The Best Thing He Never Knew He Needed (37 page)

“
You are. Come with me,”
he said, interlocking his right arm with her left at the elbows and
stepping outside.

Sherita could only laugh.
“Dad.”

“
Yes, dear?”

“
Where are we going?” she
asked.

“
Across this sand, so you
might want to take off those heels,” he said.

Sherita kicked off her
shoes, left them next to a palm tree then looked up towards the
ocean to see where they were headed. Looked like someone was having
their own, private, intimate beach wedding at the resort. The small
crowd of about thirty people couldn’t be here for the forty brides
who were getting married today. There should’ve been a much larger
crowd for that event.

As the wind tackled her
hair, while hot sand massaged the sole of her feet, Sherita looked
up at the sky. What a beautiful day for a wedding. With a bright
sun shining above and a calm, hissing, tranquil ocean as a
backdrop, conditions were perfect. And then there was a wedding
arbor, draped with white and turquoise, transparent curtains, tied
to the four corners. The guest chairs were white, with turquoise
bows tied on the back of the chairs. Pink and white rose petals
filled the aisle.

Distracted by the beauty of
it all, she jumped when she felt familiar arms around her,
embracing her from behind while his scent passed by her nose by way
of a warm breeze. She turned around quickly and said, “Desmond!”
She threw her arms around him. “Everybody is surprising me today! I
thought you weren’t going to be here until tomorrow.” She kissed
his lips and left a few pecks on his face.

“
That’s what I wanted you
to think while I planned this.”

“
Planned what?”

“
Our wedding.”

She trembled as if struck
by a sudden, arctic breeze. Tears filled her eyes. “Our
wedding?”

“
Yes.
Our
wedding.”

“
But—”

“
We’re already married,”
he said before the words could escape her lips. “That’s a given,
but we didn’t have a ceremony. No pictures, no video. We didn’t
have anything. I want that for you. For us. You deserve your day.
Today is that day, princess.”

Sherita covered her
trembling lips with her hand. She looked towards the crowd again
and everyone who was once seated had turned to face her. She saw
her mother, a few of her mother’s friends – people Sherita had
known since she was a kid. There was Emily’s and Melanie’s nannies
holding Ezra and Grace. Dimitrius was sitting behind a white piano,
playing a romantic tune. The rest of the crowd, people who she
didn’t recognize, must’ve been acquainted with The Champions –
people she would come to know over the years.

Sherita looked at her
father. Speechless. Now she understood why Desmond asked him for
his blessing.

When the music stopped,
Desmond said, “That’s my cue, baby. Are you all right?”

She could only
nod.

When he took a few steps
towards the aisle, Sherita said, “Desmond, wait.”

He turned to her, walking
to her again. “Yes?” he said, brushing hair away from her face with
a stroke of his index finger.

“
You did all of this for
me?”

His cheeks dimpled.
“Yes.”

“
Why?” she
asked.

Desmond glanced at Dante
briefly then back to her and said, “A wise man told me that I
needed to show you my heart. So I’m showing it to you, and I will
continue to do so for all of our days.”

Desmond slapped hands with
Dante and patted him on the back with his left hand. “Thanks,
bro.”

“
Anytime, Des,” Dante
said.

It was then that Sherita
turned around to see that, not only was Dante standing behind her,
but so was Emily and Melanie wearing beautiful turquoise gowns. The
women had tears in their eyes.

Kurt was there too,
standing with Melanie. He would walk her down the aisle while
Dimitrius was busy playing the piano.

“
This one is yours,” Emily
said, handing Sherita a bouquet arrangement.

With tears in her eyes, she
took it with a trembling hand. “Thank you.”

“
See you underneath the
arbor, beautiful,” Desmond said. He began his walk down the aisle,
taking his position, then turning to look at her.

Emily and Dante were
next.

Melanie and Kurt
followed.

And then came Sherita’s big
moment – a moment she thought she’d never have. None of this felt
real. Even when Desmond professed his love for her, it hadn’t felt
real. It felt like a dream. Things this extraordinary only happened
to other people, not her. But it was happening to her. Married
already to the man of her dreams, she’d now get to experience what
it would feel like to proclaim their love for each other in front
of their family and friends.

“
You ready, honey?” Lewis
asked.

Sherita glanced over at her
father. “Yes, Dad. I’m ready.”

So she walked, taking extra
slow steps until she met Desmond underneath the arbor.

Desmond reached for her
hands then shot a handsome smile her way. While the minister spoke
opening words, Desmond just stared at her, the way he used to stare
before they married, remembering how beautiful she was when he’d
first saw her. He recalled how hard he fought to stay away from her
in the beginning, but how he never could completely leave her
alone. And lastly, he remembered the first time they made love, how
tears ran out of her eyes, the exact same way they were streaming
down her face now.

“
Who gives this woman to
be married to this man?” the minister asked.

Lewis stood up and said, “I
do.”

The minister then asked,
“Who gives this man and woman to be married to each
other?”

Everyone in attendance
stood up and shouted, “We do,” and then a roar of laughter and
cheers broke out.

Sherita laughed, watching
Desmond do the same.

Next came the vows – the
traditional ones, and after Sherita and Desmond said ‘I do’,
Desmond had his own vows to say – his own expressions of love.
Still holding her hand, he said, “I never thought I would be here,
standing in front of people I love, people I care about exchanging
vows with a woman. I could never see myself as that kind of man…the
kind of man who could give a woman my heart. Then you came along.”
After a few moments of silence, of watching the breeze fan through
her hair, he continued, “My life before you was good. Lonely, but
good. I had success, money, my dream house…I thought I had
everything I ever wanted. But my heart wanted more. It wanted the
special thing my parents shared – something far more valuable than
money, than anything I have and that’s true love. I’ve found that
with you, Sherita.”

