She laughs. "This is completely harmless, I promise. You bring yourself. I’m sure Nadine will ensure Isla turns up."
If I can get to see Isla this way, then sure, I’ll go.
My mother must read the satisfaction on my face, for she nods. "Good, I’ll see you at twelve-thirty. At Nadine’s place. Don’t be late."
She hangs up. I place the phone back on the desk when the door opens. I glance up, and it’s as if a bolt of thunder has hit me in my chest. My lungs burn. My throat closes. Every pore in my body seems to stand to attention. For there, framed in the doorway, is Isla. She’s wearing a pair of jeans and a T-shirt with a leather jacket over it. Her face is makeup free, yet she’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
She steps inside the room, then shuts the door behind her. I straighten and watch her as she approaches. She circles the desk, places her handbag on it, then pauses in front of me.
She tips up her chin and her blue eyes hold mine. I search her features, trying to read her mood, but for the first time, I’m unable to. If I were to hazard a guess, I’d say it’s a mixture of surprise, mixed with a little bit of fear, all of which is underlined with a sense of resolve.
We glance at each for a few seconds, then she holds out her hand. "Liam."
I take her hand, raise it and kiss her knuckles.
Her features crumple. She tries to pull away but I hold on. "Isla, baby."
"Don’t. Please. I need to tell you something first, and if you act so tender, I won’t be able to."
"What is it?" I look between her eyes. "You can tell me anything, LadyBird."
She swallows. "Please, let me go." There’s so much pain in her voice, so much anxiety, so much everything. A cold hand grips my heart. "What is it?"
She tugs on her hand again, and this time, I let her go. She draws in a breath and squares her shoulders.
"Karina Beauchamp came to see me today."
"Oh?" I narrow my gaze.
"She told me what you did."
"What did I do?" I keep my tone casual.
"All this time, I was wondering why there hasn’t been any trolling or anything negative about our wedding. I thought it was because I’d misjudged the level of interest in our lives. I thought maybe people didn’t care that I was the wedding planner before I became the bride. I should have known that was not the case. I should have known it was thanks to you that the reaction to our wedding was largely positive."
I hold her gaze for a few seconds, then nod. "She told you."
"She told me how you asked her to shut down the trolls. To reach out to the influencers and pay them enough to ensure they’d only say positive things."
I raise a shoulder. "It was important to me that you not get stressed over the announcement. I wanted you to enjoy our honeymoon. I take care of what’s mine, Isla."
She shakes her head. "I should have known you’d do something like this. Should have known you’d use your influence and power to shut down anyone who’d dare raise a voice against our wedding."
"You were worried about it. I knew how to defuse the situation. I did it."
She half-laughs. "Only you would be arrogant enough to be able to shut down the internet itself."
"Not the internet. Only those who’d have misused it to cause you pain."
"I don’t even know what to say to that." She rubs her forehead.
"Don’t say anything. I don’t regret what I did. I’d do it all over again if I had a chance."
"Do you want me to thank you for it?"
"Do you want to thank me for it?"
She bites down on her lower lip, and my cock twitches. Blasted thing has a mind of its own, and right now, is not the time to think how gorgeous she looks. How her strength comes through in her clear-eyed gaze. How she holds herself. She’s on a mission. And there’s nothing as hot as a woman who knows her mind. My woman. This firecracker of a female is all mine.