329 Finally, wedding (1)

Song recommendation: How long will I love you—by Ellie Goulding.

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Thanks to his friends’ pranks, Desmond had to get changed. He grudgingly glared at the men when he left the changing room. “Pranks end today. I don’t want anyone playing tricks on my wife.”

Evan laughed. “What? But it’s going to be so much fun. Besides, she isn’t even your wife yet.”

Desmond smoothed his hair with a grin. “She will be once she says yes. I don’t want any single thing that could possibly make her unhappy. So you prank, you die.”

“Fine,” Liam grumbled. He, too, had been looking forward to playing a few harmless pranks on Zaria. But on the bright side, their best friend was finally getting married! Now, that was something to look forward to.

Desmond caught sight of a man carrying a bouquet of red roses as he left. It made him think about Zaria but he gave up the thought of getting her flowers. She was going to be doused in so many flowers in two days that she wouldn’t want anything to do with them for a year afterward. However, there was indeed something she would never have enough of.

______

After two torturously long days, it was finally the day of the wedding. The wedding would happen in the evening but Desmond was brimming in excitement. If only there was a way to make time tick faster.

.....

He patted the space beside him and sat up curiously. Where had his bride run off to? He was yet to call out for her when the bathroom door opened and she walked out..wearing nothing.

He was already hard having just woken up and he swore she was trying to kill him.

“If you are going to ban sex before the wedding, can you at least wear some clothes?” He complained.

“It’s only a week.” She winked and made her way to the closet. He could swear there was a deliberate sway to her hips to drive him crazy. He was fixated on her butt before she turned around and caught him in the act.

In his defense, “It’s a week of you seducing me and not letting me touch you. How would you feel if you were starving and your favorite meal kept sauntering around in front of you, dripping in your favorite sauce and you weren’t allowed to take a bite?”

She instantly pictured her favorite ice cream. “It wouldn’t be fun.” She admitted, but then she added, “but once I was allowed to taste it, it would be worth it.”

His cock twitched at her words. She was right. The tradition of not sleeping together for a week or two before the wedding was meant to make the honeymoon more intense.

Though he had to admit, he was becoming more obsessed with his wife-to-be by the minute. At first, she was scared of showing her baby bump in fear that he would no longer be attracted to her but she soon realized how wrong she had been. It drove him crazier than ever. Their honeymoon was going to be intense whether or not they followed the tradition.

On the other hand, she knew how much he wanted her so she wasn’t going to ride in the same car as him. Heaven knew he was capable of seducing her into breaking the tradition she had tried so hard to keep despite wanting him as much as he wanted her.

So as soon as she had her breakfast, she set off with Ximena and Natalie. But before they left for the beach, there was something else she needed to do.

It had been months since she last came here and despite having been told not to come back, this was important to her.

The hospital hadn’t changed much over the months and although Nina had been transferred to another unit, it wasn’t hard to find it. Ryan was there too, so she decided to speak to him first.

She signaled a nurse passing by and heading in the same direction as Nina’s room. “Hello, could you please help me pass a message to the gentleman in that room?”

The nurse gave her an odd look.

She bit her lip nervously. “I don’t want to show up unannounced and potentially upset his sister. Please tell him Zaria’s here.”

Since she had witnessed patients getting upset over matters others may find trivial, she nodded and entered Nina’s room.

But when the nurse left and the door opened again, Ryan didn’t come out to speak to her. He waved her over.

“Are you sure?” She swallowed.

He rolled his eyes. “Of course. Come in, stranger.”

She entered the room cautiously and before she could say a word, Nina came running to her and wrapped her arms around her.

historical

“Hi, Nina.” She felt emotional. The girl didn’t speak so she glanced over at her translator.

Ryan smiled. “I missed that. Nina doesn’t talk much yet but she is upset you didn’t come all this time.”

“I know, I’m sorry. To both of you..I was selfish and..”

Ryan cut her off. “Hey, you don’t need to be sorry. I was at fault too, pushing you hard and hoping if you had to choose between us and your new job, you would choose us. But I forgot your job was no longer just about your boss who I didn’t like. It meant you finally had the chance to put your potential to use, the chance to get your dream home, and your happiness. But friends don’t make each other have to choose. They support each other’s choices.”

Speechless, she hugged Ryan. “Thank you. I thought you would be mad at me.”

“I was, but not anymore.” He admitted. “My judgment was clouded by my feelings for you and I missed out on so many of the things you would have loved to do with your friend. Like the best bachelorette of the year.”

She laughed. “You didn’t miss out much. I slept the whole time.”

He glanced down at her stomach. “That too. Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”

Nina had come over once again, this time giving her a familiar gold-framed card. Wasn’t that an invitation card to her wedding? The words confirmed it.

She squinted her eyes at Ryan in confusion.

“Ximena knew you would want us at the wedding even though you didn’t have the balls to admit it. She invited us.”

“I owe her another life.” She sighed in relief. She had known it would be too late to invite the man who had been there for her for so long. But she was curious. “Are you coming?”

“That was Nina’s way of letting you know to expect us.”

She kissed the teenager on her cheek, leaving her basking in happiness. “Thank you.”

They talked for the next half hour and it was a relief to learn that Nina was doing so much better that she would return home soon. Ryan had found a job that allowed him to work from anywhere so he would spend enough time with her for her not to feel lonely.

_______

When Zaria decided on a beach wedding in the evening, she had pictured walking down the aisle barefoot as the sand caressed the soles of her feet. She never would have imagined the beautiful backdrop that was the setting sun. The glow of the last sun rays beamed upon them, filling the venue with warmth.

Her blue gown was of the same color as the ocean, with a corset-style bodice. The wedding dress designer had managed to make it look like a real corset bodice despite being loose around her belly. She loved it—she had always wanted a corset-style wedding gown, and the rest of the wedding theme was a dream come true.

Her groom looked dashing in his royal blue suit with a pocket square the color of her dress, and he could barely stand still as the moment he had waited for all his life approached.

She walked down the aisle with her hand in Theodore’s arm and her father had tears of happiness in his eyes. It was a short walk but a million things swam through her mind. The first time she met Desmond, how different she thought they were, and how perfect they were together now that they had given it a try. Her eyes were watering too and when she looked up and met her man’s gaze, it didn’t take a genius to guess what he was feeling.

Theodore finally put her hand in Desmond’s. “When my princess was a little girl, I vowed I would not walk her down the aisle unless she is marrying a man who loves her at least as much as I do.”

That was Theodore’s blessing in so many words, Desmond observed. He kissed Zaria’s hand and promised him, “I will treasure her.”

When Theodore stepped aside, he pulled her into his arms and hugged her. “I love you, Zaria.”

_____

AN

So for the big announcement I promised, do you guys remember how Zaria and Des met? For those who don’t, she published an article about the Fort family and angered him, triggering a series of events that brought them together. But what if she didn’t publish that article at all?

I’ve been thinking about it and I will write an alternate universe version of Des and Zaria as a free bonus chapter(s). You guys try it too in the comments. It will be fun!

Though writing this chapter made me think about Encanto’s We don’t talk about Bruno ha-ha. “It was my wedding day..”