Chapter 69

Twenty minutes later, Jadon stepped out of his steaming bathroom with nothing but a towel around his waist, not feeling any better than when he had gone in. Resigned to his fate, he finally turned on the lights so he could see his way around and not break a toe.

That's when he saw her. Jadon froze, a very unmanly scream thankfully stuck in his throat. Several emotions hit him at once. Relief that she was still there in his house but also confusion as to why she was asleep in his bed, curled up in the center in a small ball like a child. There was absolutely no way Jadon would have seen her if the lights hadn't been on.

Jadon took a minute to get his heart rate back to normal. He could feel the droplets of water still clinging to his body. They chilled as his skin was exposed to the cooler air-conditioned air, but he ignored it and made his way to the bed.

As soon as he sat on the edge of the bed and gently used his fingers to move the long strands of hair that had covered her face away, Tapiwa's eyelids fluttered and opened. For a moment, she seemed confused as she blinked up at him, but then it all seemed to register and she quickly moved to get off his bed.

"Oh! Oh, God, I'm sorry!"

"Hey. Hey." Jadon moved fast. He grabbed her shoulders and stopped her escape. "It's okay. I don't mind." He chuckled softly then and shook his head. "I just wish I had known you were here all this time. I just spent half an hour in the shower feeling miserable because I thought you'd left."

At the mention of the shower, Tapiwa's eyes snapped toward the still-open bathroom door with the steam pouring out. Then her eyes fixed on him and seemed to take in his state of undress for the first time.

Her reaction was instant and almost comical. Tapiwa's eyes widened a fraction, her pupils dilating and her nostrils flaring as she drew in a deep breath. Then her cheeks took on a darker shade, and she dropped her eyes, clearing her throat. "Uhm. You uhm thought I left?" she stammered, unable to meet his gaze.

Something warmed in Jadon's chest. He was certain if Tapiwa had been a dude, she would have had a very visible bulge at the front of her gray sweats. As it was, he was sure she was wet and was almost tempted to find out for himself. Damn it! It had been too long and his body was reacting to the beautiful woman in his bed like a moth to a flame. The towel was doing a poor job of hiding it, too.

But as much as he wanted them horizontal and doing something better than talking, he knew they had to talk. So, with control he wasn't sure he still had reserves of, Jadon drew a deep breath and looked away from the temptation.

It took him a second to recall what she'd asked for him to answer. "The house was dark and empty when I got home. I thought you finally couldn't take it. I know you haven't been too happy since we left the police station."

Tapiwa frowned. "It was very upsetting," she confessed.

"I know. I also know that I would understand." He paused and thought for a second about what he was about to say, then shook his head. "Okay, I might try to understand if you decided you needed your family and left. But I hope you Don't. Is that selfish of me?"

"I think being a little selfish is good sometimes. At least, that's what I have been telling myself for days since everything. I am being selfish to pick my happiness over my family's honor, after all."

Jadon's eyes narrowed even as hope bloomed in his heart. "Happiness? I make you happy?"

Tapiwa tilted her head back and forth, her lips pursed. "Hmm, I was happy that morning. Waking up in your arms, watching you make me breakfast. We talked about getting to know each other and buying a ring. It all sounded like a fairy tale. Almost too good to be true." She shook her head and rubbed the back of her neck. "Maybe that's the illusion I am willing to bet my happiness on. Willing to sacrifice everything for."

"But what if it's not an illusion?" he cut in, a thoughtful frown creasing his forehead. Before he decided to just go for it, Jadon got off the bed and quickly made his way to the jacket he had discarded.

Hesitating for only a moment, he retrieved the antique box and slowly made his way back to the woman he hoped would wear the treasure hidden within. She watched him, her chest heaving with every quick breath she took. Jadon realized she was nervous and somehow that made his own nerves settle a little.

When he sat on the bed, he placed the small box between them. "I didn't buy a ring like I said I would. My father gave this to me after the police station. It belonged to my grandmother. I hope" Jadon paused and swallowed hard before he continued. "I hope you like it and do me the honor of wearing it for the rest of our lives."

Then he opened the box and heard Tapiwa's soft gasp, but she didn't say a word or make a move to touch the ring. She only stared at it with an expression he couldn't read. The silence stretched long enough that Jadon began to worry. Was it the ring she didn't like? Or just the idea of being bound to him?

