Chapter 38
HALLIE
The champagne bubbles fizzed pleasantly in my bloodstream as the limo pulled up to my family’s beach house. Through the tinted windows, I could see lights twinkling everywhere. More lights than should have been possible on this old, worn-down house.
“Oh my god,” I breathed.
My mother leaned over me to look out the window. “What did he do?” Her question was full of wonder.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I have no idea what my future husband has gotten up to.”
“I do,” Hallie said with a bright smile. “He’s giving you a fairytale wedding.”
“I’m so jealous!” April exclaimed.
The driver opened the door. I stepped out into the cold February afternoon, my mother and best friends right behind me. We were all bundled in heavy coats over our various states of wedding-day preparation, our hair and makeup already done but our regular clothes still on.
I looked up at the house, and tears immediately blurred my vision. It was magical.
Lights were strung everywhere. Wrapped around the porch railings, hanging from the eaves, creating a canopy of warmth and sparkle against the gray winter sky. And beyond the house, I could see the edges of what looked like glass structures extending toward the beach.
“What did he do?” I whispered my mother’s exact question.
“Made your dreams come true,” April said, squeezing my arm. “Come on. We have to get you upstairs before you see the ceremony space. Colt’s orders.”
I so wanted to go out back and see what he did, but I also didn’t want to ruin his surprise. Since we got back to Manhattan, he’d been on the phone around the clock putting everything together. I barely saw him the past two days.
We rushed inside through the side entrance, and I was immediately ushered up the narrow staircase to the second floor. My mother led the way to the master bedroom, my parents’ old room, and when she opened the door, I gasped.
My wedding dress hung on the closet door, catching the light from the window. Not the elaborate gown from before, but the one I’d picked out two days ago with Colt in a frantic shopping trip to the city. Simple, elegant, perfect.
Frankie had sent over some options from designers that could get a dress ready for me within forty-eight hours. I thought about wearing the original gown, but it felt wrong. Cursed. I didn’t pick it out and it was just so much. So not me.
Frankie agreed. Thankfully, she wasn’t angry with me, but I did want to talk with her when we got the chance.
Just me and her. She was going to be my sister.
I didn’t want any hard feelings. I owed her an apology.
I wanted to make sure she understood I would love her brother with my whole heart and I’d stab anyone that dared hurt him. I would never betray him. Ever.
“Time to get you dressed,” Mom said, her voice thick with emotion.
She’d been weepy all day. I knew this was hard for her. My father should be here. He should get to see me in my wedding gown. Meeting my husband. Sharing in the joy with us.
The next hour was a blur of laughter and tears and champagne.
Hallie and April helped me into my dress, their hands gentle as they fastened the dozens of tiny buttons up my back.
Mom fussed with my hair, making sure every strand was perfect.
They all stood back when I was finally ready. I saw their reactions in real time.
“Holy shit,” Hallie said.
“Language,” my mother chided, but she was crying.
“You look like a princess,” April whispered.
I turned to look at myself in the mirror and hardly recognized the woman staring back. The dress hugged my curves in all the right ways. My hair fell in loose waves around my shoulders. My makeup was natural but glowing.
I looked happy. I looked like me. Not the person I was pretending to be to make the people scrutinizing Colt believe we were the real thing. I didn’t have to act or pretend. I was finally allowed to be the basic bitch I was at heart.
That’s who Colt loved.
“So,” Hallie said with a mischievous grin. “Now that you’re marrying a billionaire, what’s on the Christmas gift list for next year?”
I laughed, the sound bright and genuine. “Oh god, what do you want?”
“A car,” Hallie said immediately.
“A vacation,” April added. “Somewhere tropical.”
“Girls!” Mom shook her head, but she was smiling. “Don’t start already.”
“I’m kidding,” Hallie said. “Mostly. But seriously, Hallie, we’re so happy for you.”
“You deserve this,” April agreed. “All of it. The love, the happiness, the billionaire husband who chartered a jet to come grovel at your feet.”
“He didn’t grovel,” I protested. “I groveled. I wronged him.”
“He absolutely groveled,” Hallie countered. “And it was beautiful.”
“I’m in good hands,” I promised, looking at each of them in turn. “And I can’t wait to spoil you. All of you.”
A knock on the door interrupted us, and Frankie poked her head in.
“Hi,” she said tentatively. “Can I steal Hallie for a minute?”
My stomach dropped. We hadn’t really talked since that day in Colt’s lobby. Since she’d called me a heartless bitch and left me standing there in ruins. We texted but that was it.
“Of course,” Mom said, reading the room. “We’ll wait here.”
I followed Frankie out into the hallway, my heart pounding. She led me toward my old bedroom, the small one at the end of the hall that had been mine when I was a kid.
But halfway there, she stopped.
“Hallie.” She took a deep breath. “I need to apologize. For what I said to you. How I said it. You didn’t deserve that.”
“Frankie, no.”
“Let me finish.” She held up a hand. “I was protecting my brother. He’s been through so much, and I couldn’t stand the thought of him getting hurt again. But I shouldn’t have attacked you like that. Shouldn’t have said those things.”
