Chapter Thirty-Nine
Tristan
Three Months Later
“I understand it’s irregular,” I said. “But the kitchen on the island wasn’t made to withstand heavy cooking. I need the hotel to bear the brunt of the cooking. Cover over the food with foil if you must and get it on the boats as fast as possible.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you,” I nodded, before I hung up.
Sighing, I sat back down in my chair just before Ben walked in. He was looking at his clipboard with a frown on his face.
“Please tell me that everything is going smoothly?”
“Uh… I could tell you that,” he replied. “But it wouldn’t be true.”
“Fuck,” I swore. “What is it now?”
He smiled. “I’m kidding, everything is fine,” he said. “You worry too much.”
“Can you blame me?” I asked. “Planning this thing has been a nightmare.”
“You should have let Emma plan it.”
“Oh sure,” I nodded sarcastically. “Brilliant idea, that would have gone down really well.”
“I didn’t expect to find you here,” he said. “I thought you’d still be with your mother.”
“Shit,” I said, jumping out of my seat. “I completely forgot.”
“You forgot to welcome her to your resort?”
“I got a call from Alfonso, okay?” I said. “I’d better head down there. Has she been checked in?”
“Of course.”
“Great, thanks.”
I ran down the hall and into the elevator. When I arrived at the lobby, I saw my mother standing by a huge bouquet of flowers, admiring the view while she sipped a cocktail. She was wearing an ivory skirt suit and high heels that looked painful.
“Hi, Mom,” I said, as I approached her. “Sorry I’m late.”
She embraced me with a smile. “Business meeting ran late?” she asked.
“Actually, no,” I said. “I was just sorting out some last-minute arrangements for the engagement party.”
“Really?” she said, raising her eyebrows.
“Uh…yeah,” I nodded. “Why?”
“I didn’t realize you had planned this party yourself.”
“Well, it was meant to be a surprise for Molly,” I admitted. “Except that she found out two days ago, so the surprise part didn’t work out. But I didn’t want her to have to do the work for this dinner. I just want her to enjoy herself; she’s been working so hard lately.”
Mom looked at me with surprise in her eyes. “Do you realize that it’s been a year since I’ve seen you.”
“That can’t be.”
“It is.”
“Wow, time flies, huh?” I said. “Let’s walk down to the lounge bar; we can sit and catch up there.”
She cast a critical eye over the resort as we moved through the wide corridors and the pillared halls. “It’s a beautiful hotel, son,” she said admiringly. “It’s different, though.”
“Dad liked modern architecture,” I said. “I prefer a mix.”
“I can see that,” she nodded as we walked into the lounge bar.
We sat down, and I ordered the finest champagne we had to offer. “So,” she said. “Where is Molly?”
“She’s finishing up a meeting,” I said. “She should be here any minute.”
“A meeting?” she repeated. “She seems to be as busy as you are.”
“She’s been a Godsend,” I said. “She’s really helped relieve my workload.”
“And, she doesn’t mind the hours you have to work?”
“She understands completely,” I said. “She’s been really supportive. And I’ve tried to balance things out now… I want to be there for her.”
“I have to be honest,” Mom said, shaking her head at me. “I never thought I’d see this day. I honestly thought you’d never get married. You were so much like your father.”
“Dad got married,” I reminded her.
“Sure, but he was never any good at it,” she said. “We had an engagement party, too, right after he proposed to me. Except he was so busy that he made me plan the whole thing. He showed up late because he had meetings all day, and he answered every call he received that night.”
“Wow,” I said, seeing my mother’s perspective for the first time in a long time. “That can’t have been easy.”
Mom sighed. “I was young and naïve. I thought at the time that it was only temporary, until he got his feet on the ground. I never imagined that my whole married life would consist of playing second fiddle to his empire.”
“I don’t intend for that to be the case for me,” I assured her. “Dad ended up losing you because he didn’t have his priorities in order. But I want to learn from his mistakes. I don’t intend to lose Molly to my career. No empire is that important.”
I could see the pride in her eyes as Mom smiled at me. “I’m glad, son,” she said fondly.
At that moment, Molly walked into the lounge. She looked like she had hurried to get here. I noticed she was a little out of breath as she approached. She was wearing long white pants, a tight white shirt, and a black blazer. She looked like some chic professional out of the pages of French Vogue.
“Mrs. Larson,” Molly said, giving my mother a hug. “It’s so nice to see you after so long.”
“Please, dear,” Mom replied. “You have to start calling me Anita. Mrs. Larson is far too formal for my intended daughter-in-law.”
“Daughter-in-law,” Molly repeated, giving me a smile. “I’m going to have to get used to that.”
I laughed. “You’ve got quite a few new titles to get used to,” I said. “Not least of all is wife.”
Molly laughed and slipped in beside me as I put my arm around her shoulders. She looked radiant, and I just wanted to stare at her for a moment.
“Are you excited for the party tonight, Molly?” Mom asked.
“Very much,” she nodded. “I think Tristan and I are both in need of a good party. But most importantly, we just want to celebrate our engagement with our closest friends and our family.”