He was about to suggest she could pick her own ring at a jewelry store because the second option didn't bear thinking about when she finally spoke.

"Shouldn't you put it on my finger?" she looked up at him and finally, Jadon saw her smile and the glint of mischief in her eyes.

Laughing and letting go of all the concerns he had been carrying around with him like a second skin, he picked up the beautiful ring and slipped it onto her finger.

Next thing Jadon knew, he had a lap full of Tapiwa and their mouths ate at each other like they were starved, and kissing was the very food that would save their lives and nourish them back to health. It was everything Jadon needed at that moment and silently vowed to himself to give Tapiwa everything.

Including her family. He wasn't going to let her lose them, even if they didn't deserve her. But he knew she would be happier if she had some sort of relationship with them, so he was going to make it happen. Jadon was going to make sure Tapiwa never looked back on how they came together with regret. He just wasn't going to let that happen.

EPILOGUE

The warm sun stood high in the sky, casting a golden light on the lush greenery of the vast back gardens of the Paterson estate. A cool breeze from the surrounding trees blew toward the open white tent where the wedding was set up to take place.

It was a small gathering with only ten invited guests on either side of the red-carpeted aisle. Three rows of chairs decorated with white roses were made for the seating arrangement. At the front, where the marriage officiant stood, a formally dressed woman in her mid-fifties, there was an arch made of the same white roses, intertwined with the green. It was beautiful in its simplicity.

But no one paid much attention to the decor. They were all more interested in the groom standing next to the officiant. Jadon had stuck to the theme of the wedding and wore a simple white button-down with no tie and with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. The only formal touch to his look was the beige vest he wore that matched his pants and the handmade two-tone leather shoes.

He could barely stand still as the last seconds of his life as a single man ticked away. It wasn't that he was regretting his decision, far from it. He just couldn't wait for this part to be done. Jadon kept fearing something would go wrong and would stop the wedding from happening, but he was ready to move heaven and earth to make it happen.

In fact, Jadon had already done the impossible to make the wedding happen. He'd known how important it was for Tapiwa to walk down the aisle with her father, regardless of what the man had done. So, Jadon had swallowed a humble pie and approached Mr. Mvula until the man's anger relented and he accepted that Jadon was going to marry his daughter regardless of his feelings and it was in his best interest to be there to support her.

Just then, soft music started playing, cutting through Jadon's thoughts. All the guests stood and turned to watch the bride walk in with her father. In an almost hypnotic daze of wonder, Jadon's gaze landed on Tapiwa and held on despite the distance that still divided them. His heart stalled before it kicked back into action, and Jadon drew a deep breath. Damn! He was a lucky man.

\~~~

Every other person seemed to fade into the background. Dressed in a simple, plain satin wedding dress and the shortest heels she could find, Tapiwa's step faltered and her arm instinctively tightened around her father's.

As though sensing she needed a second, Allen Mvula stopped walking and allowed Tapiwa to take a breath and just absorb everything. She appreciated that, and it made her think the father she had loved while growing up was still inside the man somehow.

But then her attention was grabbed by their surroundings. Everything was beautiful and simple, just like she had requested and Jadon had promised to deliver. Jadon. He stood at the end of the aisle, his eyes never leaving hers like he was afraid she would vanish if he looked away.

She could almost see the nervousness in his stance and was certain if she remained still a minute longer, the man would fly across the space and carry her to the front for this marriage to take place. Strangely enough, that thought brought a smile to her face, and had it been any other time, then Tapiwa would have been tempted to put the theory to the test. Lucky for Jadon, Tapiwa didn't want to entertain their guests more than what was scripted. Especially not her family.

By some miracle, Jadon had gotten her father to accept their union and even give her away on this special day. Her mother, Amy, and Lute all sat on her side of the aisle, dressed to impress and smiling widely, like a proud family of the bride. It all painted a delightful picture, but something had broken when Tapiwa's father chased her out of the house with his belt, something that couldn't be rebuilt with a few smiles and awkward hugs. The only person she'd felt comfortable with all day was Nicole.

But thank God Tapiwa wasn't dwelling on that. Instead, she focused on the man she had fallen for and had spent the last few months getting to know. Jadon was an interesting man, Tapiwa thought to herself with a smile.

