Page 144 of Beautiful Thing

60

LAYLA

The courthouse doors burst open in front of us, the early January sun beaming down on our smiling faces as we stumble outside into the cold. One hand is clasped firmly in Archer’s, and my other is holding Sky against my hip.

Cheers erupt and I’m a little taken aback to see nearly the whole dang town of Starlight Falls waiting at the bottom of the concrete staircase. Everyone’s faces are lit up with joy and my grin only widens.

Archer’s squeezing so hard, it pinches my shiny new rings against my fingers but I barely notice.

"We're married!" my new husband shouts for all to hear, raising our clasped hands together in triumph.

His voice is filled with pride and excitement. That same mix of emotions warms me from the inside out despite the wintery chill.

My heart flutters with happiness, looking down at the crowd below. My gaze sweeps over Archer's family. Daphne and Felix. Along with Nolan, Inez and Stella, Ronan and Nicky, Darius and Ziggy with their baby, and Mason and Karli. I melt from the inside as I realize that the Brightons are nowmyfamily, too.

As soon as we shared our hopes for a short engagement, Archer's family sprung into action, helping us plan the wedding. The Brighton parents and grandparents wanted to pull out all the stops. But Archer and I opted for something sweet and simple, making our marriage official at the county courthouse.

We tried to keep the wedding small. I swear, we did. But the more Archer and I reflected on our journey, the guest list kept getting longer and longer. Now, in addition to his parents and grandparents and siblings with their spouses, practically all of Starlight Falls is here.

Rainbow and Jimmy. Miss Holly and her nosy friends. Grandma Dory. But the face in the crowd that makes my heart clench the tightest? My mom.

She’s here today. She’s been showing up for me more and more since filing for her divorce. Our relationship is not always easy. I'm still not over the way my mom always pushed me to stay with my verbally abusive, deadbeat ex, but I'm just too happy with my life right now to hold any grudges. Sometimes, she still struggles to see things from my point of view. But she’s trying. We’re both trying. That’s what matters most.

Now that her divorce is underway, she’s permanently back here in Starlight Falls. She’s renting my house from me. Even though the property is legally in my name, it was important to me to get Grandma Dory’s blessing. The woman had clear intentions for the house when she gave it to me, after all. But she told me that she was just happy that I’d found a man who loves me and she supports whatever I choose to do with the property. I assured her that I’d be saving the rent money in a special bank account for Sky’s future, and she was more than happy with that plan.

As for my dad, with mom’s absence, he’s eventually begun to see all that she was adding to his life. All the things he took for granted, he misses them now. He made a few lame attempts towin her back but Mom is standing her ground now. Instead of hoping to change my father, she’s learning to accept that some men will never have the emotional maturity to be good partners. That’s one of the things that she’s working through with her therapist.

My mother has come to love Archer now that she’s gotten to know him.Of course she did. He’s pretty freaking wonderful. Mom says she won’t be settling for any man who can’t love her as much as my man loves me.

As far as Razor is concerned, he’s been in and out of town, and in and out of jail. But he hasn’t been a bother to me and Sky. Ever since Archer claimed us as his own, my pathetic ex knows better than to show his face around me anymore. But at Darius’s insistence, we’re working with a lawyer to make sure Razor never capsizes our life again.

As my groom and I make our way through the crowd as newlyweds, a shiver runs through my body. I can hardly believe that this is really my life.

Protective as always, Archer notices me shivering. He pauses to shrug out of his tuxedo jacket and drape it over my shoulders.

I turn to him with a mischievous grin, checking him the fuck out. “I’ve never seen a groom look so good in jeans, Mr. Brighton.” I make a big show of peeking at his ass. The denim. The suspenders. The red plaid bow tie. I love the way it all comes together.

It’s so Archer. And he’s so mine.

My lumberjack groom chuckles, bending down to press his lips to my forehead. “I’m still struggling to believe any of this is real. Where’s the marriage certificate? I need to take another look at it to make sure we’re not still faking it.”

“It’s all real, baby.” I laugh. “I’m pretty sure your mother would kill you if we faked this. And I love you too much to become a widow so soon.”

From where Sky is perched on my hip, I feel him stretching toward Archer. “Carry me, Daddy.”

My heart cracks wide open when I hear him say that.

The three of us sat down and had a conversation a day or two after Christmas. We explained to Sky what marriage is. We let him know what a family is. We let him know that, while not all families are exactly the same, ours would be made up of a mommy, a daddy and him.

Sky tried to grasp it all to the best of his abilities. But that was the moment whenMista Musdachesimply became ‘Daddy’.

Archer gives a single nod to me before grinning at my—our—son. “Come here, little man.”

He scoops Sky high on his big, strong shoulders, earning us another round of cheers and camera flashes from the crowd. Sky kisses the top of Archer’s thick, bushy head as we descend the steps toward the curb where our white wedding pickup truck awaits,Just marriedsign affixed to the tailgate.

“Now,thisis what I call a birthday party,” Archer jokes, sticking out his tongue as he passes by Karli.

She responds by rolling her eyes and throwing another handful of rice in his face.

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