Chapter 3
My feet slammed into the ground as I jumped over the brick fence and ran after my quarry. The man panted as he ran, camera flapping and slapping against his back since he had tossed it around his neck as if that would keep it from strangling him. I rolled my eyes as I gained ground and caught the guy by the arm. The sleazy online magazine photographer tripped over his own foot and nearly faceplanted onto the limestone. I almost let him but wasn’t in the mood for a lawsuit. These guys loved suing if they got hurt running away from our property after they trespassed. Fortunately for him, I kept him upright as he flailed and shouted about his rights.
I fisted my hand at my side. His eyes boggled as he looked at my fist, then up at my face.
“Really? Are you going to sue me for chasing you on our property when you’re trespassing trying to get photos of what, the foliage?”
“I have every right to be here. I am a paying guest.”
He slid out a room key, and I just shook my head. That room key had been lost last week. These guys never learned. He would’ve probably made more money by snapping a few photos of my famous family members by actually paying for a damn room. Instead, he used a key that some guy had probably found on the floor, or sold, so he could pretend he was allowed to be on site. Guests had to be screened and sign non-disclosure agreements. That was in the rules. If you wanted to stay here, or come to the winery, you had to be aware that if you sold photos of any famous people on the grounds, you would not be welcomed back. You could take pictures of course, we couldn’t stop you, but if you sold them? We’d find out who you were and then you couldn’t come back to visit. So making a quick buck on a photo of Lark sitting on East’s lap at our new distillery as the two of them laughed really didn’t seem worth it.
Because that twenty-something girl who had giggled the entire fucking trip might’ve made some money, but she wasn’t allowed to come back. Even for her sister’s wedding.
This guy was also trying to earn that quick dollar, but he did it for a living.
He was the worst of the fucking worst, and I was so tired of this part of my job. It was hard to keep people safe when they acted like fucking idiots.
“Please stop. Just shut up. I really can’t stand your complaining.”
“I’m here as a guest. I swear. I’m taking photos of the sunset.”
“It’s morning.”
The hot wind of a Texas fall slid over us, and the man swallowed hard, eyes darting around as Trace came forward but didn’t say anything. My boss just folded his massive arms over his even more massive chest and glared at the dumbass.
“As you were saying?” I asked, my voice deadpan.
“I have every right to be here. I wasn’t taking photos of anyone.”
“The thing is, you don’t have every right to be here. And you’re going to have to show us your camera. You saw the notice posted when you walked in. Even though you don’t have a legal key and you don’t have any right to be here.”
I wasn’t a hundred percent sure that was exactly correct, but the guy didn’t seem to know any better. He just began crying in earnest, cursing us, and handed over his camera.
Trace looked through it, brow raised, but shook his head.
“Which one?”
“Both of them. Walking down the path on their way to help Kendall. You know, just living their lives. And you can’t help but be a nosy asshole.”
“You can’t take that photo from me. That’s my camera. I have rights.”
I shook my head as Trace handed over the camera.
“You keep saying things about rights, but you really don’t understand, do you?”
“I don’t need to understand. I’m just taking photos. I can’t help who’s in them.”
“You can go ahead and sell that. Make a couple dollars off two women who just happened to be walking down a fucking path. But I get to do my favorite thing.” Trace gestured behind him, and the man looked like he was about to piss himself as two deputies walked forward, scowls on their faces.
“You see, we’re not going to take your things, we’re not going to beat you up. But you are trespassing.”
“And this is your second strike here,” Trace put in. “Isn’t it, Ronnie?”
“Fuck you.”
“No thanks. I’m good. But you enjoy your time explaining to these nice deputies why you’re once again being a nuisance.”
“He’s all yours,” I said, gesturing towards the scowling paparazzo.
“Okay, come on, let’s talk about what it means to be a trespasser on private property,” the deputy said as Trace just shook his head and followed along.
“You can head back over to the event. I’ve got this.”
I nodded, called in the incident to the team over the mic, and headed back to the pre-wedding event.
At least there was some excitement for the day, though I was still a little annoyed that I’d had to run in my nice shoes.
Since we were working on a pre-wedding, I had to look nice and not wear work boots. I just hoped I wouldn’t have to get them resoled again. Or buy new ones. I hated shopping.
“Hey, there you are.”
I looked up as Wyatt came forward, a scowl on his face. It seemed like the Wilder scowl was something we all had in common. He fit right in. “What’s up?” I asked my brother. He had his long, brown hair pulled back from his face in a little stubby ponytail. The man was constantly growing it out and then hacking it off. I didn’t know what the point was, but I figured tomorrow he might shave his head, just because he could.
