Page 78 of Breaking Bristol
He pulled out a small jewelry box, and my fingers closed over it. “Your something new. I’ll give you a few minutes.”
“Wait.” I walked to one of the many tables in the beautiful bride room and handed him Matthew’s gift. “Can you give this to him?”
“Of course.”
He took a step away, but I grabbed his arm. “Scotty, I—”
“Don’t wanna talk about it, babe. Especially not on your wedding day.”
“It’s been almost six months, and you haven’t talked about it once.” I could see the tension in his jaw from his profile. “It’s not your fault.”
“I’d been watching him. I knew every time Shane left town, but the one time I got distracted, he got to you because I was…” He spiked his fingers through his hair and backed away. “It doesn’t matter. This is your day.”
“Did you get me a wedding present?” His face paled. “Good, you’re my best person. You weren’t supposed to.”
He squinted at me and sighed. “Why would you freak me out like that, then?”
“Because I want a gift from you. I want you to sit down and talk to me. Not today, not tomorrow, but soon. You need to get over this guilt so you can stop avoiding me, and I can have my friend back.”
“I’m kind of busy for the next month …”
“Dammit, Scotty, more excuses. Why can’t you just—”
He put his finger to my lips, and as soon as I shut up, he moved it to my shoulder. “I’m moving here.”
I didn’t hear him right. “What?”
“I’m an independent contractor but will be doing some work with Royal Ace Security for a while. I don’t want to drive four hours every time they call a meeting or need me to come in for something.”
My heart leaped with joy. “You’re moving to Warrenville?”
“I am.”
I threw my arms around him and hugged him as tightly as I could. “I’m so glad.” Ever since everything went down with Shane, Scotty’s dad had been all over him, more than usual. “We’ll talk after you’re settled.”
“Okay.” He pulled back. “Now open your present. Your man’s already getting impatient to see you.”
“Thanks, Scotty.”
“Anything for you, Bristol.”
I waited until the door closed behind him and then flipped open the lid to the box, expecting to see jewelry. But when my eyes landed on a key, I was confused. I took it out to see if something was underneath, but no. I dropped the box to the table and turned the key over and had no idea what this was. Why would Scotty think a key would make me cry?
The door suddenly swung open, and Matthew slammed it closed and stalked toward me. I didn’t even care that he wasn’t supposed to see me before the wedding. “Fuckin’ beautiful, baby.” He held out my gift. “You’re pregnant?”
I didn’t answer him because my face was shoved against his chest, and he spun me in a circle, then set me on my feet and laid a hot, long, wet one on me. He cradled my jaw and set his hand on my stomach. His eyes were shiny when his forehead touched mine. “I take it you’re happy about being a daddy?”
“There’s not a word for how happy I am.”
“Me too.” I felt the metal in my hand and held it up. “What’s this about?”
He took a step back and clutched both of my hands. My eyes drifted over him, and I nearly swooned. God, he was so handsome. How did I ever get lucky enough to marry this incredible man? He wore a dark-gray suit, a deep-burgundy shirt, pink tie, and a mini version of my bouquet on his lapel that consisted of pink, white, and burgundy flowers.
“Thought you’d figure it out,” he said.
“Figure what out?”
“Knocked down the cabin and planted trees. I bought a plot of land from my aunt and uncle and cleared a section about a mile down the road from them where Blake’s been building your dream house.”