Grandma wraps her hand around my waist and leans in to whisper in my ear. “I hid some for you. I’ll send them over later.”
“What was that?” Sierra asks instantly, her eyes narrowed.
I giggle. I can’t help it. Being around Grandma always makes me feel so… free. I wish I felt this way around my own family.
“Come on,” Grandma tells us. She has us sit down, and then she hands each of us a box. “I suppose it’s too early to give you yours, Sierra, but I know what you’re like, and I didn’t want you to harass Raven about hers, so you get yours early. Open it.”
We both open our boxes and gasp simultaneously. Each box contains a priceless Windsor heirloom jewelry set. They’re iconic pieces that are often lent to museums, and I never thought I’d own one myself.
“You, my sweet Raven, will inherit all of the Windsor jewelry. You’ll become this family’s next matriarch, and there’s no one else I’d rather have at the head of this family.” She turns to Sierra then. “And you will, no doubt, become the matriarch of the family you’ll marry into.”
Sierra grins. “Want to give me a clue about who you chose for me?”
Just like the rest of her siblings, Sierra has always known she’d marry someone Grandma chose for her. Unlike her brothers, though, Sierra is not all that opposed to it. Courtesy of her romance novels, I suppose.
“You’re not ready,” Grandma says. “And I don’t think I am either. Do you want to leave Grandma so soon?”
She shakes her head and moves over to sit next to Grandma, her arm looping through Grandma’s. I watch with a full heart as Grandma presses a kiss on top of Sierra’s head. This is what I’ve always wanted — to be part of this family, truly.
“Tell me, Raven. How has marriage been treating you so far?”
“Oh,” Sierra says. “I’d say it’s treating her real well.”
I throw her a wide-eyed warning look, but the way Grandma smiles tells me she definitely understood Sierra’s insinuation. “It’s been good. Thank you for asking, Grandma.”
She nods. “You two got one month of no interruptions or family obligations, but your time is up now. You must make a formal announcement, which will result in increased media attention for you. Considering your job, I think you’re uniquely equipped to handle that. With it, will also come formal engagements. There will be many events you must attend as a Windsor, even if it’s just to make a quick appearance. I know how hard you work, Raven, but your schedule is about to become even busier. I will not even allow you to miss our weekly family dinners going forward, much less anything else. The family’s reputation is important, and many of our businesses have thrived because of our network. We must maintain that.”
“I know, Grandma,” I reassure her. “I’ll be fine, I promise. I’ve attended so many charity events with you that I’m not at all concerned about it.”
Grandma nods. “Nor am I. Ares and you make a great couple.”
Grandma hesitates for a moment, as though there’s something she wants to ask, but then she seems to think better of it and shakes her head. “Wear that to the next formal event you attend,” she says, a smile on her face. “It’ll send a strong message to anyone that knows us.”
I stare at the diamond necklace, my stomach fluttering. So far, Ares and I have existed in our own little bubble. What will it be like to walk on his arm, to be widely known as his wife?
I bite down on my lip nervously. The first event we’re scheduled to attend together is a movie premiere… in which Hannah was the lead star. I’m not looking forward to it, but I think I’m ready.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Ares
I stare at the rings in my hand with the most wicked smile on my face. I felt a sense of dread when Hannah picked our rings, yet merely seeing the rings Raven chose fills me with a sick kind of satisfaction.
I can’t wait to see my ring on her finger. It’s as big as I wanted it to be. There’s no room left for misinterpreting what this ring means. It’ll mark her as mine the way I want it to, and I’ll gladly wear her feather engraved ring in return.
“Rave?”
I tap my foot impatiently as I sit down on our bed and wait for her to walk out of the shower. I’m half tempted to join her in there, but I can’t wait a moment longer to put this ring on her finger. The bathroom is not the place to do it.
When we first got married, I wasn’t sure what a relationship between us would look like, and I had no intention of being more than friends with her. When did that change? In a mere few weeks, she’s become my wife in every way that matters.
Every night with her is fucking amazing. The way she wants me… it’s unreal. I’ve never been this impatient and desperate before, and I can’t get enough of her. I’m half-tempted to skip work so I can keep her in bed the way I’ve been dreaming of, but unfortunately for me, my wife is far busier than I’ll ever be.
My heart skips a beat when she walks out of the shower in nothing but a skimpy towel. “Fuck,” I groan.
Raven blushes, and the mere sight of her rosy cheeks sends another sharp tug of desire down my body. For far too long, I’d been staying away from her under the guise of wanting to give her space, but in part, it was because I knew I couldn’t resist her. She’s the one woman I never should’ve desired and the only one I’ve ever wanted this desperately.
I rise to my feet and walk up to her, my gaze intent. She smiles as though she knows exactly what she’s doing to me, standing there in that tiny towel, and a soft giggle escapes her lips as she takes a step back, until her back is pressed against the wall.
“It’s ridiculous how beautiful you are,” I murmur, caging her in with my forearms.
Her eyes roam over the suit I’m wearing this morning, and she sighs as she grabs the lapels of my jacket. “It’s unfortunate that you’re hiding my favorite parts of your body.”
She strokes my chest, and I grab her hand, keeping it in place over my heart. “Your favorite parts, huh? If my cock isn’t your favorite part of my body, then I’m not doing my job properly. I promise you that I’m about to remedy that.”
She smiles at me, a hint of wonder in her eyes. I suppose this is as surreal to her as it is to me. We were never meant to be together. We were never meant to be so perfect together.
“Allow me to make you another promise, Raven.” I lift her hand and grab the ring she designed, placing it at the tip of her finger before I look into her eyes. “You and I started our marriage under the worst possible circumstances, and even now, it feels like so much stands between us, like the odds are stacked against us. I don’t know what our future will hold, Rave, but this much I promise you: throughout our entire marriage, you will be everything to me. I will prioritize you above all else, and I’ll do everything in my power to ensure you’ll never feel like you’ve had to sacrifice anything to marry me. I know the road we’ve chosen to walk isn’t an easy one, but I can’t think of a better partner on this journey.”
Raven smiles at me, her eyes filled with unshed tears. My hands tremble as I push her ring onto her finger. I wasn’t even this nervous when I proposed to Hannah. That had just been a formality, but this? This is a real moment between us, one I didn’t think I’d ever have.