“What do you mean?” Bryant? Is that him talking?

“I mean, it’s complicated…” That’s my dad—no doubt.

“How so? Explain. I have time.”

“It’s just, Isa is troubled.”

“I know she’s troubled!” Bryant’s voice kicks up a notch, and I flinch inwardly. “That’s what the fuck I find so sexy about her.”

“Okay, there’s a few things wrong with that statement.” Is that my sister? What the hell is she doing here. “What my father is trying to say, is that she’s a little more wild than the average girl. But I’m sure you already know that.”

Long pause, and then the mattress sinks under someone’s weight.

“Of course I know that,” Bryant mutters, before softly adding, “But she’s mine.”

My heart soars inside my chest at those words coming out of Bryant’s mouth. I’m his. Not too long ago, I was driving him crazy, now he’s jumping up and claiming me on the first go. Slowly, I feel my skin tingle and their talking becomes louder.

My eyes open. “Hey.” Pressing myself off the hospital bed, I rub the sleep from my eyes.

“Oh thank fuck!” Bryan turns to face me, his hand coming to my face. “How you feeling?”

“Good…I think.” I look around the room to find not just Bryant and my parents there, but Bryant’s parents and sister too.

His mom comes to my bed, taking my hand in hers. “We don’t blame you, Isa.” Through my tears, I look around the room until I see Jessica, who is now coming toward me.

“Sisters are better than brothers anyway.”

“Hey!” Bryant scolds her.

I laugh, swiping the tears off of my cheeks and casting a small look to my sister who was curled up in a ball on the other side of the room, tears pouring down her face. “Yeah, they totally are.”

“Please take me home.”

* * *

“Renewing your vows? Like, who even does that?” Brianna scolds, straightening my hair from the back.

“Us, of course. And you already know how we don’t do anything by the book, Bri.” She pauses, putting the brush back onto the dresser.

“You’re right.” She brushes off a piece of my hair from my shoulder. “I’m sorry. I think pregnancy is making me cranky.”

“Hey!” I laugh. “I’ve been pregnant too, and you didn’t see me breathing fire.” She steps back and laughs. “You were a freak of nature. When I hit that third trimester, damn. You get fat, swollen, cranky, and don’t even get me started about the confusion of your sex drive. Do you want it? Or not? You need it but the thought of it grosses you out and then there’s the fat thing again, and the hungry thing so you jus—”

I zone out of my sister’s stupid ramblings and look back at myself in the mirror. After the Brooke and Devon ordeal, it’s been a rough year, but through it all, Bryant and I have never been stronger. It was his idea to renew our vows since I gave birth to Harper last week. I know, everyone had asked me if I was crazy getting remarried in my post-pregnancy state, but none of that matters to Bryant and me.

Collecting up the rest of my belongings, I head for the door with Briana behind me. “You look casual,” she says calmly, looking at my body up and down. “But you look mighty fine for just having a baby!” She’s right, I do look casual, but I don’t look fine. That’s her pregnancy eyes kicking in. I’m walking down this time in nothing but a loose nude dress that hangs around my knees. I never wanted the damn big dress anyway.

“Yes, that’s the plan. I didn’t want extravagant, I just wanted. Me. I wanted Bryant. I wanted us.”

Brianna looks me straight in the eye and smiles a sad smile. “Let’s do this.”

Slowly walking down the dimly lit aisle, I clutch the bouquet of lilies in my hand. It’s around eight p.m., so the sun has long since set and all that we have as lighting are the candles beaming up the aisle and all the fairly lights that are dangling above the seating area in the large trees, before finally trailing up around the altar. I look up to see Bryant cradling baby Harper in his arms and eying me in such a way it has my skin prickle, my heartbeat race, and sweat to bead out of the pores in my skin. Bryant is an incredible father. He puts new meaning to “Daddy.” Seeing him play with Harper has my lady bits tingling where they definitely should not be tingling one week after giving birth. Even if I did need a C-section.

Shit. I let out a long exhale of pent-up air just as my feet reach the altar.

This is it. This is my life, my beautiful, insane, very fucked up life. But it’s mine and I’m the luckiest girl in the world.

“Mr. and Mrs. Royal, we’re gathered here today….”

Beep.

Beep.