by Cidney West
“Was this part of the plan?” the assistant whispered. Her partner just shook his head.
After another moment of dead silence, Cedric added, “I’m improvising. It’s kind of what I do best.” He took a breath, raking a hand through his hair. It didn’t help. “See, I didn’t know about all of this until I watched the news this morning. But it turns out my father was trying to help. I knew it was Ella’s shoe, so when he told me you were coming here, I followed. So…here I am. Late, apparently.” He nodded at the shoe, then caught sight of the destroyed high heel still on the floor. His brows crinkled together, but J.J. interrupted his curiosity.
“You know each other?” J.J. glanced from Ella to Cedric.
“Where do you think the shoe came from in the first place?” Cedric said, picking up the mangled shoe by its heel and turning it around in the air. “I’m the one who saved it. I know what people think about me, but I do remember the woman I danced with and what she looked like. I didn’t need a shoe to find her, but…” Cedric paused, turning to face Ella. As soon as he looked at her, her heart started thumping in her chest and she couldn’t stop staring at him. “But I’m glad my father did this just the same.”
Cedric dropped the shoe, walking toward Ella. Taking that as his cue, J.J. finally slid out of the way. Ella set her foot down as Cedric fell on his knees in front of her, taking her hands. “Ella…I’m so sorry. If I’d thought things through…” His voice dropped off, his hazel eyes pleading with her. “I knew better than to think you’d take off like that. You’re not like me; you’re so much better.”
Ella shook her head, her body starting to tremble. “No, I’m not. You know who you are and what you want to do. I’ve let the past control me my whole life.” Part of her felt ashamed for not letting go sooner. She wanted to be as carefree as Cedric, but she just wasn’t. “I’m trying to be braver and take more control over my life. But I’m not like you.”
His eyes softened, the intensity waning as his touch grew gentler. “I don’t know as much as I thought. And I’m not brave. You haven’t run from your problems like I have. I’ve tried to escape things my whole life. But I don’t want to anymore. I don’t want to run away this time. Not from my responsibilities, not from my father, and especially not from the only woman who’s ever made me want to be a better man.”
Tears pricked the back of Ella’s eyes and she tightened her grip on his hands, the only thing that made her believe all of this was real. “Do you mean that?”
“You have no idea.” His lips curved into a smile. “You are the bravest person I know, Ella Brodie. I don’t deserve you. But I love you and I had to try.”
A tear escaped and slipped down her cheek. “I love you too,” she whispered. “And I never thought you were undeserving. If anything, it’s the other way around.”
Cedric shook his head. “Nothing could be farther from the truth.” He took her face in both hands. “I love you so much, Ella. Will you…will you marry me?”
She’d never made a decision this quickly in her life. This time she wasn’t running the other direction. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
The brightest smile she’d ever seen spread across his face and made his hazel eyes sparkle. Then he drew her toward him until their lips met. Ella surrendered, welcoming his strong arms around her body.
When they pulled apart, Ella and Cedric looked around to find their small audience crying. J.J. sniffed and wiped a tear away. “That was so beautiful.”
Cedric rested his forehead against Ella’s, his eyes twinkling. “I do have this effect on people.”
Ella smiled wryly. Maybe he did have a lot to learn. But then again, so did she.
CHAPTER 23
After the excitement over the proposal, and once he’d secured the most beautiful diamond engagement ring he could find, Cedric asked to stay on with Vannoy Travel and see his assignment through. Whatever the board thought, his father didn’t hesitate to oblige him. It was the weirdest feeling he’d ever had, but Cedric was actually looking forward to it. Part of that may have been knowing he’d see Ella as much as he liked and not in just an employer and employee situation. But he also thought it had something to do with the job itself. And that was truly bizarre.
A couple of weeks after the proposal, Cedric had another task to settle. Without warning them beforehand that he was paying a visit, he stood in front of Sylvia and her two daughters at their dining room table. Sylvia and Marie especially were overly polite and accommodating at his impromptu visit. Marie batted her lashes at him while the other daughter, Angie, simply watched with interest. He knew Ella hadn’t told them about the engagement and he was rather looking forward to this.
“I’ll get right to the point of my visit,” Cedric said, resting his hands on top of the chair at one end of the table. The girls sat down while Sylvia remained standing. “I know Ella hasn’t had a chance to tell you yet, but I wanted you to know we’re engaged.” Cedric waited a beat for that to sink in. And it did take a minute.
Finally, Sylvia blinked her small eyes at him, her mouth parted. “Engaged?” she said, barely restraining her voice.
Marie squeaked and Angie only smirked. But Ella had told him that Angie had given his father’s assistant her address, so maybe she guessed what was going on.
Cedric nodded. “Yes. I know this must seem out of the blue since it looks like we only just met. As you may be able to guess, Ella won the shoe contest.” After the shoe incident, the entertainment news had tried to discover the details about the winner, but they’d kept Ella under the radar. Cedric did take her on a date, but outside of the city. Way outside. Paris, actually. “However, Ella and I have known each other and been working together for a little while now. I thought you’d like to know, though I didn’t just come by to deliver the news. This is also a business visit.”
