Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 132332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 662(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 441(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132332 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 662(@200wpm)___ 529(@250wpm)___ 441(@300wpm)
Blake’s gaze lands on Carter. “Looks good.”
“You were in on it too, Murphy?” Carter asks.
“Yeah.” He slaps Carter’s shoulders. “We’ve got your back.”
“Thanks.”
Heidi wanders into the kitchen from the direction of the living room, carrying baby Bit-bit.
“Have you been here the whole time?” I ask.
“I wanted her to nap now,” she whispers. “But maybe I should’ve waited. I don’t want her to cry during the ceremony.”
“It’ll be fine,” I assure her.
Grinder and Dex join us next. Z follows with his son, who hangs back until Wrath sets the girls down.
Rav pokes his head in the door. “Is this the nursery?”
“Yeah, jackass,” Rock says.
“Come in, it’s not contagious.” I wave him closer. “I swear.”
“Don’t worry, you’re not in danger of impregnating anyone with that attitude,” Dex adds, cracking everyone but Rav up.
“Awful lot of kidlets here now,” Rav says.
“Yes.” Rock gives him a pointed look. “There are.”
Rav leans down and ruffles Chance’s head. “At least you won’t be outnumbered for long, little man.”
Grinder crosses his arms over his chest and leans back on the counter. “Your math off? Serena and I are only having one.” He nods to Alexa and Grace, then points to Heidi holding Bit-bit.
Rav actually does the math on his fingers, then looks at me. “Wait, what are you having? Do you know?”
“A boy and a girl.”
“Lord.” Ravage raises his eyes to the ceiling.
“You want a calculator, bro?” Dex asks.
Rav wags his finger in Wrath’s face. “You and Trin better be sticking to your no-baby pact.”
Wrath slaps Rav’s hand away. “Or what?”
Z glances at the door. “Where’s Sparky when we need him to explain the balancing of harmonies to us?”
“He and Stash volunteered to meet people at the end of the driveway and escort them in,” I say.
“Seriously?” Wrath raises one blond eyebrow. “You realize Sparky will hand out pot brownies to all your guests, right?”
I glance at Rock and shrug. “Wouldn’t be a wedding without ’em, I guess.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
Charlotte
“This is it.” Hope squeezes my hands. “How do you feel?”
“Nauseous. Excited.”
“Perfect.”
Someone knocks on the door.
Mercy hurries to answer it.
“I’m here for the bride.” Rock’s rumbling voice somehow calms my nerves.
“That means I need to get downstairs,” Mercy says. She kisses my cheek. “I’ll see you in a few.”
“Thanks.”
“I need to get Grace down there, too,” Hope says.
“I’ve got her,” Shelby offers, holding her hand out for Grace.
Grace eagerly runs to Shelby, smiling wide.
“Aw,” I sigh.
“Thanks, Shelby.”
“No problem.”
Rock curls his arm around Hope’s waist, kissing her cheek and murmuring a few words in her ear. Then he sweeps his gaze over Lilly, Serena, and me.
“Lilly, Z’s in the kitchen waiting for you.”
“Let’s get this party started, Charlotte.” Lilly claps her hands.
“Serena, Gray’s waiting for you at the bottom of the stairs.”
She struggles to push herself off the bed and Rock hurries to help her up.
“I got you.” Lilly grips Serena’s arm and guides her out.
Rock focuses on me. “How do you feel?”
“Eager to see Marcel. How’s he doing?”
His mouth curls up at the corners. “Same as you.” He takes both of my hands in his. “You’ve both overcome a lot of obstacles in life. And I’m so happy you found each other to face the rest of what life throws at us, together.”
“Thank you,” I whisper.
“There’s no one else who’s more perfect for…my son. And I’m proud to have you as my daughter, Charlotte. You can always come to me for anything you need. No matter what.”
Rock’s words touch me deeply. I’d never felt the same level of love or acceptance from my own parents. Hot wetness stings my eyes and I open them wide, hoping to dry any tears before they fall. “I know you had doubts about me in the beginning, so that means a lot to me.”
“I don’t have any doubts about you now.” He hugs me tight, then offers me his arm. “Ready?”
“Yes.”
Hope gives me a quick hug and I have a twinge of guilt for not asking her to be a bridesmaid after all.
“Trinity wants to get some pictures,” she says.
Rock is surprisingly patient with the mini-photo shoot.
Hope hurries out of the room and Trinity follows her, running ahead to grab photos of us coming down the stairs.
Outside, I’m grateful for the cool air that coasts over my skin. Big, fluffy white clouds float against a perfectly blue sky. The long sweeping branches and lush leaves of the huge weeping willow tree at the back of the property have been shaped into a canopy. Clusters of sunflowers and red roses designate the arch where we’ll exchange our vows. Once the sun goes down, the entire back yard will be lit with thousands of tiny yellow lights, strung through the trees and swaths of gauzy white fabric Marcel had painstakingly woven through the trees over the last couple of days.
It’s beautiful.
Neat rows of simple white folding chairs had been set up for our guests. But everyone stands and faces us as we approach. My gaze pings through the crowd, landing on members from our downstate New York, Everhart Virginia, and Deadbranch Tennessee charters. My steps falter as I recognize the National president and his wife. No good comes from Priest visiting New York. Rock squeezes my arm and keeps us moving. More familiar faces. Members of the Devil Demons MC from Western New York. The president’s wife, Mallory, flashes a big smile as we pass her. The members who will form a support club for the Lost Kings take up one row to themselves. Remy nods at me as we pass. His little sister, Molly, wiggles her fingers at me and I can’t help smiling back. Hope and her friend Mara are seated up front. Lilly and Z sit next to an empty chair on Hope’s left. Shelby and Rooster sit in the space directly behind them. Shelby ended up with Grace sitting on her lap, while Lilly’s cradling baby Bit-bit in her arms. Wrath warned me earlier that the tiny chairs “wouldn’t hold his big ass” so he’s standing at the end of the first row, looking very much like a bouncer at an exclusive nightclub with his arms folded over his chest and his serious gaze sweeping over our guests. He catches my eye and nods, one corner of his mouth turning up. Grinder’s standing in a similar position opposite from Wrath. Is his excuse related to comfort? Or were the two enforcers concerned about having a mix of bikers and civilians in one place?