Page 50 of The Veiling

“Are they okay?”

He nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

It’s not like he would tell me otherwise. I rolled my eyes. “You better not hide anything from me.”

“Yes, ma’am. He will call you tonight.” He took several steps back, giving Laura and me some space.

“Let’s talk venues.” Laura scrolled through her list of luxurious wedding venues on the screen but lifted her gaze to mine. Her brow creased. “What’s wrong now?”

“So, I’ve been thinking a lot about venues, actually.”

“And?” She lowered the iPad to her side.

“I know privacy is important, but I also wanted something that would be really special to both him and me. The main garden. It was the first thing I really andtrulysaw when I got here. It’s got the perfect path for the aisle and open courtyard for some guests. We can turn off the main fountain during the ceremony and put an archway in front of it.”

A wide grin spread across her face as she listened to me continue with ideas. “That is the type of planning he wanted you to do! You’re not distracted from the problem, you’re just putting your focus into the positive.”

For the next hour, we strolled the stone pathways and discussed ideas. I opted to use flowers from our own gardens for arrangements rather than to take them from elsewhere. We had many to spare. It only seemed like the right thing to do.

The rest of the day went by rather quickly. Later that evening, I showered and was getting into bed when my phone buzzed across the nightstand. I glanced at the screen.

Ahhh! Hi!

Valentino’s deep voice laughed.Happy to hear from me, baby?

Very!I sat on the bed and slid underneath the blankets.

Good. I miss you.

I miss you too.

Turn on your camera.

I pressed the FaceTime button.

“Ah, much better, amore mio.”

“Much!”

He chuckled. “I like that we’re at least in the same time zone, so I don’t have to bother you.”

“You never bother me.” I abruptly became quiet, studying the screen.

“You want to know if we got him yet?”

Shifting, I reclined back in bed, nodding.

“Tomorrow is the plan.” I opened my mouth to speak, but he cut me off. “I don’t want to talk about him right now, bella. I have limited time and I want to spend it with you.”

“You’re just saying that because I’m topless.”

“Maybe.” Smirking, he ran his thumb across his bottom lip. “Have you stayed busy?”

“I was able to pick the venue easily.”

“And where is that?”

“Where you first removed my veil and let me see the garden.”

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