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  “I was just working on the wedding invitations. I know you’ve never wanted to talk about it before, but I just wanted to ask. Are you sure you don’t want to invite your family to the wedding?”

  Noah looked down at his hand, as it rubbed across her belly, “The only family I need is already right here with me.” Brianna’s hand gently lifted his chin up to look at his eyes.

  Noah explained, “Every family has a black sheep, right? In my family, I guess that’s me. When I chose the Army over a career in my father’s business, he told me to never come back, so I didn’t. You, our baby, Bull, Rebel, Shadow, and the rest of the guys – the ones who are always here for me - that’s who my real family is, Bri.”

  Her heart broke for him, as she tried to put herself in his place. She tried to picture how she would’ve reacted, if her father had disowned her when she refused to work for him and became an investigative reporter instead. She couldn’t imagine her father ever saying she could never come back, then immediately thought of the baby growing inside her. What kind of parents could do that to their child?

  “Do they even know where you are?”

  She pulled back and looked at him, as he answered. “Couldn’t say. But they don’t live too far from here. If they really wanted to find me, my dad has the resources to do it.” Noah’s voice was flat, but Brianna could feel the undercurrent of hurt in him.

  “I was just thinking about how excited my parents are about the baby. After all this time, I bet your family would be thrilled to see you and find out they’ll be grandparents soon.”

  He shook his head, “I don’t think so, baby.”

  She put her arms around his neck and held him tight as she promised, “You will always have me, Noah.” She felt his arms tighten around her. “And if you ever decide to talk to them, I will be at your side.”

  Chapter 27

  Brianna’s wedding planner arranged their late August wedding with seemingly little effort. Brianna chose a barefoot beach wedding at sunset. Her mother, Diane, and her sister, Missy, both helped Brianna get ready. Brianna loved spending this special time with them. She was about to marry the man of her dreams, and she had her entire family there to share the big day.

  “An outdoor wedding. In late August. In Miami. Whose idea was this anyway? I can’t do anything with my hair!” Missy had been in front of the mirror for twenty minutes working on the same section of uncooperative hair.

  Brianna laughed and threw a hair clip at her. “It was my idea, thank you very much!”

  Missy picked up the clip and pulled the section of hair back. With the snap of the clip, she said, “Perfect! Thanks, sissy!” Looking at the time, Missy touched Brianna’s shoulder and her voice hitched when she spoke, “Bri, it’s time to get your dress on.”

  When Brianna looked up at her sister, tears sprang to her eyes, as she saw tears glistening in Missy’s eyes. Blinking back tears, Brianna teasingly chided Missy, “Don’t cry! You’re going to make me cry, and I just finished my makeup!”

  Brianna stood and hugged Missy. Within a couple of seconds, their mother had wrapped her arms around them both, “I love my girls!”

  Missy helped Brianna put her wedding gown on. It was sleeveless with a straight A-line fit, and stopped just above mid-thigh. The folds in the fabric lined each side of the dress, starting just above her breasts and extended to her hips in a rounded pattern. The folds gathered at her midline, just below the V-shape in the neckline, by a diamond and pearl encrusted pendant.

  Diana took Brianna’s hands in hers and held her arms out to the sides as she beheld her daughter. “You look absolutely elegant, Brianna.” Tears spilled over Diane’s eyelashes and she dabbed them with a tissue. “I can’t tell you how blessed I feel – to have you back, to see you get married, and to know I’ll be a grandmother soon.” She pulled Brianna in for a tight hug as she whispered, “I’m so proud of you, and I love you so much, Bri.”

  Brianna couldn’t speak. It took every ounce of energy to fight back the tears. So she hugged her mom even tighter. Diane spoke for her, “Momma knows, Bri,” and smiled, as she pulled back from her. “I know, I know – you just finished your makeup.”

  Just when she thought she would get out of her dressing room without crying, her father showed up at the door. “You are absolutely gorgeous, Brianna. Noah is a very lucky man.” Brianna saw water shimmer in Evan’s eyes, and the first tears fell before she could stop them when he finished speaking, “How can I give you away? You were my girl first.”

  Brianna’s arms flew around his neck and she squeezed him tight. She managed to squeak out, “I’ll always be your girl, daddy,” and kissed his cheek.

  “All right, enough of the water works! You’re going to be late for your own wedding!” Missy was back in charge and shooing everyone out of the dressing room. She quickly touched up Brianna’s makeup and said, “You look perfect. Ready?”

  “Ready.”

  Brianna and Missy joined Evan outside the dressing room and walked to the staging area, where the wedding coordinator, Emily, was waiting with Brianna’s other bridesmaids, her sisters, Jessie and Ashley. They hugged Brianna just as Bull, Rebel, and Shadow walked up.

  The three men pulled Brianna to the side. Bull kissed her cheek as he started, “Sunny, you are glowing. Really. We have a gift for you, and we thought you may want to wear it for the ceremony.”

