Bailey stepped back, still smiling. “You are so beautiful, baby girl.”
“So are you, Bale,” Kayla said, her throat closing up with so many emotions.
Alexei produced a tissue. Bailey dabbed at her eyes. “Sorry. My little sissy is getting married. I can’t help myself.”
Kayla glanced at Zach, who was exchanging knowing looks with Alexei. Kayla didn’t know how Alexei had done it, but Bailey wasn’t behaving quite the way Kayla had expected. She’d expected a modicum of worry at the minimum. What she got was a laughing, emotional, teary Bailey instead.
“Are you okay, Bale?”
Bailey sniffled. “Of course I am. I mean I didn’t expect this on top of you moving out, and I know there are reasons and etcetera, but I’m still happy for you because I know—I know—that Zach will take care of you. He loves you and you love him and that’s what matters. Isn’t that right?”
“Of course it is,” Kayla said.
Bailey looked at Zach expectantly and Kayla experienced a moment of apprehension. But Zach never hesitated.
“That’s right, Bailey. Love is what matters most.”
He lifted Kayla’s hand and kissed the back of it, and shivers of pleasure rippled down her spine. But doubt wasn’t far behind. He didn’t say he loved her, just that love was what mattered most. A subtle difference, but a huge one in terms of how it made her feel. Her heart pounded and her belly twisted, but she didn’t have time to dwell on what he said or what it meant when they were about to step inside and be legally bound together.
She’d do that later. Obsessively, no doubt.
“You ready, beautiful?” he asked her, and she lifted her gaze to his, struck as always by the warmth and the utter confidence in those green depths.
“I’m ready.”
Zach smiled “Me too. Let’s get married.”
Chapter Sixteen
“I wanted to get you a diamond,” Neo said in Kayla’s ear as they sat together in Dirty and Chloe’s living room while the SEALs and their ladies gathered for an impromptu reception. “But I thought you’d want to pick it out.”
Kayla glanced down at the small band on her ring finger. “Honestly, I didn’t even expect this. I didn’t think of rings. I don’t know why.”
He stroked her cheek and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. She hadn’t thought of rings because she was accustomed to living her life in disaster mode, expecting little and fearing it would all be taken away if she got too comfortable. He noticed she’d been a little wistful since the ceremony today. Or maybe he was wrong about that and she was just overwhelmed. There’d been a whirlwind of appointments on the base afterwards so they could complete the process of making her and Ana his dependents, and she was probably tired on top of everything.
“It’s only silver, because I didn’t know if you’d want gold or platinum for your diamond. I didn’t want to commit to something you might not like.”
She smiled softly. “It’s perfect.”
She put her fingers around the ring on his hand. He was still getting used to it, but it wasn’t as weird as he’d thought it might be.
“I’m really touched you thought of it,” she said. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, beautiful.”
She leaned into him, and he put his arm around her. He liked that she trusted him enough to do so.
“I wish we could go home and watch television together. I didn’t expect a party.”
“I didn’t either. But we couldn’t say no after we sprung getting married on everyone.”
“You’re right, we couldn’t. Besides, there’s Chloe’s cooking to consider. I know you love her food.”
His stomach didn’t rumble, but it perked up at the thought of food. “Yeah, she’s got that Southern stuff down. It’s pretty awesome.”
“You know, you should have asked me if I could cook before you said yes to my proposal. You might not like the answer.”
“Nah, doesn’t matter to me. I can cook some stuff, nothing like Chloe can though. Besides, we can eat out or we can learn to make what we like.”
She leaned back to look up at him. Around them, the room buzzed with talk and laughter. Nobody intruded on their conversation though. Bailey shot them glances from time to time, but she seemed happy enough.
“We? You mean we’ll cook together?”
He shrugged. “Why not?”
“I guess I thought you might expect dinner on the table when you got home. That kind of thing.”
Neo shook his head. “Kayla, baby, shouldn’t we have talked about this before we got married?”
He said it with a laugh and she relaxed against him again.
“Probably,” she said. “I think there are a lot of things we didn’t talk about. Important things like if the toilet paper goes under or over. However will we manage?”
He snorted. “I think we’ll figure it out. For the record, I don’t care which way the paper goes.”
She looked at him in mock horror. “Zach, for the love of God, it’s over. Always.”
He shrugged. “Fine. Over. Got it. Anything else?”
“I’ll have to let you know.”
He ran his fingers up her arm, enjoying the fact he got to touch her like this. Openly. Freely. No more hiding his interest or denying it.
“I wish I’d met you a long time ago,” she said so quietly he almost didn’t hear her. “I wish you were Ana’s father.”
He didn’t quite know how to process the wave of emotion that assailed him then. It was sweet and profound and it touched him deeply. Fiercely.
“I am now,” he said, and meant it more than he’d ever meant anything.
“Dinner’s ready,” Dirty called out. “Come eat!”
Kayla was overwhelmed. Chloe had cooked some sort of delicious casserole with chicken and dressing and cheese that was to die for. She also made a beautiful lemon cake with a sugar glaze that followed up the meal perfectly. There was champagne and wine and coffee, and everyone ate on real china plates at Chloe’s dining room table and another table she’d had
