Chapter 195: Civil Husband

Dorian groaned quietly. "Yeah. I’m not looking forward to it."

"That’s a terrible thing to say."

"I need a pep talk," he continued. "Something inspirational so I don’t burn down the wedding venue."

"You are going to behave, smile when appropriate, speak to people without looking like you’re planning their murder and support your sister."

Dorian frowned. "That was less of a pep talk and more of a list of unreasonable demands."

Naomi reached up and straightened his tie. "You can do it." She slipped her hand into his and led him toward the garage.

The wedding service itself was beautiful. Only close family and friends had been invited, which meant Dorian managed to survive.

Ginny looked radiant.

Oliver looked like he still couldn’t quite believe she had chosen him.

Dorian remained beside Naomi through most of it, his hand finding hers every so often.

She understood.

This was difficult for him.

His baby sister was getting married.

The last Heathcliffe daughter was officially beginning another Chapter of her life, and beneath Dorian’s dry comments and general hatred of emotional displays, Naomi knew how deeply he loved his family.

It was a successful morning by every reasonable standard. The reception was an entirely different matter.

There were hundreds of guests. Music filled the venue, floral arrangements seemed to occupy every available elegant surface and the entire place buzzed with conversation.

Naomi’s professional instincts kicked in as she quickly scanned the buffet area.

Everything looked exactly as it should. The food had been arranged correctly, the stations were neat, replenishment was moving on schedule and nothing looked rushed despite the size of the crowd.

Her gaze moved next to the staff.

The servers were coordinated and professional.

There was music, entertainment and enough activity going on around the reception to keep even Dorian from looking completely miserable.

The cake was cut with the appropriate amount of cheering and photography. Ginny and Oliver were dragged into several games, one of which involved answering questions about each other while sitting back-to-back and raising shoes in the air.

Naomi laughed through most of it.

Despite all his complaints leading up to the wedding, he was enjoying himself. She could tell. He was happy for Ginny.

Unfortunately, Dorian’s original fears about the reception proved completely justified. People wanted to talk to him.

A lot of people.

Naomi stayed beside him through most of it, and whenever conversations threatened to become painfully awkward, she took over.

Talking came easily to her.

Dorian mostly stood there looking handsome, while Naomi did the social labour.

Marriage was teamwork. Occasionally, his hand settled at the small of her back. Eventually, one conversation ended and Dorian looked toward the drinks.

"I’m getting us something before the next person finds me."

"Run."

He stepped away toward the bar.

She was still smiling when movement across the room caught her attention.

Lillian was approaching and beside her was Alistair.

Naomi watched them weave through the guests toward her and Dorian.

Dorian returned at almost the same moment, carrying two glasses of champagne.

Naomi leaned slightly toward him. "En garde. Wife number one coming up."

Dorian followed her gaze.

Naomi expected the familiar tightening in his face.

Instead, something rather surprising happened.

He smiled a genuinely relaxed smile.

Naomi turned her head and studied him.

Now this was worth documenting.

Dorian handed her one of the champagne glasses. "Uncle Alistair. Lillian..."

Even the couple seemed momentarily stunned by the greeting.

Usually, the moment Alistair or Lillian came anywhere near him, Dorian’s entire body changed. His hackles went up.

Today, however, he looked perfectly calm. Maybe it was simply that Lillian no longer had the power to hurt him the way she once had.

Whatever the reason, Naomi liked it.

Alistair recovered first. "Dorian! I just came to say that this is quite the event."

Dorian glanced around the reception. "It is." He turned toward Naomi. "Oh..." He slipped an arm around her waist. "Naomi, this is my uncle... The one who is now happily married to my ex-wife. Uncle Alistair... Naomi. My wife."

Alistair extended his hand.

Naomi accepted it. "It’s nice to meet you, Mr Heathcliffe."

Alistair gave her a small nod before turning his attention back to Dorian. His gaze moved over his nephew. "Are you feeling alright?"

"So you heard the news I was assaulted by one of our client’s spawns?"

"I also heard he apologised," Alistair said.

"Yes, and I’m beginning to suspect he apologised for a reason." He took a slow sip of champagne, then lowered the glass. "Is there something I need to know, Uncle Alistair, before I find out why?"

Alistair glanced around the reception hall. "Walk with me." He turned toward the women. "Excuse us."

Dorian leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to Naomi’s cheek. "I’ll be right back."

Naomi nodded, watching him walk away with Alistair before turning back to Lillian.

And suddenly the awkwardness was heavy. Did the woman smile?

Naomi honestly couldn’t tell.

There had to be some sort of etiquette book for this situation. What does one say to one’s husband’s first wife, who is now married to his uncle.

She gave Lillian what she hoped was a polite smile, lifted her glass slightly and turned away.

The buffet needed checking.

Anything was better than standing there inventing conversation with Wife Number One.

Across the room, Alistair led Dorian toward a quieter section of the hall, away from the music and the cluster of guests surrounding the dance floor.

Once they were far enough from everyone else, Alistair slowed.

"I knew you were not going to leave it alone."

Dorian hummed in response. He had already made the decision not to press charges against Callum, but that had never meant he intended to forget what happened.

And Victor Sterling had been far too eager to put the entire thing on the table.

"There is nothing to know," Alistair said, "except the fact that a lot of millionaires in this city have made illegal sacrifices they would rather not bring into the light."