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“My bad. It is very scrumptious.”
“No, you don’t say ‘very scrumptious’; it’s just scrumptious.”
I laugh and take another sip. “Thank you, I needed a strong drink after today.”
“Yeah.” He sits down on the bed next to me and undoes his bow tie, which is inexplicably sexy.
“So I owe you an apology,” I say.
Nathan cocks his head at me and frowns.
“For not being upfront from the start. The moment Staph told me she was mafia, I should’ve just come clean.”
“Yeah, you should’ve.” He says this simply, without anymalice in his voice. “But it worked out, and I’m glad. Sort of. Well, I’m relieved. Please promise you’ll tell me the truth next time something like this happens?”
I have to laugh at that. “Next time someone tells me they’re the mafia and they’re planning to assassinate someone at our wedding?”
Nathan’s face is completely serious as he answers, “Well, not exactly that situation. Look, there will always be shit coming up. And I’m in it as deep as you are. I’m as complicit as you are with the whole Ah Guan incident—”
“That’s not true.”
He shrugs. “Well, if you go down, I go down with you. We’re in it together. Forever, Meddy.” He takes my hand. “I’m your husband.”
Goose bumps prickle up my arms and warmth expands out from my belly to the tips of my fingers. “Yeah, you are.” I can’t stop the smile from taking over my face.
“So please tell me the truth next time you get in trouble?” he murmurs.
“I promise. I am so sorry, Nathan.”
“Don’t be sorry. I know you were trying to protect me. I’m just trying to make you see that I can totally handle all of this criminal activity you and your family are always up to.”
“Criminal activity?” I laugh. But then I realize he’s right—we’re hardly upstanding citizens.
“In it together?” Nathan says.
“Together.” I lean over and kiss him. He leans into me, his mouth soft against mine, and I hardly notice when the glass slips out of my hand and falls with a soft thud on the thick carpet.
Epilogue
Nathan’s hand is warm and firm around mine as we walk down the stairs. I feel as though I’m living the song “Walking on Sunshine.” Every step I take, I’m pretty sure my feet don’t touch the ground. There’s hardly any weight on me; gravity has stopped working, I’m sure of it.
I’m married. Never mind the fact that our wedding was basically a disaster that everyone will probably use as an example of what not to do. None of it matters. All that matters is that we woke up this morning as a married couple. As we brushed our teeth at the his-and-hers sinks, he called me “Mrs.Nathan Chan” and I called him “Mr.Meddelin Chan” and we grinned foamy grins at each other.
“You ready?” I say to him as we walk into the restaurant.
He nods and stifles a yawn.
“Gotta get some coffee in you,” I say.
“Yeah, I didn’t get much sleep last night.” He squeezes my hand with a smile.
We’re still beaming idiotically when his mother spots us and waves with a panicky grin. It’s clear why she’s so eager to have us there—Ma and the aunts have arrived before us and they’re all wearing matching ridiculous outfits with, of course, equally ridiculous hats. These ones have little orangutans on them in various poses, but that’s not even the worst of it. No, the worst part is that the orangutans, like my mother and aunts, are all decked out in the iconic Burberry check. I’m talking tan tartan from head to toe, along with Burberry logos everywhere—chest, back, arms, thighs, even shoes.
Normally, the sight of this would have made me cringe and wish for a hole to fall into, but now I merely bite back a smile. Because now I see that they’re not trying to embarrass me. This has nothing to do with me. My family has never played by the rules. They don’t care how others might perceive them. They’re just making the best of their trip to England, embracing everything about the place and having the time of their lives, and how can I not love that?
“Hi, Ma,” I say, planting a kiss on her cheek. I greet everyone at the table, pointedly ignoring Annie’s panicked staring. What does she expect me to do, anyway, tell my family to leave the table and change?
Ma grins cunningly as Nathan greets her. “Nathan, you good boy,” she says, patting his bicep appreciatively. “You two make good grandbabies for me already?”