Abby nodded. “She’s talented, but she’s our little hidden gem.”
“Yes, don’t give her any ideas, Candace. Whenever I find a wedding dress, I want Maddie to do all the alterations,” Greer added.
“Are you still thinking no necklace?” Willa asked.
I brought my fingers up to my bare neck and nodded. “I think so.”
Willa handed me a box. “Hunter asked me to give this to you.”
Turning, I took the box from her and stared at it. “He got me a gift? Crap! Was I supposed to get him something?”
Willa laughed. “He knew you were going to say that, so he told me to tell you that you’re giving him two of the greatest gifts he could ever want: you and the baby.”
Tears started to build in my eyes. Before they could fall, I felt a sharp pain on the back of my arm. “Ouch! What in the hell?” I said as I spun around and stared at Candace.
She had a stern look on her face. “I spent forever on your makeup—no crying allowed!”
I opened my mouth to protest, but she raised a single brow as if daring me to argue. I closed my mouth and focused back on the box in my hand. I opened the small card and read it.
For my beautiful bride. Your something blue.
I love you always and forever, Hunter
I picked up the piece of lavender sprig inside the card and put it to my nose, smelling it as I let a single tear slip free. To hell with Candace.
“Don’t wipe! Dab! Dab!” Candace rushed over and dabbed a napkin on my cheek. When she stepped back, I started to open the box. I gasped at the beautiful silver bracelet with round sapphires inside.
“Oh, that is stunning! It looks like an antique,” Abby stated.
Willa sniffled. “It was our grandmother’s. My granddaddy gave it to her on their wedding day. Then when my folks got married, she gave it to my mother to give to their firstborn. Granddaddy got it from his mother, who told him it needed to be passed down to each firstborn baby. I’m not even sure how old it is, I just know it’s been handed down for generations to the firstborn on their wedding day. So, if you and Hunter have a son, you’ll give it to him for his bride. Or if you have a daughter, it’ll be a gift to her from you and Hunter. It’ll be her something blue too.”
“Oh shit,” Candace said as she ran and grabbed the tissues.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered, looking down at the bracelet. Willa took it from me and proceeded to put it on my wrist.
Candace was back with the tissues. My lower jaw trembled, and I fought to hold back my tears. Candace handed me the box and sighed. “Fuck it. Just cry. I’ll fix the makeup.”
A sob slipped free as I stared down at the family heirloom. “I love it even more now,” I said, grabbing a tissue and trying not to mess up my makeup. After I got my emotions in check, I turned to Candace. “Did I ruin it?”
She placed her thumb and finger on my chin and examined me carefully. A wide smile broke out on her face, and she shook her head. “Goddamn, I’m good. You still look beautiful.”
“Candace! We’re in a church!” Abby protested.
Greer let out a laugh. “Like she cares. She’s had sex in a church.”
We all gasped while Candace rolled her eyes. “It was outside of a church, not in it.”
Greer laughed and looked like she was about to say more, but Candace changed the subject by turning me so I could look at myself in the floor-to-ceiling mirror. “Are you ready to become Mrs. Hunter Turner?” she asked.
With a deep breath in, I exhaled. “I’ve never been more ready.”
Turning to the door, I stopped when I saw my mother and father standing there.
“Arabella,” my father whispered as he walked toward me. “My goodness, you are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen, besides your mother.”
Mom laughed and wiped at a tear. “Are you ready, honey?”
“Yes.” I sniffled, and my father handed me a handkerchief.
“Wrap it around your bouquet, darling—you’ll need to use it once or twice, I’m sure,” he said.
Nodding, I said in a barely there voice, “I will, Daddy.”
Abby reached for the handkerchief and expertly wrapped it around the bouquet she’d made for me. All five of my friends were standing up at the altar with me: Abby as my matron of honor, and Willa, Greer, Bree, and Candace as my bridesmaids. They were dressed in various shades of light blue dresses with bouquets made of white and blue flowers. They’d all found their dresses the day of our shopping trip. I hadn’t cared what the dresses looked like, I just knew I wanted them to be blue.
