Every Beat Of My Heart: The Sullivans (Wedding Novella) by Bella Andre Read Free Book Online Page B

her hands off him.
    Little Emma had just given her a bunch of flowers, and Heather was smelling them with a happy smile on her lips—one that fell the moment she realized her parents had arrived at the party.
    A muscle jumped in Zach’s jaw as he watched her put down the flowers to go say hello. The Linseys put on a good show of being a happy couple, but that was all it was: a performance.
    Zach’s family had promised him they would step in with her parents any way they could. As good as their word, Smith and Valentina wasted no time coming over.
    “Mr. and Mrs. Linsey, it’s great to finally meet you.” Smith had on his best movie-star smile, one that looked genuine even if his heart wasn’t truly behind it. “If we could steal you away from your daughter for a short while, Valentina and I would love to give you both a tour of the castle.”
    Simply getting to meet a movie star like Smith would be more than enough for most people, so Zach figured there was no way they would turn down the chance to spend one-on-one time with Smith and his fiancée.
    “Honey,” Heather’s father said, “you don’t mind if your mother and I step away for a few minutes while you celebrate with your friends?”
    “No, you should absolutely go!”
    Heather seemed to realize a moment too late just how enthusiastic she sounded, but Zach was already stepping into the fray. “Heather and I actually have a few things we need to discuss for tomorrow.” He forced himself to smile at her parents, though he suspected it looked more like he was baring his teeth. “Enjoy your tour with Smith and Valentina.”
    After the four of them had walked around the corner, and Zach took Heather in the opposite direction, she asked, “We don’t really have anything to discuss for the wedding, do we?”
    Zach stopped to give her a kiss before saying, “We do, but not here.”
    Earlier, he’d made a mental note about a stone cottage on the property that would be perfect for a little alone time with his fiancée. A few minutes later, when they were inside the small building, he drew Heather into his arms.
    He stroked her back to loosen the tight muscles, and she breathed out a small sigh of relaxation. “I owe Smith and Valentina big time for this. I’ve always loved your family, but I love them even more now for going out of their way to keep my parents occupied.”
    “They’re happy to help,” he told her. “Everyone is.”
    Zach had always been more in tune with Heather than anyone else—so even without her saying more, he knew she was not only overwhelmed by her parents being here, but also that her first trimester was tiring her out more than she wanted to admit.
    “It’s not too late, you know,” he said as he pulled her down to sit with him on a plush couch, slipping off her heels so that he could rub her feet. “We could hop a plane to Vegas tonight and skip the rest of the wedding craziness.”
    “I could never do that when everyone has done so much and worked so hard to make our day perfect.” She looked up into his eyes, and his heart squeezed as she said, “It’s just that when my parents walked in, and I realized just how big a contrast your family makes to mine. I guess it’s just a little hard to swallow tonight.”
    Zach wanted to soothe her, wanted to tell her everything would be okay, wanted to do whatever he could to steal away her pain. But he knew she was still thinking, still trying to put her feelings into words, so he forced himself to remain quiet.
    Her voice was soft when she spoke again. “Even your two-hundred-mile-an-hour races hardly scare me that much anymore, because I know how much control you have over the vehicle. And I stopped measuring you against my father practically right from the start, because you’re nothing like him. Nothing at all.” She sighed. “So why does the idea of getting married still sort of freak me out?”
    Zach moved his hands from her feet to slowly run them down her arms,