  Shadow pulled a square velvet box from his pocket and opened it. Brianna gasped when she saw the necklace. The elegant dog tag hung on a white gold chain by a diamond studded lobster clasp. The front of the dog tag was polished white gold, the edges were lined with diamonds, and an infinity symbol was engraved in the middle.

  Rebel removed it from the box and said, “Read the back.”

  “Out loud,” called Missy, who was obviously eavesdropping on their conversation. Everyone laughed and gathered closer to Brianna.

  Brianna turned the dog tag over, and her hand flew up to cover her heart. She read aloud, “A brother’s love never ends.” She looked at each man, tears brimming again, unable to speak for a moment. “I love it. I – I can’t thank you enough.”

  She hugged each man, thanking each individually. With a kiss on the cheek, she whispered, “I love you.”

  Bull then took the necklace and clasped it around her neck. “It looks great on you, Sunny.”

  Emily said, “It’s time everyone.” She motioned for the music to start and sent Jessie and Rebel down the white carpet towards the minister. When Jessie was a quarter of the way down, Ashley and Shadow followed. Bull held out the crook of his arm to Missy, she slipped her hand in, and they started their walk down the aisle.

  The music changed to announce the bride, as Brianna slipped her arm in Evan’s. He looked at her and asked, “Ready, sweetheart?”

  She took a deep breath and said, “Ready, Daddy.”

  They walked out, arm in arm, and Brianna saw the perfect sunset. The sky was different shades of pink and purple, as the sun shimmered on the water, hanging just over the horizon of the ocean. The slight ocean breeze made the humidity and heat at least tolerable.

  As they turned the corner to face Noah, Brianna’s heart leapt at the sight of him. Noah wore a sky blue short-sleeve button down with white cargo shorts. His dark tan against the blue shirt made him look even sexier than normal. She could feel his eyes moving over her, taking her in, and she saw the admiration in his face. She smiled, as she started walking towards him and towards her future.

  Noah couldn’t move or breathe when Brianna stepped into his line of sight. Everyone else faded away when he saw her, like they were the only two people in the world. She was more radiant than anyone he had ever seen. And she was all his. His chest swelled with pride, as she walked down the aisle, to him, to be his, forever.

  Evan visibly had a hard time releasing her when the minister asked who gave her away. His voice was strong as he responded, “Her mother and I do.” But Noah saw Evan squeeze her arm tighter as he said it. As
Evan’s eyes met Noah’s, the unspoken message was unmistakable, “Take care of my daughter, or I’ll take care of you.” Noah nodded, hiding his smile, and took Brianna’s hands.

  After a few words from the minister, he said, “I understand the bride and groom have written their own vows.” He nodded to Noah to start reciting his vows.

  Bull handed Noah the ring as Noah spoke, “Brianna, I promise to be the best husband I can possibly be. You will have all of my love, all of my heart, and all of me for the rest of my life. I will do everything in my power to protect you, provide for you, and make you the happiest woman in the world, every single day. I love you…today, tomorrow, and forever.” Noah pushed the ring on her finger, as she watched breathlessly.

  Tears were brimming in Brianna’s eyes as she took Noah’s hand, sliding the ring on his finger. “Noah, since the first day we met, you have been in my heart, on my mind, and my only love. I promise to stand by you, be your soul mate, and support and love you in every way possible. My life starts and ends with you. From this day forward, you are my everything. I will freely give you all of my love, every day, for the rest of my life.”

  The preacher declared, “You may now kiss the bride.” Noah took Brianna in his arms and kissed her deeply, as the guests cheered. After what felt like forever of taking pictures, the wedding party moved to the reception area. Their friends and family watched as Noah and Brianna took the floor for their first dance as Brian Adams’ song I Do It For You started playing.

  Noah wrapped his arms around her waist, as she slipped her arms around his neck. He pulled her as close to him as possible and leaned his head down to whisper in her ear. “I love you, Mrs. Steele. I can’t wait to get you away from all these people.”

  The low timbre of his voice and warm breath so close sent shivers down her spine. She turned her head slightly and kissed him lightly at first, then more passionately. As she pulled back, she whispered, “Let’s go find a broom closet somewhere.” She felt his chuckle rumble through his chest.

  They managed to stay through the rest of the reception and made their exit, as the guests showered them with birdseed on their way to the limo waiting to take them on their honeymoon.

  No one noticed the lurking figure watching from the shadows.

  The End

  Acknowledgements

  From the bottom of my heart, I want to say Thank You for purchasing this book! I am interested in hearing all feedback and hope you stay with me during the entire Steele Security series.

  I want to say a special Thank You to my dear friend and fellow book junkie, Ana Isabella, for reading and re-reading various versions of this story and giving your honest feedback. Your support means so much to me!