I bite back a smile when he walks me to the dance floor, his arms wrapping around me. He seems restless, and his hands keep roaming over my body. The way he looks at me both amuses me and thrills me.
“Jealousy looks cute on you,” I tell him.
“Me? Jealous?” he says, huffing.
“You’re not? Hmm… I guess you won’t mind if I go dance with Sebastian, then?”
He tightens his grip on me and pulls me closer until my body is flush against his. “Don’t even fucking dream about it, Elena. I’ve read your background check. I know you used to date him. It’s enough that you once used to be his. He isn’t getting anything more than the memory of you, and even that is too much.”
I smile up at him and wrap my arms around his neck. “Okay, husband,” I tell him.
Alec twirls me around before pulling me back, and I crash into his arms. “Say that again.” I raise my brows, and Alec brushes my hair out of my face. “I love it when you call me husband like that.”
“Do you now… husband dearest?”
Alec pauses in the middle of the dance floor and nods. “Yes,” he says. “In fact, I want to hear you being referred to as my wife in public everywhere we go. I want people addressing you as Mrs. Kennedy. I want the whole world to know that you’re mine.”
He drops down on one knee in the middle of the dance floor, and several gasps sound around me. The music stops, and a spotlight illuminates us.
“Elena Diana Rousseau,” he says, pulling a ring box from his pocket. My heart skips a beat and I stare at him with wide eyes. He’s always told me before we put on an act, so why didn’t he this time?
“You’ve had me enthralled from the moment I ran into you again, all those months ago. I’ve fought my feelings for you for as long as I could, but it’s a losing battle.”
He opens the ring box, and I gasp. It isn’t the ring I picked—but it’s the ring I secretly wanted. He noticed?
“I can’t even imagine the rest of my life without you,” he says. “Please, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
I blink in disbelief and nod. “Yes. Yes , Alec. A thousand times, yes.”
He looks into my eyes, and even though we’re surrounded by hundreds of people, it’s like it’s just me and him right in this moment.
Alec slides the ring onto my finger and rises. He threads his hand through my hair and kisses me roughly, with no regard for the people surrounding us, and I kiss him back just as passionately.
I’m breathless by the time I pull away, and both of us are smiling widely. “Alec,” I whisper. “The ring?”
He pushes my hair behind my ear and cups my cheek. “Baby, you deserve every single thing you set your eyes on. I’m going to make it my job to give you everything , even the things you don’t dare ask for.”
“Alec,” I whisper. “All I want is you.”
He smiles, his fingers brushing aside my hair. “You have me, Elena. Forever.”
We’re so lost in each other that we’re both startled when Alec’s grandfather puts his hand on his shoulder.
“Congratulations, kiddo,” he says, looking as happy as we do. He glances at me and cups my cheek in an uncharacteristic yet totally grandfatherly way. “You picked a keeper. I couldn’t be more proud.”
He takes a step back and then looks at the two of us. “Marry her before the first of July,” he says, his eyes on Alec. “And my position as chairman is yours.”
I grab Alec’s hand and look up at him excitedly. He grins at me and leans in, pressing a gentle kiss to my forehead.
“We did it,” I whisper, and he nods.
Dozens of people surround us, each of them wanting to congratulate us. Amongst the crowd, I spot my family, Jennifer by their side. The hatred on Jade and Elise’s faces doesn’t surprise me in the slightest—but the devastation in Jennifer’s eyes does . The way she looks at Alec makes me tighten my grip on him.
He looks at me, a questioning look in his eyes, and I shake my head. I rise to my tiptoes and kiss him with all I’ve got, cheers erupting around us.
I’ve never been happier than I am today, yet this happiness feels fleeting, and I’m terrified I won’t be able to hold on to it.
Chapter 43
A lexander
Elena can’t stop staring at her engagement ring, and I can’t stop staring at her. The wind rustles her hair beautifully, and I’m glad we opted to have dinner on our terrace today. I can’t remember any woman ever cooking for me—it’s always a chef. Yet Elena, a woman that grew up in the same environment I did, cooks for me all the time. She takes the time to find out what my favorite dishes are and buys exotic ingredients to surprise me with. I’m not used to being taken care of this way.
“It’s stunning,” she says, her eyes twinkling. “I wish I could show my mom.”
Elena never ceases to amaze me. She refuses to give up on her mother, no matter how slim the odds are.
“Do you think she’d like it?” I ask.
Elena nods. “Yeah, it’s simple but so luxurious at the same time. Mom would definitely love this.”
I smile at her. She lights up when she speaks of her mother, of her memories with her. “Tell me about your happiest childhood memory,” I say, my voice soft.
Elena looks at me and takes a minute to think about it. “I guess my happiest childhood memory would be from when things were still simple. When you were still part of my everyday life. I remember once my parents were so busy arguing with each other that they forgot about my birthday, but Luce and you didn’t. I came over to your house, and the two of you had baked me a cake, which was barely edible by the way, and you’d put up all those fairy lights for me. To date, that’s still my best birthday ever.”
I smile. “Hmm, I remember that. It was the last birthday you spent with us. Lucian called me in a panic when he realized everyone forgot about your birthday, and he made me come home from college to prepare you a little party.” Throughout the years, most of my memories of my childhood got lost, forgotten. I have more memories with Elena than I realized.
Elena laughs, lost in the memory. “The two of you made my childhood bearable. My home wasn’t a place I liked to be at, no matter how hard my mother tried, and you allowed me to escape from it. I always felt loved at the Kennedys.”
“You are loved, Buttercup. All of us adore you. I wouldn’t have married you otherwise.”
“Tell me about your favorite childhood memory,” she says.
I sigh. “My childhood wasn’t very good. I was forced to grow up quickly, but I had to watch my brother enjoy his childhood with you. The two of you always had so much fun with each other, and it made me feel a little lonely. It sounds really dumb, considering I’m so much older than you two, but that’s what it was like. My most precious memories are with Lucian and you, and I wasn’t really a child anymore then.”
Elena presses a quick kiss to my lips. “You’ve also always had me, you just never realized it,” she says.
“Hmm, I’m not sure. Even now that you’re my wife, it’s still Lucian you’re closer to.” I sound petty and I know it, but I can’t help myself. I empty my glass to take my mind of the sudden loneliness I feel.