Deacon shakes his head. “No. I really like Pippa greater than something, and I at all times did.” He takes my hand in his and squeezes. “I do know I tousled, and I harm Pippa when that’s the very last thing I ever needed. However?—”

“Can’t wait to listen to this,” Dad says.

“Dad. After we have been right here at Christmas, I went out procuring with Lucas and we stopped at a restaurant for lunch. Deacon’s mom confirmed up.”

Dad attracts in a deep breath. Like everybody else in our household, he hates Elise. And if Lucas has solely confided in Deacon, then he doesn’t even know the complete historical past behind what occurred.

“She began speaking about my relationship with Deacon and I advised her the place to go. I didn’t assume a lot of it on the time, however she had somebody along with her—a person possibly about my age. He will need to have taken images as a result of the night time earlier than the marriage, she turned as much as see Deacon and confirmed him a photograph of us at lunch. She advised him that she was nonetheless seeing Lucas and that we have been all mates.”

“What?” Mum gasps. “Lucas advised us he hasn’t?—”

I shake my head. “He’s not, Mum. The day they bought caught by Deacon and his dad was the final time. She’s so bitter over the best way Deacon turned his again on her, she needed to harm him. At the least, that’s what we predict.”

Deacon offers my hand one other squeeze. “All these years and I’m nonetheless tousled by it. The entire thing destroyed my dad’s life. I shouldn’t have let her get to me, and I ought to have stopped to speak it out with Pippa, however after Mum left I used to be a multitude. There’s no excuse for what I did, and I’ll have regrets for the remainder of my life over how I dealt with it.”

Dad uncrosses his arms and leans ahead. “You like her?”

“With every part I’ve.” Deacon slides his arm round me and tugs me nearer. “I’ll do my greatest to by no means harm her once more. I promise you that. I’ll be an excellent husband, and a father.”

I odor Mum’s acquainted floral fragrance earlier than she sits on the sofa beside me and grasps my forearm. “I feel we needs to be supportive, Dale. We’re going to be grandparents.”

Dad huffs however slowly nods. “Are you cheerful, Pippa? That’s what issues to us.”

“I’m.”

Mum wraps her arms round my neck and kisses my cheek. “You realize I would by no means forgive you for sneaking off to get married.”

Tears effectively in my eyes and I snort. “We’ll plan one other ceremony now we’re house. We simply needed to make it official as rapidly as doable.”

“However Las Vegas?” she asks, letting go.

“That was my concept.” Deacon grins. “We have been going to spend a few days there on the best way again from our honeymoon, and I needed to try to make up for Pippa lacking the Europe journey.”

My gaze meets his, and he wipes the tears which have fallen onto my cheeks.

“Which we’ll take collectively at one other time, so Pippa can go to all these locations she needed to.”

Dad’s nonetheless slightly grouchy, however Mum appears to have bounced again. “I’ll make some espresso and you may inform us all in regards to the marriage ceremony.”

After reaching into my bag, I pull out a pouch of images and hand them to Dad. “I’ve bought these.”

He takes them, his expression softening as he takes out the primary one. “You look so lovely.”

“I’m sorry when you really feel excluded, Dad. After every part that’s occurred, we needed one thing for ourselves.”

“I’ll cowl any prices for the final marriage ceremony and our new ceremony,” Deacon says. “It’s the least I can do.”

A glimmer of a smile seems on Dad’s face, and I clamp my lips collectively to cease myself from laughing.

“He’ll be okay, love,” Mum says from the doorway. “Now you’re speaking his language.”

I take Deacon’s hand in mine.

Every thing shall be high-quality.

Epilogue

Deacon

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