Driven and confident were the two words she would have said described her soon-to-be husband. In the aftermath of the revelations, Angela Paterson was sent to jail for five years for her part in the blackmail. Lewis hadn't done anything to help his wife escape the punishment. Neither had he raised a finger when Asher was ordered by the court to do mandatory counseling and community service for twelve months.

It had surprised her to know that Asher was attending the wedding. He was seated next to his father in the front row of the groom's side. Things weren't smooth among the Paterson men, but Tapiwa thought just like with her family, maybe time could heal some wounds and something nice would bloom. She wasn't holding her breath, though.

Suddenly, her feet felt lighter and her steps quicker. She couldn't wait to be next to Jadon. He was her rock. Her happy, safe place and she just needed to breathe in his scent and feel his warmth and know nothing else would come between them.

Jadon, of course, didn't miss her sudden hurry to get to him. In typical Jadon style, he didn't care about how things were supposed to be done and instead started walking toward Tapiwa and met her halfway. To the guests, the groom just seemed impatient, and it earned them a few chuckles. Not from her father, of course, but who cared?

Expertly, Jadon took her arm out of her father's and walked her the rest of the way to where the officiant was still waiting. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

"I am now," Tapiwa whispered with a smile.

The rest of the wedding went on without a glitch and before long, Tapiwa proudly smiled when she was introduced as Mrs. Tapiwa Paterson. The guests clapped and smiled as the single cameraman they had hired for the occasion took photos.

Then, just before the guests began to make their way over to hug and congratulate them, Jadon leaned closer and whispered into her ear. "Do you think they will notice if we don't show up for the reception?"

Tapiwa snorted and suppressed a laugh. "It would be pretty hard to miss," she told him, studying him from the corner of her eye. The guests were almost upon them with their congratulations, so she quickly asked, "Why do you want to run away from your own wedding?"

Jadon smirked and winked at her. "I thought we could better celebrate it in private. Preferably on a bed."

This time, Tapiwa did laugh even as her cheeks grew very warm, as well as other hidden places. Damn. The man was insatiable, and he had turned her into a crazy woman always hot for another round. Except, they hadn't been together for two days because Tapiwa's mother wanted to maintain some semblance of tradition. Yeah, that hadn't been fun and Tapiwa could suddenly see the merit in Jadon's idea to skin the reception even if it was their wedding.

However, she had to keep her response to herself until all the guests had hugged and wished them well. They finally had a moment alone as people moved to the other tent set up near the fountain with decorated tables and buffet tables for their meal.

Tapiwa looked around, made sure no one was close enough to hear, then raised herself to her toes and whispered in his ear. "Seeing as I can't remember our first time together; I think you have to make our first time as a married couple pretty spectacular."

A low growl vibrated out of Jadon's chest. "Damn, woman, you are killing me." Seeing as all the guests were up ahead of them near the tent, she grabbed her ass and pressed their bodies together with a very suggestive roll of his hips.

"You know what?"

"What?" Tapiwa asked almost breathlessly, her hands holding onto her husband's biceps.

Jadon gave her a quick kiss before he said, "I don't care if the guests notice our absence. It's our wedding, we make the rules and my wife just said I needed to give her 'spectacular' I'm not about to disappoint."

Tapiwa smiled, but before she could respond to that, Kaelo's voice behind them alerted them that they were not as alone as they might have assumed they were.

"Please. Please. I beg you, take your wife to your room before you give us all a show."

Laughter burst out of Jadon even as Tapiwa buried her burning face in his chest, but she was laughing, too. Then, in one swooping motion, Jadon had Tapiwa in his arms and he started for the house instead of the reception tent, much to Kaelo, Nicole, and Ezra's amusement.

Tapiwa didn't mind. Her only concern was the man in whose arms she felt safe. Sensing a need to say the words they had only started whispering to each other a few weeks ago, she lifted her hand and capped his cheek. Jadon immediately stopped walking and stared down at her expectantly.

Tapiwa smiled. "I love you now and I will love you forever."

He took her left hand with the two rings now side by side on her finger and kissed them before pressing the hand to his chest right over his heart. "Now, forever, and always, baby."

The end.