by Megan Lowe
Bria and Reed only stay a little while before going back to their own room and their gorgeous little girl, who was being babysat by Jay—or Pa, as he insisted I call him. Apparently the Ryans have adopted me, which I don’t mind a bit. The party also doubles as a last blowout for Mav and Jax, who will be starting their intensive training for the upcoming Extreme Games soon. Jax is brimming with excitement about them and how he is going to live it up as a defending gold medallist. Mav is, well, Mav. Quiet and understated.
“Are you looking forward to the games?” I ask him.
He shrugs. “I guess.”
“You’re the reigning gold medallist, right?” He nods.
“So that’s big, huh?” Again he shrugs.
“Do you not want to go?”
“No, I do.”
“But?”
He sighs and runs a hand through his black hair. “Sometimes I wonder what else is out there.”
“You don’t like riding bikes?”
“I do, I just want....” He sighs again. “I don’t know.”
I pat his hand. “Yeah, you do, you just don’t want to upset anyone, and I get that, trust me, but they’re not the ones who have to live your life, who have to deal with the consequences of your choices. I know you’re afraid your family won’t support you if you tell them you don’t want to ride anymore, but you’re wrong. You have a great family, one that genuinely loves and cares for you. They wouldn’t be happy if they knew you weren’t.” I feel sorry for the kid. His blue-grey eyes hold a sadness I know used to be in mine.
“It’ll be okay, Mav,” I say as I get up. “You’ll figure it out.”
“He okay?” Cole asks as I approach him. He opens his arms, and I walk into them and rest my head on his chest.
“I think so.”
“He’s always been the serious one.”
“He’s just trying to work things out. He’ll get there.”
“I like the mother hen look on you. Makes me excited for when we have our own kids.”
“Is that right?” I arch an eyebrow at him. He nods and pushes his erection into me.
“It’s not rude to leave our own party, is it?” I ask, a rush of moisture dampening my panties.
Cole looks around; everyone is in a large group chatting, oblivious to our plotting and scheming. “They’ll never even notice,” he says as he pulls me towards the bedroom.
Cole and I wake the next morning with massive smiles on our faces. We get ready and send texts to Quinn, Bria, and Reed to meet us in an hour.
“Can you tell me why the fuck I’m meeting you at a Maccas in the CBD?” Quinn growls when she sees us. This particular restaurant is always quiet. Located towards the business end of the CBD, it’s not packed with the teens and tourists that crowd the mall and surrounding shopping centres, which makes it a great place to meet. Who would ever believe McKnley Rhodes was seen in a Maccas?
Cole and I share a look. “We’ll explain when Bria and Reed get here.”
They arrive a few minutes later with Avery in tow. “Sorry, we couldn’t find anyone to watch her, is that okay?” Bria says, slightly flustered.
I smile. “It’s fine.”
“So what’s going on?” Reed asks.
“Well,” Cole says, his voice low, “you know how Knley and I are engaged?” Bria and Quinn start bouncing, obviously connecting the dots.
“Really?” Quinn squeals.
“Shh,” I tell her, “and yes, but we want to do it quietly.”
“Did I miss something?” Reed asks.
Bria rolls her eyes at her husband. “They’re getting married.”
“Oh, no shit!” He slaps Cole on the back. “That’s excellent.”
“Thanks,” Cole says. “We filed the paperwork when we first got engaged, and we’ve waited the month so we thought, why not do it now?”
Bria nods. “It’s good. First thing Monday morning? Smart.”
We both beam at her. “As much as we wanted everyone we know and love to be here, we didn’t want to tip the media off, so it’s just going to be you three, four if we count Miss Avery,” I say.
Bria gives me a sympathetic look. “That’s got to suck.”
I shrug. “It is what it is. We both love the careers we’ve chosen and this is a drawback. That’s not to say that we’re not having one hell of a party later on though.” They all smile.
We walk to the registry office which is miraculously quiet. I can tell the girl behind the desk recognises me, but she stays professional, albeit with a bit more enthusiasm than I’d guess she usually has.
“I know you know who I am,” I tell her, “but please don’t leak this to the media. It’s my wedding day and I really don’t want it ruined by vultures.”
We had Frank call ahead on Friday just before they closed and pulled some strings to get us the appointment. I spent all weekend worried it was going to leak, but apparently my fairy godfather has some serious connections, although a fuckload of cash doesn’t hurt either.
“Of course, absolutely not,” she stammers.
“Thanks. When it breaks, by all means jump on, but if you could give us a head start that’d be great.” I sign an autograph for her and we go in.
The ceremony is short and simple, just the way we like it, but when we get to our vows, Cole pulls out the big guns.
“Knley,” he says, looking at me and straight into my soul, “when we were children you were the fearless one, the leader. You were unstoppable. You’re still those things, but now it’s more. You’re brave, crazily talented, smart, beautiful, and loving. I’m in awe of you and everything you do. We have come such a long way, and I know I was a pushy bastard, but that’s only because I want the best for you. I will always want the best for you. With you in my life, everything else just fades away. I feel calm and balanced with you, which comes in handy when you live your life at 300 km/h.” We all chuckle. “You are the first person I seek out after a race, you are the reason I try so hard and want to come home safe. You are my family, the one who makes me feel like I have a place, somewhere I belong. I am complete when I’m with you. Today, in becoming my wife you are making all my dreams come true and giving me everything I’ve ever wanted. I love you so much, Knley, and I promise to be by your side forever.”
