“We’re in the middle of the street, sir,” he said in surprise.
“I wanna take her in that way.” Niall pointed to an escalator that led up to a walkway which went right over our heads. “Now pull the fuck over.”
The man didn’t object again, getting over to the side of the wide road.
Niall got out of the car, towing me after him and I grinned widely as he broke into a run. We reached the escalator on the sidewalk, climbing it at speed and knocking people out of our way as we made it to the top where a bridge with glass windows led us towards the castle. But as we ran across it, my gaze turned to a huge hotel across the road with the Statue of Liberty standing at the front of it and an honest to shit red roller coaster winding around the high skyscrapers that made up the hotel.
“Holy tits, batman,” I breathed, but Niall didn’t let me stay staring at it, he dragged me off of the bridge onto another walkway and I stared up at the castle we were heading towards, the red and blue coned roofs on top of the towers sharpening to points above us.
The ground started moving beneath my feet and I squealed as I realised we were on a flat travelator that headed straight down into the belly of the castle.
“Niall,” I squeaked, looking to him with the widest smile on my face. “This place is amazing.”
He frowned, running his thumb over the corner of my mouth like he wanted to absorb my joy through his skin and I was pretty sure it worked because his own lips lifted at the corner.
“You’re gonna need a dress that’s fit for a castle then, eh love?”
I nodded excitedly at that idea as we made it into an enormous lobby where huge crests hung on the walls, suits of armour and the name Excalibur blazing on flags around the place.
Niall led the way on, glancing at some signs I didn’t care to look at as we hurried along, passing through an endless casino while I watched people crying out excitedly, or banging their fists on tables in frustration. Winners, losers, I wanted to snatch a stack of chips and find out which one I’d be. But Niall didn’t slow, turning me this way and that until we made it to a parade of stores. He led me inside one full of fancy dress clothes that could have passed for the real deal, and I bounded away from him towards a dark green maiden dress fit for a warrior queen. It had full skirts and a bodice which laced up at the back, lace detailing and was all the best kinds of beautiful.
I immediately started pulling my clothes off while the attendant gaped at us and Niall grabbed a fancy knight’s outfit beside it, pulling off his own clothes and tugging it over the chainmail and tight pants, making me bite my lip as I lost myself in my very own round table fantasy where I was his Gwendolyn and he stole me from the evil King Arnold. It was a bit snug on his huge frame, but he made it work and after he fastened up the back of my dress, I lurched away to pick up a plastic sword, swinging it left and right.
Niall grabbed a little backpack with the emblem of the hotel on it, shoving our clothes and stuff inside it before heading to the checkout to pay and slinging it over his shoulder.
He slid his arm around my waist when he returned to me, guiding me out of the store and further along into the hotel.
“I’ll be back in a second, love, wait here.” Niall left me by a suit of armour and I peeked into its visor, trying to see any ghosts that might be lurking in there as my devil man headed away.
He was probably going to have a wee, or a poop. Yeah, maybe a poop. Maybe I should poop too before we skydived. I didn’t want to poop on the way down. What if it escaped my panties and started falling along beside me and then when the parachute went up, it hit the top of it and splattered all over me? No, that wouldn’t be good. But I didn’t need a poop…
Niall squeezed my hand as he returned and I noticed a paper bag in his other hand, frowning at it as he tried to make me move, but I didn’t.
“What’s in there? A pastry? I could eat a pastry. Is it a pan au raisin? I love a pan au raisin, but sometimes you can mistake a cinnamon swirl for a pain au raisin and it’s super disappointing. I don’t want a cinnamon swirl, Niall, I really, really want it to be a pain au-”
Niall pressed his fingers to my lips to shut me up.
“Here.” He took the surprise out of the bag and dropped down to one knee in the same moment, offering me up a knife. A beautiful fucking knife too. It was the shiniest silver with a spider wrapped around the hilt and a beautiful web engraved into the blade.
“This is a symbol of that promise I made ya, love. Always and forever. Here’s the proof of that, and if I ever break it, I want you to drive this knife into my worthless heart in payment, you understand?” His dark green eyes blazed at me, like he needed me to swear that to him, like he’d rather die if he ever failed to keep his word to me. And it left me completely speechless.
I nodded mutely, taking the incredible knife into my hand and turning it left and right as I admired it.
“Here.” Niall got back to his feet, opening the backpack in offering and I dropped it inside before leaning in and stealing a kiss from his lips. He had such nice lips, like two lines of blueberries all cuddling together.
He caught the front of my dress in his fist and tugged me closer, deepening the kiss with this hungry kind of need which mirrored my own so perfectly that it stole us away from everyone and everything else and just left us suspended in a bubble of us.
Niall broke away first and I nearly stumbled as I tried to figure out how to stand on solid ground without him anchoring me to it again before he started pulling me along once more.
We finally reached the place he was taking me and I stared up at the red sign above the entrance in shock.
The Chapel at Excalibur.
Niall didn’t look at me as he drew me through the door and started talking to a man in a suit who seemed to be expecting us.
The scent of I dos and heartfelt vows filled my nose and I breathed it all in as I took in the beautiful room with empty chairs either side of the aisle and a medieval chandelier hanging over the altar.
There were only a certain number of events that happened in chapels, and I tried to narrow down which one was the most likely for me to be attending.
A funeral?
A christening?
A Christmas carol service?
No…those ones didn’t line up. They didn’t make sense.
My brain was all whirly as I latched onto the one event that it had to be. And as there was a man with a collar and a book at the end of the aisle, I was pretty sure I was either about to see Niall marry that strange man he was talking to, or the only other person in the room.
Me.
I blew out a sharp breath, turning to look at Brooklyn where she hesitated in the door to the chapel, her eyes wide with wonder and a dawning understanding as she took in the medieval themed room before letting her gaze settle on me.
I jerked my head at her in what was meant to be a command, but which felt like something of a plea as my heart thundered in my chest and my mouth grew dry.
This was it. The moment where she would either make this choice or turn and run from me.
I wouldn’t let her leave. Not really. But if she didn’t want this then I would have to figure out another way to give her everything she deserved and more in this world that had done her so fucking dirty up until this point.
Her hands bunched in the huge skirt she was wearing, her posture tightening and her head turning to look behind her, making everything in my body tense as I expected to see her bolting from me. But instead, she just looked back to me, her hand lifting and pointing at herself in question like she expected there to be someone stood behind her who I was addressing.