“You were right to be angry,” I said quietly. “I lied. I hurt him. I deserved—”
“No.” Frankie shook her head firmly. “You made a mistake. A big one. But you owned it. You showed up when Colt needed you. You didn’t run away when things got hard. Well, you ran to the Hamptons.”
Despite everything, I laughed. “I did run to the Hamptons.”
“But you didn’t run away emotionally. And Colt flew out to you because he couldn’t be apart from you.
” Frankie smiled. “That’s when I knew. When he told me about that phone call, about how you stayed on the line with him, how you listened and didn’t judge.
That’s when I realized you actually love him. ”
“I do,” I whispered. “So much.”
“I know. And I’m sorry for doubting you. For not giving you a chance to explain.” She stepped forward and pulled me into a hug. “Can we start over? Do-over?”
I hugged her back, tears threatening to destroy my makeup that the makeup artist promised would stay put even if I decided to go for a dip in the ocean. “Yes. Please.”
When we pulled apart, we were both crying and laughing.
“Don’t mess up your makeup,” Frankie said, wiping at her own eyes. “Colt will kill me if I make his bride cry before the ceremony.”
“Too late.”
“Come on.” She took my hand. “He wants to see you. A first look, just the two of you.”
“But my gown.”
“Hold on.” She stepped into the bathroom and returned, holding out my robe. “Put this on. I think it should keep you from triggering any bad luck.”
I laughed and managed to get it over my dress. She tied the belt. “Good enough.”
She led me to my old bedroom, and when she opened the door, I gasped for the second time in an hour.
The room shimmered. Crystals hung from the ceiling, catching the light and throwing rainbows everywhere. Candles flickered on every surface, creating a warm, intimate glow.
“I’ll send him in,” Frankie said, squeezing my hand once before leaving.
I stood in the center of the room, turning slowly to take it all in. This was where I’d spent so many summers as a kid. Where I’d dreamed about my future. Where I’d cried over boys and worried about college and planned out my whole life.
I never could have imagined this.
The door opened, and Colt stepped in.
I turned to face him, and the world stopped.
He wore a perfectly tailored tux, showing off his broad shoulders and chest. His hair was styled, his face freshly shaved, and those hazel eyes I loved so much locked on me with an intensity that made me shiver.
“Hallie,” he breathed.
“Hi.”
We stood there, just looking at each other. No cameras. No guests. No performance. Just us.
“You’re beautiful,” he said, moving closer. “The most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.” My voice came out shaky. “You clean up nice.”
“I had motivation.” He stopped right in front of me, close enough to touch but not quite touching. “I wanted to look good for my wife.”
“Not your wife yet.”
“Soon.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small box. “But first, I have something for you.”
My breath caught. “Colt, what’s this?”
“The ring you’ve been wearing is fake. A cubic zirconia.”
My mouth dropped open. “What? Really?”
He nodded. “I’m a dick. I didn’t want to risk a fake fiancée walking around with a three-hundred-thousand-dollar ring on.”
I smiled. “Well, when you put it that way, it’s difficult to be offended. I wish I would have known it was fake, though. It would have saved me a lot of stress. I was so worried I would damage it or lose the damn thing.”
He opened the box, and I saw a diamond that took my breath away. “This one is real. Just like us.”
The ring was the design I’d seen in his study. The oval diamond in that unusual floating setting, with delicate metalwork that caught the light perfectly. It was stunning.
“You made this?” I whispered.
“I designed it and had it made.” He took my left hand gently. “I started it weeks ago, before I even knew this was real. Something in me wanted to create something beautiful for you. Something one of a kind. Like you.”
He slid the ring onto my finger. Unlike the fake one, it fit perfectly.
I stared at it, tears blurring my vision. “It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“It’s yours. You’re mine. I’m yours.” He cupped my face. “And in about twenty minutes, I’m going to make it official.”
I tilted my face up toward his, our lips inches apart.
“Hallie,” he warned. “If you kiss me now, I won’t be able to stop.”
“Then we should save it for the altar.”
“Yeah.” But neither of us moved. “We should.”
Finally, with what looked like physical effort, he stepped back. “Your mom is waiting to walk you down,” he said. “I’ll see you out there.”
“Colt?”
He paused at the door.
“I love you.”
His smile was brilliant. “I love you too, Hallie. More than I ever thought possible.”
He left, and I stood there in my childhood bedroom, staring at the ring on my finger, feeling like the luckiest woman in the world.
I floated back to the master bedroom.
“Ready, sweetheart?” Mom asked when I stepped back into the room.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’m ready.”
She linked her arm through mine, and we made our way downstairs. Hallie and April were waiting at the bottom, ready to follow us out.
“You look perfect,” April whispered.
“Go get your billionaire,” Hallie added with a wink.
Mom led me toward the back of the house. I could hear music playing. Classical and beautiful and perfect.
We stopped at a doorway, and Mom turned to me.
“Your father would be so proud,” she said, her voice breaking. “So proud of the woman you’ve become. Of the love you’ve found.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
“Ready?”
I took a deep breath, my heart full to bursting. “Ready.”
We stepped through the doorway, and I saw it.
My wedding. My real wedding. And at the end of the aisle, waiting for me with love shining in his eyes, was Colt.
My future.
My forever.
My home.
I smiled through happy tears and took the first step toward the rest of my life.