“Speaking of family,” Mom said. “Where are your parents? I’d love to say hello.”
“They’re down by the beach at the moment,” Molly told her. “But don’t worry, you’ll see them tonight at the island.”
“Excellent,” she nodded. “And Jason? Where is he?”
“He’s just arrived actually,” Molly replied. “I met him just before I got here. He’s changing in his room at the moment, but I told him to meet us here.”
Molly gave me a glance and a reassuring wink. I had spoken to Jason a few times over the last three months but we had yet to meet. Jason had assured me that as long as I treated his sister well, then he and I would never have a problem. His reaction had made me realize that using him as an excuse had just been a scapegoat for my fear.
“So tell me, Molly,” Mom was saying. “How did Tristan propose to you?”
“We were on his island—”
“Our island,” I corrected her.
She smiled. “Our island,” she said. “It was my twenty-fifth birthday, so he had cooked me this amazing Italian meal. It was the first night in days that we’d gotten to spend together, and I was already pretty happy. I had just put the dishes in the sink when I turned around to find Tristan on one knee.”
“Let’s take a look at that ring,” Mom said, holding out her hand.
Molly offered up her fingers for inspection, and Mom looked at me with obvious admiration. “You picked the ring yourself?”
“I did,” I nodded. “Do you approve?”
The ring comprised of sparkling round diamonds arranged into a perfect ball atop the sphere. “I most definitely approve,” she nodded. “When are you two thinking of having the wedding?”
Molly glanced at me. “We haven’t spoken about dates yet,” she said. “But we discussed a June wedding next year.”
“In Hawaii.”
“Of course,” I nodded. “It doesn’t make sense to get married anywhere else. It’ll have to be a beach wedding, too.”
“A beach wedding,” she repeated. She didn’t sound very happy about the idea, and Molly and I tried to suppress our laughter.
Mom was still peppering Molly with questions when I spied Jason enter the lounge out of the corner of my eye. Giving Molly a kiss on the forehead, I excused myself and walked up to him.
“Hi, brother-in-law,” I said.
Jason laughed. “That’s right, we’re going to be related now,” he said, as he leaned in gave me a short hug.
“Pretty much,” I nodded. “Pretty weird, huh?”
“Weird is one way to describe it,” he nodded. “I can’t quite believe it…you and Molly. I’ve had a few months to wrap my head around the two of you as a couple and it’s still strange to think about.”
“I’m sorry for not telling you myself,” I said, giving the apology that I’d been rehearsing for months now.
Jason smiled. “I’ll forgive you on one condition,” he said.
“Shoot.”
“Don’t you ever hurt my sister,” he said. “Because that is something I will never forgive.”
“I wouldn’t have asked her to marry me if I’d thought there was any chance of that happening,” I assured him. “I made a mistake months ago and it made me realize how much I love her and how I will never do anything to screw up what we have.”
He looked at me carefully and nodded. “You love her?”
“More than you will ever know.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“How long have you had feelings for her?”
“Uh…if I tell you, will you promise not to punch me in the face?”
He cringed. “Since she was fourteen?”
“God, no,” I said quickly. “She was sixteen when I started…seeing her differently. But I promise nothing ever happened between us until she was older.”
“How much older?”
“Eighteen,” I said. “And it was only a kiss.”
“Huh.”
“What?”
“Molly never mentioned anything about a kiss to me.”
I smiled. “Why would she?”
“You have a point,” he nodded.
“So…you forgive me?” I asked. “For breaking the bro code and sleeping with your sister.”
He smiled. “Hey, if sleeping with her was all you were doing, then I’d probably be tempted to punch you,” he nodded. “But you’re marrying her—that means something completely different.”
“It does,” I agreed.
“So, your engagement party?”
“Yeah?”
“I hear it’s on some private island?”
“It is,” I smiled.
“How are we getting there?”
“I’ve hired boats to ferry the guests over there,” I said. “We wanted an intimate engagement party, so we’re only talking about twenty-thirty people.”
Jason shook his head at me. “This is so surreal… I’m at your resort to celebrate your engagement to my little sister. I would never have predicted this in a million years.”
“Your parents were thrilled,” I told him smugly.
“Of course, they would be,” he said, rolling his eyes. “They’ve always loved you. But then, you’ve always had a way with parents.”
I laughed. “I’m glad you’re here, Jason.”
He clapped me on the back. “I’m glad to be here, bro,” he said. He looked towards Molly, and I turned to glance over at her, too.
“She’s a great girl, my sister,” Jason said fondly. “She’s patient and kind, and she’ll make an amazing wife.”
“I know,” I agreed wholeheartedly.
“She’s too good for you,” he said light-heartedly.
I smiled. “Oh trust me, I am aware of that. I will do my best to be the husband she deserves. And I will do my best to give her the life she deserves.”
“Good,” Jason nodded. “Because if you don’t—”
“You’ll kick my ass,” I smiled. “I know.”
“Good,” he laughed. “Then there’s only one more thing I have left to say to you.”
“Which is?” I asked, with raised eyebrows.
“Congratulations,” he smiled.