I came first, pleasure shooting through me seconds before he joined me. Then we just rested against the wall, neither of us moving, his lips still hovering over mine, our hearts racing as we came down from yet another incredible sex high.
“We seem to be making a habit of these quickies,” he whispered, his forehead pressed to mine. “I might be losing my touch.”
“I promise, you’re not losing anything,” I whispered back. “But it would be nice not to rush off every time.”
“Tonight,” he promised softly. “We’ll take our time and really get to know each other.”
We took a quick shower to freshen up and then headed back to the house, pulling in just ahead of Ian, Everly and the others. I rushed to hug my future sister-in-law and my twin. It felt like years since I’d seen Ian, and I took a moment to savor his strength and mentally re-establish our bond.
“Hey, sis.” He kissed the top of my head. “You look good.”
“Thanks.” I smiled at him. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too.” He met my gaze and cocked his head just a fraction of an inch. “Sometime this week we’ll take some time to catch up, yeah?” My twin knew me well and I nodded.
“Definitely.” Dax was greeting our friend Tore, who was helping Everly’s maid of honor, Margot, and Margot’s four-year-old daughter, Gracie, out of the car and I wandered over to say hello. I hadn’t met Gracie before and I squatted down so I was eye level.
“Hello. I’m Isla.”
“Ian said you were twins, but he lied,” Gracie said, frowning. “You don’t look like him at all.”
I laughed. “We’re not identical twins because he’s a boy and I’m a girl. We’re what’s called fraternal twins.”
She peered at me. “Do you know how to play Candy Land?”
“I don’t,” I said slowly, “but if it’s a board game, I’m willing to learn if you’ll teach me.”
“I will.” Gracie nodded solemnly as I straightened back up.
I knew from Ian that Gracie had been in a terrible car accident last year and the glass from the windshield had sliced off part of her face. Though she had scars, I was impressed with the job the plastic surgeon had done. If I recalled correctly, there would be another surgery this summer after the wedding, and probably another six months later. At that point, the surgeon was hopeful most of Gracie’s scars would be minimized. As she got older, they would fade to almost nothing.
We all moved inside, my mother joining us as we made our way to the dining room. Merrie had prepared a full lunch, since we figured everyone would be hungry after an international flight, and Gracie immediately attached herself to my mother, which made me smile. Though none of us kids were ready to provide them, she was a thousand percent ready for grandchildren. If I thought about it a little, my grandfather was probably ready to be a great-grandfather as well. Ian and Everly said they were waiting at least a year, and I wasn’t ready, so that wouldn’t be happening any time soon, and Gracie was providing the perfect distraction.
“I can’t wait to see your wedding dress,” Mum told Everly.
Everly grinned. “It’s gorgeous. I can’t wait to show you.”
“My dress is prettier,” Gracie announced.
“Gracie.” Margot gave her a look.
“But it is,” Gracie protested. “Auntie Evie’s dress is pretty, but mine is blue. And royal blue is much prettier than white.”
“Gracie, I think—” Margot began.
“It’s okay,” Everly interrupted, turning to Gracie. “Blue is prettier than white sometimes, but white wedding dresses are traditional. Remember we talked about what traditional means when we were shopping?”
Gracie nodded contritely. “You’re right. I’m sorry, Auntie Evie.”
“It’s okay.”
Mum distracted Gracie with a biscuit and we chatted as we ate. Dax sat beside me, resting his arm on the back of my chair when we were finished eating, and I caught the amused glances he, Ian and Tore exchanged. They were good friends, so I assumed there would be some shit-talking going on later, but that was okay. Ian was my twin, my other half, and he would never say anything bad about me, and I had faith Dax would take it all in stride. I didn’t know Tore quite as well, but he was a good lad, full of mischief and fun, but not mean-spirited in any way. I’d spent a lot of time with Ian’s teammates and I’d never known any of them to say or do anything hurtful.
The first chance Mum got, she dragged us ladies up to her bedroom suite, insisting Everly show us the dress. Even though it was a bit of a hassle to drag the massive garment bag up there, and then it took all of us to help her change, it was worth it. The dress was stunning, showing off her trim figure but also capturing the romance and formality of a black-tie event.
When Everly turned to us, we all fell silent, even Gracie, who’d tagged along. Mum had tears in her eyes and she dabbed at them with a tissue.
“My late husband would be so excited about all of this,” she whispered. “He loved our children so much and we’d just begun dreaming about which of them would get married first when he passed.”
“I hate that I’m never going to meet him,” Everly whispered, coming over and taking her hands. “I’m not particularly religious, but I firmly believe there is some essence of his soul watching over his