“Here you go, sweetie,” Abby said as she gave the flowers back.
Daddy held out his arm and nodded. “Let’s go get you married!”
I smiled up at my father. “Let’s.”
Hunter
The moment I saw Bella appear at the end of the aisle on her father’s arm, I started to cry. It was like looking at an angel walking toward me. She was dressed in a beautiful white gown and her face radiated love and happiness. Even from where I stood, I could see how bright her eyes were. But more than anything, I loved the peace I saw in those eyes. It left my heart feeling like it would beat right out of my damn chest.
Kyle put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze before he handed me a handkerchief.
“Thanks, Kyle,” I mumbled.
“I’ll always have your back, dude,” he whispered.
James stopped and turned to face Bella. He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek as I stepped toward them. James placed Bella’s hand in mine and smiled. “You know I wouldn’t give her up to anyone other than you, Hunter. I know you’ll love her and protect her always, son.”
I tried to speak but was too overcome with emotion. I cleared my throat and nodded before I finally found my voice. “I will, sir. That’s my promise to you and Sharon, as well as to Bella.”
We walked up to Buck and he started to speak, but I couldn’t hear anything he said. All I could do was stare at Bella. Her blue eyes were locked on mine, and I was sure she didn’t hear a damn thing either.
When it came time to exchange vows, I wasn’t even sure how I got through it all. Bella cried, I cried, and I was pretty damn sure I heard Kyle crying too.
Jack sat next to me the entire time. I heard Kyle tell Jack at one point that he wasn’t the best man, Kyle was. To which Jack let out a small growl.
Buck smiled and looked out at the pews that held our closest family and friends—or at least the ones who could make it given the week-and-a-half notice. “Ladies and gentlemen, I can finally say this—I give you Mr. and Mrs. Hunter and Arabella Turner.” He looked at me. “You may kiss your bride.”
Cupping Bella’s face, I drew in closer. But before I kissed her, I whispered, “I need you to know that I’d do anything for you, Arabella. No matter what. Anything. I’d lie for you. I’d fight for you. But most of all, I’d die for you. I’d sacrifice everything for you and your happiness. You have my heart. Always and forever.”
“Hunter,” she whispered, a sob slipping free before I pressed my mouth to hers. I heard the cheers, but everything and everyone else slipped away, and it was only the two of us in that moment.
No, it was the three of us.
Jack nudged me, and I almost started to laugh. Okay, it was the four of us.
After we broke the kiss, I rested my forehead on Bella’s. It was something I noticed I did a lot after I kissed her. Maybe it was because I needed a moment to regain my composure, because the woman in my arms always left me wrecked in the most beautiful way.
“I think they’re waiting for us to walk back down the aisle,” Bella whispered, her hand softly caressing the side of my face.
I stepped back and winked at her, causing her already slightly pink cheeks to darken. “I love you, Bella.”
“I love you, too, Hunter.”
Mid-May
Bella came into view as I walked down the path toward the apiary. She was now in the second tr
imester of her pregnancy, and we had officially started to tell people we were pregnant and due November 9th. Most of our friends and family already knew, but to see how excited the news made people made me even happier.
I drew in a deep breath of fresh air. I didn’t want to pretend like Bella working with the bees didn’t scare the hell out of me. I’d already talked to Dr. Morgan about it privately, and she’d assured me that she wasn’t concerned, especially considering the experience Bella had.
I stopped and leaned against a willow tree as I watched her. The only gear she wore was a veil. She hardly ever wore protective overalls or gloves, unless she was called out to remove a hive and the bees were aggressive, which was rare. It was as if the bees could somehow sense Bella was there for them. Their own protector. I’d watched her scoop handfuls of bees out from under a floorboard of a house and shake them into a new hive without so much as getting stung once. She rarely used a smoker to relax the bees because they seemed to just be naturally calm around her.
