Her gentle laugh warmed me even in this storm.
“Then why did you do it?”
“You know me. I never could resist you. Besides, it took me so long to make you mine. I'd be an ass to let that go.”
“Oh. I'm yours now?” She raised an eyebrow, understandably suspicious.
“If you want to be.”
Partying and dating random women had altogether lost any appeal for me, honestly. None of them had ever really cared about me, but why would they? All along, I guess that's what I really needed.
The parking lot was shockingly full given the debacle at the church. Mom and dad had done a good job convincing people to attend, somehow. The last thing they wanted was to waste $100 a plate.
A few ladies in fur coats hurried from their cars to the building, eager to get out of the cold. They strutted right past us on their way in, not even looking our way.
“Shall we?” I held the door open and ushered Sarah inside.
“I hope you have some kind of plan.”
“Not really, but you trust me, don't you?”
She laughed. “You're the last person I'd trust.”
Damn, I loved this girl. Almost told her the truth too. No matter what, she'd know how I felt before the day was over.
First, I had to put a stop to this nonsense with dad.
“Such a scandal,” some lady muttered while stuffing her face with appetizers. “What do you suppose happened to Rosa? A runaway bride, perhaps?”
“She couldn't truly be that foolish,” said her male companion. “Why would she throw away all that money?”
“Eh, no big loss. I was tired of being treated like everyone's personal piggy bank, anyhow.”
They all stopped chewing and gaped at me. Sarah hid behind me, practically clinging to the tail of my coat.
“A-Asher!” The guy almost choked on his olives. “Uh, ah, we didn't expect you to be here after that, well...”
I offered a thin smile. “Don't see why not. It's supposed to be my wedding reception, after all.”
He swallowed hard and said nothing. I could feel their questions burning in the air, but they'd have no answers from me. Not yet.
I reached behind me and felt for Sarah's hand. So small, soft, perfect. Just how it felt when I slipped that ring on her finger.
If that had been a real wedding, right now I'd probably be the happiest man alive.
“C'mon. Let's go find my father.”
“He's in the dining hall,” the woman spoke up. “By the dance floor. But he's, um, not in the best mood at the moment.”
Good. Let him squirm for this crap he'd pulled. Now, though, time to strike the final blow.
We weaved through throngs of people into the dining area, where most of the tables were oddly full. Did mom invite everyone in the city or what? Ah, well. The thought of humiliating dad in front of the whole town was pretty appealing.
And there, at the front of the room, was the man himself.
“A complete disgrace,” he boomed, holding out his glass for a champagne refill. “How dare he embarrass me like this?”
Mom twittered and gulped down what was probably her fourth drink. “Oh, dear. He was following his heart, you know. Isn't that what we always wanted for him – to settle down with a nice woman? Perhaps it's best if he chose for himself.”
“To hell with that. That deal with the Marquez family was in the works for years. Combining our families was the smart thing to do, and now that punk has gone and ruined it.”
Anger roared inside me. I was all set to go charging up there, but Sarah squeezed my hand hard, pulling me back.
“Asher, what are you going to do?”
Good question. It didn't really matter what I did now anyway, though. The mere act of defying him was enough to cost both Sarah and I everything.
Didn't matter, as long as I had her.
I spun around to face her. She looked terrified, and I was sorry for that, but this had to be done.
“Let me ask you something. My dad's a vengeful sort; he'll be sure to enact 'consequences' for my actions. Are you willing to deal with that? You'll get burned along with me.”
She shrugged. “It's too late to back out now. Guess I already made that choice when I decided to crash your wedding.”
This was how it felt to have a great woman by your side. No amount of money from dad would be worth losing that.
“He's no son of mine anymore,” he continued ranting. “If he wants to run from his responsibility to this family, so be it.”
“Why don't you tell us all how you really feel, dad.”
His eyes bulged as he spun to glare at me. His famous death glare that had beaten me down so many times before.
Well, I wasn't giving in to it this time.
“Asher! You dare show your face after the crap you pulled? Do you realize what you've done?”
“Last I checked, this was supposed to be my wedding reception.”
“Yours and Rosa's, yes. If she is no longer part of the picture, then you can consider our deal canceled.”
“Maybe she's the one who didn't want to marry me. Ever think of that? What kind of woman would go along with an arranged marriage to a guy she hardly knows, and certainly doesn't love?”
A familiar, terrifying screech resounded through the ballroom. It sounded like some kind of demon from a horror movie, but I'd heard it enough to know that, unfortunately, it was Rosa.
“Asher!” She shrieked, shoving people out of the way to get to me. “Mr. Carrington, this is all a huge misunderstanding, believe me! I wanted to marry your son very much, I can assure you. But I... I was kidnapped
