gio and Rick—the eight of them stand clustered in a corner. The women wear expressions that range from happiness to concern.

On the other side of the room are five men I don’t recognize. Four of them wear dark suits; three of them with ties. The fifth wears jeans with a leather jacket and has his hair slicked back. All of them are broad-shouldered. The tallest of them has a scarred face which adds to the menacing air about him. He’s glaring at us, as are his brothers—they're definitely brothers. Which means, these are the half-brothers Edward mentioned. He wasn’t kidding about them hating him. The air around them might as well be painted black, thanks to the contemptuous vibes emanating from them.

A little distance from them is a very pregnant Karma with her husband Michael’s arm about her. When she catches my eyes, she walks forward. "I have your dress ready for you. I hope you don’t mind, I estimated your measurements, but I think you’ll be happy with the results." She turns to Edward. "I’d like to take her away so she can get ready. No woman likes to be caught unawares on her big day." She shoots an admonishing look at G-Pa. "You’re lucky to be getting away with this."

"Oh, pffft!" G-Pa waves his hand in the air, and the gesture is so authoritative, so much like Edward’s, I have a snapshot from the future when Eddie’s as old as him, and every bit as stern and forbidding, and only allows himself to unbend for our granddaughter.

Our granddaughter? Holy shit, we’re not yet married, and by all accounts, I’m not going to be able to bear him a child unless I go the IVF route—which, I have to admit, I’m not completely comfortable with. But I may not have much choice if I wanted a baby of my own—and my mind is totally future-casting here by imagining a future where we have grandkids.

I must make a noise because all three of them turn to me.

G-Pa surveys my features and furrows his brow. "Are you okay my dear? I hope this wasn’t too much of a surprise. I thought, since you two were getting married in a few days?—"

"In a full six days," Edward growls.

"—in less than a week, we could short-cut the process and have the ceremony today."

"Why would we want to short-cut something like this? You could have asked," Edward says in a hard voice.

"Would you have agreed?" his grandfather turns to him.

“That’s not the point.” Edward scowls, “Maybe Mira had a dream wedding planned, and you’re cheating her out of it. Besides, it’s only six days away, I don’t understand the reason for the hurry?”

G-Pa’s face falls. “I’m so inconsiderate. I only thought of myself and how much I did not want to wait a day longer. At my age, every day is the equivalent of a year, and who knows if I’m going to be around when the two of you tie the knot. I wanted to be present for my oldest grandson’s wedding.”

“You’re not in danger of dying anytime soon,” Edward says drily.

I jab my elbow in his side. “That’s not very nice.”

“I’m sorry, truly. I hadn’t thought of the fact it would deprive you of your dream wedding.” G-Pa turns to me, “We can stick to the original plan and?—”

“No, it’s okay,” I say around the ball of emotion in my throat. “It’s not like I had a vision of what I wanted my wedding to be.”

“You didn’t?” Eddie blinks.

“I didn’t.” I tip up my chin. Knowing I was going to have an arranged marriage, I was too stressed worrying about who I’d end up marrying to plan the perfect wedding ceremony in my head. Not that I’m going to say that aloud in front of G-Pa.

“Hmm.” Eddie surveys my features. “All the more reason to hold the wedding as planned in six days so you have time now to plan and?—"

“No, really, it’s fine. It doesn’t matter to me if it takes place now or six days from now.” It’s inevitable, after all, so maybe it’s best I get it over with.

He frowns. “Are you sure about this?”

“I am.” I hold his gaze.

“I apologize, my dear. In my excitement to get the two of you married, I didn’t take your feelings into consideration.” G-Pa holds out his hand. I glance at it. Then, with reluctance, release my hold on Edward and place my palm in his. G-Pa’s big gnarly hands engulf both of mine. “I did not mean to trample all over your dreams?—”

“You’re not.”

“We can move the wedding to the original date, in six days?—”

“Actually, I think it’s better to have it today. You’ve gone to the trouble of planning everything, and all of my friends are here, and I think I’d rather not spend the next few days stressing over what is to come.” Besides, I don’t have the energy to plan anything. The fact that someone else has stepped in and taken care of the arrangements is a weight off my shoulders.

G-Pa, doesn’t seem convinced.

“I mean it.” I squeeze his hand. “I’d like to get married today.”

“Don’t feel compelled to agree,” Eddie interjects.

“I’m not.” I raise my gaze to his. “Unless, of course, you'd prefer to wait another six days to get married?”

He blinks, then slowly shakes his head. “I’d prefer we get married right away.”

“It’s settled then.” I turn to G-Pa.

His eyes glisten with tears. He raises my hand to his face and kisses my fingertips. “You’re an angel. I’m aware how all of this must be a surprise for you. I thought I had five grandsons. After my wife’s death, I read a letter from her that told me about Edward. Our daughter-in-law swore her to secrecy, but my wife wanted me to do right by him. When I learned I had another grandson—my oldest—I realized a part of me always knew. I wanted to ensure he got his share of the inheritance. And when I met him, I could sense how deeply unhappy he was."

Edward makes a sound deep in his throat, but G-Pa ignores it.

"My son and his wife want nothing to do with me. I hoped they’d attend his wedding, but as you can see, they're not here."

"Neither are mine, by the looks of it," I say softly.

"I'm sorry. Your mother said it was too last-minute and too far to travel, and they had other plans. I suggested changing the time but…

"…but she declined…"

He nods sadly, then brightens. "But I'm here." G-Pa’s eyes, more grey than brown, yet so much like Edward’s, turn intense. "And I want to thank you for already changing him."

"Me?" I look at Edward, then back at his grandfather. "I’ve done nothing."

"By simply being who you are and being here, you’ve set events in motion."

"O-k-a-y?" I’m sure he’s mistaken, but I guess this is not the moment to argue with him.

"The two of you have so much in common, my dear."

"We do?" I burst out.

"No, we don’t," Edward says at the same time.

"Your stubbornness, to begin with." G-Pa smiles.

"Look who’s talking," I say lightly.

"It’s a family trait, which is why you’ll fit right in."

Tears prick my eyes. I’ve never felt this welcome before. He’s the patriarch of the family, and when Edward spoke about him, I sensed that he might be much more aloof and standoffish, but I was wrong. G-Pa, for all his faults—and I’m sure he has many—has opened his arms and his heart and made me feel at home in a way my own father hasn’t done in a very long time.

I pull my hand from his, then throw my arms about him and hug him. "Thank you," I whisper.

I sense him clearing his throat, then he pats my back. "I should be saying thank you for your agreeing to marry my grandson."

I sniffle, then lean back and look up into his face. "Actually, he should be the one saying thank you to me.

Edward growls.

G-Pa laughs.

"I assume you took care of the paperwork needed for the marriage to go ahead?" Edward cuts in.

G-Pa snorts. "The Registrar General is my golfing buddy."

All right, then.

Karma smiles, then places her hand on my shoulder. "Shall we get you dressed?"