Sherita squeezed Desmond’s
hands tighter when she saw wetness in his eyes.

“
You are the part of me I
was missing,” Desmond continued. “You are the woman I love more
than life, more than I love myself. You are the mother of my
babies, and you are the woman who satisfies me in every way known
to man, and then some. I love you, baby.” Desmond moved his hands
to her face, cradling her gently, then lowered his lips to her
mouth, kissing her while the crowd roared, cheered and
sniffled.

Afterwards, she looked at
him and said, “I love you, too, Desmond Champion. Forever and
always.” She threw her arms around him, feeling his arms settle
around her.

When they separated, he
pinched tears from the corner of his eyes and said, “I have one
more thing I need to do.” He took her left hand and pulled the
yellow diamond ring from her finger. “When I gave you this ring, it
didn’t mean anything. It’s valuable in price, but not to your
heart. That’s why you kept taking it off, and I don’t blame you for
doing so. So I went and bought another one – a ring that you will
never take off. One that will represent my love for you
forever.”

Desmond took a black,
velvet box from his pocket and opened it to reveal a new ring – an
eighteen carat, white-gold, diamond ring surrounded by smaller
diamonds on the band. He removed the ring from the box and when he
did, she Sherita saw that he’d had it engraved with the
words:
For Desmond’s
Princess
.

Desmond slid the ring onto
her finger. “There. That’s better.”

The crowd cheered again
while Sherita wrapped him in her arms once more. She closed her
eyes, sealing this moment in her memory. She would never forget
this day – the day Desmond Champion, her prince, showed her his
heart.

* * ~ * *

You’ve just finished
reading,
The Best Thing He Never Knew He
Needed
. Continue reading for a BONUS
chapter,
The Studio
Reveal
, beginning on the next
page!

Discover more of The
Champion Brothers Series Books:

Read Dante’s story
in
His Paradise Wife (The Champion
Brothers).

Read Dimitrius’ story
in
When A Champion Wants You (The Champion
Brothers).

Can’t get enough of The
Champion Brothers? Catch up with the brothers and their wives as
they explore the ups and downs family life in Book 4, coming
soon.

The Studio Reveal
(Book Extra)

Two Months Later

Desmond brought the jeep to
a stop in the parking lot of Sherita’s new studio, then shut off
the engine. Finally, the building had been renovated just the way
he wanted it, and it was time to surprise her with it.

“
Does that mean I can take
off this blindfold now?” Sherita asked.

He looked over at her. “No.
Not yet, baby. I’m going to get out, come around and get you, okay.
No cheating.”

Sherita grinned. “Okay.”
She didn’t know what the big surprise was all about, but she did
know that wherever they were, it wasn’t far from home. Desmond had
only been driving for ten minutes, and that was with a couple of
stoplights included.

Desmond opened her door.
“Be very careful. I’m going to help you out.”

“
Okay, Des.”

He took her hand, then
turned her legs in the direction of the door. “I’m going to lift
you and lower your feet to the ground. Ready?”

“
Yes. I’m
ready.”

Desmond successfully
lowered her to the ground and, after pushing the door closed, he
took her hand and began taking a few steps to the building. Then he
untied the blindfold.

“
It’s a building. A pretty
building, but still, it’s a building,” Sherita said,
grinning.

“
It’s not just any
building, baby. It’s your new studio.”

Sherita’s body trembled.
“My what?

“
You heard me. This is
your studio.”

Sherita looked at the
building again, while absently placing her hand on her plump, round
belly. At six months, her stomach had stretched and formed into a
beautiful home for Desmond’s twins, and as her mother had
suspected, she was carrying well.

“
I didn’t have a business
name put on it yet because I have no idea what you want the name of
your business to be. Once you get it nailed down, I’ll have the
sign custom made and installed wherever you would like
it.”

Her lips quivered. “Des,
how did you—?”

“
I listen. Even when you
don’t think I’m listening, I hear you. Your dreams are my dreams,
too. I knew you wanted a studio, so I made it happen.”

“
Just like
that?”

“
Yep. Just like that,” he
said, taking her hand. “Come on. Let’s go in.”

He took a set of keys from
his pocket, handing them to her and watched as she unlocked the
door. When she stepped inside, her eyes widened to take in the
fancy design of the place – from the snazzy sky lights to the plum
purple paint on the walls.

Sherita walked closer to
the walls when she noticed they were decorated with photos, all in
black and white. But they weren’t just any photos – they were
pictures she’d taken throughout the years, all blown up to larger
sizes and printed in black and white.

Tears fell from her eyes.
“Des,” she said faintly, her left hand on her heart, her right hand
fanning her face.

Desmond circled his arms
around her. “You’re not going to faint on me, are you?”

“
This is…this is
beautiful,” she said tearfully.

“
So are you, princess.”
Desmond cupped her face between his hands and took a kiss from her
lips. “Now, let me show you the rest of the place.” Holding her
hand, he showed her the studio rooms, with different themed
backdrops on the walls.

In the bathrooms, Sherita
was excited to see more of her pictures used for the décor on the
walls. And her office – it was a dream workspace. She had a desk in
the center of the room, a couch, conference room table with six
chairs, a water fountain that reminded her of the one from their
basement and lush, green plants near the windows.