Vince glared at me as he stormed out of the library, silently letting me know that he was going to do whatever he could to fight me now. My business was one hundred percent in jeopardy. Yet, I still felt like I’d done the right thing.
I was just about to turn to Renee, to check how she was feeling, but I didn’t have the chance to do so. It was merely a millisecond before she had jumped into my arms and was kissing me, deeply and passionately, reminding me that she was the person on the line.
As I wrapped my arms tightly around her, I knew deep within my heart that she was worth all of this. Honestly, I would not have been able to live with myself if I hadn’t stepped up and done what Renee needed me to. She was everything.
“Thank you so much,” she gasped as she pulled back just a bit. I could still feel her hot breaths tickling over my lips. “Thank you for telling the truth and standing up for me like that. Not many people would have done that.”
“I couldn’t stand back knowing what I know,” I replied gravely, rubbing my hand on the small of her back. I didn’t know what was going to happen next, but I did know that I wanted to run my hands all over her body. “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.” I ran my eyes all over her face, my pulse pounding as I did. “I would do anything to make you happy. Even if it means I can’t work in New York anymore.”
I chuckled, but I didn’t think that was really a joke. I really didn’t think I was going to be able to keep up my business here, but that was so far from my priority it didn’t matter anymore. I wrapped my arms tighter around Renee and held her closer.
“I feel the same way,” Renee whispered while beaming. “A few days ago, I thought I didn’t have any control. That I couldn’t do anything. That I had to marry Diego, no questions asked. But now…” Her voice hitched, she seemed to be trying to catch herself before something happened, but I couldn’t figure out what was holding her back. “Will you radio in the other men? I have something that I need to confess. In the guesthouse. Will you meet me there?”
“What?” I was admittedly a little stunned. I didn’t know what she could possibly have to confess. It made me very nervous. But Renee didn’t seem to want to explain just yet. With a mischievous smile playing on her lips, she backed away from me before leaving the library completely. “Okay, meet you there.”
I didn’t know if she even heard me, but it didn’t matter. It seemed like there was a plan in motion regardless. Renee had set the ball rolling, and all I could do was help her out. I grabbed the radio, and called the guys, waiting to see who would answer first.
“Boss?” It was Wes, and I had to admit he sounded very harried. “I’m out at the pavilion and it’s utter chaos. The mother of the groom is being very problematic.”
“I can imagine,” I chuckled mirthlessly. “Well, I don’t know how much you’re going to have to worry about that now. We need to go to the guesthouse immediately.”
“What?” Toby joined in. “Are you telling me that we’re being fired before we even finish the job? Don’t we need to be here for Renee now more than ever?”
It was heartbreaking to know that all my men were more than happy to work at this wedding, even though none of us wanted it to happen, all because we needed to keep her safe. Renee was a priority for all of us, at the detriment of our feelings for her.
“What is going on?” Lucky demanded. “Because I’m in the middle of hell here as well. I don’t think I can just pick up and leave to go to the guesthouse.”
Since I didn’t have any information for them, and I didn’t want to speculate as to what the hell was going on, I decided to keep things vague.
“We just need to get there. To the guesthouse. Right now.”
“But the wedding…” Toby continued, causing me to cluck my tongue with irritation.
“Guys, Renee knows about Lila Messer. I don’t think there’s going to be any wedding. But be warned, Vince in on the war path about it, so be careful.”
I could almost feel the relief emanating from the other end of the radio, from all the other guys. None of them wanted to be in this position today, none of us wanted this wedding to proceed. It left us all on edge, unsure of where we were going to go from here, what would happen to any of us. Career wise, and love life wise, but it was time to find out.
“The guesthouse,” Wes confirmed sharply. “See you there.”
The other guys agreed, much to my relief. I wasn’t looking forward to trying to make my way through the house, avoiding each and every person along the way, but I needed to get to Renee as quickly as possible.
I sucked in a deep breath before putting my head down and making my way through the crowds. I had to hum to myself so I didn’t pick up on any gossip along the way. I didn’t want to hear anyone talking about me or Renee in a derogatory way, and I definitely didn’t want to stop and help anyone with anything. I just wanted to get out of here.
Thankfully, I made it out of the building. As soon as I was outside, I sucked in deep breaths of fresh air. But it was just as much of a nightmare outside as it was inside. There were still so many people milling about. Thankfully, the area by the pond, where the guesthouse was located, was off limits. The last thing Vince wanted was a lawsuit due to a pond-related accident.
I couldn’t wait to get away from all these people, to get to Renee, to find out once and for all what she wanted to say to us. I picked up the pace until I was practically running toward the guesthouse.
“Renee,” I cried out as soon as I burst through the door. I wasn’t even sure if she had made it yet. Not until I laid my eyes on her wedding dress and underwear on the floor by her feet. She stood gorgeously proud, stunningly naked. “Oh my God, Renee…”
I so desperately wanted to run to her, to fling my arms around her and claim her as my own, but I could hear the footsteps of the other guys coming to join us as well. Renee wasn’t just mine. She wanted to belong to all of us, and damn it, I wanted that too. I wanted the beautiful life that potentially lay in front of us.