Hunter smiled softly, love in his eyes as he looked at the woman who was to be his bride in just a few months.
"You look beautiful," he replied, caressing her cheek. "There's never a time where you don't look perfect."
He kissed Kenzie's cheek.
"Don't worry, okay? Everything will be fine," he tried to comfort her. "It's just our family and friends."
Kenzie took a deep breath and turned to face Hunter with a smile and light blush.
"Thanks," she breathed. "You look pretty good, too, Mr. Future-Husband."
Hunter shrugged.
“Well, I think you’ll be receiving most of the attention,” he poked her nose. “Your dress may be simple but that makes you the most beautiful woman alive. That also means I’ll have to hide you so no one falls for my wife.”
Kenzie's nose crinkled when Hunter poked it, and she blushed.
"I don't look that good," she mumbled, looking down.
“And I’m actually a moth in disguise,” Hunter retorted sarcastically. “You look perfect, Kenzie.”
“Yo, lovebirds,” Leo poked his head through the door with an exasperated look on his face. “Flirt later. The guests have started to come in.”
Kenzie took a deep breath and turned to Hunter, a small smile on her lips.
"We should go out there. We wouldn't want our guests to wonder where we are, would we?" she said, reaching a hand out to Hunter.
Hunter nodded, feeling his pulse quickening before he took a deep breath to calm himself down. He wasn’t worried about the guests. He was worried about something entirely different.
When they both walked out, Hunter kept looking around anxiously, looking at each guest before moving on to the next.
“He isn’t here yet,” he heard Leo mutter, and the smallest hope Hunter had died down.
“Of course he wouldn’t,” he muttered back, disappointed even though he told himself he didn’t care. “Oh, there’s Damian and the others!”
"I'm sure he'll show up later. I mean, you actually invited him to something, so wouldn't he be curious as to why?" Kenzie mused, giving Hunter's hand a gentle squeeze. She looked up at him and smiled, then nodded to his family. "Do you want to go talk to them?"
Hunter nodded, a smile on his face. Damian spotted Hunter, and a warm smile took over his lips. His wife, Taylor, said something to him which made him scowl and glare at her, causing Taylor to stick her tongue out at him. Hunter chuckled. These guys would never change…
Hunter walked over to his family, and before he could even think, he was tackled in a hug.
"Uncle!" a little boy exclaimed excitedly before turning around to face other kids. "Hah! I hugged Uncle first!"
The girl next to him pouted, crossing her arms.
"Not fair!" she whined, stomping her foot. "You cheated! You pushed Ally and me!"
The boy stuck his tongue out at the two girls.
"I still won!"
Hunter laughed, bending down to reach the height of his nephew and nieces.
"I still want a hug," he said, spreading his arms and waiting for his nieces to hug him. The two girls grinned and launched themselves at Hunter, wrapping their tiny arms around his neck tightly. The boy, Adrien, only got stuck in the middle.
Remembering that Kenzie hadn't seen the kids before, Hunter looked behind him and motioned to Kenzie to come closer.
"I don't think you met them before, at the party," he said to her, fondness in his eyes. "They're Taymian's kids. Alison, Andy, and Adrien. Alison and Andy are twins."
Kenzie walked over and bent down beside Hunter, smiling at the kids. She waved in greeting. "Hey, guys. I'm Kenzie. How old are you three?"
"I'm four!" Adrien exclaimed, holding out three fingers proudly. Alison quietly reached out to her brother and pried a finger open, then nodded in satisfaction. Adrien frowned before nodding.
"Thanks, Ally," he said before showing Kenzie the correct number of fingers.
"Andy and I are three," Alison said to Kenzie quietly, hiding behind Hunter's legs. Hunter laughed.
"Guys, Kenzie is going to be my wife," he said slowly to the kids, who looked at Hunter. Andy pouted.
"But uncle!" she stomped her foot. "I wanted to marry you…"
Taylor laughed at her daughter's statement, shaking her head.
"Andy, you're too young for your uncle," Damian laughed, shaking his head. He looked at Kenzie with a smile.
"Sorry, you have a young rival. She loves her uncle Hunter more than anything."
Kenzie grinned and laughed lightly. "That's okay." She turned to Andy and smiled at the girl. "Sorry, kiddo. I guess I beat you to him, huh? But he still loves you, don't worry."
Andy pouted.
"Be nice to my uncle!" she said to Kenzie. "Or… or… or I'll put worms in your cereal!"
Kenzie's eyes widened in feigned horror. "Oh no! Not my cereal! Please, anything but my cereal!" she begged the child playfully.
Andy crossed her arms with a fierce nod of her head.
“If you hurt my uncle, I will do it!” she repeated. “I’ll put the dirty ones! With mud!”
"Okay, okay! I promise not to hurt him," Kenzie declared, raising her hands defensively.
Hunter looked around, noticing how the living room became filled with people. He sighed when he realized the person he was searching for still wasn’t here. Damian noticed and flicked Hunter on the forehead.
“Kiddo,” he said, motioning at the door. “He’s right there.”
Hunter froze, his heart hammering in his chest. Was he really here, or was Damian merely playing with him?
Slowly, Hunter turned back and felt like he was going to throw up.
Sure enough, there was Noah McArthur. It looked like he had just arrived, because he was by the door, looking around before his eyes finally landed on Hunter’s, the latter feeling like his whole world had stopped.
Noah McArthur was here.
(Sorry, food!)
Kenzie turned her gaze to where Hunter was looking and sighed as she stood. She took her fiancé's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"Do you want to go talk to him?" she whispered.
Hunter shook his head, words stuck in his mouth.
"After our announcement," he managed to choke out. "Looks like everyone's here. We should make the announcement already."
"Yeah, we should. Please tell me you were planning on doing it?" Kenzie pleaded, looking up at Hunter with wide eyes. Public speaking was not something she enjoyed.
Hunter grinned.
"Don't worry, wifey, I got you covered," he said, patting her on the head.
Kenzie blushed and rolled her eyes.
"We're not married yet," she muttered under her breath.
“Yet,” Hunter repeated, holding out his hand for Kenzie to take. “Anyway, let’s go get this over with.”
"Yes, let's," Kenzie sighed in agreement, taking Hunter's hand and letting him lead.
Hunter lead Kenzie to the front before clearing his throat and taking a deep breath. He looked at Kenzie again, smiled at her, before turning his attention back towards the audience.
"Ladies and gentleman," he said, his voice stiff but loud, gaining the attention of everyone in the room. "Thank you for accepting our invitation to an evening dinner. I'm sure everyone is curious as to why we–McKenzie and I– have invited you." He looked at Kenzie when he mentioned her name, squeezing her hand. "For those who don't know me, my name is Hunter McArthur." He paused, trying to form words in his head. "We have a special announcement to make today. For some of you, it might seem sudden and forced, but I assure you, Kenzie and I have thoroughly thought this through before we agreed upon it." Hunter's eyes landed on his father's, who was staring at him with calculating eyes. Hunter held his gaze as he spoke his next words. "Kenzie and I are… engaged to be married."