Happily Ever After (Forever and Always #7)

by Todd, E. L.

“What room?”

  I sighed in annoyance. “I told Janice and Monnique to take her down to the room.”

  “Oh. Yeah, I’ll make sure she gets there.”

  “Can you just do it now?”

  “Yeah. I will when you leave.”

  “It’s really important to me, Cortland. She needs to see it before we get married.”

  He placed his hand on my shoulder. “I got you. Now shower and relax.”

  My mom came down the hallway and reached for the door Cortland was standing in front of.

  “What are you doing?” he said quickly.

  Her eyes widened in offense. “Checking on my daughter. I haven’t seen her all day.”

  “She’s fine,” he said quickly.

  “I still need to put the pin in her hair. I wore it at my wedding and I want her to wear it to hers. It’s a piece of our family she can have.”

  “I can do it. I know you’re busy.”

  “Cortland, I know you’re trying to help, but I need to do it myself. Please let me in.”

  “She’s not inside.” He started to sweat from his forehead.

  “Then where is she?” she asked. “I haven’t seen her once today.”

  “I thought you said she was inside?” I said.

  “No, I didn’t,” he said as he looked at me.

  “Then why wouldn’t you let me come in?”

  Cortland looked back at my mom. “Ryan and Scarlet went to get one last milkshake.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “The closest place is like an hour away.”

  He shrugged. “That’s what Ryan told me.”

  “I thought you said he was here?”

  “No…”

  “You did.”

  “No. You just asked how he was doing. I said he wanted to kill Scarlet because she was so annoying.”

  I was getting more suspicious by the second. I had gotten to know Cortland pretty well over the past year. He was always calm and easy going. Right now, he was acting like I was shining a light in his eyes.

  “Are they going to be late?” my mom asked. “The wedding is starting soon.”

  “Yeah, they’ll make it. Don’t worry about it.”

  My mom put her hands on her hips. “This isn’t like going to the multiplex and being late for a movie. This is her wedding day. Perhaps she should take it more seriously.”

  “She’ll be back. It’ll be fine.”

  “How is she going to have time to get ready?”

  “Uh…”

  Monnique opened the door. “Cortland, we need your help with the boutique.”

  “I gotta go.” He walked inside then shut the door, locking it.

  My mom looked at me then took a deep breath. “I don’t have time to stress about this.” She turned around and stormed off.

  I walked back to my room, the panic setting in my bones. My heart was racing in my chest. I felt the sweat drip from my fingers. Something wasn’t right. I turned around and banged on the door. “Cortland, open the fucking door!”

  He opened it. “Now what do you want?”

  “Is there something going on?”

  “What do you mean? Sean, I’m really busy right now. How about you let me worry about Scarlet and you worry about yourself, alright?” He shut the door and locked it again.

  I went to my room and closed the door behind me. I pulled out my phone and called Ryan. It went straight to voicemail. I called again and it did the same thing. On the third attempt, it rang. He must have been on the other line.

  “Hey, man,” he said. “How was laser tag?”

  “Is Scarlet okay?” I blurted.

  “Yeah, she’s fine,” he said with a laugh. “She’s chugging a milkshake right now.”

  “So, you’re coming back—both of you?”

  He was quiet for a moment, his breaths falling on the phone. “Yeah. We’ll see you soon.”

  That didn’t make me feel any better. I could hear the sadness in his voice. “I feel like something is wrong. Why hasn’t anyone seen her today? Is she leaving me?”

  “Sean, calm down. You’re jumping to conclusions.”

  “Then why isn’t she here? There’s only two hours before the wedding. The closest place is an hour away. I need her to see the room.”

  “Hey, hey. We’ll make it. It’ll be alright.”

  “Please. I’m begging you.” I could feel my voice escape my throat as a cry.

  “We’ll see you soon, alright. Get dressed.”

  “What?”

  “Take a shower and get ready.”

  “How’d you know I wasn’t ready?”

