Finally, she pulled back, grabbing the hand that still held the box. “Lemme see.”
“Oh, yeah, sorry.” I plucked the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her hand.
She beamed, tilting her head to the side as she examined it. “It’s beautiful.”
“Hey, you know what I just realized?” I asked.
“What?”
“Remember when your publicist did damage control with Sandra?”
She raised a brow. “Yeah …”
“She said there would be wedding bells.”
“Huh. Yeah. She did.”
I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and we turned to look at the waterfall. “How soon do you want to get married?”
“Yesterday.”
Epilogue
Molly
When Noah told me he was going to propose to Paige on her favorite hiking trail in LA and he needed my help to pull it off, I had to admit, I was pretty impressed. A few years ago, Chase had a conversation with Paige about marriage and he spoke about it in terms of contracts and prenups. It was more focused on joining forces as actors than in holy matrimony. Noah, on the other hand, came at this from a place of pure love. It was easy to see it in his eyes, and even her head of security had elbowed me during the proposal, giving a wordless nod. This was Joe’s ultimate stamp of approval, so that boded well for the happy couple.
In true Paige the Tyrant manner, this wedding needed to happen “yesterday.” We’d barely made it back to the car after the hike when she’d flashed me a cheesy grin and said, “We’d like to get married at the Hotel Del at Christmas. Think you can pull it off?”
“This Christmas?” I’d replied, dumbfounded.
She’d tossed her hair and winked. “If anyone can do it, it’s you, Mol.”
When she was right, she was right. As I gazed around the open-air wedding in the sand, with the magnificent red roofs of the Hotel del Coronado in the background and the beach behind the altar, I knew I was basically a superhero.
And speaking of superheroes, the event required the most security that we’d ever employed at an event for Paige. It was astounding how much behind-the-scenes effort went into keeping out unwanted guests like the media and celebrity wedding crashers. But the ceremony had been beautiful and had gone off without a hitch.
All of Noah’s friends from Miramar were in attendance, as well as Paige’s family and a handful of friends from Hollywood. The theme was Christmas at the beach, with red and gold as the colors, and the ambiance was the perfect mix of chic and beach-friendly—the entire event as classy as it was carefree, if I did say so myself.
Paige had insisted that instead of gifts, guests should bring an unopened toy to put in the massive Toys for Tots receptacles in a gazebo near the reception tent. When she’d heard about the Marine Corps’ sponsored charity that gathered new toys and then distributed them to families in need throughout the country, she just had to feature them at her Christmas wedding. The children of San Diego deserved to have their spirits brightened in this small way since Paige and Noah wanted for nothing and were already as merry and bright as they could ever be.
I’d been Paige’s assistant for years, but I was never happier for her than I was that day, marrying the guy I’d assumed she’d undeservingly put up on a pedestal. I couldn’t have been more thrilled to be wrong about something in my life. And speaking of being wrong … I turned in a circle, looking around the crowded reception tent for my fiancé.
Jason had said he’d be right back, and I could have sworn I’d seen him heading for the beach. But I had to be wrong, because why would he go out there when he was only supposed to be getting us each a new drink?
“Molly,” Paige gasped, coming up behind me and throwing her arms around me.
Her gorgeous white gown with pavé crystals in the bodice was a Valentino specifically because she’d worn the couturier to the ball and that would make the designer a favorite of hers for all time.
“Hey,” I replied, hugging her back. “Are you enjoying your day?”
“Enjoying it? Girl. I’m going to be so sad when this day ends. It’s been a dream. Thank you so much for putting it all together on such short notice.”
I shrugged like it was no biggie. “That’s what I do.”
“Yes, it is,” she replied. “And I can’t wait until next month when we can do it again for you this time.”
I swallowed and looked at the bar. Jason was still nowhere to be found. “You’re sure you’ll be back from your honeymoon in time to even come to my wedding?”
“Psh, are you crazy? I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Moments later, Paige was whisked away as the DJ signaled for the more traditional parts of the reception to begin. If I had a more emotional nature, my eyes would have surely teared up at the sight of Paige and Rich during their father-daughter dance. In the few short weeks since Paige had fired him, they’d made great steps toward repairing their relationship. He’d never be her manager again, but maybe now he could step back into the role of being her father. At first, Paige had been wrecked over the whole thing. But I had a feeling that their parting of business ways would be the best thing for their personal relationship.
