Toxic Game (GhostWalkers #15) - Christine Feehan Page 0,110
accent more pronounced.
“I’ve got Joe running all over the world looking for things for my woman. I want to surprise her.”
Wyatt’s eyebrow shot up. “You really are fallin’ for this woman.”
“Already gone,” Draden admitted. “I fell hard, and I want the world for her. If we lose this battle, Wyatt, I want her to have something extraordinary. And I want her to know she was loved.”
Just saying it out loud to one of his closest friends had him choking up again. What the hell was wrong with him? With dying came some clarity. “This isn’t just for her. I want this for me as well. I want to have this day with her. If there’s any way for Bellisia and Zara to be with us, not physically, but with her, so she doesn’t feel so alone, I would very much like to give her that as well.”
Wyatt nodded. “You know, computers aren’t my thing, but we’ve got a few people who know what they’re doing. Flame, my sister-in-law, is hell on wheels with a computer. She should be able to put something together for us. Azami is loaning us the satellite for as long as necessary and we’ve got the use of it anytime. We can do this, for you, Draden.”
“Thanks, man. I want to marry her at sunset. It’s beautiful here when the sun is just sliding out of the sky and the forest is beginning to stir.”
“You’re going to want it light enough for all of us to see, especially if Zara and Bellisia are watching. Bellisia is in Louisiana, and Zara is up in the mountains of Montana. We’re here in Sumatra.”
“I’d forgotten about that. We’ll set the ceremony for a half hour before sunset. That way we’ll have both. I put cameras on the list for outside and inside. I think I can hook it all together. At least I hope so.”
“If you can’t, and you promise Bellisia a wedding, you may as well stay right where you are because if you don’t come through, she’ll end you herself. Zara will be sweet about it, but knowing you disappointed her, it will be Gino who will come after you.”
Draden couldn’t help smiling and it felt good. Wyatt called it exactly the way it would be. Gino would probably punch him for making his woman sad, and Bellisia would at least pretend to do him in.
“I don’t think I’ve actually seen you smile before,” Wyatt observed. “This woman must be the real deal to teach you how to smile.”
That brought him up short. He didn’t smile often, but he did smile, didn’t he? He honestly couldn’t say. At Nonny? He’d brushed a kiss on her cheek before he’d left for the mission. They all had said good-bye in their own way to her. No, he hadn’t smiled. The triplets? The three beautiful little girls with their dark curls and large eyes and quirky little ways? They were all three geniuses, which wasn’t too surprising considering Wyatt was off the charts and Pepper was extremely intelligent. No, he didn’t smile around them either and he should have. He liked them. He thought the three were little troublemakers and funny as hell, so why didn’t he smile?
He had begun his modeling career early when he’d been “discovered,” and in those shoots he hadn’t smiled. They hadn’t wanted him to smile and he hadn’t felt like it. He’d been living two lives. One on the street and one in the world of cameras and high-powered men and woman who’d looked at him as a commodity and nothing more. He doubted if they’d even known his name. The money had put him through college, so he’d let them take his picture, but he’d avoided any contact with anyone who might uncover his earlier days. The publicity would have been good for his career, but he hadn’t wanted anyone knowing his business.
“I didn’t want your woman to see my smile. I was protecting your marriage.” As comebacks went, it was lame, but it was a good first try. He heard the way Malichai and Mordichai razzed the others. They were good at camaraderie. He was still learning what real camaraderie was, not the fake smile and pretend, like he’d taught Trap. He wished he had the time to work with Trap more and do a better job of explaining so the man would understand—like he was just getting—that friends and family were important enough to make an effort with.