  Ryan fell silent. Now I knew who he was talking to a second ago. Cortland. “I just assumed.”

  Now I knew exactly what was going on. I dropped the phone on the ground, ending the call.

  13

  Scarlet

  Ryan came back a few minutes later.

  “Ryan, there’s three flights going out in the next hour. Why the hell are you stalling?”

  “I didn’t see those.”

  “Fuck you. Yes, you did!”

  He threw the bucket of ice on the floor. “Scarlet! You’re being so stupid right now.”

  “No, I’m not.”

  “You just got scared. That’s normal. But don’t throw away this day because of your doubts. We all have doubts.”

  “That’s not true.”

  “I’m a fucking tattoo artist. I carve criminals and thugs for a living. You know how scared I am that Janice is going to leave me for a pretentious lawyer? Do you know how scared I am that my kids won’t like me? That they’ll think I’m a loser? Do you know how scared I am that Janice will leave me if she knows everything that Mom did to me? Scarlet, I’m fucking scared as hell. When you didn’t call me for a year, I suffered so much. You hurt me more than I could ever explain to you. I thought I lost Dad and my sister.” He looked down at me, breathing hard. “But I forgave you. I’m so scared that I’m going to lose you again, but that’s life, Scarlet. Should I stop loving you because of it? It doesn’t matter who you love or how safe the relationship feels. You’re going to get hurt. You just have to decide if the pain is worth the gain.” I said nothing, feeling the tears fall down my face. “You’ve already been through all the pain, Scarlet. You and Sean have jumped the hurdles and finished the race. Now enjoy the victory. Your happily ever after starts in two fucking hours. You’re going throw all that work and heartache away? Or are you going to take another chance? You’re about to marry your best friend for the past ten years. What could be more perfect than that? Now pull your head out of your ass, get dressed, and fucking marry him. I thought you were done with his running away bullshit.”

  I wiped my tears away as I processed what he just said. I was scared, more scared than I’ve ever been in my life, but I knew he was right. I was always taking a risk. It didn’t matter who I took the chance on. I loved Sean. I loved being with him. The idea of him ending up with someone else made my want to cry. “It’s too late.”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “Everyone knows I’m gone. I can’t just show up and say I’ve changed my mind. It’s already been done.”

  “No one knows you left.”

  I looked at him. “What?”

  “Our family pulled it off. Everyone thinks you were home all day and you and I just went out for a last milkshake.”

  “Really?”

  “Sean doesn’t know anything. You can still go back.”

  “How—how did you know?”

  “I know how much you love him, Scarlet. I knew you would make the right decision.”

  “Do we have time?”

  “If we haul ass.” He grabbed my stuff and called a cab. We ran down to the road and jumped inside.

  “Do you have your makeup?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Let’s do that now.”

  “What? I’ll look like a clown.”

  “Inking isn’t much different. Believe me, I can do it. Hand it
to me.”

  I dug in my bag and gave it to him.

  He took it then pulled out his phone, holding it to his ear. “Cortland? I got Scarlet. We’re coming back. I need Monnique and Janice on standby for her hair and dress.” He hung up without saying goodbye and dropped it into his lap. He grabbed my face and started to apply the eyeliner. Even though the ride was slightly bumpy, his hand was always steady.

  I looked into my brother’s eyes as he worked, making sure I looked my best. He applied my eye shadow, foundation, and lipstick. He pulled out a mirror and showed it to me.

  “Is that okay?”

  I looked at my face. “Wow.”

  “I told you,” he said with a smile.

  “Maybe you should be a makeup artist instead.”

  “I’ll stick to the tattoos.”

  “You should do both.”

  He looked at the time. “We’re going to make it.”

  I took a deep breath. “Thank you so much, Ryan.”

  He smiled at me. “I’ll always pull your head out of your ass.”

  “Just when I thought we were having a sweet moment.”

  He turned to me. “You’re making the right decision.”

  “I know that now.”

