Page 156 of The Daddy’s Girl

Magic.

Rule #45: Never skip the celebration.

Amelia

I’ve lost track of how many bottles of champagne we popped. Someone keeps refilling my glass. Or replacing it. I’m not sure.

But the sex club is not a sex club tonight. It’s our own personal party, and the dance floor is not for fucking. It’s for us to dance on to Madonna and Taylor Swift while drunk off our asses.

Phoenix, Elizabeth, Weston, Freya, and I are having our own karaoke night, using empty bottles as microphones as we sing off-key and shake our butts while everyone at the bar laughs at us.

It’s one thing to know my family is here to support me, but seeing Jack and Camille, Weston, Geo, and all the dancers and staff here to celebrate my accomplishment…it’s incredible. This is what family is all about, really.

“So a little birdie told me something,” Phoenix says with a slur in her voice.

I hang my head back and laugh. “Let me guess…Jack told you that Matis passed on the London club.”

She grabs my wrist with wide eyes. “How did you know?”

Laughter spills out of me some more as realization dawns on Phoenix’s drunk face. I think I love this carefree version of her.

“I keep forgetting you two are like…a couple,” she says with a shake of her head.

“So are you going to go for it?” I ask.

“London?”

“Yes!” I giggle, leaning on her as we make our way back to the crowd around the bar.

“I want to,” she replies with seriousness. “Do you think he’s going to offer it to someone else first?”

Stopping in my tracks, I grab Phoenix by the arms. “I think you should go for it. Put your own name in. Don’t wait for someone to offer you what you want. Go and take it.”

“Damn, Amelia. That was very inspirational.”

We both break out in giggles again, stumbling our way across the bar. When we get there, I nearly careen into Matis. He stands me upright and kisses the side of my face.

“Kiss me, old man,” I say before leaning up to press my lips to his.

His arms wind around me, and he kisses me like they did in old movies, dipping me as his mouth devours mine.

I love being able to do this now. Kiss him in the open. Being secretive was fun, but this is even better. Sure, I know people are looking, but I’m not worried about them. My only concern is this sexy-as-sin man who somehow ended up wanting to marry me.

And now I can’t wait to carry all his babies.

I’ve had too much to drink.

“Melly.”

Turning away from Matis, I see my parents standing together and looking at me expectantly. Quickly, I try to sober myself up to face them.

“Your dad and I are going home. It’s getting late, but we want to say good night.”

“Oh,” I mumble, looking at my dad in hopes that he’ll give me something, anything to show that we’re still us. “Well, thanks for coming.”

Then my dad’s eyes meet mine, and all the weight in the room is loaded in the gaze between us. He looks briefly at Matis behind me and back at me.

“I couldn’t be more proud of you, Melly,” he says, his voice cracking.