by Lisa Lace
“—unless we have a long engagement.”
My sunken heart soars once more, and I grab her hands in elation, my voice rising with excitement. “It’s a yes?”
She laughs. Her sadness has turned to joy, and the tears in her eyes dry as her laughter rings through the air. She nods. “It’s a yes.”
I wrap my arms around her and press my lips down over hers. She sinks into my kiss.
When we step back from each other, Sophie looks down at the ring gleaming on her finger and giggles. “Lena’s going to kill me.”
I grin. “I’ll do whatever it takes to convince your sister that I mean it this time.” I lock her eyes in a sincere gaze. “You know I really mean it. Sophie, I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Epilogue
There are tears in Lena’s eyes as she zips up the back of my gorgeous wedding dress, then steps back to admire me.
“This is what a wedding should look like.”
It’s five years later, and I am dressed in the most beautiful white mermaid gown with a lace overlay and open back. My hair is down, but professionally curled and styled. My makeup has been done; my eyes feel flirty with lavender eyeshadow and long, heavy eyelashes.
I feel a tug on my skirt and look down to find my daughter, Ellie, lifting her arms for a hug.
“Come here, darling.” I pick her up.
“You’ll crinkle your dress, Soph!”
I smile. “That’s okay.”
I brush my nose against Ellie’s and she giggles. She looks so cute in her tiny little flower girl dress at only two years old. She has my nose and Cole’s eyes.
Lena picks up my veil from where it lies on a stand nearby. She lifts it above my head and fixes it in place, then arranges the lace around my shoulders.
“I have to admit, there were times where I thought you weren’t going to get here, but Cole proved me wrong. In the last five years, he’s shown how much he’s changed.”
I beam. “Hasn’t he? I couldn’t ask for more.”
“This time, it’s right. I know you’re going to be happy.”
“Me, too.”
Everything is perfect. Cole and I had that long engagement that I’d asked for, and after three years of being happy together, Ellie came along. We were not only a couple but a family now.
We got Ellie through her first year, and then I asked Cole when we were going to set a date for the wedding.
Now, here we are. It’s July. The sun is shining brightly, and we don’t have to revert to our backup ceremony indoors. I step outside to the beginning of the aisle in the gardens of the beautiful venue.
I see Cole standing under the floral arch beyond the rows of chairs where our friends and family are sitting. He’s dressed in a gray suit, looking a million dollars. My heart skips a beat at the sight of him; my first and only love, the father of my child, my best friend.
It took us a long time to get here, but I’m so glad I held onto Cole. In the last five years, he’s made me feel like I’m his whole world, and he’s been a devoted and wonderful father to Ellie.
What’s more, he seems happy. Every time he glances at Ellie or me, there is such love in his eyes.
He spots me now, and his eyes gleam again. His face breaks out into a huge, boyish grin. These days, he’s so much more relaxed and ready to smile. There’s no panic or rush. We have all the time in the world to be together, and we’re making the most of it.
Lena takes Ellie from me and brings her to our mom so she can join the other bridesmaids as the matron of honor at the front of the crowd. Then, the band strikes up a wedding march, and it’s time.
My dad slips his arm through my elbow and accompanies me up the aisle. As I pass by our guests, each of them is looking at me with complete joy. Mom is dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief while holding Ellie, and Dennis looks so happy I think he might burst into song.
But nobody’s smile can match mine. I’m about to be Mrs. Cole Tanner. Again.
I come to stand in front of Cole. His eyes are filled with wonder.
“You look beautiful.”
I feel butterflies dancing in my stomach like they always do when Cole looks at me that way.
“We made it.”
The officiant starts reading the vows. We’ve been here before, but this time there’s more meaning in the words than there was ever before, because now we’ve been through thick and thin together, and I know that when we swear our loyalty and devotion this time, it’s the utter truth.
“Do you, Cole Tanner, take this woman, Sophie Ellis, to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
Cole’s eyes meet mine. His smile is soft. “I do.”
“And do you, Sophie Ellis, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
“I do.”
We exchange rings. Cole’s hand rests on mine after he slips the white gold band onto my finger.
“Then, by the power invested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
We kiss, and the crowd erupts into cheers.
“If you’d please make your way toward the East end of the gardens, there will be some photographs before the reception begins.”
The crowd starts to file away, and I turn to Cole, alone at last. My smile is so big it can hardly fit on my face.
“This is it.”
Cole wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me close. “Here we are.”
“Ellie looks so beautiful today.”
“Maybe before long, she’ll have a little brother or sister to play with.”
I smile. “I’d like that.”
“We’ll see what we can do on our honeymoon.”
In two days’ time, we’re setting off on another adventure, retracing the steps of some of our favorite memories. We’ll be gone for three weeks to visit Italy, Thailand, and Fiji.