Sylvia’s pointed chin tilted down. “How is that?”
“Well, it’s simple. I’m here to offer you a choice.” He clamped his hands on the chair in front of him, leaning forward. “Either you relinquish your claim to Ella’s family inheritance voluntarily–and receive a modest allowance for yourself and your daughters–or my team of lawyers will take it from you anyway, and you’ll be left with nothing.” He couldn’t help the cold stare he leveled at Ella’s stepmother. It wasn’t like him to threaten people with force. But this woman had purposely and actively wounded the sweetest woman he’d ever met. And he couldn’t ignore it. Now that they were engaged, Cedric felt he could justify taking some action. Even if Ella had no idea he was doing it.
Sylvia’s eyes grew as large as possible and he could see cracks forming across her calculated façade. He knew they couldn’t battle him out in court, and so did she. They’d never win. But he did worry Sylvia might be vindictive enough to drain all her resources, leaving Ella with nothing in the end. Though Cedric was banking on Sylvia’s self-interest.
“If you need time to think about it…” Cedric held out his hands. But the only logical answer was all over her demeanor now.
“I think we can both agree a drawn-out court proceeding would achieve little for either one of us.” Her eyes never left him, and she maintained a steady, almost indifferent tone in her voice as she acted like this was a mutual decision. As he hoped, self-interest was winning out. She didn’t add anything to that statement, but it was enough for Cedric.
“I do agree with you.” Not that it would hurt him, but he didn’t want Ella to lose everything as a result. “I think you’ve made the right choice.” He gave a satisfied smile, feeling his position finally had its benefits.
Cedric didn’t trust them, however, and he brought a team to take inventory, so they’d know if anything important was missing later on. Then, satisfied, he left Sylvia and her daughters to contemplate their new future while he left the legal aspect in the hands of his lawyers. It might have been a small victory, but it was still sweet.
At first, Ella was miffed that Cedric had gone without her knowledge and told he
r stepfamily about their engagement, and then quietly snatched her inheritance away from them. But after Cedric’s reasoning and claiming it was a gift, Ella couldn’t stay mad at him for long. Especially when it sunk in that eventually she’d be able to go to her family’s home whenever she wanted. Or even live there again. And Cedric wasn’t leaving her stepfamily to live on the street, either. According to the settlement, they would be taken care of. Though not quite in the same fashion as they were used to.
And that’s when another surprise came about. Angie showed up at Ella’s apartment, asking for help in finding a job. Apparently, she was done living with Marie and wanted some independence, which Ella couldn’t argue with. As strange as it felt, Ella and Scarlett helped her out and Angie finally managed to get a job at a small clothing boutique. Ella had to smile, thinking that this might put things in perspective for her stepsister and all the sales associates she’d terrorized in the past.
Ella was worried about how Cedric’s father would feel about the engagement, but he warmed to her immediately. And it was nice watching the two of them work at mending their relationship. She knew it would take time, but she had confidence they’d be all right in the end.
Maggie asked her back to Vannoy to fill a position in the new digital department, which Cedric swore he had nothing to do with. Even if he did, Ella liked working there and it helped fill in the gaps while she worked on building her travel blog. Cedric promised that she’d have plenty to talk about outside of New York in the near future. For the time being, she found she had more to say than she ever imagined.
But the weeks and months ahead were mostly filled with wedding plans and preparations. Cedric’s father refused to let her pay for anything, insisting that he was substituting for her parents. Despite her initial protests, she had to admit he wasn’t a bad substitute.
Maggie and Scarlett (and even Angie) helped her choose the perfect wedding dress. It was similar to her blue gown, now safely stowed away in her closet, and had a sleeveless, fitted satin bodice and a skirt that floated out and around her to the floor. Maggie chose a delicate diamond tiara for her hair and gave her a replacement pair of the high heels she wore to the ball. It was a nice symbol of how the engagement came about in the first place.
The following spring, they were married outside on Cedric’s family estate on Long Island in front of an intimate group of friends and associates. Cedric radiated joy as she walked down the aisle toward him on the covered lawn, Cedric’s father alongside her.
She passed some faces she knew well, including her stepfamily–despite all of Cedric’s protests. They might have been a thorn in her side all those years, but she had no one else that closely related to invite. They behaved themselves, especially Angie who was finally growing up.
Scarlett beamed at her from her station as maid of honor. Ella’s biggest worry had been leaving Scarlett without a roommate, though she offered to pay her half anyway, even after she moved out. But as it turned out, Scarlett’s grandmother needed some help, so Scarlett was using the change in circumstances to move in with her for a while. She would only be in New Hampshire, so Ella promised to visit often. It would take some getting used to not seeing her friend every day.
Then there were some faces she’d only known since their engagement, including Cedric’s closest friend, Hunter, and his wife, Mira. They’d spent a lot of time with them the last year as Hunter went through surgery to help with his facial scarring. Cedric was thrilled his friend was in shape, both physically and emotionally, to be at their wedding. Out of everyone, Ella knew Hunter was the one person Cedric really wanted present. Ella and Mira had also become fast friends, and Ella understood why Cedric viewed them as family.
