Almost Free (Whithall University Book 3)

by Lisa Helen Gray

  Because one day, I am going to marry him.

  EPILOGUE

  TEN YEARS LATER

  I knew that one day this day would come. I dreamt of it for so long. I just didn’t anticipate how nervous I would be.

  I bend down when little hands pull on my dress and look at the beautiful little girl with her chubby cheeks and bright, round, blue eyes.

  “Lily-Mae, you look like a princess,” I tell her, truly blessed to have her in my life.

  “Where are my daddies?” she whispers, looking around with curious eyes. “I might need a poo-poo soon.”

  I laugh at her bluntness, hugging my niece. Technically, she’s my second cousin, but when Mark and Levi adopted her four years ago, I couldn’t picture being anything other than her auntie.

  “Lily-Mae, your daddies are waiting for you at the end of the aisle, waiting to see you in your beautiful dress.”

  She huffs, her chubby cheeks blowing up before she inhales, crossing her arms over her chest. “We’d better get this show on da road den.”

  She never fails to bring a smile to my face. “Yep. I have my Prince Charming waiting for me at the end of the aisle.”

  And I do. The past ten years have been a whirlwind. I’ve loved him harder and stronger with each day that’s passed. We’ve had to make some adjustments along the way, but we’ve pulled through. There is nothing that could tear us apart.

  Her adorable little face scrunches up in disgust. “Uncle Banner eats all da best ice cream. He no Princes Charming.”

  I giggle when she begins to pout. “I promise to hide some extra ice cream, just for you.”

  Her entire face lights up and my heart squeezes in my chest. “You are da best auntie ever.”

  Even though her words make me happy, it still makes me sad that she’s missing out on the aunties and uncles she could have had through Mark’s siblings. None of them have gotten in touch with him since he left home. It’s like they were hoping he’d all of a sudden be into girls. Now he’s married, has a beautiful daughter, and is going the adoption route again.

  I stand up straight, waiting for Jordan to take the little girl’s hand. “You look beautiful,” she tells me.

  I reach over and squeeze her hand. “Thank you. You look beautiful too. Thank you again for wearing a dress.”

  She glares teasingly at me. “I wouldn’t do this for anyone else.”

  She totally would. She’s a big softie under all those piercings and tattoos.

  “I’m so freaking emotional right now, I could cry,” Becky blurts out, before bursting into tears.

  I begin to laugh at my heavily pregnant friend. “Becky, don’t cry. You’ll ruin your makeup.”

  She waves a tissue in the air. “I’m going to kill Connor for knocking me up. I’ll wait until after the wedding, though,” she tells me.

  “I’m grateful,” I tease.

  Lake comes rushing around the corner, looking stressed and out of breath. “I’m so sorry. The triplets got into the food next door. I had to chase Hayden and Landon whilst Max tried to get Liam down.”

  “Down from where?”

  To this very day, I still can’t believe my best friend had triplets. Max didn’t do things by half, that’s for sure. He had a ring on her finger a year after she came back into my life, and they married the year after that. When she told me she was pregnant, I wasn’t surprised. It was only when she announced she was expecting triplets that I thought she was playing a prank on me.

  Now, she has three boisterous kids. Hayden, the only girl, being the worst out of the three. Sometimes I think she controls the boys, but her sweet, innocent little face will have you believing otherwise. They are always up to something or getting into trouble.

  “He climbed up the scaffolding where the lights are. It’s fine—Max got them down and has them sitting down in the hall now.” Becky helps Lake straighten her hair before Jordan passes her a bouquet of flowers. “Right, let’s do this before Banner thinks you’ve run away and comes out to chase you.”

  I give them a bright smile, taking my granddad’s arm. He kisses me on the cheek, looking down at me with watery eyes.

  “You look so beautiful, just like your nan did on her wedding day,” he tells me, sounding choked up.

  We lost my nan three years ago to a heart attack. My granddad hasn’t been the same since. And I can understand; I hope, when the day comes, I will be gone before Banner. I don’t think I’d survive the heartache of losing him, and I wouldn’t want to.

  “I love you,” I tell him, leaning my head on his shoulder briefly before straightening.

  The bridesmaids go first, the wedding march playing softly in the background. I wanted to go the traditional route, not some new pop love song they play on the radio. I wanted everything: the church, the wedding march, and the throwing of the bouquet. And although I may not get my father-daughter dance, I will get my granddad, and he means more to me than my parents, who I haven’t spoken to since I left home.

  I inhale when it’s our turn and take my first step to the next part of my life.

  Tears gather in my eyes when they land on Banner standing at the end of the aisle. He was standing straight, holding his hands behind his back, but the second he sees me, his hands fall to his sides and his jaw drops.

  He takes a step forward, making me smile. Mark, one of his many groomsmen, pulls him back by the bottom of suit jacket.

  He doesn’t pay attention, his gaze only for me. The sea of faces surrounding us blur into each other, because I can’t take my eyes off him. I know they’re there; I can feel their gazes on me. I just don’t care to look, or to be polite, not when everything I could ever want is standing right in front of me.

  “Who gives this woman?” the priest asks.

  “I do!” Granddad says, bringing a lump to my throat, just like it did the night before at our rehearsal.

  “I do,” Mark suddenly says, shocking me. That wasn’t meant to be said by him. I fight hard not to cry at the pride shining in his eyes.