Last time, when we came back from our adventures, it was the end of everything. This time, it will be the start of the most beautiful adventure of our lives.
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Ruined
A Contemporary Bad Boy Romance
Edward
Keeping his eye on the doorway, Edward furiously typed his codes into the computer, hacking into the mainframe at Central Federal Bank. If you knew what you were doing, new banks were easy targets for the first few months of operation.
Edward wasn’t especially proud of hacking into other companies’ computer networks, but it guaranteed business for his father’s company. It seemed that when a company found out how vulnerable their information was, they were willing to pay almost anything for additional security. Since Donovan Technologies offered just that, Edward continued to help with that area of his expertise. His father might not understand it, but one day, Edward would make the ex-marine proud of him.
When the Central Federal Bank logo appeared on his computer, Edward sat back and smiled, pressing his fingertips together in front of him. He worked a little of his magic, transferring large amounts of money from one account to another and then back again, just to let them know he had access.
He opened an email in their system and left an anonymous note, letting them know how easy it had been to access their information. He hovered the cursor on the send button, quickly scanning the email before clicking the button.
When he tried to escape out, his screen froze and then went black. He worked on hacking back in to be sure his connection was severed completely. Then his father interrupted, walking into his office. Edward quickly but nonchalantly closed the program and leaned back in his chair
.
“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Edward said, looking his father dead in the eyes.
Reese Donovan dressed to impress, and his good looks and intelligence had paved the way for his success. Edward was the spitting image of his father as a young man—but his intentions were different. A little more altruistic—to his father, a little too soft.
“Edward,” his father prodded. “What are you working on?”
“A possible new account.” Edward briefly glanced at his computer before looking back at his father. Although his father was casual about the question, Edward knew better. He had a way of reading into little gestures of others very well. Edward was quite aware his father knew he was lying. But he’d rather be deemed a liar than a felon. “It seems the new bank that opened last week has some interest in ramping up security for their system. I don’t have all of the information yet, but I should by week’s end.”
“I wasn’t aware you worked in sales.” Reese’s sarcasm suffocated his words.
“Well, you know me. I try to help out where I’m needed.”
“Excuse me, Mr. Donovan?” Edward and Reese looked toward the door simultaneously.
Claire stood with her hand ready to knock, her eyes on Reese.
Edward noticed how Reese’s face relaxed. The ridges in his disposition smoothed out and a smile formed on his lips. A rare sight indeed.
“Yes, Claire?”
For a woman in her sixties, Claire’s beauty was timeless. She exuded sophistication and class, and her endless patience made her a perfect fit as Reese’s executive assistant. She reminded Edward of his mother—the way she carried herself and lent a helping hand wherever needed. Edward had no questions about why Reese kept her in his company and close to his side.
“You have your luncheon meeting today. If you want to be timely, you should get ready to go. The media will be there.”
“Ah, yes. Of course. Thank you, Claire.” Reese walked toward her, only speaking up once more before disappearing with Claire by his side. “Edward, I suggest you stop pimping the company like a flirtatious car dealer and get back to work. I’m going to need your reports by tomorrow.”
Edward didn’t remove his eyes from his father until he disappeared out the door. He should have been used to it, but the cutting tone still speared his heart.
He reached up and turned his screen back on, wanting to undo everything he just accomplished.
Armed with an impressive portfolio of client companies, Donovan Technologies provided firewalls, security protocols, and other cyber defenses to thwart people like Edward. But most people like Edward weren’t peeking into accounts to show off. Donovan Technologies provided not only cybersecurity but also an array of multi-level support for the businesses under their umbrella. Business Lenders Inc. had helped finance them, and Merge Inc. swooped in when they were failing, bought them, and sold them for parts. The three heads of Donovan Technologies snatched companies up by the mouthful, and if they weren’t strong enough to pass muster, devoured them whole.
He glanced over at a picture of his mother and father from when they were first married. They looked so happy. Edward was sure it was an act: his father standing straight and tall in his dress blues, his expression stern. The woman next to him wore an elaborate white wedding gown, her arm linked through his. A sunny smile that reached her eyes as she leaned into him for the photographer. He wondered how long she’d needed to rehearse for such a perfect pose.
He leaned back and thought back to a childhood nothing like the happy image on his desk. You obeyed him or suffered the consequences. Reese had always been stern. He hadn’t been a monster, but he was never affectionate, loving, or soft. More than once, he remembered watching his mother love that man and go out of her way to take care of him. She never begged him for affection, but Edward knew what the pain in her eyes meant. By the time Edward was twelve years old, she was done trying to win him over. Edward watched her leave.
When she left Reese standing in the living room next to his two boys, old enough to understand but still too young to change things, Edward knew his life had been forever changed. He was glad for his mother that she was finally going to find happiness. But it didn’t stop him from crying himself to sleep that night and wishing he had the courage to beat his father down.