  We approached the house. I saw all the cars parked in the circular driveway and realized it was really happening. Five-hundred people were here to witness our marriage. I was glad Ryan talked some sense into me. I couldn’t imagine the devastation of Sean being stood up in front of everyone he had ever known. It would have been devastating to his parents.

  Ryan picked up the phone. “I need to get Scarlet inside without being seen by anyone.” He nodded. “Okay. We’re outside.” He hung up. He paid the driver then grabbed my bags.

  Cortland came outside and helped Ryan grab everything. “Janice spilled wine on the opposite side of the house. Diane is freaking out about it and everyone is trying to calm her down.”

  “Good,” Ryan said.

  We walked to the front door. Cortland stepped inside first then gave us the signal. We inched upstairs and ran into my bedroom, locking the door behind us.

  Ryan looked at the girls. “We need to get her ready—Stat.”

  “We’re on it,” Monnique said. “At least your makeup is already done.”

  Ryan smiled.

  They led me to a chair and began their work. Monnique curled my hair and teased it while Janice put my shoes on and sprayed perfume on my body.

  Ryan looked at the time. “We need to hurry.”

  “Shut up and be productive,” Janice said.

  He rolled his eyes and looked away.

  Cortland looked at Ryan. “Sean keeps saying he wants her to go to this room downstairs.”

  “He did?”

  “Yeah.”

  Ryan’s phone rang so he answered it. “Yeah? Yeah, I’m here. Yes, she’s here. What do you want me to do?” He nodded. “Okay. I said okay,” he said with an annoyed voice. “Okay. I’ll take her in a second.”

  “The room?” Cortland asked.

  “Yeah,” Ryan said.

  “Were you talking to Sean?” I asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Does he know?”

  Ryan was quiet for a moment. “No.”

  Monnique finished my hair then Janice helped me into the dress. Both men turned around and averted their gaze.

  Janice covered her mouth. “You look even more beautiful than you did yesterday.”

  Monnique fanned her eyes. “Wow.”

  Ryan turned around, grabbed my hand, and spun me around. “You actually look like a girl.”

  “I always look like a girl.”

  “That’s debatable.”

  “I need to take you somewhere before the show starts.”

  “We don’t have time.”

  “We’ll make the time.” He pulled me out the door then down the stairs. We turned to the side of the house until we reached a long corridor. A room with two doors faced the end. There was a sign that read, Scarlet Only.

  “Ryan, what is this?”

  “I honestly have no idea.”

  “Do I go inside?”

  “Yeah. I’ll be waiting outside the door.”

  I turned to the door then grabbed the handle, walking inside. The room was empty. There was no furniture. My heels echoed on the hardwood floor as I entered. When I saw the walls, I gasped.

  Every inch of the wood was covered with pictures of me. I was sleeping in every image, my face relaxed. My lips were partially open. Every picture was taken in the same way, with me as the center of focus. Sometimes I was sprawled on Sean’s chest, and other times I was hugging the blankets and pillows. I didn’t know how many there were, but there were too many to count. On the table in the middle of the room was a Yankee jersey, Sean’s old jersey from college that he gave me a long time ago, and a pizza. I felt the tears form in my eyes when I looked at everything.

  “Scarlet, is that you?”

  I looked up and saw Sean facing the wall, wearing his suit. His hands were in his pockets and he was leaning to one side, his head bowed. “Sean?”

  He took a deep breath, trying to steady his emotion. “You came back.”

  He knew. I didn’t know what to say. I walked around the table and came closer to him, not touching him.

  He took another deep breath, this time his voice breaking. “I know you’re scared to marry me. I really don’t blame you. I’ve made too many mistakes to be forgiven. I admit that. But Scarlet, I love you so much, more than I could ever say. Maybe you don’t have faith in my past, but have faith in my preset and my future. I will live every day for you. I promise I will never hurt you again. I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to make you feel the same way.”