He didn’t have the big bushy beard like most of us, and his bright eyes seemed on the verge of anger, which was unusual for him.
Unlike our cousins, our traumas and anger didn’t come from a military past. In fact, none of the four of us had joined up. We had all taken different paths, putting some of us in danger, and one of us into stardom.
I was the eldest of our set of siblings, though I wasn’t as old as Eli, the oldest of the other cousins. I fit right in the middle, and I didn’t mind. It meant that I could still be the annoying big brother, but I also didn’t have to make all the decisions. At least when it came to this company. That was pretty nice.
“Gabriel said he’s coming to visit soon.”
My brows rose at the mention of our youngest brother. “Last I heard, he was out on tour, making millions and taking over the world. Not as much as Lark though. Did you hear how many stadiums she sold out in that last tour?” I shook my head, still reeling over the fact that Lark Thornbird was now a Wilder. Between her and Bethany, it felt as if we had walked into this random Hollywood fairytale.
“He is still is on tour, but they have a two-month break. I figured Gabriel was going to either work on more music, get laid a few times around the world, or really anything but want to hang out with his big brothers. But he said he wants to see us.”
I frowned, wondering what that could be about.
“He okay?” I asked.
“No clue. He sounded okay, but it’s Gabriel. He uses his voice for a living. He could probably lie easily.”
“Well, since the latest news article I saw about him called him the typical slutboy with the voice of an angel, I don’t think him gallivanting around the world is good. Maybe he needs to be here.”
“We’re all here for a reason,” Wyatt said, but I didn’t ask. He didn’t ask me why I needed to be here, and I didn’t ask him. Brooks was the only one we knew the reason he needed to be here, but we still didn’t talk about it. The other Wilders seemed to love talking about their feelings and explaining why they were the way they were. Maybe that wasn’t always the case, but ever since they got married, they seemed happier and more willing to talk about shit. That wasn’t us, and we were fine.
“When’s he getting here?” I asked.
“Soon, or so he says. He’ll probably be a couple of days late, knowing him. But he’ll get here, then we’ll make sure he’s fed and watered and gets sleep. And then we’ll put him to work.”
I chuckled at that. “You going to put him behind the bar again?”
Wyatt shuddered. “Never again. And he’s not touching my distillery, and I know that Elijah wants him nowhere near the winery.”
“So, is he going with Brooks or me? I don’t think I can have him work security, considering he comes with his own.”
“True. Brooks will take him on. Hand him a hammer and hope he doesn’t smash his thumb.”
“Then he couldn’t play guitar, and all the girls would weep.”
“Guys too. Don’t forget that. People of many genders love our baby brother.”
“He’s an asshole, annoying as fuck, but we love him too.”
“That should be our family motto.”
I laughed, shaking my head as Alexis walked over, looking slightly frazzled, but a little less than the past day or so. I didn’t understand how someone could lose a wedding dress, let alone an entire business, but I knew Alexis would handle it. And if she needed me to run out and find something for her, search high and low for some dress thief, I’d do it. Alexis ruled this place with an iron fist, and I’d do anything she asked.
Not that I’d let anyone know that. I had my badass image to uphold.
“Hey, you two. I’m off to see the bride. But we have good news. Very good news.”
“You find the dress?” I asked, curious.
Alexis winced, her expression crestfallen. “No. The authorities are still working on it. But we might’ve found a dress that would work.”
“Well, that’s good. There’s like a thousand dresses out there, right? She was bound to find one.”
Alexis scowled at Wyatt, who held up both hands. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I know nothing about weddings.”
I ignored the twinge at that, because I had never been married, but I nearly had.
She’d had her dress.
I quickly pushed those thoughts from my mind. They didn’t belong here.
“Well, I put a post on Facebook and Instagram and anywhere else I could, and it sort of went viral.”
“You really need something else going viral for this place?” I asked, thinking about the potential security issues.
“Not that kind of viral. I mean, at least I don’t think so. A couple of news organizations picked it up.” Alexis blanched and shook her head. “I’m sorry. I talked to Trace about it.”
“Add me to the emails, because if I’m going to have to deal with this, I’d like a heads up.”
“I promise it’s all good things. But seriously, I think we found the dress.”
“So someone just messaged and said they had one?” I asked, incredulous.
When Alexis teared up, I cursed.
“What the hell did you do, Ridge?” Wyatt growled.
“It wasn’t me.”
