Page 58 of Awakened Gifts
We both snicker softly just as Uncle Brazen walks in. I’ve been around him for a long time, and I’ve never seen him spill tears like he is right now. Mom and I both laugh a little harder, and he rolls his eyes.
“Shut up. I had a fight with an onion. Nothing else,” he lies, wiping his face very indignantly, and Mom goes to brush her lips against his.
My eyes move back to the mirror, and I stare at the girl with violet eyes who no longer has to hide who she is; the girl who finally has the man she loves; and the girl whose gifts have finally come back. Speaking of gifts, I need to figure out a way to unblock Rex’s visions. If we could see Alice coming, that would sure be a hell of a lot better than trying to—
“Whatever you’re thinking that is making you frown like that, stop thinking it. It’s your wedding day. You get one day where everyone but you can deal with the drama,” Mom lightly scolds, narrowing her gaze.
It’s a little unnerving. On her fist wedding day, she was kidnapped. I need to hurry up and get down the aisle.
“My parents are already here, and of course they’re eager to see you,” Uncle Brazen says to me, grinning as Mom groans. That makes me smile.
“Rex is waiting outside the door to walk you down the aisle whenever you’re ready.” Mom smiles at me before rushing to hug me a little too tightly, and then she and Uncle Brazen walk out hand in hand.
My wedding.
“Ready?” Rex asks through the door, clearing his throat when his voice breaks.
Aww. My brother is apparently losing some of his badass right now.
“Yeah.” My breath knots in my throat as I make my way out the door. I don’t care who tries to stop us, I’m so not going with them and risking getting taken away on my wedding day.
“Aria?” a small voice asks, and I turn to face a familiar face.
It’s one of Jase’s numerous secretaries.
“Yes?” I muse, tightening my grip on Rex.
“Commander Ericson already signed his paperwork for the wedding procession, but you haven’t. It’ll only take a couple of seconds. Could you come with me to the—”
“No!” Rex and I yell in unison, recoiling from her like she’s the grim reaper.
Her eyes widen, and she takes a step back. “O…kay… It can wait until after the ceremony. I just thought you might want to get it out of the way.”
She warily walks backwards, almost as though she’s scared to turn her back on us, and Rex snickers softly while guiding me toward the center of the compound where the courtyard has been turned into a paradise of black and violet roses.
“It’s beautiful,” I whisper in a reverent breath.
Even though I can’t see Jase because of all the people standing in my way, I feel him from here. He’s as eager for this to happen as I am, and that alone makes me smile.
Stone pavers guide the way in the L-shaped path to the main aisle, and rows and rows of uniformed officials smile while wearing their best attires. The black arches line the way, dressed in the same roses as everything else. The dusky sky is trying to lay the tired sun to rest, creating the perfect blend of night and day as the background canvas to my wedding.
I can’t believe he did all this within just a few hours. How?
Apparently people will do anything at all to please the commander, because they managed to pull off my dream wedding. The only way this could be better is if it was at Seminole.
When we round the corner, my eyes lock with the man at the end of the aisle, and all else fades. His smile grows with every step I take, and I forget Rex is even attached to me until he says something to the Captain of the compound—who happens to be the man wedding us.
Jase takes my hand, and nothing else exists. When he nudges me, I realize I’m supposed to answer, so I absently murmur an, “I do.”
He chuckles softly while echoing my answer. Something presses onto my finger, joining my engagement ring, and Simone hands me a ring that I robotically slip onto Jase’s finger. I’m too transfixed to even gauge any of my actions, until lips are suddenly on mine, promising me we just tied ourselves to each other.
I was so lost in him that I managed to miss my own wedding. Christ.
“I love you,” he says against my lips as I kiss him harder, tangling my fingers in his hair as his rough grip on my waist gets even more possessive.
His tongue becomes a hot, demanding tool of seduction inside my mouth, and I moan loudly while pressing my body against his. Several throat-clearings and obnoxious coughs mingle with snickers, and Jase grins against my lips before breaking the kiss.
“Let’s go cut our cake and enjoy our wedding night. We only have a few hours before we have to break back into the real world,” he says softly, reminding me that there are real dangers out there we have to deal with.