AN: Sorry for the long awaited update. There's a lot of drama going on in my life right now so I had to take a little break and get things under control again. I worked super hard on this chapter to give you a little longer of a chapter and hopefully give you an update on all the characters and where they stand on each other (except for maybe Kriss, who doesn't make an appearance in this chapter).
America's POV
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Celeste asked as she started to throw piles of dresses into her suitcase. I pulled them all out and folded them for her. Apparently being a Two, this would have been the first time that she was packing her bags on her own. I had offered to ask Mary to help us but she had been too nervous to let anyone else in on her time alone to pack and get her thoughts together. For the next week and a half, she and Daniele would be at her parents' home in Clermont while I would still be here in Angeles. It had been a few days since Maxon and I had almost kissed—and talked as well. I had told Celeste about that night and ever since she had been considering putting her plans to take Daniele home on hold. Every day since I had been telling her to go and now that the day had finally come, we were packing up her bags. I smiled at her worry but waved it off at the same time. There was nothing that could be done by them choosing to postpone their vacation, besides the fact that it would give me a little work to do and time to practice more as a diplomat to Italy. However, most of that training was nearly completed and I was almost ready to begin my new job.
"Celeste, you need to let him meet your parents. Your relationships gotten very serious lately," I said with a teasing smile as I winked at her selection of dresses and a flashy red bathing suit. "You clearly care about him—"
"I'm in love with him, Five, not that you'd know what it's like to have the love of a Prince," she replied rolling her eyes at me. I shook my head at her. Even though she had been teasing me, it was still a small slap to the face, a first in our new found friendship. I shrugged it off and let her continue on with her statement. "I'm sorry," she whispered as she fell back on her bed next to me. "It's not even like we've said it yet, America. How am I supposed to bring him home if I'm not sure of his feelings for me? My parents aren't as loving and understanding as yours are and this is my last chance to prove to them that I won't be bothering them for the rest of their lives."
"Celeste, you have nothing to worry about," I said smiling softly back at her. "Just you wait, it's only a matter of days—maybe even hours—until he'll tell you he loves you back. It's obvious to the rest of us but I know it can be painful playing the waiting game." I smiled over at her as I continued to fold the rest of her clothes up. She looked over at me like she didn't have a clue in the world how she was supposed to do any of the packing. I rolled my eyes at her again and finished the job for her, bundling up the bag for her.
"Do you love Scott, America?" She asked me plainly. I looked over at her, taken back by the question. My feelings for Scott hadn't changed even though I was mad at her. He made me laugh and smile, he was dependable, and his friendship was true. Those were the things that had made our relationship strong and happy, those were the things that had helped me begin to get over Maxon. I had started to fall for him, I just wasn't sure if I was completely in love with him quite yet. We had only been dating for a month or so, while Celeste and Daniele had been dating for almost three. It was a longer amount of time to figure out how strong their feelings were for each other and know for certain. It hadn't taken me that long with Aspen, but it had with Maxon and I knew that it would take me a while longer to know for sure about Scott.
"I love him but I'm not sure how much he loves me or if it's the kind of love that's supposed to last forever. We haven't spoken since our fight but I think I'm going to ask him to go to Aspen and Lucys' wedding with me. I don't want to stay mad at him forever."
"It's not a bad thing that he had to get a little push for the two of you to get together. Things have to happen sometimes for other people to get together. You're just too stubborn for your own good, America." She smiled as she picked up her bag, the weight of it dropping towards the ground as it fell out of her hand. I lifted the bag back up for her and walked her out to where she was meeting Daniele.
"You can always call me if you need anything," I said with a smile as we walked down the hallways. "But I don't think you're going to. I'll see you back here for the wedding?"