  I held my hands together as I looked at the pictures of me on the wall. They were combined together in a collage, a work of art.

  “I didn’t let anyone see them just like you asked. I’m the only person who’s been in this room—besides you.” He turned around, his eyes still closed. “I’m not going to look because I’m hoping you’re wearing your wedding dress.” He dropped to his knees in front of me and grabbed my hand. “Scarlet, please don’t leave me. Please. I knew you would. It was just a matter of time. It was too good to be true. I’ll beg, I’ll plead. I’ll do anything. I don’t know what made you change your mind and decide to turn around, but I’m grateful for whatever it was.”

  I lowered myself to my knees and sat in front of him. I looked into his face and saw the tears start to fall.

  “I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “But please give me another chance. We’re so damn good together. I’ve never been this happy. I couldn’t live without you.”

  I ran my fingers through his hair. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  He took a deep breath, releasing the air from his lungs. “Thank god.”

  “I’m sorry I scared you.”

  “Why did you go?”

  “I got scared.”

  “Scared of what?”

  “That you were going to hurt me again, return to your old ways when you got tired of me.”

  “That would never happen, Scarlet. I’m glad you realized that.”

  “I didn’t. Ryan was the one who convinced me to come back.”

  “And how did he do that?”

  “He said I’m going to get hurt no matter what, whether it’s you or someone else. I just have to make sure the pain is worth the gain.”

  “Am I?”

  “You’ve always been worth it. My love for you is unconditional. It’ll always be unconditional.”

  “Fuck, I don’t deserve you.”

  I wiped his tears away, feeling the moisture stick to my skin. “You aren’t mad at me for running?”

  “I’m so glad you came back that I don’t care. You’re forgiven.”

  “You’ll still marry me?”

  “I’ll marry you every day.”

  I rested my head against his. “You look so handsome.”
<
br />   “I can’t wait to see you.”

  “Everyone keeps saying I look beautiful.”

  “I know they are right.”

  My hand glided down his face, feeling his cheek.

  “I got you a pizza.”

  “I saw that,” I said with a laugh.

  “It’s old now. I wanted you to come in here earlier.”

  “It’s the thought that counts. When did you do this?”

  “I worked last night while everyone was asleep.”

  “It’s beautiful, Sean.”

  “I’m glad you liked it. You deserve the best. I just wanted to reassure you that you were making the right decision, that I’ll love and cherish you every day. I’ll never take advantage of what I feel for you. The love I have with you is something people dream of.”

  I wrapped my arms around him and held him. He pulled me to his chest and buried his face in my neck. We held each for a long time, the pictures surrounding us. In that moment, I knew Sean wasn’t just someone I chose to be with. He was the person I was meant to be with forever. We had our differences and our problems, but our love for each other was never an issue. Every day it continued to grow.

  “Sean, let’s get married.”

  He hugged me tighter. “I can’t wait to see you down the aisle.”

  “Let’s bring the pizza with us afterwards. You know how I always get hungry.”

  A weak laugh escaped his lips. “Good plan.”

  I pulled away. “I’ll see you soon.”

  He kept his eyes closed. “Okay.”

  I turned around and left the room, my heels echoing. I opened the door and slipped out. Ryan was standing there, watching my expression.

  “Walk me down the aisle.”

  He extended his arm. “Let’s do it.”

  14

  Sean

  My heart finally stopped pounding in my chest. I was so close to losing Scarlet. She could have been gone from my life forever. Thinking about losing her, never loving her or seeing her again, still made me want to puke my guts out. I was so thankful that Ryan made her come back. I didn’t deserve Scarlet, and she was right for running away from me, but I wanted to deserve her. I would do anything to keep her.

  I walked into the entryway and saw my dad pacing in the doorway, looking nervous and angry.

  “Dad, what’s wrong?”

  “This infuriating woman hit one of the cars and pulled the bumper off. I think she’s drunk. A few of the guys are holding her back while the cops are on the way.”