Starr Destined (Starr Series) (39 page)

Wow.  Sean had excelled himself.  He’d sketched a design for a ring that comprised of two interloc
king bands.  The bands were twisted together and engraved with flowers and leaves that had emeralds and diamonds incorporated as part of the intricate design, with even a tiny angel wing image tucked away.  I felt a thrill of excitement at the thought of wearing something so beautiful and so unique.

“I’ve had lots of time on my hands to think about it, and I really want to get this right, because you’re going to be wearing this ring every day for the rest of your life, and actually I'm glad you don't want an ordinary classic type of ring you could get from any old jeweller.  That wouldn’t be right for you.  You are totally unique, Seraphina, therefore you should have a totally unique ring.  So, what do you think of his idea so far?  Would you be happy to wear something like this?”

“I’d be over the moon if I was lucky enough to have a ring as beautiful as this.”  I leaned across to kiss his cheek and squeeze his hand.  “And what about you?  I hope you’re planning to wear a wedding ring as well, to show that you're taken, you’re mine and you're definitely off the market?”

“Of course I am.  I’m thinking that once we’ve got the design of yours sorted out, Sean could maybe come up with something suitable for me, something to reflect the design of yours,” he suggested.

“I like the sound of that,” I smiled.

Liam got better and stronger every day, determined to be fully recovered for our wedding, and as it drew nearer, much to my surprise I really didn't feel nervous at all.  If any of the arrangements didn't go exactly according to plan, so what?  It was only our close friends and family that were going to be there, so it was hardly going to be the end of the world if I fell flat on my face, although I'd rather not make such a spectacle of myself. 

All that mattered was that my rock, my Liam, the man that I loved more than I’d thought it possible to love another person, was going to be there with me. 

All a wedding meant was standing up and speaking from the bottom of our hearts.

It was promising to love each other for the rest of our lives.

It was meaning every word we said.

And that I could do for Liam.

My Liam.  My lover.  My life. Forever.

W
atching Seraphina walking towards me on our wedding day, I knew that I was the luckiest man on the planet.

M
y woman.

S
o beautiful.

M
y lover.

M
y soul mate.

‘Seraphina Róisín Jones.

I promise that you will never feel alone again, because I will always be there by your side whenever you need me, through good times and bad, to share everything I have with you.

I promise to always listen to you, and respect your views even when they are different to mine.

I promise to give you enough space to allow you to fly and never hold you back from reaching out for your dreams.

I promise to love you just the way you are, and not to try and change the wonderful person I fell in love with.

You have opened my eyes, my heart and my soul to what love truly means.  I never knew what love was until I met you.  You are my reason for living and without you, there would be no meaning to my existence.

You are my world and you are everything to me.  I will love you until the end of time and then for the aeons beyond that.

Today, I join the rest of my life to yours, forever and always.’

T
aking Liam's hand as we said our vows, I knew that nothing could ever come between us.

M
y man.

S
o tall, so handsome, so strong.

M
y rock.

A
lways there for me.

M
y soul mate.

‘Liam Joseph Starr.

I promise to share everything I am and everything I have with you, because you are the love of my life.

I promise to try my hardest to always bring laughter and happiness into your life, to banish the shadows and the lonely darkness.

I promise to be there for you whatever life may throw our way, knowing that together we can conquer anything.

I promise to trust you enough to share my innermost thoughts that I hide from everyone else in the world.

You are my soul mate, The One, and I will love you forever and always.

Today I join my life to yours, knowing that nothing will ever part us again.’

I sat at
my desk, staring out at the garden, smiling as I watched the starlings squabbling over the bird food Sera had just put out for them, all wanting the same scrap, even though there was plenty to go round.  Just like a lot of humans really.  Always wanting what someone else had, always thinking that had to be better. 

I supposed I used to be like that.  Restless and never content unless I was striving to get the next deal, the most lucrative contract.  Not any more.  I was a rare thing, these days.  A man content with his life. 

And that was all down to my darling wife, Seraphina.  God, I loved that woman so much.  I couldn’t imagine life without her, even though she drove me insane at times.  She said I made her crazy too, so I guess that made us both madly in love.

I often worked from home now, in the large office that had been added as part of the extensive renovations to Grangewood, our Primrose Hill house.  Seraphina had insisted that both our names should be on the deeds, so that it really was
our
home.

The place had been totally gutted, a huge extension had been added, and the layout completely r
efigured to ensure we had everything we could possible need. 

Thankfully, we’d had the luxury of being able to remain in our Butler’s Wharf penthouse while all the messy and noisy work was carried out.  Andrew had project managed the build for us, but we’d still visited frequently to make sure everything was carried out according to our exact specifications.  This wasn't one of my standard investment rental properties that I was just happened to be living in for a while.  This was a very special and unique place.  This was our forever home, and I wanted everything to be perfect.

I’d insisted on having a gym and indoor swimming pool included when the plans were drawn up, however fucking expensive it had been, so that I could still have my daily swim and work out. 

Every time I saw the scar that Scott Franklin had left me with, I was reminded that being physically fit had helped met to recover so quickly after I'd been stabbed, and I fully intended to remain just as fit now.  I had no intention of  letting myself get flabby, or developing a disgusting beer belly, just because I'd got married and could be classified as having ‘settled down’. 

