Page 74 of Tell Me No Lies

Thanks to the length of my dress and the questionable terrain, it takes us a of couple minutes to make it to the sidewalk and over the curb. Having someone else with me right now is unexpectedly emotional. I always thought I’d be on my own in moments like this. I give her arm a little squeeze, swallowing around the tightness in my throat as we reach the edge of the tent obscuring us from view. The DJ situated at the very back of the space tips his head at me and switches the music. I take a deep breath as The Wedding March announces my arrival. "Here we go."

Her steps falter a little bit, but I plow forward, keeping her moving as we pass along the back row of guests and turn to face the altar where my whole world waits for me with Christian at his side.

Tate’s blue eyes fix on me the way they always do. Like I’m the only thing that exists. The only thing that matters. The intensity and love I see staring back at me makes my breath catch as I begin closing the remaining distance between us. The bright smile from earlier hasn’t left my face, and my cheeks are starting to ache, but I won’t be able to lose it anytime soon. Not when I know what's coming.

It takes longer than I expected for Tate to notice I'm not alone, and when his attention finally shifts to my side, his brows pinch together in confusion.

I see it the second recognition hits. Feel it in every inch of my body and soul when Tate realizes it's his mother at my side. The look of disbelief, followed by shock, followed by an amount of joy I've never seen on another person, is worth all the effort that led to this moment. All the time it took me to find her. All the convincing Rita needed to believe Tate wasn't angry with her. All the explaining I had to do so she would understand she’ll never be a burden to us. That we want her in our lives.

That we understand why she did what she did. Especially now that we have Peanut on the way.

I never want to hold my children back. Never want them to suffer for my gain. If only one of us can be free, then I will choose them every fucking time.

And that’s what she did.

Tate goes still and Rita sucks in a breath beside me as she sees her son for the first time in years. Her free hand lifts to cover her mouth as she tries to blink away the tears in her eyes.

Christian rests one hand on Tate’s shoulder, offering support as I pick up the pace. I don’t want to make either of them wait a second longer for a reunion that should have happened a long fucking time ago.

When we reach him, Rita tries to step back, like she thinks this day is about me.

It’s not.

I get to celebrate loving her son for the rest of my life. Yes, marrying Tate is important, but it was a given.

Having her here was not.

Well… I would have kidnapped her if she’d continued to play hard to get, so maybe it was a given too.

I hold my breath as Tate holds his mother while she cries against his suit—and our guests blubber all over each other—doing my best not to ruin the makeup hiding the freaking melasma that showed up these past few weeks. As if never-ending morning sickness and edema weren’t fun enough on their own.

After a few minutes, Tate reaches for me, one large hand spanning the back of my skull as he pulls me in for a kiss. His forehead drops to mine the way it does when he’s emotionally overwhelmed as he draws in a few deep breaths. Then he turns to the minister—who’s also crying.

“Make her my wife as fast as you can.”

As requested, the ceremony flies by. We celebrate late into the night—another perk of Plan B—and I feel like I don’t stop until the tent is finally starting to clear out and the DJ is playing his final song.

My husband pulls me onto the dance floor one final time, holding me as close as he can with Peanut between us. I sway along with him as our family collects trash and chairs and polishes off the champagne.

“Did you like your wedding gift?” It’s another rhetorical question, but I can’t stop myself from asking.

“I can’t believe you got her to leave.” Tate’s eyes drift to where his mother sits with Jill. “I thought she’d stay there forever.”

“I leveled with her, mother to mother.” I smooth my hands down his button-up. “I also told her I’d let her hold Peanut as much as she wants if she came here.”

As I suspected, Tate was thrilled to discover I told Rita she would be living with us since I’d be needing help with the baby soon. I think that was the straw she needed to pull the trigger, and I wasn’t above using everything in my arsenal to get her here. For Tate. For me.

For her.

“You are amazing. Best wedding gift ever.” Tate’s hands slide over my well-rounded hips and non-existent waist. “I can’t wait to see what you think of what I got you.”

---