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“The group is complete,” Nick said. “We should go upstairs.”
“Actually, Violet and Danielle aren’t here yet,” I said. “But they know which room we’re in. They can join us upstairs whenever they arrive.”
Nick opened the door, and just as we were both about to walk in, I heard Bob call, “We’re here too.”
I sighed. Secretly, I’d been hoping they’d missed their plane or something.
I swear I felt a current of awareness go through the group.
Panic rose in my throat. “Nick, your family—”
“I told them everything about Bob and Sophie.”
It was such a weird feeling to realize that I could trust him.
Bob and Sophie looked like they were attending a movie premiere.Oh, for God’s sake.They were a bit ridiculous. Bob was wearing a suit, but it was far too shiny for this time of day. Sophie had on a floor-length black dress. You’d think she was attending the Oscars, not a ceremony at city hall.
They made a beeline for us.
“Bob, Sophie. I see you made it in time,” Nick said.
“Yes, we did our best,” Bob replied dryly.
“Let’s all go in,” Nick urged. “Otherwise, we’ll be late, and city hall works on a very tight schedule. We’ll leave introductions for later.”
“Don’t worry,” his grandma said. I remembered distinctly that her name was Jeannie Whitley. She looked at me with so much kindness that I wanted to hug her.
Nick released Annie’s hand to put an arm around my waist, keeping me almost glued to him. For a split second, I was confused as to why. Then I realized that with Bob and Sophie here, we had to act like a couple. It was a good thing I’d splurged on this gorgeous dress; otherwise, they would have gotten suspicious right away.
Up close, I couldn’t miss the smell of his aftershave. It went straight to my head. I even felt a little lightheaded.
Annie came to the other side of me, giving me her hand. A knot formed in my throat. We looked so much like a family.
It’s not real, Allison. All this is so that the twins stay with you, but you can’t expect Nick to be in the picture forever. At least not in this capacity.
The twins would be sad further down the road when Nick parted ways with us, but I couldn’t think that far ahead. I needed to take it one step at a time.
Our room was on the second floor. I was stunned when I stepped out of the elevator and saw gorgeously decorated signs with our names pointing toward the room. There were balloons as well.
I looked at Nick in surprise, and he winked at me. “I told Frances to go all out.”
“Why?” I whispered.
“Why not? You told me you were in the mood to celebrate. I figured you’d enjoy this.”
I was about to ask what “all out” meant, but it became obvious when we stepped into the room. I assumed this was going to be a very terse city hall room. Normally, it probably was, unless it was professionally decorated by someone who clearly knew how to do weddings. There were flowers pretty much everywhere, along with balloons and even a photographer in the corner to commemorate the event.
“Nick,” I murmured, “this is too much.”
“Nah. It’s exactly right.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Allison
There was no aisle to walk down, so Nick and I simply moved forward. The officiant was sitting down at the desk. I glanced around the room, trying to take in the details. It was a mix of a simple courthouse and a wedding venue because of all the decorations. It didn’t look too intimidating, but at least it wasn’t as cold as I’d imagined.
“Welcome,” the officiant told us. He seemed to be in his late sixties. He, too, glanced around the room, but unlike me, he didn’t seem impressed by the decorations. Twice he cocked his brow and shook his head.