Chapter 266


    I smooth my hands down my ivory wedding dress. It’s ssy elegance and understated top is lined with


    a simple sleeveless fitted bodice and tiny pearl detailing. It has a full wispy floating skirt, andyers and


    layers of chiffon puffing out to a full-length cloud of loveliness. It’s a fairy-tale princess dress and


    matches beautifully with the elegant engagement ring twinkling on my hand, sparkling in all its shining


    glory.


    I admire my wless natural make-up in the mirror, touching up my nude lipstick. My tawny hair is wild


    and curled in its loose romantic style, tiny tendrils hang around my face and I appraise my reflection


    with pride.


    I look beautiful! I feel beautiful and serene. There is no fear whatsoever.


    I look like a woman hopelessly in love, about to marry the man of her dreams.


    Belongs to (N)?vel/Drama.Org.


    I am that woman.


    I slide on my satin ivory stilettos that almost mirror the shoes I used to adore so much. It feels weird to


    be back in heels after so long and I turn around, hearing movement from the room behind me, alerting


    me to tropical blue


    eyes catching mine in the reflection as I straighten up.


    “Oh, my God, Ems … God, you look stunning,” Sarah holds back a tear, touching her eyes with a tissue


    and waving her hands to save her mascara from running, as I watch


    her in the mirror behind me. She’s wearing her fitted


    aqua bridesmaid dress and her messy blonde short hair is pinned up in a loose half up style like mine


    and I’m ovee with a huge surge of love. Her bright blue eyes are heavy with emotion as she’s


    watches me intensely in a way that has my heart lifting with excitement.


    “It’s happening, Sarah.” I smile widely, a tremor of passion rippling through me. My nerves are tingling,


    my stomach is fluttering, and my knees are turning to mush. I spin around lifting my delicate veil and let


    my eyes skim that wless silhouette in the mirror, t stomach once more and a body that looks like it


    never changed. I’ hit with that familiar tug of emptiness at no longer feeling her life growing within me.


    The vacuum of emptiness inside never leaves me, but I smile to myself, weakly, and push it down,


    lifting my chin defiantly, looking like old PA Emma, yet so different in so many ways. This is my happy


    day; no tears unless they are ones of joy. I remind myself that I’m not going to cloud this day with


    running make-up and emotional breakdowns unless they’re rted to taking my vows.


    “Oh, my God, Emma.” Le bursts into tears when she sees me, sliding into the room behind Sarah.


    They only left me for a few minutes, so I could step into my dress, yet they’re acting like this is the first


    time they’ve seen it too, even though they’re the ones who helped me choose it.


    It took me endless shopping trips to find the perfect one and constant boring fittings with selfies that


    Le just had to litter over Instagram. I banned Jake from using any social media the entire time we


    were nning the big day, for fear of trending posts giving away ideas of which shops I was heading


    into and people snapping sneaky photos of me trying on gowns in shops. Le saw them, on more than


    one asion and promptly chased them off, but still, pictures would still find themselves all over the


    social media sites. The world still loves their Carrero hotty after all and his hashtag on anything


    wedding rted seemed to top the bill on a weekly basis.


    “You’re ruining your make-up.” I chide Le softly, but she shakes her head and smiles back through a


    wave of tears. Her eyeliner is already making a quick exit down her face.


    “Daniel likes me looking like a train wreck nowadays … Will just turn him on seeing me with mascara


    down my chin yet again.” She sniffs, and Sarah starts fussing with the hankies, cleaning Le’s face up


    in a desperate attempt to salvage her perfected make-up. Le is so hopelessly cute when she cries,


    and I agree with her on the Daniel point. The boy clucks around her like a mother hen anytime she


    burst into tears. Daniel is turning as hopeless as Jake nowadays and never far from hisdy’s side;


    gone is the Hunter of old who partied and messed around with women galore. Le is his world.


    “I think the fact that you’ve done nothing but cry non-stop since he got you pregnant means he has no


    choice but to love that train wreck … Invest in waterproof mascara.” Sarah chides, and I watch as Le


    runs a hand over her bulging bump. I am hit with another hint of rising tears and a small tug of envy.


    Her growing bump is twins, much to Daniel’s shock when they found out she was even carrying. That


    day I really thought we needed an ambnce for him since he literally passed out in the doctor’s office.


    I run my hand over my own t stomach automatically with an internal sharp pain to my heart, the


    familiar wave of emotion I get every time I realize there’s nothing there anymore. I was warned that it


    would take a long time for the feeling of emptiness to go away, and maybe not until I try for another


    child, but even the thought of having another baby brings fresh tears to my eyes. The hormones are


    still messing with me even now. There is gut-wrenching heartache at the emptiness of my body, so I try


    to push it aside mentally with a deep inhale, slowly letting it back out.


