Chapter 43
HARRISON
It was Christmas Eve, but I wasn’t in the holiday spirit.
Not even close.
My house on the estate was a blur of twinkling lights and pine garland, the whole place transformed into a classy, festive dream, but I felt like I was moving through it with cinder blocks tied to my feet. My heart was heavy, my stomach hollow.
It had been almost forty-eight hours without a word from Aurelia and the silence was deafening. I was here. I’d come. I would be waiting just like I’d promised her I would, but honestly, I was entirely unconvinced she would show up.
As much as I knew she loved me, as much as I knew that she’d called it off against her will, and as much as I knew she wanted me—this, us—I also knew duty. I knew family when they had names like ours and I knew the harsh, constant pressure of carrying forward the legacy.
When her mother had made her choose between us and them, she’d chosen a very traditional route of manipulation, but it was a classic for a very good reason—it worked. Kids like Aurelia and I were raised to believe in family, duty, and legacy above all else.
We were made aware of the expectations our parents had for us before we could even spell the word expectation and that sense of obligation was bred into us. If my parents had given me the same ultimatum, I probably would have made the same choice. Or at least, I would have considered it.
That didn’t mean it didn’t suck, though.
The first guests began to arrive, laughter and chatter spilling into the grand entryway. Callum, Maisie, and Brody were among the first, and I managed a weak smile as I greeted them. “Hey, guys. Thank you for coming.”
Brody darted past me, wide eyed at the decorations, while Callum gave me the kind of pat on the back that was meant to say I’m here for you without actually putting it into words.
I frowned at him, wondering what that was all about, but Maisie hung back.
Her eyes lingered on me, her gaze sharper than usual.
She hooked a hand around my arm and tugged me aside.
“Are you ready?” she asked in a low voice.
“Ready for what?” I muttered, deadpan. “A lobotomy? Because that’s all I want right now.”
Her lips quirked into a soft, understanding smile, but she shook her head. “For the wedding, silly. Are you ready to get married?”
My brain short-circuited. I stared at her, sure I’d misheard. “The what?”
Maisie crossed her arms, very obviously enjoying my stunned expression. “Don’t play dumb, Harrison. You know exactly what I’m talking about.”
“I don’t—” My throat tightened, but clearly, Maisie knew exactly what today was supposed to have been and I sure as fuck hadn’t told anyone, which only left Aurelia.
She told them? But that means…
Something was up.
Before I could process Maisie’s smug little smile, the door opened again. Sterling walked in with Laney at his side, Claire bundled against her chest. Laney’s eyes found mine, knowing and steady. “Have you been outside yet, Harrison?”
My stomach dropped. “Outside? No. Why?”
“I’d go take a look out there if I was you.” A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.
Sterling gave me a clap on the shoulder and stepped aside, making way and motioning me past him with a knowing smile on his lips, too.
What the fuck is going on?
I pushed through the crowded rooms. The hum of voices faded behind me as I slipped out the back door. The crisp December air bit at my skin, but I barely noticed it because what I saw in the garden stopped me in my tracks.
Christmas lights were strung through the trees, glowing like stars that had descended. Lanterns lined the stone path, leading straight to the place we’d planned to stand together—and there she was.
Aurelia was dressed simply, not in her wedding dress or anything, but she was glowing in a way no amount of lights could replicate. Strangely, our mothers stood on either side of her. I froze, my breath caught in my throat as I tried to figure out what the hell was going on.
Aurelia’s gaze found mine immediately as I emerged, and there was no hesitation in her eyes. No fear or uncertainty. Just love.
The kind of love that anchored me even when the ground shifted beneath my feet as I realized that she’d come. Despite the duty, the obligations, and the expectations of being a Van Alen, royalty in this town in her own right, she was here.
She extended a hand toward me, inviting me closer. Drawn to her like there was no other option, my feet moved almost of their own accord, but if I was being honest, my brain was also urging them to go faster. To run to her. Grab her and hold on with both hands.
She turned toward the women who had carried us, birthed us, and raised us, speaking before I’d even reached them. Her voice was calm and gentle, but every word was laced with steel and resolve.
“I asked you both to come here today because I want you to know that I love Harrison. I want to build a life with him and nothing you say, no ultimatum you throw at me, will change that.”
As I reached them, her hand slid into mine, her fingers strong and sure, her gaze never even leaving theirs, but somehow, she’d known I was close enough to pull me into her. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so stunned and so certain all at once.
Honestly, I’d never doubted her love for me. What I’d doubted had been her ability to walk away from her family in order to be with me, yet her voice didn’t waver and her mother was right there.
“This isn’t just about me,” Aurelia said, her hand tightening around my knuckles. “It’s about us. His life. My life.”
She glanced up at me then, tears sitting shallow in those vivid blue eyes, but she didn’t let them fall as she turned back to our moms. “All we want is the chance to make something of it together. I’m asking you both to put aside the resentment and the hurt that doesn’t belong to us, and give us that gift. The gift of a chance.”
The lights above us swayed slightly in the cold breeze, but she stood as steady as a mountain. God, I’ve never seen anything more beautiful.
Her gaze moved to only her mother then. “Whatever you did all those years ago is on you. Dad was with CC and you married him, which meant that no matter the circumstances, you did steal your best friend’s man.
I’m sure that even as a high school girl, you weren’t unaware of how much that would hurt her.
Clearly, CC must have loved you very deeply to have been as hurt as she was.
For her to still be feeling the ripples of that hurt. ”
Aurelia glanced between the two of them. “Once upon a time, you were friends. Shit happened, but Harrison didn’t cause it. Neither did I.”
