"Thank you," I manage to say, my voice trembling. "This means the world to me."
Rhia wraps her arms around me in a tight hug. "Youmean the world to me," she whispers back.
We stay like that for a long moment, then we go back to the scrapbooks, laughing at the outlandish ideas our ten-year-old selves came up with.
Chapter Twelve
Aiden
This morning, I was done with tradition.
Spending the night away from Ella, and knowing she was close by, was a torture I have no intention of ever repeating.
New rule: when we're in the same place, we share a bed.
Not seeing the bride before the wedding is ridiculous. I'm not superstitious, and won't buy for a second that it's bad luck. And as our ceremony is at sunset, there are plenty of hours left to not see my bride… when she gets ready, for example.
"I'm not happy about this," Rhia grumbles as she sets down her mug of coffee.
The four of us have just finished breakfast and are lounging on the terrace overlooking the bay.
"But I am," my Sunshine chimes in, kissing my cheek with a bright smile.
"And that's all that matters to me," I tell her, leaning over and whispering in her ear, "I missed you last night. I don't like falling asleep without you in my arms."
El gets off her chair and plants herself on my lap, her arms winding around my neck. "Same. It felt wrong to be in the same place but not in the same bed."
See, my bride and I think alike.
"It's never going to happen again," I vow, and seal that promise with a kiss.
When I let her come up for air, I turn to Rhia who's still scowling at us.
"Do you know the reason why grooms were not encouraged to see their brides before tying the knot?"
"Oh, here we go again," Rhia laughs, shaking her head.
Ella and I both love riling her best friend up with random fun facts. And of course I've done my research on wedding trivia.
"Historically, during the times of arranged marriages, the couple often didn't meet before the wedding day to prevent the groom from backing out if he didn't find the bride attractive. This is clearly not the case for us. So, we're all good."
"Hmm, I wonder if that worked the other way too?" Rhia muses.
The sound of an approaching helicopter has us all turning our heads toward the sea.
"Ah, that will be Father Josef and our chef," I say, getting up from my lounger, taking Ella with me and setting her on her feet.
I hold my hand out to her. "Future Mrs. Burg, are you ready to greet the man who will make you officially mine?"
She beams up at me, taking my hand. "So ready."
"You two go get him. We'll clean up," Rhia suggests, and I glance over at El's mischievous best friend. Her alone in a kitchen with Lex… how much cleaning will get done?
But I won't spoil their fun.
"Sure. You have about half an hour before we're back," Ella tells her, giving her a wink.
Yep, she knows as well as I do what these two will get up to. A night apart has made them frisky.
