Page 59 of Dallas
I’m panting and sated as he wipes his lips on the sheets and grins at me. “Do you think your legs will hold you up so we can take a shower?”
I’m kind of surprised when Dallas consents to me having our room to myself a few hours later to get ready without him pawing at me. The ceremony is at two, and it’s only eleven, so I’m suspicious.
I should have known better than to think it was that simple, though. The man couldn’t leave me alone. He never leaves me unattended. So I’m chuckling less than ten minutes later when there’s a knock at the door.
When I open it, I’m surprised to find three women standing in the hallway. Claire being there isn’t a shocker, but Reagan has returned from her honeymoon, and the last woman must be Emilia, Dallas and Brody’s sister. She looks like them, and she has Dallas’s same thick dark hair. Hers is almost to her waist, though.
I step back and invite them in.
“Surprise,” Claire announces as she skips into the room. “Do you have any idea how hard it was to convince Dallas to let you have girl time for a few hours before the wedding?”
I giggle. “I can imagine.”
I’ve known Reagan since I moved to Wilde, but I don’t know her as well as Claire yet because she hasn’t been here for Dallas and my whirlwind romance. She leans in to hug me. “Welcome to the family.”
Emilia hugs me next before leaning back, holding my biceps. “You’re just as pretty as Dallas told me.”
I blush. “Thank you. You’re stunning. You look more like Dallas than Brody.”
She scrunches her nose.
I giggle. “Except for the chest hair, muscles, and large masculine physique.”
“My tits are better than theirs, too,” she jokes.
“Well, that. Yes.”
“We’re here to help you get ready,” Claire says.
“And to gossip,” Reagan adds.
My robe has slipped, and I pull it back into place and nod toward the bed. “We have plenty of time.” I glance at Emilia. “I want all the juicy details on Dallas’s life.” I climb onto the bed with the other three, and we sit in a circle, legs crisscrossed.
Warmth spreads through me. This is the closest I’ve had to a family in ten years. Well, Meredith was like a mother to me, but I haven’t seen her since leaving when I was eighteen. We still keep in touch, but it’s hard because I’m living under an assumed name now.
These three women will be my sisters in a few hours. I love Claire. I know I like Reagan. I can tell I’m going to bond with Emilia, too.
Emilia sighs. “Unfortunately, I don’t know many juicy details about my brothers. They were adults and out of the house before I was born. I can tell you that I’ve never seen a bigger smile on Dallas’s face than the one I saw when I stepped through the front door a few minutes ago. He never lit up like that with Beth.”
Claire nods. “He’s smitten.”
Emilia glances around at all of us. “How is it possible that all three of you met and married a Wilde in less than two weeks each?”
Reagan shrugs. “There’s something in the water here, I tell you. Be careful. Once you step foot in this odd mansion, it won’t release you.”
Emilia shudders. “I’ll admit I was thinking about staying. At least for a while. I just graduated. I don’t have any solid plans yet, so I figured, what the hell? Why not heed the call and join my brothers and cousins.”
Claire laughs. “Oh, you’re so stuck now.” She grabs Emilia’s hand. “Welcome to the maze. I figure if we all work together, we might be able to explore half of this monstrosity before the ten-year requirement is up. I’m not sure the house will let us leave, though.”
Emilia cringes. “Ten years is a long time. This town is so small. I’m twenty-two. I’ll be thirty-two before the decade is up. That’s a long time to go without many dating prospects. Are there even many eligible men in my age range living here?”
All three of us groan.
“God, no,” Claire tells her. “We’ll make you a list of who not to talk to, for starters. Why do you think we were all single when your brothers and cousins arrived?”
“Good point.” Emilia’s shoulders fall. “This might not be the best place for me to spend the next ten years. I doubt I can even get a job here.”
I shake my head. “Oh, you do not need a job. Trust me. There’s so much to do around the estate. It will never end. Claire and I have started cataloging books in the library. That alone would take ten people a few years.”
