Chapter 65
The hotel suite was in complete chaos. Colette sat on the edge of the bed, wrestling a squirming, teething Harper into a pink dress that seemed determined to join the resistance. The toddler, all chubby cheeks and wild determination, kicked her tiny legs in protest, her gigzles mixing with the frustrated groans of
her mother.
“Harper Angelis, you’re going to wear this dress if it’s the last thing I do,” Colette huffed, her patience hanging by a thread as she tried to wrangle one tiny
arm into the puffed sleeve.
Harper squealed with laughter, clearly finding this entire ordeal a delightful game. She twisted like a slippery eel, her little hands batting at Colette’s
attempts.
“You’d think I was trying to put her in a straitjacket,” Colette muttered under her breath as she finally succeeded in snapping the last button. Harper looked up at her with wide eyes, her pout turning into an impish grin as if to say, Good luck keeping me in this.
A knock at the door interrupted her, and Matt poked his head in, looking far too calm for someone whose wife was moments away from combusting. He was already dressed in a‘ sharp suit, his tie perfectly knotted, as if he hadn’t just spent the past hour downstairs entertaining what sounded like an unruly mob.
“You ready?” he asked, his tone suspiciously cheerful.
Colette shot him a glare that could have melted steel. “Ready? Oh, I don’t know, Matt. Are you ready to explain why our intimate family gathering now sounds like the New Year’s Eve party in Times Square?”
Matt winced, but he stepped into the room, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. “It’s not that bad-”
“Not that bad?” Colette stood, Harper balanced on one hip as she gestured wildly with her free hand. “I can hear them chanting from here! I thought we agreed on a small party with family and close friends. You know, maybe twenty people. Thirty, max. What part of that turned into an audition for America’s
Got Talent?”
Matt had the decency to look sheepish. “Okay, so I invited a few more people than planned…”
“A few?” Colette cut him off, narrowing her eyes. “How many, Matt?”
He hesitated, scratching the back of his neck like a guilty schoolboy. “Um, five hundred. Or so.”
Colette’s jaw dropped. “FIVE HUNDRED?!”
Harper, startled by her mother’s outburst, let out a tiny wail, which Colette quickly soothed with a bounce and a kiss on her curls. Turning her glare back to Matt, she lowered her voice to a sharp whisper. “Matt, I swear, if I don’t get through this night without a nervous breakdown, you’re going to wish you were one of those jungle park props downstairs.”
Matt held his hands up again, looking genuinely contrite. “Look, I just wanted to make it special! Harper’s first birthday is a once–in–a–lifetime event.”
“Yeah, for her, not for every single person you’ve ever met,” Colette snapped. “Harper won’t remember a thing about this. The only thing she’ll care about is cake and balloons. And right now, I won’t remember anything about this except how much I wanted to strangle you in front of five hundred people.”
Matt’s eyes widened, and he took a step back. “Come on, honey, don’t be like that. I just wanted to make it memorable…”
“Memorable?” Colette raised an eyebrow, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Sure, she’ll remember it as the day her mother snapped and made good on a death threat.”
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11:21 pm GPPP.
Chapter 65
Matt let out a nervous laugh, but before Colette could continue, Harper grabbed a fistful of her mother’s hair, giggling. Colette sighed, her frustration bing slightly as she looked at her daughter’s innocent smile.
“Fine,” she muttered, smoothing down Harper’s dress and adjusting the pink bow in her curls. “But you owe me. Big time.”
Matt grinned, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “You’ll forgive me when you see the cake. It’s shaped like a jungle waterfall.”
Colette rolled her eyes. “You’re lucky I love cake.”
With that, they headed downstairs to the grand ballroom, where a cacophony of voices, laughter, and jungle–themed music greeted them. Colette took one look at the elaborately decorated room–complete with life–sized animal statues, cascading greenery, and a full jungle–themed photo booth–and shook her
head.
“Matt,” she said, her tone resigned but still laced with exasperation, “if there’s a live elephant in here, you’re sleeping on the couch until Harper graduates
college.”
Matt chuckled nervously. “No elephants. Just… a really big giraffe ice sculpture.”
Colette groaned, but as the first guests approached to greet them, Harper let out an excited squeal, clapping her tiny hands. Seeing her daughter’s delight. Colette sighed and smiled. “You’re lucky she’s cute,” she muttered to Matt.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
