Savior Complex: A Small Town Love Triangle Romance

“Yet there is only one life set before you.

“Go therefore into your dwelling place,

“To enter into the days of your togetherness.

“That your days may be good and beautiful and long upon this earth.”

My father folds the book in front of him, then looks at me.

“It’s time,” he says softly.

“Thank fuck,” I say, and he laughs.

My father runs us through the ring ceremony, and I am there but not there, barely listening as I place the ring on Nina’s finger, and she does the same. I look in her eyes the whole time, realizing that this is it. I offer her a small, secret smile, and she returns it. I almost feel like a kid who’s getting away with something big, not sure if anyone’s going to catch on that I don’t deserve this woman. Still, she said yes.

“I do,” I answer automatically, my eyes locked on Nina’s.

“I do,” she says a few moments later, her eyes once again filling with tears.

“Therefore, it is my privilege as a minister and by the authority given to me by the State of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Brayden, you may kiss your bride.”

I hold Nina’s hand in mine and lean my face down to hers. Her lips are soft, parting slightly as we share our first kiss as a married couple. I deepen it, not caring about anyone else in this room, wrapping my arms around her and losing myself. My father clears his throat, and I laugh against Nina’s mouth while she does the same. Reluctantly, I break away.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” my father booms out, “it is my privilege to introduce to you for the first time, my son and new daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Winters.”

The wedding reception is a blur of happy faces, good food, and a carefully curated music playlist Nina put together. The trees are lit up with tiny fairy lights, and numerous heaters keep the place warm so we can remain outdoors. I’m ready for all of it to end, though, and to take my wife to bed. I can tell by her face she’s exhausted, and it’s possible we might wait until the honeymoon to consummate our marriage. I don’t mind. We have a lifetime together.

“Great wedding,” a voice says behind me, and I smile. I turn to Jordy, and she’s holding a glass of champagne for me. I take it and clink glasses with her before taking a sip. “Nina is positively glowing,” she says, turning toward my wife, who is gabbing away with Maren and Claire.

“She is,” I say, nodding.

“No. I mean, she’s glowing.” Jordy nods in her direction. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed she hasn’t had a drop of champagne. When it comes to bubbles, Nina is not the type to pass it up. So…” She gives me a pointed look.

“I’m not supposed to say anything to you,” I hiss, but I can’t help the proud smile that breaks through. We found out just two weeks ago that she was expecting. Apparently she’d missed a pill, and it was just enough of a lapse for that little bugger to squeak through. Even though it’s early, we already have names—Juniper if she’s a girl and Ocean if he’s a boy. “If you want to know anything, just ask her.”

“I’ll wait until she tells me,” Jordy says, then winks. “Congratulations, Dad. You’re going to make an amazing father.”

I reach out and squeeze her hand. But there’s no sadness on her face. Just a happy smile.

“What about you? What’s going on in the Big Apple? Anything exciting?” I glance at the table where she was sitting, where a man with dark hair and eyes only for Jordy sits, waiting for her to return. She glances over at him, offers a little wave. Then turns back to me.

“Several someones,” she says, flipping her hand dismissively. I raise an eyebrow, and she laughs. “Come on, I can’t settle down now. Besides, Paulo knows this is all for fun. He returns to Italy next week, and I suspect I’ll never hear from him again. But while he’s here…” She winks. “Besides, I’m too busy building Flourish to have time for romance. Business is great. Every time I show clients the photos from Nina’s store, they book me in an instant.”

“She practically lives at Polka Dots,” I say. “So the fact that you could take her vision and make it something even grander than she expected, it’s just amazing. You should see her there. She’s in her element, and you should be proud of what you did.”

It’s actually a huge gift that Jordy even decided to do this. She’d already moved to New York, but she still flew in every week to help Nina design the store of her dreams. Now Polka Dots is one of Sunset Bay’s cornerstone clothing boutiques, and it became the start of a lucrative design business for Jordy.

“Well, it’s not completely altruistic,” she says. “I do own a quarter of that store.”

The evening starts winding down, and I cross the patio to find my bride with that kid who can’t get off his electronics. But he does for Nina, and the two of them are engrossed in a conversation about who is the best bender in Avatar: The Last Airbender.

“I mean, Katara can blood bend. Imagine that kind of power,” Nina says.

“Yeah, but air? Aang can freaking fly. Plus, he’s the last of his kind. I think that deserves extra points.”

“Mrs. Winters, I hate to interrupt this important conversation, but we have a toast to make before we call it a night.”

“We’re not finished,” she says to the boy, who grins at her and waves his arms like he’s flying.