Page 119 of Wedlocked

So to see him retreat into himself and shoot panicked glances at me when he thought I wasn’t looking was disturbing. I knew this week would be a lot for him, but the announcement of the honeymoon and abrupt invitation to my parents was pretty much the icing on the anxiety cake.

Thankfully, we’d have a few hours to ourselves before having dinner with Gram. Frankly, I think I needed time alone with him just as much as he needed it.

“Arsen.” A familiar yet unexpected voice cut through all the other airport racket, and my head snapped up, eyes pinging around the crowd.

My footsteps stuttered, the suitcases nearly tipping with the abrupt movement, when I saw the man who was roughly my height cutting through the people. “Dad?”

Matthew, who’d been a few steps ahead of me, stopped and turned as well.

“Well, what are the odds?” said Bennett Andrews, aka my dad, a smile curving his lips.

“Arsen,” my mom exclaimed, leaving Dad’s side to rush over and hug me. “I love surprise visits!”

I let go of the suitcase handle and hugged her back. “Thanks for coming.”

“Any excuse to see my boys,” she said, pulling away and automatically rotating toward Matthew. “Matt, honey.”

Matthew let go of the suitcase he was carrying. “Hi, ma’am.”

Could he seriously get any more adorable?

Mom made a sound and stepped forward. “Christina, remember? Can I hug you?”

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell her no. He was already overwhelmed, but just as I started to speak, he nodded. Mom swooped in and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Matthew returned the hug with one arm, the other gripping the mocha I’d gotten him.

As they hugged, his stare found me, and I smiled reassuringly.

“I thought you weren’t flying in until tomorrow?” I asked, the initial surprise I felt at seeing them still present.

“It’s supposed to snow later tonight,” Dad informed us. “Figured we’d fly in before, just in case.”

Ah, the benefits of having access to a private jet.

“This is why I voted for you,” Kruger said, suddenly appearing, practically elbowing me out of the way. “A man who is prepared. Not at all like the guy who tried to tell me I couldn’t get married.”

“I thought he had a family emergency,” Dad said.

“Completely unprofessional,” Kruger replied, then stuck out his hand. “Thank you for flying in, Senator Andrews. I really appreciate it.”

“Bennett,” Dad replied, shaking Kruger’s hand. “And any excuse to see my sons.”

Matthew shifted a little, hearing the S on the end of that word and knowing it implicated him. My parents were really laying it on thick, weren’t they?

“You, ah, did come prepared, didn’t you?” Kruger questioned.

“Ben,” Matthew hissed.

“I gotta ask, P. This is my wedding,” Kruger said. “How am I supposed to go off to my honeymoon if I’m not officially wedlocked?”

“You could just call her your wife like you already do,” Matthew quipped.

Dad laughed. “I’m happy to inform you that I did come prepared. My assistant was so excited when I asked her to push the paperwork through for me.” He glanced slyly at me. “She thought I was getting ordained to marry you. Imagine her disappointment when I told her it wasn’t.”

My stomach swooped at his words, and my eyes fired to Matthew who was wide-eyed, red-faced, and trying to hide behind a long sip of his mocha.

I’m telling you it’s good there aren’t any tables inside me because, if there were, that caveman in there would be flipping them over. He was already wreaking havoc as it was. My father’s casual comment was like a shot of adrenaline right into that savage.

“So you’re nice and official?” Kruger pressed.

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