As they made their vows, Ella marveled at how far they’d come since meeting in the offices of Vannoy Travel so many months ago. The rogue billionaire had proved she could rely on him and she gladly promised everything. Even if this was all a big accident, it was one with happy consequences.
For their opening dance, Ella and Cedric waltzed, and all the pieces finally fit into place as they twirled around the dancefloor under the fairy lights draped inside the white tent. Cedric beamed down at her as he led her around and around. She caught sight of Cedric’s father and Scarlett smiling wide as they passed. Even Angie grinned. And Hunter and Mira smiled. They might have been thinking of their own wedding, which was not so long ago.
“Are you happy?” Cedric whispered.
Her feet felt numb in the replacement high heels, and she was starving now that her anxiety over the wedding had diminished. But that question was easy enough to answer. “You have no idea,” she whispered back.
Cedric’s smile only grew wider and he twirled her with more enthusiasm. Ella laughed, trying to keep up as the world around them became a blur.
Ella had a real family, and someone in her life she trusted through and through. Even if she found him in the most unexpected place, she’d found him. The shoe fit. And she was keeping him.
EPILOGUE
A few months later
Cedric covered Ella’s eyes, refusing to let her see where he was leading her. All she knew was they were downstairs, and she could smell food.
After a lot of discussions and thought, they’d decided to move into her family home. It was a bit of a process and consumed most of their time after returning from their extended honeymoon in Europe. The upstairs hadn’t been maintained as well as she’d assumed and they discovered various things needed some attention, which was initially surprising. Plus, she hated how they’d decorated, so all that had to go.
Ella wasn’t sure how she’d feel about living there again, but as it turned out, it was one of the best decisions she’d made. She was slowly letting go of the unpleasant memories and rewinding to when things were good.
Not to mention, the present wasn’t terrible either.
“All right,” Cedric said after stopping. “Open your eyes.”
Ella blinked, adjusting to the bright lights in the dining room. Cedric dashed over to the table, holding out his arms and beaming back at her. “Ta-da!”
Ella glanced down at the table, sniffing the aroma of Thai food. “You got takeout.” He’d attempted cooking–once. It did not end well. But Ella didn’t want a private chef as Cedric suggested. So, for the time being, when he handled dinner without her, it meant eating out. That part did make her miss Scarlett, who had been at the receiving end of many emergency food calls recently.
His face fell. “Well, yeah, but…” He waved at the food. “Ring any bells?”
Ella took some steps forward, inhaling the mouthwatering scent of coconut and curry. Ella nodded. “Not really.” She grinned as Cedric’s mouth curved down. “I’m sorry; you know I’m slow about these things. What bells should be ringing?”
“This is the exact food we ate for our first date.”
Ella cocked her head to one side. “Our first date was at that fancy Parisian restaurant after the whole shoe thing.” Cedric had surprised her and flown her on a private jet to Paris for dinner. Dinner. Some things about his–or their–lifestyle still amazed her. Like Cedric offering to buy her an island when she longingly mentioned wanting to go to the beach. She laughed, but he was perfectly serious.
Cedric shut his eyes, shaking his head. “That was not our first date. This was.”
Ella tried to recall, but she was blank. Technically, they hadn’t “dated” in the traditional sense until after they were engaged. Then, it was full throttle: romantic dinners, flowers coming out of her ears, and some truly terrible poetry he sent her in a letter. To be honest, it was a good thing they were already engaged at that point. “I’m sorry but I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He sighed in exasperation. “We went to this restaurant after that horrible art gallery experience. This is what we got.” He gestured emphatically at the dinner table.
It took a moment, but the art gallery reference stirred some memories around, and it all came back to her
. Still, that didn’t entirely make sense with his explanation. “Of course I remember that.” It was probably the beginning of their friendship. “But that wasn’t a date.”
Cedric stared back at her in disbelief. “Yes, it was.”
Ella’s eyes circled up to the white ceiling, which she noticed needed some maintenance. “No, not really. I was your assistant at that point, and you wanted Thai because you’d just had an unpleasant encounter with your dad.” And she’d seen her stepmother and wanted to leave. Fortunately, those days were behind her. Not to mention Cedric and his father were on really good terms again.
Cedric shifted on his feet. “It still counts.”
Ella laughed, walking over and wrapping her arms around his neck. “I’m flattered you remember what I ate.” Though she had her doubts. She certainly didn’t remember, and details were not Cedric’s forte.
“But?” He gazed down at her with those twinkling hazel eyes, his eyebrows rising.
“But that wasn’t a date.” At least not in her mind. He didn’t ask her out, and on some level, she’d been along for the ride that night. If he’d wanted it to be a date, he should’ve tried harder. “Technically, we never really had a first date.”
A little dent formed between his eyebrows. “That’s kind of sad.”
Ella shrugged a shoulder. “It’s just how things worked out. Billionaires don’t typically date lowly assistants.”
Cedric snorted. “I’m not typical.”
Ella brushed hair off his forehead. “No. I guess you’re not.”
Cedric wrapped his arms around her and dipped her to the side in one swift move. “And neither are you.” His eyes softened as he held her there effortlessly. “But you already knew that.”