Page 99 of Designed for Disaster

Soon it was just Natasha and me left in the room with Dee. She took my hand, threading our fingers together. I didn’t want to say goodbye. I wasn’t ready. Instead, I leaned over, pressing a kiss to Dee’s cheek and said, “You know, you brought Natasha and me together.”

“Oh, honey, I know that,” Dee said as I pulled away. “But I figured if putting on a show of dating for my sake was what ittook to make this amazing woman part of your life, then playing along was the least I could do.”

I straightened up, looking from Natasha to Dee, perplexed. “Wait, you knew we weren’t really dating that morning when she came over?”

Dee broke into a bout of pleased laughter. “Gosh, her face when I called her your girlfriend! I knew you were lying through your teeth!”

“This whole time?”

Now even Natasha was laughing, mostly at my shocked expression. “I knew she was too smart to be fooled.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” I asked. I couldn’t believe Dee had let us keep up that charade.

“Because I saw something in the way you looked at her. The way you looked at each other,” she amended as Natasha pressed against my side. “Something that reminded me of your grandfather.”

A smile stretched across my face. Having a relationship like the one Dee and Papa Davis had shared was all I could have ever hoped for. “So you just let the two of us make fools of ourselves?”

Dee lifted her shoulder, her eyes twinkling. “Of course. Anyway, I really did have a good feeling about how it would end. And I’m usually right about these kinds of things.”

“Well,” Natasha said. “I for one am very happy you were right about this.”

Rhonda knocked on the door, giving me a signal to wrap it up.

“I love you both very much,” Dee said. “And as soon as I’m up and well enough, we’re going wedding dress shopping.”

“Dee, I told you not to rush her,” I grumbled gently.

She waved me off as a pair of porters came in to wheel Dee away. “These things take time,” she called over her shoulder. “Trust me! A woman needs time to choose!”

I glanced over at Natasha, a grin tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I think dress shopping is a good idea,” she said.

That was news to me. “Have you decided on a date then?”

Natasha’s grin widened. “I might have.”

A bud of hope bloomed inside my chest. “Are you going to tell me?”

“Later,” she said softly. “We have time.”

“We do,” I agreed. All the time in the world. Because I had Natasha now, and as much as I’d become her safety net, she’d become mine. So whatever happened next, however difficult, we would make it through. Together.

32

TRENT

One Year Later

“Ilook damn good,” Aiden said, strutting over to me while adjusting his cufflinks. I arched a brow, grumbling under my breath as he nudged me, laughing. “Don’t give me that face. You look pretty all right too. For thegroom.” He dusted non-existent lint off both my shoulders as we stood in front of the gathered crowd inside the drawing room of Gracie Mansion—Natasha’s chosen ceremony space. She’d fallen in love with the rich wood paneling, antique furnishings, and warm, elegant atmosphere.

“Who knew you cleaned up so well?” Vincent agreed. He waved out at the seated crowd, where a friend was currently holding Violet, keeping her entertained since both of her parents were in the wedding party.

“I mean it, dude,” Aiden said. “Natasha’s not gonna know what hit her.”

I took a deep breath, staring out across the room. Friends. Family. Business acquaintances. Some of these people were practically strangers, and they were about to watch me on the most important day of my life.

“Holding it together?” Dominic asked, nudging me.

“Not sure,” I admitted. Was I supposed to feel like I’d taken seven shots of espresso?

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