Bella lifted a frame out of the nucleus box and inspected it before she put it in a brood box. She had been called to the Willow Tree Inn earlier, where they’d found a small beehive in a shed that they wanted to relocate.
James and Sharon were taking to retired life like pros. They were currently on a two-week cruise, and knowing they were so content made Bella over-the-moon happy.
Once she was through with the bees, I headed over to her. It had taken me years to get over my fear of bees when I was younger, with Bella’s help, of course. This time when I approached the hive she’d been working on, I wasn’t the least bit fazed by the bees coming and going. The old adage, if you ignore them, they’ll ignore you, was pretty damn true.
“Think they’ll like their new home?” I asked.
Bella turned and flashed me a smile. When she was dressed, you couldn’t tell she was pregnant. But when she was naked and under my careful inspection, I could tell. Her breasts were fuller, her stomach a bit more round with our child. She was breathtaking, and looking at her here, with her beloved bees flying around, she looked like a freaking goddess.
“I do. Especially with a flower farm just down the pasture.”
“When are you and Abby going to start transplanting some of the lavender from your folks’ place?” I asked, stepping to the side so Bella could walk away from the hive. We walked slowly over to the old truck Bella used when she transported bees. Very few of them were still flying around the bed of the truck. They had all followed the queen bee into their new hive.
“Probably not until we know the weather will be good and there’s no more risk of frost. I think the bees will be happy to have the lavender back.”
“I think so too,” I said, leaning down to kiss her. “How are you feeling today?”
She shrugged. “Aside from this morning, I feel good.”
Bella had terrible morning sickness, but Abby—pregnant herself and ahead of Bella by a few months—was a huge help, offering her tips for how to fight it.
“Have you thought about what you want to do for World Bee Day?”
A brilliant smile appeared on Bella’s face. “I have! I think it would be fun to offer a couple tours of the farm, then have everyone head over to The Queen Bee Café. Candace plans on having a soft grand opening that day. We could do an early tour for lunch, and another one for dinner. Abby will have fresh bouquets of flowers for everyone to take with them, and seed packets to plant for the bees.”
“I love that idea. Plus, it’ll give the café some traffic, which will make Candace happy.”
The Queen Bee Café was really Candace’s dream. It was mostly a café, but there was a small store in it, as well, that supplied items from Adams Apiary. Bella had decided to keep the family name for the apiary, and since it was so well known and already established, I’d agreed. Bella kept the store side of the café stocked with items like honey and bee products that she made or had made locally. There were also numerous books on bees and how to start your own apiary, as well as children’s books. Bella’s main priority was to educate people on the importance of bees in order to help save them.
A smaller section of the store housed other goods from local spots like Boggy Creek Orchard, Boggy Creek Seed Farm, and Wonderland Tree Farm.
“Did you see the tile Candace picked out? It looks like a beehive.”
“I haven’t been in there yet, but I’ll be sure to swing by soon. Do you have all the products you need for the store?”
Bella shut the tailgate of the truck and laced her fingers with mine as we walked down the path back toward the house. “I do. And Candace and I interviewed a few people, and I found a couple of girls who are so excited about working in the storefront area of the café. They’ll also help with the café, if needed, but I think you had a good idea to keep the employees for the storefront and café separate. Since I’m handling the retail side, and the café is Candace’s thing.”
Nodding, I said, “I’m so happy for you and Candace, Bella.”
She smiled. “What brings you back home so early? Do you have time for me to make us some lunch?”
“I do have time, and I’d love to have lunch with my girls.” Bella smiled. I had gotten into the habit of calling the baby a girl.
“Well, your little girl is rather hungry this afternoon. I made a salad, and also planned on having a turkey and Swiss sandwich, if that sounds okay to you?”
“That sounds perfect.”
Jack, who had quickly learned he wanted nothing to do with the beehives, sat patiently on the front porch chewing on a bone. He saw Bella and ran toward her.