She turned to my mother next. “I know I’m never going to be your favorite, and that’s fine.
I don’t need to be, but you said yourself that everything turned out for the best, so we’re asking you to let it go.
To stop punishing my mother so that she might be able to give us the gift we’re asking for. ”
Regina’s eyes narrowed, her gaze as cutting as ever, and my mother’s chin tilted with that familiar defiance, but Aurelia didn’t flinch. She looked at them with so much heart and so much truth, that it was like I couldn’t breathe.
All I wanted was to pull her into me, to kiss her until she knew how deeply I felt this too. My chest ached with it.
She was carrying both of us on her shoulders with that speech. Our futures. Our hearts. I considered making an impassioned plea of my own, but the truth was that if I opened my mouth right now, I was going to come down on Regina from a dizzy height.
She was a witch I wanted nothing to do with to have put her own daughter in this position. Eventually, I would probably have to let it go. If she gave us the chance Aurelia was asking for, anyway. But I sure as fuck wasn’t letting it go today.
For a long, breathless minute, no one moved. Then Regina’s lips pressed into a thin line, her gaze flicking between me and Aurelia. My mother’s posture softened almost imperceptibly, but I saw it.
“It seems that I may have overstepped,” Regina finally said, her voice clipped but trembling.
My mom’s eyebrows arched. “You think? I don’t even know what you did, but I can guess.”
Regina’s mouth opened, but Mom was focused on Aurelia. She reached out and took her hand, the one I wasn’t holding, cradling it in both of hers. “Darling, you already have my blessing. You know that.”
She reached for my free hand next, linking the three of us in a loose triangle as she gave me a watery smile.
“I would never stand in the way of true love and the more I see of you two together, the more I believe that’s what you have.
All I want is for you to be happy, Harry.
Do I wish it was with someone else? Yes.
Do I wish you’d wait a while before you start talking about marriage? Also yes.”
Her gaze suddenly flicked from mine to the twinkle lights overhead and the slight arch we were standing in front of, and she sighed but brought her eyes back to us.
“Ultimately, however, I see why you chose her, Harrison. I really do. I might not know you well yet, Aurelia, but you’ve impressed me at every turn.
“The way you walked into dinner with us that first night,” she continued, her smile growing softer as her gaze locked on Aurelia’s.
“I couldn’t believe your composure when you walked in with my baby’s ring on your finger and your head held high.
Being right by his side when he sat Harlan and me down that night, demanding answers. Even the way you brought us here now…”
As she trailed off, she let go of our hands and turned to face Regina, her expression cooling, but clearly, she had something to say to the other woman.
I was taking that as a good sign. “I have absolutely no idea what you’ve done to these poor children for this to be where we are now, and I’m not sorry for anything I said about you back in the day. ”
Aurelia’s face fell, but mine didn’t. My heart didn’t sink either because my mother’s tone was calm and laced with authority, the way it always was when she was laying down the law to her friends.
But that was the thing—she was speaking to Regina like she was a friend, and Regina must’ve recognized it too, because there was no anger or indignation at my mom for saying what she was. She simply held her old friend’s gaze and listened.
“You hurt me, Reggie,” Mom said, her voice softer now, the words clearly meant only for Regina. “God, you hurt me worse than anyone else ever has, but we’re going to be family now, which means that I’ll stop icing you out. I’m willing to give these kids the chance they’re asking for. Are you?”
The question hung in the cold night air like a fragile ornament. Regina blinked hard, then exhaled sharply, almost like she couldn’t believe she was doing it. “Fine. I won’t stand in your way.”
She turned to Aurelia, still mostly ignoring me, but I was absolutely okay with that. This woman and I were going to need a long, long time to mend what she’d tried to break between her daughter and me. It would happen but not right then.
For Aurelia, I would put in the effort to make it happen.
She sniffed and reached for Aurelia’s hand, taking a step closer to us.
“I was just doing what I thought was best, baby. I see now that I was mistaken, but that doesn’t change the reasons for which I did it.
I would never stand in the way of something that would make you truly happy, and if you’re sure that this is it, then you have my blessing. ”
Regina turned, noticing that my mother had started looking around the garden again.
Their gazes lingered on the chairs packed in such a way to create an aisle between them, the arch, and the lights.
As if some cosmic motherly instinct kicked in for both of them at the same time, their expressions shifted.
My mother scoffed. “This is the wedding, isn’t it?” she mused out loud. Sighing, she brought her gaze to mine. “It’s your wedding and you planned it all without any input from us, you little devils.”
Regina’s eyes widened, her gasp turning into a laugh. “We both managed to raise ungrateful children, CC. I suppose we have that in common.”
My mother nodded her agreement, like they’d been on the same side all along. She chuckled and shook her head. She kept talking, but their muttering faded into the background because Aurelia had turned to face me, her eyes coming up to mine.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, her eyes glistening under the glow of the lights. “I love you, Harrison. I’m so sorry for hurting you. I—”
“Hey, there’s nothing to be sorry for. I get it, Aura.
I understand. The only thing that matters is that you’re here now.
” I stepped closer, brushing my thumb over her knuckles, and I leaned in, lowering my voice just for her.
“Let’s get married, shall we? We don’t want to keep our guests waiting all night, and personally, I’m about ready to start celebrating. ”
Her answering smile was the kind that burned into my bones, the kind that made me believe this fight had always been destined to end this way. With us together, uniting even the forces that had tried to keep us apart.