Chapter 1
“Congratulations, Bree!” shouted my best friend, Maya. I turned around and gave her a soul-crushing hug even though I was so tired from entertaining bunch of guests—most of them I didn’t even know! “You’re so lucky! You got everything I ever wanted in my life!”
I rolled my eyes at her. She was being dramatic again.
“You just got promoted, Maya. It’s not as if your life’s a tragedy,” I reminded her. She just got the account she’s been eyeing for the last year. She’s been only working there for a few months but she’s already making a name in their company.
“Right. But look at you!” she said and then smiled widely. It was like she’s gonna cry again! “You look so beautiful, Bree! Being married suits you!” she said and then wiped the tear that managed to escape her eye.
I smiled at her.
“Thank you,” I replied. “But you’ll find your match soon. Just don’t intimidate the guys. You know how they don’t like smart women. It makes them feel small.”
“I know! It’s so hard to get a guy when they’re already scampering away once they heard you graduated Magna and that you’re from Oxford. I mean, come on! It’s not like I was a mass murderer!” Then she sighed dramatically and I laughed at her. This had been her problem for years now. Most guys she dated got intimidated when they learned about her background while the other guys were just plain jerks.
Seriously, I was so lucky I found a great guy!
“But you. You got Adam.”
I smiled at the mention of my husband’s name. My husband. It sounded so good. I felt my heart fluttering at the thought of him. He’s the only one who could make my heart race inside my chest. He’s the only one who could make me feel butterflies inside my stomach. And he’s the only one whom I could see myself speeding the rest of my life with.
And he was mine.
“How did you manage that, Bree? You’re Summa! You’re a lot smarter than me! It’s so unfair!”
I just laughed at her and reassured her that her man’s just around the corner. She just had to be patient about it. I had to look for Adam in this sea of people. I smiled at everyone who congratulated me. I only knew half of the people because most of them were either associates of Adam or his business friends.
I got my fairytale wedding. It was so grand. God, it was so beautiful! But I almost got a heart attack when the wedding planner showed me the list of the amount we got to spend. I did know that weddings cost a lot but not that a lot! It was crazy! But Adam told me I shouldn’t worry about it.
“But that’s crazy! 10 million for a wedding?!” I shouted. It was just… wow! I didn’t have words!
He laughed at my reaction so I hit his arm.
“It’s not funny!”
“Babe,” he said and then steadied me. “It’s our wedding. I want to give you the best so just let me worry about the money.” He cupped my face and dipped in for a kiss. He nibbled my lower lip and just like that, my worries flew out the window. I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. I moaned when he brushed his tongue against mine and I was a goner when his hand went inside my blouse and touched my back.
The effect was still the same. Only now, I was gasping for air when he let go of my lips.
“So just tell Dianne about how you want the wedding to be. Every details of that dream wedding, babe,” he said and then smiled at me. “I promised you the world when I proposed so let me begin my promise by giving you your dream wedding.”
I was tearing up. What did I ever do to deserve this man? He was everything I could ask for… and much more.
“I love you, Adam.”
He smiled at me and kissed me again.
“I love you, too, Mrs. Walton.”
Finally, I spotted him! Good thing I already changed because I couldn’t even begin to imagine how I would walk around the wedding hall in my wedding dress. I loved the dress but it was so heavy! The trail alone gave me a hard time while I was walking down the aisle but every time I would remember Adam’s face while he was at the end of the aisle, it was all worth it.
He just made everything worth it.
“Hey, Mrs. Walton,” he said and kissed me. “I was beginning to think that you got lost.”
“I just got sidetracked. You know how Maya gets,” I told him and he instantly understood. He knew Maya since she’s one of the few close friends I kept close. I had many friends but most of them were just too busy building a career so I didn’t have the heart to bother them. But Maya? She’s there always. She’s like my sister from another mister.
“So, having regrets?” he asked while we were dancing in the middle. All the people were watching us as we did our first dance as official husband and wife. Most of them I didn’t know but even that wasn’t enough to destroy my euphoria.
I was happy. Too happy, even. It just scary how happy I was. It was like the universe was bound to punish me for being too happy.
“Nothing,” I sincerely answered.
I didn’t regret passing up the opportunity to work for the firm that I had been eyeing since I was in middle school. They offered to take me in and give me a full-ride scholarship in the law-school of my choice. And they offered me a high-position once I graduated top of the class again—like in college.
It was a great opportunity. It was my dream… but so was being married to Adam.
My family couldn’t understand me. Both my parents were lawyers. My older brother and sister topped the bar exam. It was just proper that I take the same road… and I was about to… until I met Adam.
It was like all my priorities changed when I met him. I still wanted to become a lawyer but I knew that once I married him, I wanted to be devoted to him. I wanted to be a good wife.
“Good,” he answered, pulling me closer to him. Dangerously close that I had to bit my lower lip to stop myself from moaning against the contact. I felt him. I felt how ready he was for me and I was ready for him, too.
Gods, I couldn’t wait for the honeymoon!
“Because I’m not planning on letting you go. Ever.”
I looked him in the eye.
“Plea…