Bittersweet Memories (Off-Limits)

“You look beautiful, Ray,” Silas tells me as he offers me his hand.

I narrow my eyes at him and press my index finger against his chest. “You’d better think I’m prettier than the bride, Si. If I catch you looking at her a second too long, we’re going to have a problem.”

He bursts out laughing and nods. “Yes, my little psycho. I won’t look at Raven for more than a second. How about that?”

I nod in satisfaction and take his hand, enjoying the way his wedding ring looks on him. Married life has been more fun that I thought it’d be. It’s given both of us a sense of security we’ve never had before, but it didn’t change the core of who we are. We still have fun together, and we still joke around together. Marriage has been everything I hoped it’d be and more.

“I can’t believe she’s marrying the guy who was supposed to marry her sister,” I murmur. “It’s crazy.”

Silas nods and wraps his arm around me as we head to the venue. “She’s always loved him. The only reason she and I were together at all is because she knew about you, and I always knew her heart belonged to someone else, too.”

I nod. “I know that, but I’m still worried about her.” Oddly enough, Raven and I became friends after Silas and I got engaged. I ran into her while dress shopping at a brand she models for, and her sincere kindness won me over. She offered to help me plan our wedding, and we’ve been friends ever since. The press had a field day with us, but neither she nor I cared. Raven is probably one of my only real friends, and I think it’s the same for her.

“You know what she’s like,” Silas says as we walk into the wedding hall. “She isn’t just going to let him break her heart. If she agreed to marry him, it’s because she hasn’t given up on winning him over.”

I look up at him, annoyed he isn’t more concerned about her. She’s one of his friends too. This has been a somewhat strange side effect of marriage. We’re both so confident in our relationship. Silas will never cheat on me, so though I might joke about Raven, I know he genuinely isn’t interested. I’m the center of his world, and he is mine. He always will be.

“Do you know why he’s marrying her instead of her sister? Raven told me her sister and this Windsor dude were in love.”

Si nods as we take our seats, his arm wrapped around me. “Ares Windsor,” he reminds me. “His engagement with Raven’s sister was originally due to a merger. I can only assume she backed out, and Raven was asked to take her place.”

“That’s some bullshit.”

Silas and I both sit up as our friends walk toward us. Adrian and Leia Astor sit down next to us, big grins on their faces. Adrian is one of Silas’s very few friends, and though they don’t see each other often, they’re surprisingly close. Every once in a while, they go on cute dates together, probably to bitch about Leia and me.

“You didn’t bring the kids?” I ask, disappointed. While Silas and I aren’t ready to have kids of our own, I love playing with Leia and Adrian’s kids. They’re just so cute and well-behaved, and they’re always teaching me things about Bollywood and Hindi slang.

“No, they’re with their grandparents. I’m so excited to have a day off. I just love weddings!” Leia says, and I smile at her enthusiasm. I should be more excited for Raven, too. After all, she’s marrying the man she’s always wanted.

“Hey, Silas,” Adrian murmurs. “Can Ley and I borrow your truck again?”

My lips fall open as I stare at him. “My father’s truck?” I glance between the two of them, noting Leia’s flaming cheeks. “What have you two done in my father’s precious truck?”

Adrian’s eyes widen and he looks so apologetic that I burst out laughing. “Of course you can borrow it.” Dad would probably find it funny and endearing, knowing his truck seems to mean a lot to Leia and Adrian.

Si leans into me, his lip brushing over my ear. “You just had to tease him, didn’t you?”

I shrug and nod. Of course, I already knew Leia and Adrian love borrowing Dad’s truck. There’s nothing Silas doesn’t tell me.

Music starts to play, and we all rise to our feet as Ares enters, taking his place at the altar, all four of his brothers by his side. He looks stone-faced, but I’ll admit that he’s handsome. I can see why Raven fell so hard, I just hope he ends up falling just as hard.

Raven walks in, and his eyes widen, a hint of emotion flickering in his gaze. Hmm… maybe this marriage isn’t as doomed as I thought it was. The way he looks at her isn’t the way he’d be looking at her if he didn’t feel a thing for her.

I watch them closely throughout the ceremony, unable to put my worries to rest.

“Question for your thoughts?” Silas whispers.

Ares tenses when he’s asked to kiss the bride, but then he leans in and wraps his hand around the back of her neck, kissing her in a way that seems entirely inappropriate considering that until recently, Raven was nothing more than his fiancée’s sister. Hmm… good for her.

I glance at my husband and smile. “I’m thinking that Raven’s marriage isn’t as doomed as I thought it was. I’m glad we attended the ceremony. I feel a lot better now that I’ve seen them together.”

Silas nods, his gaze searching. Sometimes, he looks at me suspiciously. Si always thinks I’m up to some kind of trouble, but this time I’m really not. “Ask your question,” he says.

“When we got married, you told me that everything you own is mine now too, right? Does that include Sinclair Security?”

Silas hesitates. “It does… but you cannot send men after Ares Windsor without reason, little psycho. His family is one of our biggest clients, and you really shouldn’t interfere with their marriage.”

I nod. “Fine, but promise me this. If he hurts her, I get to drag him into an interrogation room and beat him up.”

Silas runs a hand through his hair and sighs. “Okay, fine.”

I grin at him and lean in to kiss his cheek. “I knew you loved me.”

The way he looks at me with such love and exasperation has me giggling. I’ve never been this happy before, and I know he feels the same way. Silas and I had to fight for everything we’ve got, including each other. In the end, it was all worth it.

We both rise to our feet as the ceremony wraps up. “You’re leaving already?” Leia asks. “You won’t stay for the reception?”

I shake my head and place my hand on her shoulder. “We can’t. Silas’s brother is coming over for dinner tonight. We only really see him every few months, so we didn’t want to reschedule. Let’s have a picnic with the kids soon, okay? I have the perfect place in mind.”

Leia nods and Silas greets Adrian before we head out, our car already waiting for us on the curb. Silas turns to me and narrows his eyes. “You’d better not look at Ryan for more than a second,” he warns me, and I burst out laughing. It took us a while, but over time, Ryan and Silas’s relationship recovered somewhat. It’ll never be what it used to be, but at least they’re on speaking terms again. I suppose it helped that Ryan started dating Amy, surprising us all. That, combined with how hard he’s been working at Sinclair Security, convinced Silas to give him one final chance. I’m glad he did, because cutting Ryan out of his life made him unhappier than he’d ever admit.

“Fine, but you do know you’re crazy, right?”

“Only for you, Ray.”