Fairytale Come Alive (Ghosts and Reincarnation #4)(56)

“Haven’t had any time with you myself, lass.”

Her heart lurched. He was right and she remembered again just how much she liked Fergus.

She did her best to ignore her heart and her best, as ever, wasn’t good enough.

“Come to Chicago next year with Annie and Dougal. I’ll spend loads of time with you there. I’ll even take you to a Cubs game,” she suggested.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and shook his head.

Then he said, “Never understood American baseball.”

“That’s fine. I’ve never understood English football,” she returned teasingly.

“Football’s football, the world over, except in America, where its soccer. Always have to buck tradition, you Americans.”

She laughed, Fergus chuckled and she relaxed.

For about two seconds.

Then her mind filled with Prentice again and she started fidgeting.

“They’re too pretty to be walked on!” Sally exclaimed, taking Isabella from her thoughts.

“What are, honey?” Isabella murmured distractedly.

“The petals!” Sally cried.

Isabella turned to focus on the girl, kissed the top of her head then put her hands to both sides of her beautiful face.

She examined it at the same time she memorized every feature.

Then she whispered, “It’s tradition. A magical tradition. Every heroine at the end of a fairytale gets to walk to her hero on a bed of rose petals. And you get to create that magic. Don’t you want to do that for Annie?”

Sally’s face had gone from near to pout to spellbound.

“I didn’t know it was magic,” Sally breathed.

Isabella heard Hannah chuckle.

“Well it is,” Isabella told Sally.

Sally nodded enthusiastically. “I wanna create magic.”

“We all do,” Patty commented. “But this time, it’s all yours, precious.”

Sally, eyes wide, sat back and sighed in happy contentment.

Isabella looked out the window and her heart leapt to her throat in terror.

They were arriving at the church and Prentice, wearing a dark suit (not a tux or morning suit, Dougal had put his foot down) that not only fit him beautifully but he was wearing unbelievably well, was standing outside.

Oh dear.

The Rolls Royce barely halted before Prentice was there, hand to the door handle, pulling it open.

He leaned in, his every-colored eyes pinning Isabella to the spot before he grasped her hand and pulled her from the car.

“What on earth?” Hannah whispered.

“Daddy!” Sally shrieked.

The minute her feet hit the pavement, Isabella didn’t get the chance to say a word, Prentice started walking, dragging her behind him.

Annie was out of her Rolls, her face white a sheet.

“Is something wrong?” she asked as Prentice and Isabella came up to her.

Prentice halted and when he did so, he yanked Isabella against his side and his arm clamped firm around her waist.

Annie’s eyes dropped to his arm. Fergus had also alighted and his eyes did the same.

“Everything’s fine,” Prentice announced but his voice was tight. “The groom is waiting and he’s a f**king wreck, wanting you to beam here using space age technology from a television show rather than ride here in a car. Clarissa called and she and Jennifer’s car had problems but everything is fine now and they’re five minutes away. We’ll start when the mother-of-the-bride and the mother-of-the-groom finally arrive.”

Annie breathed an audible sigh of relief.

Prentice’s eyes sliced to Fergus.

“Keep Sally here. Elle and I have to talk,” he ordered.

At his words, Annie started, her eyes getting wide.

Fergus’s gaze moved to Sally, who had joined them and was looking from one adult to another appearing happy but confused.

Then Fergus grinned, he curled firm fingers on Sally’s shoulder, pulling her to his legs and he nodded to Prentice.

Prentice didn’t hesitate further. Dropping his arm from her waist, he took her hand again and dragged her around the side of the church.

“Prentice,” she snapped, tugging at her hand unsuccessfully, her heart tripping over itself. “Stop! What are you doing?”

He didn’t answer. He dragged her around the side of the church to the back where he stopped.

“What on earth?” she asked irately, deciding to go with anger because fear was not an option.

She could be weak she just couldn’t show weakness. That was a lesson her father drilled into her using a variety of different methods.

Prentice tugged her toward him, she collided with his hard body then he stepped forward, taking her with him.

She hit the stone wall of the church, tipped her head back, mouth open to give him what for for scaring Annie and dragging Isabella around but she didn’t get out a sound.

He kissed her.

Hard, demanding, wet, deep and thorough.

It was a great kiss.

Of their own volition (not that she had the will to stop them) her hands slid up his shoulders, around his neck and she melted in his arms.

After he was done and she was putty in his hands, he lifted his head and his eyes bored into hers.

“That’s what I would have done if you’d have woken up in my arms,” he told her.