"Of course," she said as she gave me a hug. Daniele took her bag and gave it to one of the guards who escorted them out of the palace gates. After I watched their car disappear from sight, I walked back into the palace and down to Aspen and Lucys' wing. Once they were married, Maxon had promised them a house that was the same size as the yellow one he had almost gave me. Until then, they were staying in the palace while Aspen underwent physical therapy for his injury. Their wedding would take place in the gardens in a week and would be the first party since Maxon's engagement party. I had been asked to be a bridesmaid, while Mary would be the Maid of Honor and was also in charge of making our dresses. Today would be the final fitting for our three dresses.
I knocked on the door at the front of Lucy's room and was pulled into the room by a giant hug from Mary. She smiled as she pulled me into one of the far corners and there stood Lucy in a white, strapless, lace wedding dress. Her hair was half pulled up in curls with a small flower pinned in her hair. She looked like a beautiful princess in her own right and I knew that Aspen would have the wind knocked out of him when he saw her on their wedding day. Mary pointed to the corner where our strapless, short and flowing blue dresses sat. I was glad they had chosen blue and silver as their wedding colors instead of the red that they had originally been planning on, simply because it would have clashed far too much with my hair. I loved these dresses that Mary had come up with. She was probably the best Maid of Honor that ever had been.
"Oh Mary, these dresses are amazing." I said as I brushed my fingers along the hem of mine. "And Lucy, you look stunning! Aspen's going to love it!" I found myself squealing for the first time in my life.
"Do you really think so?" She whispered as she ran her hands down the waist and looked at herself in the mirror.
"Yes, I really do," I said smiling back at her. I stood up next to her after trying on my dress. I hoped that Scott was going to like me in it. "Are you excited to be Mrs. Leger?" I asked her as I fluffed my hair over my shoulders trying to decide what I might do with it for the wedding. A blush shot through Lucy at my question and I knew that she was going to make Aspen truly blissful for the rest of his life.
"I can't, I really can't wait to be with Aspen." She said as she twirled slowly in her dress. "Thank you so much for being in my wedding America, I couldn't imagine doing this without you."
"Of course Lucy," I replied with a smile. Aspen had asked me to be in his wedding party at the same time as Lucy so I was doubling up a little as a Bridesmaid and as Best "Man" to the both of them. I smiled as I started to change back into my pants and shirt for the day. I figured that after this, I would head down and see Scott for a little bit. "Where are you going for your Honeymoon?"
"I don't know, Aspen hasn't told me yet but I know he's saved so much money for it. And since Maxon has given us such a big new house, there is plenty of room for my father and his family to come and live with us. I'm so nervous that Mrs. Leger won't like me as much once she meets me this week. If he hadn't been injured I would have met her by now but we couldn't leave the palace to go back to his home town."
"You're worrying too much, Lucy, his family is going to adore you," I said with a smile. "Don't worry about that at all." I smiled as I walked out the door, waving quietly. I walked slowly down to Scott's quarters and knocked softly on the door. He seemed completely shocked to see me when he opened the door but then he pulled me tightly into his arms as a smile crept across his face. He released his hold slowly and backed away for a moment.
"Hello, Ames," he said with a soft smile. "Are you still mad at me?"
"Scott," I said with a smile back at him. "I know we haven't been talking lately but I was wondering if you would like to go to Aspen's wedding with me." I said, pushing it all out at once rather than taking it slowly and beating around the bush. I wanted us to be okay and to be able to move on from our fight but I didn't want to deal with the awkward situation that might have unfolded before us. "I can understand if you don't want to but I want to be able to move on from our argument."
"Of course I want to move on," he said with a smile as he brushed a strand of hair behind my ear. "I'd love to go with you to the wedding," he said as he closed the distance between us with a kiss. My heart did a soft flutter and I looked down at him. This was the first time that I realized he wasn't wearing anything but his work slacks. His chest was sculpted and it was the first time that I realize just how stunning his body truly was, without giving it any comparison to anyone else.
