Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Where do you think they’re going?” Mallory asked Alex, eyeing Lincoln and Izzy heading out of the reception as furtive as thieves.
“Exactly where I’d be going if I didn’t have two hundred people watching my every move,” Alex said, tightening his grip on the spot where her waist used to be.
She chuckled, leaning her head against his shoulder. “That’s what got us into this situation in the first place.”
He kissed her forehead. “Me being a lucky bastard is what got us into this situation.”
“You weren’t so lucky this week, were you?” Mallory said softly. He hadn’t told her what had happened, but she knew it wasn’t good.
He shook his head. “I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.”
Jane Sanders was dancing nearby with Jack Reilly, who sent Mallory a wink. They were both keeping a close eye on a little, blonde girl who was jumping up and down nearby with Michael Vincent, Vivi’s son, who was giggling audibly.
The boy was talking now, a miracle of circumstance and the right kind of therapy. The general consensus was he was on the edge of the autism spectrum, but he’d been selectively mute as a result of a traumatic childhood experience. He was making good progress in a new school.
“Did you almost die?” she asked Alex quietly, dreading the answer.
His fingers flexed, pulling her closer. “Not exactly. But for a little while I thought I might.”
Tears gathered, but she blinked them away. “I’m very grateful you didn’t.”
He rubbed his palm up and down her back, soothing her. “Me, too.”
“I thought we promised no more secrets?”
“We agreed no more lies. I didn’t lie to you, Mal. You have my word. I was worried what the stress would do to you and the baby.”
She met his troubled gaze with a wry look. “Don’t do it again.”
“No, ma’am, Mrs. Parker.”
She felt her lip curl though she tried to quash it. “And now I’m afraid I’m going to lose you again.”
He opened his mouth as if to argue but then must have spotted what she’d already seen—her mother approaching them with a purposeful gleam in her eye. He swore as he caught on to Mallory’s meaning. Alex’s new mother-in-law was claiming a dance.
Suddenly chaos erupted from near the entrance of the reception room and Mallory saw two fur balls, one black, one golden, race across the hardwood floor, jointly holding a stick, and inadvertently sending several people flying. Ouch. Half the room reached for their weapons before they realized it was just two harmless, if crazy, retrievers.
“How’d they get out?” Mallory wondered. Rex had been bunking with Barney for company. The main worry was the children becoming scared or getting knocked over. Alex stood in front of her while Reilly shepherded Michael and Jane’s daughter, Taylor, off to one side.
Alex whistled to Rex, but both dogs had the bit between their teeth and were ready to run until they dropped. Mallory walked swiftly to the French doors off to the side at the back of the reception hall. She indicated the security guard open up and he obliged, throwing the doors wide. A split-second before the dogs headed toward freedom, she realized the cake was in the direct line of their escape.
Her mouth dropped, and she watched in alarm as the dogs ran full tilt toward it. Darsh Singh reached over and lifted the stand that the cake was set on a fraction of a second before the table beneath it was demolished.
The music stopped, and Mallory found herself staring in horrified anticipation at her mother who’d wanted and needed everything to be perfect.
Margret Tremont clapped her hands over her mouth and Mallory thought it was all over. And then the senator started laughing, and the whole room seemed to exhale a sigh of relief.
Security closed both sets of doors into the reception area in case the dogs decided to do a celebratory loop. Darsh laid the cake carefully on the nearest table and gave a mock bow.
Mallory started clapping, and Alex joined her with a sharp wolf whistle.
“Let’s get that sucker cut before anything else can happen,” Alex urged.
“What about the dogs?”
“We’ll save them a piece.” Alex then showed her his cell phone. A text from Frazer apologizing for letting the dogs out and telling him to be on the lookout for the mutts.
“Frazer can trudge through the fields after the dogs. You and I are going to cut the cake, and then we’re going to dance with your parents and each other for as long as you want. And, when you’re done, or you need a break from all these people, I’m going to carry you up to our room and make love to you for hours.”
“Carry me?” she said dubiously. She was no lightweight.
“Carry you,” Alex insisted. He stepped closer. “And you’re going to let me because I love you and I promised, in front of all these people, to worship you with my body. I hope to get started on that sooner rather than later.”
Her heart went all fluttery. “Okay.”
“Okay?” He gave her a stern look.
She just smiled at him. People said your wedding day was supposed to be the best day of your life, but she suspected there would be many, many more days to choose from and she intended to enjoy every one of them.
“I love you, Alex,” she said tenderly.
“I love you, too, Mrs. Parker.”