I turned away from the dance floor to make sure everything else I’d planned was in order. This wedding had been a blast to put together. I’d pored over each detail in the same way that I approached all things in life—with meticulous attention to detail. Part of me wished I could enjoy the fruits of my labor and spend more time experiencing the soiree, but the bigger part of me knew that my work wasn’t finished just because the big day had arrived.
In fact, my work with Paige was never done. Sure, the wedding would soon be behind us, but while she and Noah were on their honeymoon, I’d be making arrangements for what happened next. For starters, Paige planned to move into Noah’s tiny apartment in San Diego while she filmed Sandra’s movie. As much as they loved each other, there was no way Paige’s life would fit in Noah’s apartment. After seeing what I had to work with at Noah’s place, I realized I needed to rent an entire apartment in his building to contain her wardrobe and other belongings. But since he didn’t mind knowing she had an extra apartment to essentially function as a closet, that was the plan. Next up, making a checklist of everything needed to prepare for such a drastic change of scenery for her.
And speaking of plans and checklists, I had to get all of this done by the time my own wedding came around in late January. Good thing I was a master at efficiency. Paige’s happily ever after with Noah would be perfectly executed, just in time for me to tie the knot in a simple ceremony with Jason. If he ever came back from supposedly getting us drinks, that is. I sighed, knowing he was probably taking a work call or something.
Jason and I got along because we were both completely focused on our careers. We rarely saw each other, but we made the best of it. I respected that his first marriage was to his work, just like he knew Paige was my priority. I had no idea how we’d survive the three-week honeymoon that Paige had insisted on booking us at Turtle Bay. I’d given her the green light on gifting it to us for our wedding present, but I’d made her promise to book a regular room and not a suite.
In typical over-the-top Paige fashion, in lieu of an extravagant suite, she’d extended the length of our stay, insisting we deserved it and needed that time to connect. I begged to differ. The best part about my relationship with Jason was the fact that we could be a team of two very independent people, not requiring more from each other than we were willing to give. Taking that much time off of work would probably kill us.
But that was a problem for January …. Right now my thoughts were with the new Mr. and Mrs. West, and making their dreams come true.
Thank you so much for reading the San Diego Marines series. I love these characters and hope you did too. I promise you’ll see them again in the next series about the Kailua Marines!
Click here to read Molly & Roman’s story in Treasured in Turtle Bay:
A Sweet, Opposites Attract, Military Romance.
Also by Jess Mastorakos
THE SAN DIEGO MARINES SERIES
Forever with You (Vince & Sara)
Back to You (Spencer & Ellie)
Away from You (Matt & Olivia)
Christmas with You (Cooper & Angie)
Believing in You (Jake & Ivy)
Memories of You (Brooks & Cat)
Home with You (Owen & Rachel)
Adored by You (Noah & Paige)
THE KAILUA MARINES SERIES
Treasured in Turtle Bay (Roman & Molly)
CHRISTMAS IN SNOW HILL
A Movie Star for Christmas (Nick & Holly)
Christmas with the Boy Next Door (Jack and Robin)
About the Author
Jess Mastorakos writes clean military romance books that feature heroes with heart and the strong women they love. She is a proud Marine wife and mama of four. She loves her coffee in a glitter tumbler and planning with an erasable pen.
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Contents
1. Paige
2. Noah
3. Paige
4. Noah
5. Paige
6. Noah
7. Paige
8. Noah
9. Paige
10. Noah
11. Paige
12. Noah
13. Paige
14. Noah
15. Paige
16. Noah
17. Paige
18. Noah
19. Paige
20. Noah
21. Paige
22. Noah
23. Paige
24. Noah
Epilogue
Also by Jess Mastorakos
About the Author
Sign up for Jess’s Sweet Romance Squad
Adored by You: A Sweet, Celebrity, Military Romance (San Diego Marines Book 7) Page 18