The Wedding Day
America's POV
I decided to fix my hair into soft curls rather than do anything fancy with it. Out of all the jewelry that I had to wear, the only thing that matched with my dress was my father's necklace and Maxon's New Asia bracelet. I wanted to show him once again that we could be friends and talk to each other but I didn't know how else to show him that I didn't hold any grudges about what had happened that night in my room. Though I had one dinner date with Scott between our make-up and today, I still hadn't talked to Maxon to tell him that things were okay between us again. It would have to wait until the wedding reception or even later than that. I walked down the hallway to greet Aspen and couldn't be happier to see him in his military suit, dressed to his finest.
"You look wonderful," Aspen said as he turned to smile at me. His cane had been redone for the wedding but he didn't reach for it as he walked over to me to engulf me in a hug. "It's funny, when I first thought about getting married I always saw you walking towards me. Now I can't see anyone but Lucy becoming my wife."
"Things really have changed," I said with a smile. "Who knows if I'll ever get married?" I teased.
"Scott really cares about you, I wouldn't be surprised if you aren't too far behind us," Aspen grinned back at me. He winced as he stood on his leg but reached for a pain killer rather than the cane. "I'm going to be alright without the cane today, I'm not going to use that. I want to look like I'm strong and a hero on my wedding day. That's what Lucy deserves."
"I'm glad you think she deserves so much, just be careful, alright?" I said with a soft smile as we walked down the hallway. "What does your mother think of her?"
"She thinks Lucy is the most beautiful and genuine woman she's ever met and she couldn't be more proud of my choice," Aspen replied as we walked out of his room together and into the gardens. He took his place and I continued back to mine alongside Lucy.
The wedding ceremony was beautiful and I enjoyed getting to hear the two of them give their vows. Scott had been asked to help walk me down the aisle and I couldn't help but notice that Maxon wouldn't look at me when we walked down together. I couldn't imagine what was going through his mind but I couldn't help but notice that Kriss hadn't been asked back to the palace yet. I wish he would still get over his anger and give her one last chance.
Maxon's POV
After the wedding, I began to throw back every single drink that I could find. Every small bone in my body was admiring how beautiful America looked in her dress and the fact that she had walked down the aisle next to Scott. In that moment, I knew that someday she would be walking down the aisle at her own wedding to him. And in these past few days, I doubted that I would ever get married, ever make up with Kriss, or ever be able to move on from the argument we were having. I had invited her to the wedding but the things that I had told her didn't seem to leave room for her to forgive me. She hadn't showed up here to show that she was over our argument and I didn't know if she ever would be. I had hurt her with the things that I had said. The dancing started and I sat back in the corner of the room with my whiskey as I watched Aspen and Lucy light up the floor, followed by America and Scott and other people.
I watched as Scott left for a few moments and America went for a walk, looking absolutely exhausted. I got up, stumbling with every footstep as I walked over to the darkened corner of the garden where no one else would be able to see us. I put my hand on her shoulder, trying to keep myself from falling over at how dizzy I was.
She jerked back until seeing it was me. "I'm sorry Kriss isn't here," she said softly as she helped me stand up, taking away the wine glass from my hands. "But you shouldn't get drunk like this, Maxon, you're still the King."
"What does it matter," I spit back at her, every word coming out slower than the rest. "My lineage is going to die, with me!" He shouted, shaking his head at himself and looking up at the stars. "You'll move on and get married and have kids. Just you wait and see. That'll never happen for me."
"You need to forgive Kriss, Maxon, and let her come back."
"Me?" I laughed, nearly doubling over. "I invited her and she didn't come." I whispered as I stood back up, wrapping America in my arms, holding her waist tightly in my hold. "Why did I ever let you go?" I whispered as I closed the distance between us with a kiss, electricity shooting with my body that I hadn't felt for months since the night that I had found out the truth about Aspen Leger. I held her closer, putting my hands softly on her hips. My heart skipped beats, my body racing with the tenderness of her lips and the pounding of my heart up in my head as I kissed her softer and deeper at the same time. The touch between us was fueled with all the same urge or at least that was what I was thinking about it. I couldn't stop, I couldn't let her go even though I already had lost her. I just kept kissing her over and over.
Cliffhanger? 0:)