“Hello, my handsome boy!” Bella said as she bent down and hugged Jack. “How has your workday been today, buddy?”
Jack barked, then took off back to the porch.
“I take it that means good.”
Laughing, I nodded. “It’s been slow.” We walked up the steps of the house, and I pulled Bella to a stop.
She turned and looked at me…and her smile instantly faded. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. It’s just…I need to tell you something, and I’m not sure how you’re going to react.”
Chewing on her lip, she looked away and then back up at me. “Do you think I’m going to be upset? Mad?”
“You might get mad at me because I, um… I lied to you.”
She took a few steps back.
“Wait, it’s nothing like that. Let’s go in and get our food, and we’ll talk while we eat.”
Bella nodded, and we made our way into the house with Jack at our feet.
We worked together in a comfortable silence while Bella made our salads, and I made the sandwiches.
“No mayo. I want avocado, please,” she said.
I nodded and internally gagged, but made her sandwich the way she wanted. I swore Bella put avocado on everything now. Her toast. Her eggs. Even in her yogurt, which nearly had me running to the bathroom to throw up the first time I saw her eat it.
“Want to sit on the back porch? It’s beautiful outside,” Bella suggested.
“Yeah, that sounds good.”
We headed to the back porch and sat at the small table we’d placed out there.
“Okay, so tell me what you lied about, and I’ll decide if I should be mad or not.”
I wanted to laugh, but honestly wasn’t sure what was about to happen. “I found something out today, and I wanted to tell you about it. It’s connected to what I lied to you about. But to be fair, I wasn’t the only one who lied. Kyle, Bishop, and Aiden lied too.”
The corner of her mouth twitched with a hidden smile as she nodded and waited for me to go on.
“Colby Wilkins is in jail for multiple counts of rape.”
Her face drained of all color. “What? How did you know…”
When her voice trailed off, I cleared my throat. “I found out through Lori Dexter. She told me his name and where he lived.”
Bella blinked a few times, then put her sandwich do
wn and leaned back in her chair. Without saying a word, she waited for me to go on.
“I hired someone to follow him for a bit. Do you remember back in March, when we all went on that ice fishing trip? The day before you told me you were pregnant?”
She slowly nodded.
“Well, we didn’t just go fishing. We stayed at Kyle’s cabin…but we also made a trip up to Maine so I could confront Colby.”
Her hand flew to her mouth as she gasped. “Why would you do that?”
“I was angry, Bella. I wanted to beat the shit out of him. Truth be told, I wanted to kill him, but with Aiden, Kyle, and Bishop there, kicking his ass was about all I could have done.”
She closed her eyes, and I could tell she was attempting to remain calm. Then her eyes snapped open. “Did you?”
Confused, I asked, “Did I what?”
“Kick his ass?”
I nearly laughed. Christ, I love this woman. “No, we didn’t get that far. We interrupted him trying to rape another woman.”
Her eyes went wide, and she brought her hand to her stomach. She looked white as a ghost. “Oh God!” Bella glanced down, and for a moment I thought for sure she was going to faint. She buried her face in her hands and started to breathe rapidly.
Jack was instantly up and at her side, whining as he pushed his snout into her hands.
“Arabella, are you okay?” I asked, jumping up and rounding the table before dropping to my knees. When she moved her hands, I saw that she was crying.
“Oh God, Hunter! If I had reported the rape… If I’d just had the courage to stand up to him… How many other women has he raped?”
I took her hands in mine. “Don’t do that. Please don’t do that. It is not your fault. You’re not the only woman who’s never reported a rape. Remember what Christina said? You are not at fault for anything he did or has done since.”
She nodded and wiped her tears. “Have there been others?”
Exhaling, I said, “Since his arrest, four other women have come forward. One of them was a girl he raped in college, the year before he raped you. She was also too afraid to report it. Afraid of him. He threatened her family and said he could have her father put in jail.”
Surrender to Me (Boggy Creek Valley Book 4) Page 24