Chapter 48
ELIZABETH
“She’s here!” Annika’s voice rang out across the entire warehouse. “Elizabeth is here!”
I whipped around to face her, whispering furiously, “What the hell are you doing? Be quiet!”
But Annika was grinning like a maniac, completely ignoring me. She actually jumped up, pointing directly at where I was pressed against the wall. “She’s right here, Adrian!”
“You sold me out,” I hissed. “I can’t believe you did that!”
Then the spotlight hit me.
Blinding white light and way too many faces turning in my direction with everyone craning to see. The murmurs turned to exclamations, people standing up to get a better look. I wanted to melt into the wall and disappear. I wanted to be anywhere but here with everyone’s eyes on me.
“Go to him!” someone shouted from the crowd.
“Get up there!” another voice called.
The crowd was on their feet now, clapping rhythmically, chanting something I couldn’t quite make out through the roaring in my ears. All I could see was Adrian on that stage, frozen under the lights, staring at me like I was a miracle he’d stopped believing in.
I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. Couldn’t process what had just happened.
Adrian had just told a room full of thousands of people that he loved me. He’d defended me publicly, praised my work, and put his own reputation on the line to salvage mine.
For me.
He’d done that for me.
My legs felt like they might give out. I gripped the wall behind me, trying to steady myself as the reality of it crashed over me in waves.
He loved me.
Adrian Blackwell loved me.
And he’d just announced it to the entire fashion world.
I pressed my hand to my chest. It was more than I’d ever dared to hope for.
“Go!” Annika gave me a gentle push. “What are you waiting for?”
But I couldn’t move. I was frozen, caught between the desperate urge to run to him and the equally strong urge to run away.
The crowd was still chanting and clapping. I could see people filming on their phones, capturing this moment that would be all over social media within minutes.
Adrian just stood there waiting. Waiting to see what I would do.
“Go!” Annika gave me a push. “What are you waiting for?”
“I can’t—I’m not—” But people were already moving aside, creating a path as they gestured me forward. Strangers were smiling at me. They were all caught up in the romance of it all.
It was insane. I hated being the center of attention. I really hated being exposed and vulnerable in front of thousands of people.
“Elizabeth.” Adrian saying my name over the loud speakers nearly did me in. “Please.”
That one word—please—broke something loose in my chest.
The vulnerability in it. The hope. The fear that mirrored my own.
I started walking past rows of seats with people all watching and filming.
My legs felt like they belonged to someone else, carrying me forward on autopilot while my brain screamed that this was crazy.
That insecure part of me was telling me I should run.
A little alarm going off telling me I was setting myself up for heartbreak.
But my heart knew better. My heart had always known.
When I reached the steps to the stage, I hesitated. This was it. The moment where I either walked up there and faced him in front of everyone, or I turned around and ran. The moment where I chose fear or courage, protection or possibility.
The moment that would define everything that came after.
Adrian was already moving toward me, meeting me at the edge of the stage, hand extended. His expression was vulnerable in a way I’d never seen before. He was just as afraid of being hurt as I was.
I took his hand.
The crowd erupted with applause and whistles usually reserved for the finale of a show, not the beginning. He pulled me up onto the stage. I finally looked at him properly. Really looked.
He looked exhausted. Wrecked. Like he hadn’t slept in days. There were shadows under his eyes, and I could see the worry written in every line of his face.
He’d been just as miserable without me as I’d been without him.
I reached up and pulled off my sunglasses with one hand so he could see my eyes. If I was doing this, I was doing it without hiding.
“Hi,” I said in a shaky voice.
“Hey there,” he breathed. “Thanks for showing up.”
Then he grabbed me and kissed me.
His hands were in my hair, mine were fisted in his shirt. The crowd absolutely lost their minds.
The roar was so loud I felt it in my bones. People were screaming, crying, jumping up and down. Someone was ringing a bell. It was chaos and joy and completely overwhelming.
When we finally broke apart, both breathless, I looked up at him with tears streaming down my face.
“You love me?” I asked, needing to hear it again without the microphone and the crowds. Needing it to be real, just for us, stripped of performance and spectacle.
“With all of my heart.” His thumbs wiped away my tears with such tenderness it made my chest ache. “I’ve never been surer of anything.”
“I love you too.” The words tumbled out, finally free after being trapped inside. “I’ve loved you since day one, I think. I was so scared to tell you.”
“I know. I was scared too. But I’m done being scared.” He kissed me again, softer this time, sweeter. “Elizabeth Laramie, will you forgive me for being an idiot? For taking too long to tell you?”
“Yes.” I laughed through my tears. “Yes, you crazy man. I forgive you.”
He pulled me against his chest, holding me so tight I could barely breathe. I held him back just as fiercely. The crowd was still going wild, but in that moment, it was just us.
“We should probably start the show,” I murmured against his neck, feeling his pulse racing under my lips.
“Probably.” But he didn’t let go.
I glanced over and saw Sebastian. He was grinning and giving us a thumbs-up. Briggs and Dash were there as well, looking equally pleased.
