“Luc, if you would give me a minute to say something.” He placed his hand on my shoulder. I stopped my rambling. I didn’t know how to make this okay. I wanted to marry his daughter. I didn’t want him to think I was a monster. I took a deep breath.
“I’m trying to say thank you, Luc. Thank you for taking care of Vicky and thank you for making that ultimate sacrifice for her. I agree with you. As long as she was with you, she wouldn’t be safe and neither would my grandbaby. You did what you had to do to keep your family safe. You did good, son,” he said, extending his hand to shake mine. I extended my hand and Bryce grasped me in a hug. My eyes began to tear. His acceptance meant everything to me and made the burden of guilt I carried a little easier.
“I have to ask you something.” I smiled to him. He blinked at me knowingly. “May I have your daughter’s hand in marriage?” I had been raised with traditional values. Even though my father didn’t respect the sanctity of marriage, I did.
“It would be my honor, Luc,” Bryce replied, giving my shoulder a squeeze. I stood up from the kitchen table.
“I have something to do.” I smiled widely. I don’t remember the last time I had this kind of smile plastered on my face. I had lived a sad decrepit life until Vicky came along. Now I hoped she was going to make me the happiest man on the planet. I climbed the stairs, two at a time, I couldn’t get to her fast enough. My heart fluttered as I made my way to her room.
“Hey,” I said softly, as I watched her packing up her things.
“Hey yourself,” she replied softly. I came up behind her and took her in my good arm. The other arm was still in a sling. Then I ran my hand over her belly and she placed her hand on mine. I hadn’t even asked her yet, and I knew she was mine. I turned her around and held on to her face. Her perfect face.
“Vicky, you came into my life when I least expected it, and you completely shifted the world around me. I had put myself in a fortress and convinced myself that my life was good, but I didn’t know and I couldn’t understand what love was until I found you. You have accepted every broken part of me, and you didn’t try to change me. I knew from the start that you wanted me, and that you grew to love me, even when you were too stubborn to admit it. You are the only woman for me. I feel so blessed that you will be giving me this child and the family I have always wanted, but I am a traditional man and I need to make you mine. Will you marry me?”
Vicky
I nodded my head, unable to speak. A few months ago I was a complete train wreck, lost and alone. Now I had everything that the old Vicky had always dreamed of before disease and death took the better part of me.
“Will you say something?” Luc urged me on nervously.
I laughed out loud. “Yes, Luc, yes, I will marry you.” I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him intensely.
Then he pulled his head back. “I’m sorry if this was inappropriate for a day like today, but I couldn’t get the idea of marrying you out of my head. I hope I have not disrespected this day for you. I know you are sad and grieving.”
“I am sad, Luc, but you make things better for me. You give me strength I thought I never had. My mama and papa were very traditional people too. They would want me to get married and give this child a family. You’ve filled an empty void in my life, and you’ve made me feel a part of you when I was lost. I thank you for accepting me for all my flaws,” I said wiping a tear away from my eye.
“You are not flawed, you are perfect. Perfect for me,” he sighed. “Your parents raised you to be the incredible woman you are today.”
As he said those words, I couldn’t stop the flow of tears from my eyes. He knew exactly what to say to make me feel better. I had been holding onto this anger inside me where my papa was concerned, because of how he dealt with Mama’s sickness and basically checked out on life. With Luc’s kind words, I realized that there was so much more to him than the pain of the last few years. Mama’s death had broken a part of all of us. It was something I would never get back because she would never see me as a bride or meet her grandbaby. I took comfort knowing that I had Luc in my life and a family to look forward to, and I was overwhelmed with joy to have Joe and Bryce too.
Chapter 33
We all boarded Bryce’s jet that day. For me it was a start to a new life. I was sad to leave Thunder Bay, but I knew I had exciting things waiting for me in New York, like moving in with Luc. Joe stayed in the apartment with Nessa for two full months. He had already healed, and I felt like he was procrastinating the inevitable, which was flying to Mexico to get Eva and Nelly back. While staying in New York, Joe hit the gym every day and engaged in vigorous workouts. The bullet had hit him in the center of the abdomen, and he and Luc made jokes about it, comparing their scars. They had bonded the night of my kidnapping, and they naturally fell into brotherly mode, which warmed me having two of my three favorite guys so close together. I had a feeling that Luc knew more about Joe’s story than I did, but I didn’t press it. I was pregnant and enjoying my time. I didn’t want to have something to worry about and make me nervous. I learned the night of the motel shooting that Joe was more than capable of caring for himself.
Nessa continued to live in the apartment after Joe had reinstated his position with the DEA. At one point, I was worried that something may be going on with Nessa and Joe. I told him not to go down that road, especially with Brad in the picture. Nessa and Brad continued to party together, although it was obvious that their friendship was deepening into something more. Luc and I were convinced that the two of them were too busy being oblivious to notice how much they were alike.
“Every wild card has its match,” Luc said while we lay in bed and he patted my growing belly. I knew exactly what he meant.
The only lose end I worried about now was Scott Wellington. After everything we had survived, I didn’t want that psycho messing with my family. Luc finally admitted to me that he had told Bryce that Scott was a threat. Apparently Bryce sensed something was wrong from the moment he introduced us and Luc only confirmed it. Bryce hired an investigator and it turned out that there were many more victims. Apparently they were all brunettes with either blue or green eyes. Three of the women decided to come forward and press charges. It was Luc’s convincing that got them to come forward in the first place. He said he didn’t want me to press charges because he knew how hard the court case would be on me, but he found the other women, who were willing to step forward. They told him that their therapists felt that it would be a good part of their healing process.
Scott was charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault, and since one of the girls was underage, he was put on the list of sexual offenders against children. Luc and I both took comfort in the fact that he would be locked up for a long time.
***
Three months after arriving back in New York, Luc and I married in the Hamptons at Bryce’s beachfront mansion. It was a small wedding, despite the fact that Bryce tried to make it big every chance he got. He finally introduced me to my half-sisters and brothers and like Brad, predicted they were less than kind. Really a bunch of stuck up brats. That didn’t change my wedding day. At five months pregnant, I had a baby bump that barely showed through my flowing white lace gown. My hair was pinned with little loose tendrils that lay gently on my face. As Luc and I stood on the beach, under a beautiful canopy covered in white roses and lilies, everything was perfect. Joe even flew in from wherever it was that he was stationed to be there for our ceremony. He and Luc continued to whisper away. It made me laugh to think of my brother as the action superhero he always pretended to be when we were younger.