Page 114 of Inevitable Inheritance

“I think that was enough, don’t you?” Taylor asked

“Yeah, and if we don’t go soon, Henry might explode,” Derrick informed Taylor. She looked over to see her redheaded security’s skin a lovely shade of rose red now.

“Okay, hi ho hi ho,” she said, took Derrick’s hand, and walked toward the Preston Corp. entrance. There were a few jeers, but their space was respected the rest of the way.

Another fear conquered, Taylor mused. Things were looking up, way up.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

When Marty puther mind to something, there was no stopping her.

Her parents’ wedding anniversary was six weeks after Simon left this world, and she was determined that his last wish of a charity event be held on that day. Taylor had been so worried about Marty and her uncharacteristically sad face following her father’s death. She was so worried the despair would swallow her, but as Marty threw herself into planning and ran around non stop talking about linens, décor, raffles, and the guest list, she became the full-of-life girl Taylor loved. It was a star-studded event, and Marty was making sure it was bigger than anything ever done.

Marty had planned every last detail herself, including what Taylor and Derrick would wear. She wanted nothing left to chance, she told them.

Taylor took her gown in as she got ready for the evening, well, as other people got her ready for the evening. Since Marty was indisposed, a makeup artist and hair stylist had been hired to help Taylor. “You look gorgeous, Mrs. Fletcher,” Jess, Taylor’s new favorite makeup artist, told her, smiling from behind her in the mirror. They were getting ready at the Fletcher mansion because Derrick wanted them to all go and arrive together.

Taylor blushed. “Thank you, but please call me Taylor,” she asked for the millionth time. The Mrs. Fletcher thing was getting only a little easier to hear day by day, but Taylor avoided being called it when she could.

“I know I know,” Jess said. “I can’t help with the formality, I’m sorry.”

“I am glad we decided on an updo, though. Hiding this dress even with hair as gorgeous as yours would have been a sin,” Kristen, the hair magician, remarked.

The dress was just … wow. There was really no other word in the English language that could describe it. Marty had designed the sweetheart neckline dress that fell in a fitted mermaid style to Taylor’s feet. The top was heavy with silver sequins that tapered off down Taylor’s body, revealing a pink under-color that started at her hips and spread into a purple at her feet, the colors of pancreatic and breast cancer.

Taylor completely agreed with Kristen, the updo was perfect to show off her masterpiece of a dress, and she nodded her agreement as she turned her head this way and that to check out the equally flawless hair design. Her hair had been curled and then pulled to the side at the base of her neck, where it was intricately knotted. Metal detectors would have a field day with her if they came her way; the bobby pins Kristen had hidden in there had to be in the hundreds.

“You girls are fabulous,” Taylor said, spinning, still taking it in. She was nervous, crazy nervous. This was her first red-carpet event since she was a child, and that one had not gone so well. Taylor hugged the two women, feeling a kinship with them. This was what she had missed with no sleepovers as a kid; her hair probably wouldn’t have come out as fabulous, but it would have been just as fun.

“You are going to make us cry, and we are going to mess you up!” Kristen exclaimed, and they all laughed.

A knock at the door had them pulling apart.

“I bet that’s your hubs,” Jess said, and that dreamy look that women got when they thought about Derrick glazed her eyes. “You are a lucky lady!”

“Yeah, well, he snores,” Taylor said, rolling her eyes, and both women laughed as they gathered up their supplies.

Taylor made her way to let Derrick in. When she opened the door, her mouth went dry. Taylor had seen many men in tuxedos, and she had always felt like the guys got a bum deal with basically only one option to choose from.

But tonight, in his tux, Derrick looked incredible. It fit him perfectly—as it should, since it was custom-made for him. Taylor drank in the sight of him; she couldn’t get enough. She came out of her tuxedo trance when Derrick spoke to her.

“You look amazing, Taylor,” he said, his eyes sweeping up and down to take in every inch of her. And then he smiled at her—his gorgeous dimple-popping, panty-dropping smile. And Taylor could not help but smile back brightly.

This was her husband.

And she was totally at ease with that fact. No more butterflies or anxiety about what would happen between them or what had happened between them.

For all the kicking and screaming and fighting she had done to get to this point, she was now here, despite her attempts to avoid it all. And she was happy and surprised to find that she wasn’t really that upset with the way things had turned out.

She was making things happen now, making the changes and bringing Preston Corp. back to the place it needed to be. And she was married, married to a man who had proven himself to be the person she needed. There were no more thoughts ofWhat if?orOh God, what next?coming their way. They had moved mountains. And now here they were, their first red-carpet event, and Taylor had not one shred of opposition to being with Derrick. In fact, she was proud and happy to be with him.

Happy. How crazy was that? She had insisted this was not what she wanted, but here she was. No nerves, butterflies, or doubts. She felt completely confident that she was where she was supposed to be.

“What are you thinking, gorgeous?” Derrick asked, walking over to her.

Taylor bit her lip and looked at her husband. “I can’t tell you or we won’t be able to leave.”

Derrick wagged his eyebrows at her. “That sounds like a good offer, maybe we should—”

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