The truth was, he would never be able to take that first swing—and not because he was afraid of him. Yes, he knew Reese would throw him in a corner any time he came at him, but Edward loved his father to a fault.
No matter how Reese treated him and his brother Jack, he always looked up to Reese and admired his accomplishments. He liked to think his father had taught him how not to treat people by example, but even after so many years of the same struggles, Edward longed to impress Reese.
It was times like this that he admired his older brother. Jack didn’t give a shit. He seemed unbothered by the lack of affection. In fact, Jack was becoming just like their father.
Edward got up from his desk and took a break to clear his head. Grabbing his suit coat, he breezed out the door and headed uptown.
After a sandwich and a couple of beers, he was back in the office, with a better sense of direction. He settled back behind his desk just as a text came through on his phone. He lifted it from his pocket and opened it.
Reese: We need to talk. I’ll be back at two. Be there.
“You got it, sergeant.” He stared at the text, angry at his father’s disrespect.
He pre-screened his emails, then closed them down. Once he’d navigated to his favorite financial newsfeed, he saw what his father needed to talk to him about.
BROADEN MARKETS HACKED – SET TO RESTRUCTURE AND REBUILD
“Shit.”
They were only supposed to increase security, not change their entire system. Edward made a phone call to Broaden’s security team to make sure they were still closing the deal.
Edward looked up just as Reese walked in. “Okay, well, listen,” Edward said over the phone. “If anything changes, give me a call. I’ll give you priority status. I understand how vulnerable it can be. Good luck.” As he hung up the phone, he looked at his father, who was standing over him.
“Broaden?” Reese was not pleased.
“Yeah. They backed out.”
“That account was potentially worth a hundred grand.”
“I know.”
“I put off two other accounts because of the work we were going to put into this one.”
“I’m sorry. It happens. We can’t win every account every time.”
“You’re right, Edward. We can’t. But I can. I know what you’re doing, and I want it to stop now.”
“What I’ve been doing? What do you mean?”
“Don’t play stupid, Edward. Your hacking and worming your way into other companies’ networks is going to catch up with you. When you go to prison because of it, I will not be there to bail you out. I will deny everything and wash my hands of it, of you.”
“Do you have any idea what I’ve done for—”
“Not for, Edward. To. What you have done to my company. You just cost me a hundred thousand dollars.”
“A lot of the accounts we currently have are because of me,” he said, beginning to raise his voice. “Compared to the millions you’ve already made, a hundred grand isn’t that big of a deal. Companies change their minds. Broaden overreacted and freaked out. That is all. They’ve decided to revamp their whole system, which will cost them a lot more. I’m working on it, though.”
“Don’t.”
“What?”
Reese leaned over Edward’s desk, his face inches from his son’s. “If you want me to show you how serious I am, continue what you are doing. The next time you try to so much as pull twenty bucks out of an ATM machine, you’ll be denied. Do you understand me?”
Edward could feel his blood pressure rise. He wanted nothing more than to rip into his father. “You’re kidding me, right?”
“Try me. I’ll freeze your financi
al assets so fast, you won’t have time to fill your gas tank to leave the city.”
“Why not? You freeze everything else you give me. What’s stopping you from this?”
“What are you talking about?” his father asked, standing back up defensively.
“You have no compassion, not even for your own family. You live, breathe, eat and sleep business. It’s the only thing you love. It’s the only thing you’ll ever love.”
“Don’t be getting all soft on me now.” Reese softened just enough to notice. “Why are you doing this, Edward? Isn’t the company enough? You aren’t a teenager playing on your computer with your freak friends. Why can’t you grow up and become a man?”
It wasn’t enough to have to deal with working with a father who didn’t seem to give a shit about him or show respect, but when he dug in and watched you bleed. That was rough.
“You have no idea what I can do.”
“Why don’t you show me then? Make something of yourself.”
“I shouldn’t have to. What I’ve done so far should speak volumes. Oh, but yeah. You’re right. Jack is your CEO. You have everything just as you want it to be. It doesn’t matter what I do.”
Edward walked out, leaving Reese behind. He was hoping to walk out successfully and show how angry yet together he was, but running into Jack was not in the plan.
“Whoa, where’s the fire?” Jack put his hands out toward Edward to steady him.
“Excuse me,” he mumbled as he tried moving around him.
Jack peeked into Edward’s office and smiled when he saw their father.
“Still letting Daddy get to you, I see.”
“It’s none of your business, Jack.”
“You have to learn to be more like me, little brother.”
Edward stepped up to Jack until their faces were two inches apart and spat the words that flew off his tongue. “I work my ass off, so I don’t become like you.”
