Page 39 of Ruin Me Sweetly

I let him have his moment.

He could be so precious at times.

❧ ❧ ❧

Rhea was rubbing her chin, as though she had an imaginary beard.

“Everything is so… bland,” she said, staring at the rows, her eyes pausing at the one with the giant bow on it.

Her face twisted in disgust.

“That’s it. I’m wearing a sari,” she said, shaking her head.

Amber sat on the bench, watching us, popping another cheesy Wotsit into her mouth. The woman hovering nearby probably didn’t know which she should be more concerned about—orange cheese fingers, or Rhea’s aversion to wedding dresses.

“You can wear whatever you want, babe,” I said, chuckling.

“The least bling I can do for you is gold and cream,” she said, with a mischievous smile.

That was a sacrifice. I’d been to an Indian wedding before, and it seemed to be tradition to outdress everyone in the room, even the bride.

“You pick mine, Mum. As long as I can wear my boots under it.”

I stared down at her worn, flat leather boots and winced.

“No, you can do what I do and wear a decent pair of Converse under the skirt,” Rhea said, frowning, and Amber shrugged.

“Great, let’s find a wedding dress for me and a bridesmaid dress for Amber.”

Rhea glanced at the sparse dresses hanging along the back wall.

“Yeah, not from here.”

Amber began licking her fingers clean.

I shook my head at the pair of them, but resigned myself to Rhea’s judgemental prowess. I wondered if I’d start gaining weight straight away with the pregnancy. I calculated the weeks remaining and decided Luke’s multi-millionaire status could take a hit. After all, he was the cause, and I was left dealing with the effect.

“It’s all going on Luke’s credit card.”

Rhea’s smile turned downright evil.

Amber was texting on her phone.

The attendant’s face fell as she realised the purchase wouldn’t be happening at her boutique.

I should’ve done this online.

Chapter 20

Luke

My package was not secure. It was currently walking around London, shopping for a wedding dress. The non-degraded sperm had been deployed, and one had won the ultimate battle. Now all Daddy had to do was keep it safe until it arrived in September. Which meant Bella would be ten weeks and one day along on our wedding day. I was convinced it had happened on Christmas Day.

Then there was the bodyguard. He’d been told to keep his distance, but any one of the trio might spot him if he wasn’t careful. The firm had guaranteed they were the best in the business.

So far, Sadie had only been to salons, spas, and the gym. There’d been no sightings of her anywhere near Bella. Even if she did try to approach her, the two men would put a stop to any potential conflict.

The bait had been set—to put a stop to Sadie once and for all, but in a controlled environment. The lure would be too much for such a poisonous little witch.