Page 76 of Meet Cute the Virgin

“He was terrified.”

“I don’t know who thought I’d be good with power, okay?” Lily throws her hands up like she should have known better. I did, and I’m enjoying the hell out of it because my very soon-to-be wife is.

Julian clears his throat at the head of the long table, candlelight catching the gold champagne glass that he’s holding.

“Family,” Julian says, and his voice carries, practiced, certain. “It is not always blood. Sometimes it’s the people who choose to stand beside you while the world burns.”

He looks at Lily. She straightens, unexpectedly serious.

“Weeks ago, I learned I had a sister.” He pauses. “I also learned she had already survived more than most of my subjects will face in a lifetime. And she had done it with a man who would, by all accounts, burn the world for her.”

“I’m not here or anything,” Teddy whispers under her breath. Lily elbows her in the side.

His eyes find mine. Not suspicious now. Something else. Recognition, maybe. Or gratitude. I feel the same way. He hadn’t tried to get his mother out of the situation she created. He knewshe must pay for what she’d done. The same as Sasha. They needed to suffer the consequences for their actions.

“I could have demanded she stay. Learn our ways first. Married properly, with proper time and proper protocol.” He smirks.

“Instead, you picked living,” I say, making everyone chuckle.

He gives a small nod and keeps going. “Instead, I am toasting at her rehearsal dinner in my garden, watching her knight the staff and threaten my security detail.”

“Only the rude ones,” Lily calls out.

“All of them, Lily. You’ve threatened all of them.”

“I already have one man that’s bossing me around. I don’t need a whole team.”

The table laughs, even the duke. Lily has already charmed them all. Julian waits for it to settle, then raises his glass higher.

“To my sister. Who arrived with chaos and stays with love.” He looks at me. “To the man who climbs towers for her.”

“To chaos,” Killian mutters, but he’s smiling.

“To love,” Teddy adds.

“To windows,” Lily whispers, finding my hand under the table.

I squeeze her fingers. “To towers.” I lean over and kiss the shell of her ear.

We drink. The candlelight flickers, and for a moment I see Victor in the shadows, nodding, steps ahead even now.

Julian sits. Lily leans into my shoulder, her champagne half gone, her bare foot tracing my ankle under the table.

“Good speech,” she says.

“He’s going to be a good king.” He might have a stick up his ass, but he is very by the book. He will put his kingdom first, and I’m sure that’s the proper thing to do, but I’d take out the whole fucking world to save my princess without a second thought.

“Let’s hope he can be a good husband.” She pauses. “Which is harder, I think.” If he wants to be happily married, then yes, but I have been where Julian is. Where you drown yourself in work.

Julian must marry to fully take over the crown. It will be interesting to see how that will unfold.

I put my fingers under Lily’s chin gently to turn her head toward me. “I’ll spend my life always trying to be a better-than-good husband.”

“I know you will.” I see it in her eyes, her smile. She truly does mean that. What more could I ask for? I fucked this up in the start, but I’ll spend my life making it right. I kiss her temple, her hair, and the corner of her smile. I’ll forever be grateful that I get to spend the rest of my days doing the same.

We drink. The duke glares at my cufflinks. Minnie sleeps on a small throne; that second steak they fed her took her out. Roland raises his glass again from across the garden, and I know what he means.

Tomorrow, I will marry a princess. But tonight, I look around at the beautiful chaos of the people we now call family, my eyes landing on my future wife and sending a silent thank you to the man who gave everything to give us this chance. Finally, I have the only girl I have ever loved. We are here, we are all alive, and I have never been richer.