Epilogue June
Six Months Later
“I’m serious, if he doesn’t emerge in like ten seconds I am going to flip the fuck out!” The bride paces back and forth in the hall outside her groom’s suite, looking panicked.
“We’ll handle it, I promise.” I shoot Beth a pleading stare. “He’ll be fine.”
Beth pounds on the groom’s door for the fifth time and I try calling his phone.
The cell connects. “Yeah? Hey? Can you stop hitting me in the head?”
“Brad, are you okay?” Relief floods me.
“DID YOU GET THAT USELESS FUCK ON THE PHONE?! LET ME TALK TO HIM!” The bride tries to grab my cell away but I dance from her grasp. Which isn’t easy, considering I’m so freaking pregnant. I’m practically waddling these days. Forget normal walking.
“What’s going on?” He groans. Then: “OH FUCK, WHAT TIME IS IT?”
“Listen, this is June, your wedding planner. You are late. The ceremony is in twenty minutes. Your future wife is losing her mind. I know, I know, you feel like death right now. You had your bachelor party last night, even though I told you that was a stupid idea. I get it. You want to die. But Brad, your life will be over, and I suspect mine will be too, if you can’t pull it together. Can you do that for me?”
“brAD, I AM GOING TO CUT OFF YOUR DICK!” the bride screams as Beth tries to calm her down.
“Shit,” he whispers. “I’m so fucked.”
“Get out of bed. Shower. Dress. You can do it.”
“You think so?”
Fuck no. He’s screwed. “Yes, you got this.”
“Cool. Yeah. I got?—“
I can hear him puking through the door.
The bride breaks down into a puddle of tears and Beth does what she can to console the poor woman.
My back hurts. My feet ache. My shoulders are so tense I’m afraid they might break.
And I love it.
Eventually, the groom gets himself together and makes it down the aisle. He pukes again before dinner, but a few drinks straighten him out. The bride seems happy enough. Overall, it’s a lovely wedding.
“Why do we do this?” Beth complains at one in the morning as we’re helping to get everything cleaned up. She shoves another present into a too-small car. “Seriously, June. You don’t even need the money.”
“Nope, I really don’t.”
“So why? Why are we torturing ourselves?”
“We love it.” I nudge her with my hip. “And I love you.”
“Bitches!” Marnie strides over and heaves her body against the box, finally shoving it into the car. She sighs and leans against the mess to catch her breath. “Did I tell you two how much I hate weddings yet?”
Beth and Marnie get back to finishing up.
I help, but I’m even slower than Marnie, who still isn’t back to her old self.
She’ll never walk normally again. I carry that guilt in me, even if she says she doesn’t blame me for what happened.
I make sure she’s taken care of, despite the number of times she has begged me to stop watching over her like a psychopathic guardian angel.
I make it home by two in the morning.
“This is unacceptable.” Rafe is waiting up for me. He’s sitting in the living room with a heavy frown. “You’re too pregnant to be pulling twelve-hour days, June.”
“I’m fine.” I collapse beside him with a groan. “Mostly fine.”
“Love, you will not push yourself too hard.” He places a hand on my belly and kisses my hair. “You’re too precious and so is our future child.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.” I grunt and shift closer to him. “Hey, listen, the baby’s moving.”
He presses his ear to my belly and lets out a satisfied sigh. I stroke his hair and hold him. We sit in quiet on the couch.
Hattie’s fast asleep upstairs.
Contentment washes over me.
I can’t remember the last time I felt like this. Everything’s where it should be. The baby, my friends, Hattie, my husband. Even his family is growing on me. Cassian’s still hard to know, but Silas is outgoing and funny. Even crazy Devlin and tough Kellan make me laugh.
When I first fell into Rafe’s life, I thought my world was over. I figured I’d be a mob wife, chained to a kitchen, kept captive. Instead, Rafe’s done nothing but support me and try to make me happy. There are some requirements—dinners, meetings, events, that sort of thing—but nothing too onerous.
But this is it. Hattie’s doing better with Priya’s help. Rafe and his brothers are building the new business and expanding their empire. Nothing’s easy, nothing’s perfect, but it’s all good.
It’s all right because I’m with him.
We’re partners.
Mostly, anyway.
He still rules certain… other areas of our life.
“Oh god, yes, that’s the stuff,” I moan. “Rafe, god, I love you.”
“You’re only saying that because I’m pleasuring you.”
“Hell yes, I am.”
He slips off my socks and continues to rub my feet.
Heaven. Straight-up heaven.