Fuck that.

Thankfully, Seraphina was of the same mind.  She still practised yoga, and still liked to go running.  So, we would always be the same fucking good looking and fucking sexy couple I saw whenever I looked at the picture of us that I always kept on my desk. 

Our wedding day. 

The day that Seraphina had finally become Mrs. Starr.  One of the happiest, proudest days of my life. 

Now we were an old married couple, who loved nothing better than a quiet night in together at home.

We had a shared
love of cooking, so I’d insisted that the huge modern kitchen we’d had designed had every possible appliance we could ever need, as well as having a great view over the landscaped back garden for us to look out at when we sat and ate together. 

I finally got the decent wine cellar I’d always wanted, although Sera rarely, if ever, drank any wine, just the occasional glass of champagne on special occasions.  It was a shame, but I did understand her reluctance, since alcohol reminded her of how she felt after she’d been drugged by Scott Fran
klin.  No point in digging up those kind of bad memories.

Sera had insisted that the large circular bedroom in the turreted part of t
he house had to be ours, which was fine by me.  I gave her a free hand to have whatever she wanted in there, my only stipulation being that our ensuite shower had to be plenty big enough for a man my size to share with his beautiful, sexy wife. 

I’ve always really enjoyed shower sex with Sera. 

Our bedroom ended up being a vibrant yet cosy mix of deep rich burgundy red with contrasting touches of silver.  Not a colour scheme I would ever have picked, but these days I just went along with whatever Sera chose, trusting her instincts. 

She allowed me to have my standard décor here in my office, which was my usual white, with plain beech wood and chrome furniture.  But unlike previously, the walls were not bare and empty.

Much to my surprise, I’d found I enjoyed browsing art galleries with Sera, picking out pieces from some of the up and coming artists and sculptors she steered me towards.  She forbade me from buying anything purely as an investment piece, insisting that I should only buy artwork I actually enjoyed looking at.  It had been good advice, because looking at the art collection on my walls often made me smile and brightened up my day, regardless of whether they’d been good financial investments or not.  That effect was priceless, which I realised was the point Sera had been trying to get across to me.

Although Sera was extremely modest and didn't think any of her artwork good enough to be on di
splay, I disagreed.  So I’d hung some of her pieces in my office, along with some of her photographic work.  These were the pieces that made me smile the most. Again, priceless.

“Daddy.  Cuddle me. 
Now
.”

My thoughts were interrupted by my daughter’s imperious little voice demanding my attention, as she toddled into the room and climbed up onto my lap, clutching her special soft pink rabbit toy that went everywhere with her, and wearing her favourite stripy blue dungaree outfit.  She was not quite two years old yet, but she already had very definite views about exactly what she would, and more importantly, what she would
not
wear.  We’d quickly discovered that it was pointless trying to get her to wear any kind of a frilly dress, as she had a distinct aversion to them.

Evangeline Rose, known to everyone as Evie, let out a happy sigh as she settled herself up against me, and started sucking her thumb contentedly.  I kissed the top of her sweet little head with its dark curls just like her mother’s, and then tucked my arm around her warm little body to pull her closer to me, even though Sera and I had agreed that our daughter should not be allowed to interrupt me by sneaking into my office.  But I found my little girl impossible to resist, as she well knew.

“Evie has you wrapped around her little finger,” Sera frequently warned me.

She was a brilliant mother - lots of fun, but also quite strict, as she set all the right kind of rules and boundaries, which everyone had assumed would be my role, and were very surprised when it turned out that I was a total softie where my daughter was concerned.

“You wait till she’s a teenager,” Sera predicted.  “Then you’ll really regret spoiling her and giving in to her.” 

I wasn’t worried though.  Evie and I had this special father/daughter thing going on, which meant she wanted to be with me any chance she got, which was fine by me, and I certainly wasn’t going to turn her away. 

Evangeline Rose was the most beautiful and perfect child in the world.  She was the absolute spitting image of her mother, with her green eyes, dark curls, and ethereal beauty.  I sometimes wondered if I’d had anything at all to do with creating her, until her bossy nature came to the fore, which Sera insisted was all down to my genes.  However, when the terrible twos kicked in early, and we had some almighty temper tantrums from our daughter, I took great delight in pointing out that Evie had clearly also inherited her mother’s fiery angel temperament.  The tantrums never fazed me though.  I found them quite fascinating as we waited for the storm to pass, because it was just like watching a miniature version of my darling wife’s terrible temper.

It hadn't been a planned pregnancy, and Seraphina had blamed
both me and her grandmother when she’d found out she was expecting a baby. 

I’d wanted us to start a family for a while.  We’d been married for several years, and Sera’s career was well established enough for her to be able to take a period of maternity leave, especially as she could continue to work from home a lot of the time if she wished.  We were happily settled in our Primrose Hill house, now that all the refurbishments had been completed, and there was plenty of room for a family.  As far as I was concerned, the time was right for the next logical step, but Sera hadn’t been in any hurry to have a baby, and I’d had to curb my impatience and remind myself that as I was ten years older, it was understandable that she hadn't felt her biological clock ticking yet.