I sniff and wipe away the tears threatening to ruin my make-up. The registrar motions for me to begin my vows. I take a deep breath.
“For the longest time, I considered you the person who tore my family apart. You quickly put me in my place and opened my eyes, to that and so much more. You’ve done nothing but open my eyes since you came back into my life. You’ve opened me up to new friends and family, to new possibilities, new experiences. You have pushed me to be a better person, a stronger person, and I am. My life before you was empty and meaningless. Now, it’s full. You are my strength, my character, my heart, and I promise to be by your side, in your pit, forever.”
The registrar says a few more things before pronouncing us husband and wife. A massive smile breaks over Cole’s face as he takes my hands in his before kissing me deeply. We sign on the dotted line and are basking in the glow of our minutes-old marital bliss when the moment is ruined by Bria.
“Oh shit,” she curses.
Cole and I turn in her direction. “What?” Cole asks.
She looks up at us, her face apologetic. “I just got a tip that the media know you’re here.” My heart sinks to my toes. “I’m so sorry, guys.”
“Do you think?” Cole asks, nodding to the outer office.
I shrug. “Who knows, and at this stage, does it matter?”
“I guess not.”
“You want me to distract them?” Quinn asks. “It wouldn’t be much, but it’d be something.”
“Is there a back entrance?” I ask the registrar.
He nods. “Follow me.”
“You guys stay here,” I tell Bria and Reed. “I don’t want Avery caught in that scrum.”
“I’m so sorry, guys,” Br
ia says again.
I shrug. “We were kind of naïve in thinking it wouldn’t get out. Thanks for coming, though,” I say, and hug them both.
“You don’t mind going out there?” I ask Quinn.
“And miss my minute of fame?” She fluffs her hair and bats her eyelashes.
“You’ve spent too much time with Jax.”
She blushes.
“Thank you,” I say as I hug her. Cole also embraces her before she heads towards the front of the building.
The registrar leads Cole and me through a maze of passageways before we go down a couple flights of stairs and end up in the service road that runs through the complex.
“This leads to Spring Street. Hopefully you’ll be able to blend in with the crowd.”
“Thank you for this,” I tell him.
He smiles. “It was my pleasure. Enjoy your day, Mr and Mrs Matthews.” Cole and I beam at each other.
“You ready?” he asks after a minute.
“As I’ll ever be.” Taking a deep breath, I peer out into the street.
Just the Place for a Wedding
Boyquaintance no longer! Rocking Rumours can reveal that first thing this morning McKnley Rhodes and Cole Matthews slipped into the Old Treasury Building for a quickie wedding. A shotgun one, perhaps? Only time will tell, but what we know right now is that only Places bassist Quinn Rhodes and Ryan Racing VP, Reed Ryan, and his PR maestro wife, Bria, were in attendance. There was no sign of Rhodes matriarch, Helen.
It is believed the pair have been engaged for six weeks but had not informed her mother of the happy news. The marriage comes after a drama-filled nine-month relationship, including a two-month separation.
Chapter Thirty
Cole
Cautiously Knley peeks out around the corner of the building. She looks back at me over her shoulder and winks. I take that as a good sign. She peers out a little more before dragging me behind her. The street, as usual, is busy, and we blend in quickly. We head in the direction of the hotel and laugh when we think we’re free and clear.
I tug my wife into my arms. “So, Mrs Matthews, what do you want to do now?” She’s just about to answer when we hear a stampede coming towards us.
“There they are!” someone shouts.
“Fuck,” I curse.
“Come on,” Knley says, taking my hand.
She’s still leading me when we get to the intersection. I slow to see how far in front of the chasing horde we are, but Knley keeps rushing. I try to get her to stop, to look out for oncoming traffic. Our hands break apart as she rushes onto the road, taking advantage of trams holding up the traffic. Unfortunately she doesn’t time her run quite right and the traffic resumes just as she steps out onto the road. The car sees her, but it’s too late. She barely has time to turn and see it before it sideswipes her.
“Knley!” I shout.
The car hits her on her right side and she flies backwards, hitting her head on the kerb.
“Knley? Knley?” I shout as I get to her. Her eyes are closed and she’s not moving, except for the rise and fall of her chest, a trickle of blood coming from a small cut on her forehead.
“Knley, love, can you hear me?” I ask as I brush her hair back from her head. I don’t want to move her more than that in case she’s hurt in ways I can’t see.
“An ambulance is on its way,” someone tells me.
Less than a minute later we hear sirens. The ambos have to push through the crowd, which is made up mostly of the photographers we were trying to get away from.
“What happened?” one of the ambos asks me.
“We were trying to get away from the photographers. She stepped out onto the road and a car sideswiped her. She fell and hit her head.”
“What’s her name?”