“It was neither of you, it was the whole story behind it.” She let out a breath. “We’re not going to tell the news organizations this, not unless Aurora wants us to.”
“Aurora?” I asked.
“The woman who is letting Augusta borrow the dress she wore when she married her late husband.”
Alexis immediately began to wipe away tears even as her phone buzzed with countless notifications, because the woman was always working.
Wyatt whistled through his teeth as I just stared past her at a woman with long, dark hair.
This wasn’t the bride.
She had part of her hair pulled up away from her face, but the rest fell in long waves over her shoulders. Her light gray eyes seemed to pierce under the sun, but I could see the sadness in them. I didn’t want to see that. I didn’t want to see any of it. She had soft features, a small pert little nose, lush lips, and curves that could kill a man.
I frowned, wondering why the hell I was even thinking that. I did not think about women that way. Ever. Not since, well, not since ever.
“Oh, there she is. Aurora, come meet the cousins.”
Aurora put on a strong smile, but it didn’t look real. I had a feeling she didn’t want to be here anymore than I did.
“Hello,” she said, her voice soft and hesitant. She was so unlike Heather. Heather had always been strong and firm and told everyone exactly what she wanted. That was why I fucking loved her.
Why the hell was I even thinking that? Heather wasn’t here. She was gone. I didn’t understand. What was wrong with me?
“Hello, it’s nice to meet you.” Wyatt held out his hand and Aurora took it, then her gaze turned to mine and it felt as if everything had changed.
Something was wrong with me. Something was very wrong with me.
I needed to walk away.
“I’m Wyatt, by the way. And this is Ridge. He’s a growly asshole, just ignore him.”
Alexis gave us both a look, but I just shrugged, not saying anything.
The bride walked up; I recognized her from the meeting before. She had tears in her eyes and practically ran towards Aurora, taking her hands.
I wanted to be anywhere but there. I did not want to watch these two women speak, nor did I want to be part of this.
“Aurora, thank you so much again. You have to stay tomorrow.”
Aurora looked shaken and took a step back, running right into me. I put my hand on her shoulder to steady her then immediately dropped it when she stiffened at the touch.
Good, I didn’t want to touch her either.
“Oh, I shouldn’t be here. This is your wedding.”
“I know. And I would’ve been able to find a dress or pants or jeans or even that bathrobe that I talked about. This wedding would still have happened, but you are making it much more special. And I know the memories that go with that dress. Or at least I can imagine them. But you should watch those memories turn into something new. If it’s too hard for you, I’ll understand and you can go. You don’t have to stay here, and I will ship your dress back to you all clean and perfect. Or you can stay and be part of this, like you already are. I can’t even imagine what you’re going through, but I will forever be grateful to you. And you helped save the day. Your memories saved the day. So, please stay.”
Jesus Christ. This woman was laying it on thick, but every single word sounded true. Aurora was saying goodbye to her husband. The one she had worn that dress for, and now she was letting someone else borrow it. Either this woman was in so much pain she was trying to run from it, or she had the biggest heart out there.
Maybe it was both, or maybe we were all just so fucking delusional.
I wouldn’t want anything to do with it. But then again, I worked around weddings day in and day out, even though I told myself that I didn’t even believe in this shit.
Yes, we were all delusional.
Alexis opened her mouth to speak, but Aurora beat her to it.
“I’ll stay. But these are your memories, okay? This dress will be yours. It needs a new life. It needs a new chance. So take it, and I will stay to watch you say your I dos and vows to your new husband. This is about you. Not me.”
Augusta squealed and Alexis walked them off, standing between the two women doing what she did best—handling them so no one felt awkward.
Wyatt whistled through his teeth again. “Damn it. Talk about heavy. Should we talk to Brooks? That way he’s prepared if he hears about this?”
I swallowed hard, wondering what the hell he was talking about, but then I remembered. Brooks was also a widower. But the world knew about that. He hadn’t hid the fact that he had lost his wife.
Nobody knew I had lost someone who could have been mine.
“Yeah. That way it doesn’t get awkward. It’s going to suck though.”
“Yeah, but we’ve got this. But that Aurora? Not only is she a damn good person, she’s fucking hot.”
I forced my lips up into a smile and nodded.
“You’re right. But maybe don’t sleep with the grieving widow on the day that she gives up her wedding dress, okay? Don’t be that asshole.”
Wyatt shook his head. “I don’t need those kinds of complications.”
“No, neither do I.”
I did the best thing I could do and pushed all thoughts of Aurora, her wedding dress, and those sad eyes out of my mind. Or at least I tried.