She held me close, rocking back and forth the way a mother would console a child.
This wasn’t real. This couldn’t be real.
He lied to me.
She was alive.
He knew.
She was alive.
She grabbed my face and cradled it in her hands. “I know what you’re thinking, and he’s not the bad guy here. We have all night to talk about that.” She swiped her hand under my eyes. “Right now, I just want to see this dress on that gorgeous fucking body. Seriously, T.” Her gaze fell to my boobs. “What the fuck?”
I laughed through my tears because she was back. My best friend was alive. It didn’t matter how. All that mattered was having her here, holding her, knowing she was okay.
***
After Lyric told me everything that she’d been through, I confronted Caspian. I knew it was bad luck to see the bride, blah, blah, blah. But I needed to talk to him. I needed to know. I thought I’d seen it all, thought I’d seen the worst of the darkness, but what Lyric had experienced was much, much worse. She was dragged into the darkness. She told me that with Chandler’s help, Caspian had saved her, that thanks to them it wasn’t so bad anymore.
He was lying in bed with the covers draped over his lower half and one leg kicked out. The moonlight danced over his flawless face. It was hard to concentrate around him.
I sat down on the bed. “Why?”
“Why did I save her? Or why didn’t I tell you about it?” He clasped his fingers behind his head and stared up at the ceiling.
“Why didn’t you trust me?”
His gaze shot to mine. “It wasn’t about trusting you, Little Troublemaker. It was about trustingthem. That shit you saw at The Grove was only the beginning. Do you have any idea what they’re capable of? What they do to women like you? To women like Lyric?” He moved his hand to my knee, and my body immediately reacted to his touch—a spark igniting in my core. “If I’d told you she was alive, you would have moved heaven and earth to see her, and I would’ve helped you because as powerful as I think I am, I am powerless when it comes to you.” He inched his hand up my thigh, and a moan worked its way up my throat, threatening to break free. “The minute they found out that you knew what they’d done, they would’ve taken you too. And I might not have had time to save you back then. The only reason I knew to save Lyric was because your brother fucked up and came to my house accusing me of fucking her.” His voice lowered to a deep rasp. “You think what I did to Khalid was ruthless? I would’ve burned the whole fucking world down, leaving a trail of blood and matches as I went, if they’d taken you.” He slipped his hand through the leg of my pajama shorts, and his thumb found my clit through my panties. I parted my legs, unable to help myself, not even wanting to. I rolled my head back and bit my lip. Oh. My. God. “I had to wait until I had the means to keep you safe, until I knew there was no way they could get to you. If that meant hurting you to protect you, then that was a sacrifice I was willing to make.”
I knew how important this all was to Caspian. He’d already told me the reason he’d gone to Europe was because if he’d stayed, he would have gone to jail and lost his trust money. Without his trust, there would have been no future. There would have been nous. I would be a princess slave to a cruel man, and Caspian would be a slave to his father. While I wished he’d just told me everything from the beginning, I understood why he didn’t. I was a sixteen-year-old girl still learning the ways of a world he’d been thrust into when he was just a child.
“No more secrets,” I said.
He ran his tongue over his bottom lip. “No more secrets.” He moved the fabric to the side and shoved two fingers in my pussy, still circling my clit with his thumb. I grabbed his forearm and rode his hand, fucking his fingers, devouring every ounce of pleasure he gave until I went over the edge.
***
The air was crisp and cool, and the sun was bright, like the sky was giving us its blessing. Caspian stood beneath a wooden pergola on the beach. White sheer curtains hung from the corner rafters and flowed in the breeze. Tall metal lanterns framed the middle aisle. It was small and intimate. Only our closest friends and Lincoln were there. Chandler was the best man, and Lyric was my maid of honor. Until she showed up, that role belonged to Lincoln. I was pretty sure he was as happy as I was to see her.
“You ready for this?” Lyric asked as the music started. She handed me a bouquet of flowers just like the ones Caspian had left onstage the night of the ballet.
A calm washed over me, even though my heart was hammering in my chest. I took a deep breath. “I’ve been ready since I was six years old.”
She blinked back tears. “You know I can’t stay…”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “I know.”
It was dangerous for her to have been here for as long as she had. If she got caught…
I shook away the thought and forced a smile. I’d just gotten her back, and I was losing her again. But at least now I knew she was okay.
I took her hand in mine. “I’m just glad you’re here now.”
The music grew louder, and she squeezed my hand. “It’s time.”
I heaved a breath. “It’s time.”
Lyric and I walked down the aisle, hand in hand, stopping in front of the minister. It made perfect sense for the person I loved the longest to give me away to the person I loved the most. I handed her the bouquet and stepped in front of Caspian.