“McKnley, without the i,” I tell them.
“She’s your...?”
“Wife.” The word gets caught in my throat. I clear it. “She’s my wife.”
They examine her, put a brace on her neck, wrap a bandage around her head, then strap her to a backboard and load her into the ambulance.
“Is she okay?” I ask.
“I don’t think there’s any broken bones, but we need to get her checked for internal bleeding and she definitely has a concussion.”
“Fuck!” I pull at my hair. “Can I come with you?” I ask.
“Sure, just don’t touch anything and let us do our job.” I nod and sit where they tell me.
“Will she be okay?” I ask as the door shuts behind me.
“The concussion’s not good, but in the grand scheme of things it’s not too bad. It’s serious, but it’s not the worst outcome.”
“And the internal bleeding?”
“I don’t think she has any, the car doesn’t appear to have been going that fast, but we still need to get her checked out.” I nod.
My phone is going off, but I don’t care. All I care about is McKnley strapped to the stretcher, still unconscious. We get to the hospital and she’s whisked away.
“Fuck!” I yell and pull at my hair. How come this keeps happening to us? Why is it always Knley who’s hurt? What did we do to deserve this?
Finally the shrill ring of my phone gets my attention.
“Hello?” I answer, my voice hollow.
“Cole, it’s Bria. What’s going on? Did you guys get away okay? My phone is going crazy but nothing’s making sense.”
“Knley got hit by a car.”
She gasps. “Is she all right? Where are you?”
“She has a concussion and possibly internal bleeding,” I parrot. I have no idea how I’m able to function, but somehow I’m doing it.
“Where are you? Are you at St Vinnie’s?”
“Yeah” is all I can say.
“We’ll be right there, okay? Knley’s going to be fine. She’s tough.”
“Yeah” is all I say again.
“It’s going to be okay, Cole,” Bria assures me.
“Yep.”
“We’ll be there soon.”
“Okay,” I tell her and hang up.
I pace the waiting room, my hands tugging at my hair. About half an hour later, Bria and Reed with Avery rush in.
“Fuck, man, are you okay?” Reed asks. I just shake my head.
“What happened?”
I let out a breath. “The registrar led us to the service road. We thought we were free and clear so we started heading towards the hotel. Then the paps found us. We got to an intersection and I turned to see how far behind they were. Knley....” Her name gets stuck in my throat. “Knley just rushed onto the road. The traffic was stopped for a tram, but then it wasn’t. She didn’t see the car until it was too late. It did its best to avoid her, but the driver could only do so much. She fell and hit her head on the kerb.”
“Fuck,” Reed curses.
“Was she conscious when you got here?” Bria asks.
I shake my head. She rubs my arm. “It’ll be okay, Cole. She’ll be okay.”
“Why does this keep happening?” I ask no one in particular.
“I don’t know, man,” Reed answers.
There’s a commotion at the door as Helen Rhodes rushes in.
“My daughter!” she declares dramatically. “My daughter was just brought in, McKnley Rhodes.” Sloane, who is with Helen, sees me and comes over.
“Hey,” she says quietly. I nod.
“How is she?”
“She has a concussion and they’re checking for internal bleeding.” She gasps.
“What happened?”
“We were trying to get away when Knley stepped into the road and got hit.”
“What were you guys doing?”
“We’d just—” I choke back a sob.
“They’d just gotten married,” Bria answers for me.
“Really?” Sloane asks excitedly. All I can do is nod.
“Congrats!” she says as she hugs me.
I loosely wrap my arms around her. “Thanks.”
&n
bsp; “She’s going to be fine,” she says as we break apart. I just shrug.
The doors to the patient area open and a doctor walks through. He looks at his clipboard. “Mr Matthews?”
“That’s me,” I say as I rush forward.
“Come on back.”
“Hang on just a minute,” Helen screeches. “That’s my daughter back there. I’m her next of kin.”
The doc looks at his paperwork. “I’m sorry, we were informed that Mr Matthews is her husband.”
“I am,” I tell him.
“You will be no such thing,” Helen spits.
“Actually, Mum,” Quinn says as she comes in, “they were married this morning. I was there, and so were Bria and Reed.”
“No.” Helen shakes her head.
I pull out the paperwork and hand it to the doc, who looks it over. “I’m sorry, Mrs Rhodes, but Mr Matthews and your daughter are married. Mr Matthews, it’s up to you if you want to allow Mrs Rhodes back there.”
I shake my head. “Knley wouldn’t want her there.”
The doc nods. “Okay then, follow me.”
He leads me to a curtained area where Knley is resting.
“Is she okay?”
“She’s fine. She woke not long after she was brought in. We were able to do some tests and she has a concussion. It’s not severe, but it’s significant. The cut on her head wasn’t bad and didn’t need stitches, but there is some bruising from the impact. It’s nothing to worry about. There was no evidence of any internal bleeding.”
“Okay.” I have no idea what that means.
“She’ll be drowsy and probably a bit dizzy when she wakes again. There might also be a bit of blurred vision, light sensitivity, headaches, balance issues, and/or delayed reaction times, but otherwise she’ll be okay.”