"Yes. Well, except Jon. I've been trying to reach him. You'd think the best man would be on time to his brother's wedding."
I ran the pad of my index finger over the worry line in his forehead. "He'll be here. Making him the best man was the right thing to do."
Ash leaned in to kiss me but I pushed him away. "Do you have any idea how long it took to put this face on? Bridgette will kill me if I let you ruin it." I wanted to kiss him, though. Wanted to wipe off the face and pull off the dress and lay in his arms with the sounds of a tropical rainforest as our backdrop.
Later. That would have to wait for later. First, we had a wedding to get through.
And when I caught a glimpse of us standing together, his hand around my waist, I smiled. We did look like a fairytale couple ready to live happily ever after.
Bridgette rushed back in, breathless. "It's time!" She frowned at Ash. "You're not supposed to be here."
"It's my right to see my bride first."
The three of us walked out of the hotel and toward the gardens where the ceremony would take place. Ash and I waited, out of sight of the guests, as Bridgette got everything and everyone in place.
Jon ran toward us from the parking lot, out of breath but smiling, his golden-boy-blond looks a stark contrast to his brother's darker coloring. Two men, both so handsome and both so very different from each other in nearly every way. "I told you I'd be here on time," Jon said to a frowning Ash.
"You're not on time. You're late. Do you have the rings?"
Jon patted his jacket pocket. "Shit! I left them in the car. I'll be right back."
The wedding music began and I knew we were supposed to start walking soon, but Jon needed to be at the front before then.
Ash and I had agreed to toss aside convention and walk down the aisle together, since, one: I didn't believe in being 'given away' by one man to another and found the whole notion entirely outdated, and two: I didn't have a father to give me away. Mr. Davenport and Professor Cavin had both offered, but this felt right to Ash and me. We were entering marriage together, as equals, it made sense that we would approach the altar that way.
I peeked around the bushes we were hiding behind to admire the rows of white chairs and the towering floral arrangements of wild orchids that lined the pebbled path toward the priest who waited patiently on the small stage. Hundreds of flickering candles surrounded by fragrant flowers lit the way to a floral arch under which we would say our vows. Music filled the air, a lilting and almost sad song in a minor chord, played on a grand piano by an older woman dressed in a bright fuchsia taffeta that had probably been present to many weddings in the last three decades.
In a few minutes I would officially be Catelyn Travis-Davenport, married to the most amazing man I'd ever known.
I was turning to Ash, eyes misting with tears, to tell him what this moment meant to me, when an explosion blasted behind us, throwing bits of metal and heat in our direction.
I dropped my bouquet and spun around as a second explosion obliterated what little was left of Jon's car.
With Jon in it.
Chapter Two
We All Wear A Mask
FIVE MONTHS AGO
"I WILL MARRY you."
Ash smiled, his eyes bright with joy, as he lifted me off the ground and spun me around. "Oh, Catelyn, I love you so much!"
As the rain fell on us and I slid back down his body and into his arms, our lips met, our tongues danced and we kissed, deeply, passionately, tasting the rain and my tears and feeling the joy of the moment embrace us.
Professor Cavin stuck his head out the door, interrupting us. "Everything okay out here?"
I held up my hand. "We're getting married." Even with my mother's words circling in my mind—The Davenports will be responsible for my death. Someone has to get close to them and find out the truth.—I couldn't help but be happy. I knew Ash had nothing to do with my mother's death. I knew he was as much a victim as me, and if I wanted to protect us both I had to find out the truth, but that didn't diminish my love for him or the happiness I felt when I imagined marrying him.
We ran into the cabin to get out of the rain and shared our news with those present. It brought some smiles to an otherwise somber occasion and gave us all something happier to take home that night.
Ash wanted to take me to the hospital for a thorough examination after everything Bridgette and I had been through, but I knew I was okay and I just wanted a hot shower and my own bed. Besides, I had to hide my mother's research notes before anyone figured out I had them. Anyone who knew about these notes would be at risk. I looked at Ash, knowing he must have been so worried about me, knowing how much pain I've caused him, and I knew I couldn't tell him about this. He'd be at risk, especially if his family was somehow involved.
Once home and cozy in bed, his arms wrapped around me, my head on his chest, Ask asked if I still wanted to hold a press conference about my mother's book.
"No," I said, glad he couldn't see my face. "We got the killer."