Mimi stood off to the side, one hand pressed to her heart, and a sweet smile on her face. She caught my eye and mouthed “thank you.” I understood.
Adrian released me enough to turn to the crowd. His arm stayed wrapped around my waist, like he couldn’t bear to let me go completely.
“So,” he said into his microphone, and everyone laughed at the understatement. “Should we have a fashion show?”
The cheers somehow got even louder.
He kept one arm around my waist as he signaled for the show to begin, then guided me toward the wings where we could watch without being the center of attention. I was grateful for the reprieve. I needed a moment to process what had just happened. I had to take a deep breath and let it all sink in.
“You really did all this for me?” I asked as models began lining up, some of their faces familiar now.
“I would do anything for you.” He said it simply, like it was obvious. “I should have done it sooner. I kept waiting for the perfect moment and almost lost you.”
“You didn’t lose me. I’m right here.”
“And I’m never letting you go again.” He kissed my temple. “Fair warning.”
The show began, and of course, it was a spectacular finale that combined elements from all four previous shows.
Adrian’s legacy pieces opened, reminding everyone of where Blackwell Couture had come from.
Then Sebastian’s decadence, bold and sexy and unapologetic.
Briggs’s romance followed, elegant gowns that told stories of love and commitment.
Finally, Dash’s seduction closed it out, pieces that pushed boundaries and made people gasp.
I almost laughed at the shock on the faces of those that had apparently missed the media about Dash’s show.
It was beautiful. A tribute to the man who’d built this empire.
We watched from the wings, Adrian’s arms wrapped around me from behind, his chin resting on my shoulder. Between looks, he’d press kisses to my neck, whisper things that made me blush.
“This is perfect,” I said softly. “Everything you built is perfect.”
“It’s not perfect yet,” he murmured against my hair. “But it’s getting there.”
When the final model walked, all four brothers went out on stage together.
Mimi joined them. She looked so elegant and proud.
The crowd gave them a standing ovation that went on for minutes.
It was their triumph. I was so glad to get a front row seat to it all.
They were a family that had lost their patriarch and found a way to honor him.
I watched Adrian up there with his brothers. They were all grinning as they basked in well-earned applause. I was so proud of him. Of all of them. They felt like my family. I had known them less than a few weeks, but I hoped I might get to call them my brothers one day.
He’d done it. They’d done it. Fashion of Love Week was a massive success despite every obstacle, scandal, and complication.
Adrian caught my eye from the stage. He winked and mouthed “I love you.”
I mouthed it back. His smile could have lit up the entire city.
When they finally left the stage, Adrian came straight to me, lifting me up and spinning me around while I laughed and told him to put me down.
“Never,” he said, but set me on my feet anyway. “You’re stuck with me now.”
“I can live with that,” I said, and kissed him again, because I could now. Because this was real and he loved me and I loved him and the whole world knew it.
“Come on.” He took my hand, lacing our fingers together. “Let’s go celebrate. Assuming you can handle this rowdy group.”
“I can handle it,” I said. “As long as I have you.”
“You have me. Always.”
Backstage was chaos—the good kind, where everyone was riding the high of a successful show.
Models were stripping out of final looks, makeup artists were packing up kits, and crew members were already starting to break down the set.
The energy was electric, everyone talking over each other, reliving their favorite moments.
I felt Adrian’s hand squeeze mine as we navigated through the crowd. People kept stopping us and offering their congratulations. I smiled and thanked them, still feeling like I was floating somewhere outside my body.
“There she is!” Dash’s voice boomed across the backstage area. He bounded over and pulled me into a hug that lifted me off my feet. “The woman who made my brother finally act like a human being with actual feelings.”
“Put her down before you break her,” Adrian said, but he was smiling.
Dash set me down and grinned at me. “Welcome back, Elizabeth. We missed you. Well, mostly Adrian missed you. He was unbearable without you.”
Adrian narrowed his eyes at his brother. “I was not unbearable.”
“You were,” Sebastian said, appearing with two champagne flutes. He handed one to me and kept the other. “Completely unbearable. Moping around, checking your phone every five seconds, sighing dramatically.”
“I don’t sigh dramatically.” Adrian shook his head.
“You absolutely do,” Briggs added, joining our growing circle. “Elizabeth, I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad you gave him another chance.”
“Me too,” I said softly.
“Boys, give her some room to breathe.” Mimi appeared, elegant as ever, and the brothers immediately stepped back like chastised children. She came directly to me, taking both my hands in hers. “Elizabeth, dear. I’m so happy you’re here.”
“Thank you, Mimi. I’m sorry for leaving the way I did.”
“Hush. You had every right to be upset.” She squeezed my hands gently. “What matters is that you came back. And that my stubborn son finally told you how he felt.”
“I’m standing right here,” Adrian protested.
“Which is exactly why I said it,” Mimi said.
“We’re leaving,” Adrian announced. “I’ll talk to you all on Monday.”
“Monday?” Sebastian asked. “Do you have plans tomorrow?”
Adrian looked at me. “Yep.”
He didn’t give me a chance to say goodbye. The man was on a mission to get to his waiting car.
My feet were moving as fast as his.