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"And what if you want kids? You'll give them a dad who won't be there for them? Who might die at any moment?" Kitty stared at her. "When Diana died, I was so grateful that they hadn't had kids who would now grow up without a mom. I quit touring when my kids reached school age and couldn't come with me. They deserved a mother who wasn't on the road ten months a year. I never regretted it. But their dad couldn't even make it home for dinner most nights. We were all secondary, and we knew it."
"I'm so sorry," Piper said gently. She didn't know what else to say.
Kitty sank down onto the chair across from Piper. "I see how you and Declan are together. I see how much you love each other. Talk to Declan. Make him walk away. It's the only way it will work." She paused. "I can't go to bed every night, wondering if I'm going to get a call that he got shot. Like Diana. Like Hank."
"Hank?"
"My husband. That's why he quit the force." She paused. "Declan didn't tell you? He was shot in the back and almost died. It took a year of rehab to even walk again. He was never the same, losing his mobility and the job he loved. His work stole everything from us. If you love Declan, if you love yourself, if you love the kids you might have some day, talk him out of being a cop before it's too late."
Kitty's pain was real. Born from a place of unconditional love. But the impact was too much. "I can't steal his purpose in life, Kitty. I can't steal his joy."
"Then you'll let him steal yours." She stood up. "I'm going home. I didn't need this tonight." Then she turned and strode out of the room.
Piper leaned back in her seat and clasped her hands behind her head, breathing in through Kitty's pain. Her heart broke for Kitty, but at the same time, now she better understood the complexity of Declan's relationship with his mom.
She understood it, because it was the same that she'd had with her family. They hadn't understood what she'd needed to do. Why she'd needed to leave. Why she couldn't keep living the life she'd been born to.
With the exception of Piper's mom, they'd never understood. Never supported her. They'd never understood or supported her mom, either, which was why Piper had had to get out. She'd had to live the life her mom hadn't been able to get.
But in Piper's family, the ones she'd left behind were the ones with the high likelihood of death, not her, but still. She understood the conflict.
Dick walked back in the room. "Is she back yet?" His jaw was hard, and anger radiated off him.
"No." Fear rippled through Piper. Not fear for herself, but fear for the woman who was racing toward a billionaire's private jet to keep herself and her kids safe. Piper was suddenly intensely, gloriously grateful for people like Dylan Hart who were out there helping women. Making a difference.
And she was exhilarated by the role she'd had in it.
Kitty might not understand what drove Declan, but Piper did. Because she felt the same need to make a difference. By bringing joy with her weddings, but also, surprisingly to discover, by helping women walk away from men like Dick.
He swore. "When she comes back, make her wait for me."
She raised her brows. "And you are…"
"Her husband."
"What?" Piper bolted upright, feigning surprise. "Oh…hello."
"I know about the party. I'm not an idiot."
Piper grimaced. "Don't tell her you know. She was so excited to surprise you. We've been working on this for weeks."
He flexed his jaw, and Piper could see him warring with distrust and delight. "What are your plans?"
Piper shook her head. "No way. There has to be some element of surprise. But trust me, I'm excellent at what I do. It's going to be fantastic."
"When is it?"
She grinned, forcing herself to act as if she were speaking to a normal husband, not one who was so bad that his wife had needed to hire Eliana and Dylan to help her escape. "Ah…you don't know, do you? Perfect. There will be an element of surprise."
He walked over to her. "Tell me when the party is." His voice was low, full of threat, and warning prickled down Piper's arms.
Instincts made her want to bolt to her feet and face him down, but she knew her job right now was to play party planner. When it came out that Jessie had gone missing, Piper needed to be sure her alibi as an innocent party planner was intact. "You know, I totally get that," she said easily. "You're super busy, and I'm sure you want to make sure you're available." She cocked her head, giving him a flirty smile. "You won't tell her, will you? Just between you and me."
He narrowed his eyes, and his gaze went to her chest, then back to her face. "All right."
"Wonderful." She beamed at him, even as she fantasized abouttaking the electric pencil sharpener and whipping it at his well-coiffed head. "It's three weeks from tonight."
"Where?"