  “I do,” Levi speaks up, stepping forward also.

  “I do,” Tom says, and I begin to choke up. Since that night in the woods, we’ve become best friends. It was the same way with Connor, but with Tom… we share a bond. He held me in my darkest moments, and I’ll never forget that.

  When no one else speaks up, I let a tear fall, praying it hasn’t ruined my makeup. Granddad places my hand in Banner’s, leaning down to kiss me on my cheek. The others follow, placing their own kisses on my cheek before taking their places.

  I squeeze Banner’s hand, ready to start a new chapter in our lives, knowing this is the best decision I ever made.

  *** *** ***

  Ed Sheeran’s Perfect starts playing as Banner takes my hand and pulls me onto the dance floor. I laugh when he swings me out before pulling me towards him, his free hand going to my hip.

  “I love you, Mrs. Banner.”

  My cheeks hurt so badly from smiling so much. I didn’t think I could ever feel so happy, but I do. I’m so blissfully happy I could burst.

  “I love you too, husband.”

  He smirks down at me. “I like the sound of that.”

  “Me too.”

  I wrap my arms around his neck, his hands falling down to my hips as we sway to the music. Today couldn’t have gone more perfect.

  And Banner’s vows… I can feel my throat closing up as I remember them.

  “I’m so lucky to have met you, and today, I get to marry my best friend, my soul mate. I get to share my life with you. I get to build a future with you.

  “Today, I promise to love you unconditionally; to listen respectfully when you get mad; hold you when you get sad; and make you laugh every day. I will treasure each moment we share, knowing forever will never be enough.

  “Emma Burton, you have been my best friend, my girlfriend, and my fiancé. Today, I make you my wife, but no matter the title, you’ll always be each of those things to me. My love, my dream, my devot
ion. You, Emma, are my everything. I love you.”

  A small body slams into my legs, snapping me out of my daydream. I look down at Hayden, who looks up with a sheepish expression.

  “Sorry,” Hayden whisper-yells. “Don’t tell Mummy.”

  I giggle when she runs away, her brothers not far behind her. I glance back at my husband, holding him tighter.

  “Hey, this is meant to be a happy day,” he says when he sees my watery eyes.

  “I’m just so happy.”

  His smile is soft as he squeezes my hip. “It couldn’t have gone better. You’ve made me the happiest man.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that,” I tell him evasively.

  He raises a brow. “What do you mean?”

  “It could get better,” I tell him, running my finger down his chest, above where I know my name is inked.

  He waggles his eyebrows. “Oh yeah, what did you have in mind?”

  I giggle at his expression, then blink up at him through my lashes before leaning up on my tip toes, my lips brushing his ear. “I’m pregnant.”

  He pulls back, scanning my face to see if I’m joking. Seeing the truth, he grins big before lifting me up in the air and spinning me around.

  Whistling and cheering echoes over the music, and I laugh deliriously, so overcome with joy. Warmth spreads through my body, to my soul.

  “I love you, Mrs. Banner,” he says when he slides me down his body, his hands going to my flat stomach.

  “I love you more, husband,” I whisper, before pulling his head down for a kiss, knowing every day, for the rest of my life, will be a happily ever after.

  THE END

  If you enjoyed Almost Free, please don’t forget to leave a review. I enjoy reading your reviews, and I read ALL of them. They encourage me, motivate me, and help me know where I’m going right or wrong.

  Many readers choose to read a book recommended to them by a friend rather than from a Facebook post or ad, so if you liked the story, please do tell your friends on social media.

  Next from Lisa Helen Gray is Aiden, and she has a surprise in store for you.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  I’m going to keep this short and sweet and just say one big massive thank you to everyone for reading Almost Free.

  Emma has been a WIP since I started writing Max’s book. Her character screamed at me to write her, but she kept getting put to the back.

  I am glad I waited. The story went in such a different direction than what it was originally set to. I’m proud of her story and how it turned out.

  I’ve felt so much connection with Emma. I could relate to her. Seeing her shine and rise from the place she started was nothing short of awesome.

  I really hope you enjoyed this book as much as I loved writing it.

  And finally, Stephanie Farrant. I do not know what I would do without her. She’s nothing short of amazing. The woman really knows how to make you feel better on a cloudy day and has become such a great friend through all of this.

  OTHER TITLES by Lisa Helen Gray

  FORGIVEN SERIES

  Better Left Forgotten

  Obsession

  Forgiven

  CARTER BROTHERS SERIES

  Malik

  Mason

  Myles

  Evan

  Max

  Maverick

  A NEXT GENERATION CARTER NOVEL SERIES

  Faith

  Aiden - Coming winter 2018

  WHITHALL UNIVERSITY SERIES

  Foul Play

  Game Over - Out Now

  Almost Free - Out now

  I WISH SERIES

  If I Could I’d Wish It All Away

  Wishing For A Happily Ever After

  Wishing For A Dream Come True - Coming Soon

  About the Author

  Lisa Helen Gray is Amazon's best-selling author of the Forgotten Series and the Carter Brothers series.

  She loves hanging out, but most of all, curling up with a good book or watching movies. When she's not being a mum, she's a writer and a blogger.

  She loves writing romance novels with a HEA and has a thing for alpha males.

  I mean, who doesn't!

  Just an ordinary girl surrounded by extraordinary books.