    “Guess I’ll have to marry him now then, huh?” Le


    dabs her face with Sarah’s tissue and sniffs a little to reel in her tears. “He’s asked enough times and


    I’m really only saying no because I’m such a fucking mess all the time. Why would he want this?” Le


    sighs back her tears again and tries to limit the damage to her face with apact, squinting at it


    disapprovingly then dabbing manically over the streaky areas in a bid to fix it. I predict it will happen


    many more times today.


    “You’re asking me?” I look at her with a knowing expression; one that says you do remember the crazy


    mess I’ve been this past year?


    My recovery from a head fracture and small brain bruise was arge ordeal and included a very long


    and messy recovery. I had a lot of counseling to deal with my past as well as the emotional aftereffects


    of what Vanquis did to me. Recovery involved rehabilitation to get past some of the brain damage I


    incurred from the incident, such as impaired bnce, bouts of severe low mood, and awful headaches


    for months on end. My crying and psychotic behavior consumed me thesest few months and really


    tested everyone’s love around me. It has been a very trying period in my life and Jake has been my


    absolute rock throughout, the perfect fiancée with the patience of a saint.


    Now I’m throwing myself into my new path and studying to be a counselor for abused children


    within Sylvana’s charity. I want to be a beacon of hope and a hand to guide children to a better life. I


    want to do for the Sophies” of the world what Jake did for me. It was hard to study and go to sses,


    still seeing my therapist weekly to keep on top of everything while aiming for a new future. Jake


    supported me in everything and finally let some of his domineering side rx.


    “Well, Le, you’d better hurry up because my wedding is in a month and you’ll be the only single one


    of our trio.” Sarah has given up on salvaging Le’s make-up, and instead hands her a wet wipe. It’s a


    safe bet to say Le has looked better but it’s no surprise that her cute face can pull off the smudgy


    look any day of the week.


    I gaze at Sarah’s wless happy face and smile at the radiance I see reflected at me. Marcus surprised


    everyone by proposing to Sarah, rather publicly, at her birthday bash which Jake organized for me, as


    a thank you to Sarah for being my friend. The proposal was beautiful, and I admit that Marcus really is


    right for her. Sarah was bowled over, not only by my public appreciation of ‘the girl who loved me when


    no one else did and persevered anyway’ but the sheer spontaneity of Marcus’s proposal. She didn’t


    see iting at all, none of us did, except maybe Jake. I’m sure Marcus had a few whispered


    conversations with Jake to organize the whole thing.


    “Okay!” Sarah turns to me and takes a deep breath. “Ready?” She holds out an arm to me, bossily,


    being the only one who seems to be organizing things today and I tilt my head with ast final breath. I


    don’t feel any of the nerves or inner doubts I’d been expecting to sweep over me when this moment


    arrived. Instead I just feel impatient at knowing he’s out there waiting, picturing those devastating green


    eyes smiling back at me and his unbelievably kissable mouth.


    “Feels like I’ve been waiting for this for an eternity.” I smile and allow my best friends to guide me from


    the room, one on each arm, out into the hallway, they pick up my dress to avoid catching it on the door.


    We make our way down the hall and I’m met with the almost unemotional face of Giovanni Carrero. He


    extends an arm to me with a smile and a nod, his eyes appraising my dress and I slide my own into his.


    He smiles wider and brighter, inclining his head approvingly. This is about as far as the man ever gets


    with any real show of emotion, but I get it. I know him better nowadays and I smile, sighing with


    indulgence at the father-inw who is sopletely loveable. It has taken some time to figure out this


    rogue enigma, but I’m sure I have some understanding of him now, after all we’re simr kinds of


    people. The type to be more reserved in affection than Jake and Sylvana and subtle in how we show it


    to those who don’t know us well.


    “Ready to walk me down the aisle and present me to your son?” I nudge him gently, a little affectionate


    grin on my face and that huge warmth runs through me when I see a little softening of his stern focus.


    The subtle tells that underneath the cool Giovanni exterior beats a warm and loving heart.


    “Of, course. I can imagine nothing more I’d rather be doing today.” He winks, smugness appearing on


    his face and I shake my head at him. He reminds me so much of Jake at times, but I know neither


    would ever admit to it.


    “d you feel that way.” I lean up and nt an impromptu kiss on his cheek, with absolutely no qualms


    about bestowing loving affection on my family members, even the males. From the corner of my eye I


    catch


    his eyebrow twitch, much like Arrick’s, showing a betrayal of t emotion. My happy heart is too full of


    warmth and


    excited energy today and it must be rubbing off on him.


    “Well, I didn’t go to the bother of losing an assistant and sending her back to my son on a whim.” He


    winks at me, surprisingly, because he’s not a winker … and that’s twice now, but I’m bbergasted


    more because of what he said.


    “What?” I blink up at him nonplussed, suddenly, thinking I maybe misheard him and can’t quite


    compute what he’s saying. I blink at him while gripping his arm tightly and look confused.