MEGAN

I sat by the white couch, with my nerves making my mind and heart race with a speed that could bag a place in the Guinness World Record. It wasn't fair, nor was it just.

For the first time in the history of my floral business, I was given a bouquet that I had made only a day ago and was asked to sit and not move around. With my jumpy nerves, it wasn't that easy.

I looked around the room trying to make the best of what I had with me. The room was spacious with glasses of champagne placed haphazardly at almost every flat space that was available. Some of the glasses were full while some were almost empty.

Giggles and playful teasing were everywhere as I overlooked the draught pain in my chest that increased with every second. Ignoring their words, I stood up and ran my hands over the peach gown that I was wearing. It landed till my ankle hugging my non-existent curves perfectly.

Taking a deep breath, I walked towards the window and slid the curtain to one side peaking outside. People of all sizes and shapes were sitting, chatting among one another. I could see Hannah sitting at one corner talking to someone whom I didn't recognize. I saw Rachel with her son, who was pointing towards Emerald, probably telling him to go and play with her.

I peeked further to see Mark tightening the bow that sat around Zack's neck. I guess they shared some joke of their own and I saw Mark playfully hit Zack on his back. In the same line there was Thomas, who had brought his girlfriend. They seemed happy, but I had heard that they two had broken up recently.

But I couldn't see the one person I was wanting to see the most.

Cursing under my breath, I turned around to see Laura glaring at me. "We told you not to look outside, Megan!"

"Let her." Amber smirked as she looked for creases in her white gown. "She's only searching for that one guy."

"Where the hell is Miles?" I put my words out in the open.

If he had gone out, why hadn't he mentioned it to me? It wasn't like I would forbid him to do things that he wanted to do. But I always felt that my heart and mind would both be at peace knowing what he was up to.

Amber laughed. "Did he run away from your torture?" She turned towards me. "Wait, how's that possible?"

Laura gave her a stink eye to her which made her shut up. "You know that the wedding won't happen, unless he's here, right?"

"Forget the guy." Amber shrugged. "Now, tell me how do I look?"

I smiled affectionately at Amber. Her wedding dress wasn't the same one which she had used during her photoshoot. There was a thin layer of lace on top of the dress near her bust as a layer of pearls ran underneath it. The white gown flown along her length till it hit the floor even when she was wearing a five-inch heel. The veil was too transparent but it highlighted her eyes. Her hair which was always curly was styled in a trendy fashion to form a bun that sat on her right ear. Her tendrils caressed her cheeks often as she turned around.

"You look gorgeous." I said, walking towards her. "Wait, I forgot one more thing." I said walking towards my handbag.

I pulled out a small bouquet of blue Delphimium and walked towards her. I spread the flower and quickly tied it to a rose stem to get the flowers straight. "Turn around." I said as I showed her the flowers. "Something blue for the bride."

"Oh, my God!" Laura cried. "They are so beautiful!"

I stuck it on her head, making sure that I didn't destroy her hair style as I pinned it. "How... how did you get it?" Amber whispered, her hands on her mouth. She was at the brink of crying. "It's not the flower's season..."

"I have my ways." I winked at her. "Come on, no crying now."

Laura wiped her eyes with the help of a tissue. "Here, take this." She gave Amber another tissue as Amber waved her hands near her eyes as if to vaporize her tears. When Laura handed her the tissue, she damped it carefully over her eyes, making sure that she wasn't ruining her mascara.

The knock on the door made us turn. Miles peeked his head and gave us a sheepish smile. "How are my girls doing?"

When his eyes met mine, he gave me smile that took my heart away. A tremendous wave of peace hit me and instantly I was more at solace knowing that he was here with me.

"What's with the crying?" He asked as he looked at Amber and Laura. He walked in and closed the door after him. "You don't want to marry Zack? Wow, he must be so lucky."

"Shut up, asshole." Amber hit him playfully as she wiped her eyes. "Now, tell me how do I look?"

"Like you just got out of a snow blizzard." Miles smiled. When he saw Amber glare at him. "Fine, maybe a small snow storm, not a bigger one."

Laura laughed. "Why do you have to tease her even during her wedding?"

"That's because he has a death wish." Amber muttered, walking towards him with a glare. When she reached him, she stood on her tip toes to twist his ear. "How do I look now, Miles?"

"Amber!" He cried. "I can hardly see you. My whole face is twisted." Amber increased her pressure on her ear twisting. "Fine! I give up! You look like a princess! Leave my ear alone!"

Satisfied, Amber clapped her hands together as if to get rid of the dirty deeds that she had done. "See, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

"You all are evil." Miles muttered as we laughed at their childish antics. Feigning sorrow, he walked towards me and stood behind, putting his hand around my waist resting his head on the crook of my neck as if he was sulking.

Laura and Amber laughed as they stood in front of the mirror watching the blue flower that I had stuck on her head.

"Hey, darling." Miles murmured, sending shivers down my spine. "Did you miss me?"

"No." I said, walking away from him. He knew how much I hated when he would run away without a word.

I knew he wasn't a child anymore and he had every right to roam around freely. But a tiny part of my heart often told me that he was running away from me... just like he had all those years ago. Though those anxieties had drastically come down, I still wasn't free of them.

Miles chuckled, pulling me back to the same spot. He pressed a soft kiss on my neck. "You look beautiful."

It had been a little over a month since I told him my whole story scared that he might just vanish into thin air if I didn't. The fact that I was more dependent on him than him on me was something that made me feel weak.

But ever since that day, Miles had been a little more protective, and a tad more possessive about my whereabouts. I had felt like I had been pampered only to know that I was suffocating under his scrutinizing eyes.

The same gestures that once captured my heart now felt like they had been trapped without giving me space for me to breath. The issues had risen and the fights had made home again. It wasn't fair for him to rule over with a possessive hand when I didn't know where his business took him the very next day.

Two weeks ago, when one of those similar fights had taken toll on me, I had another panic attack. I had lost my consciousness and was at the hospital for two whole days under observation. That was when Miles had taken the initiative to give me the space that I wanted.

He always made sure to hear my side of the story no matter how ridiculous or silly they might be. He decreased his meetings and now, he only flew once every few months. Sometimes, I would get the perks of flying with him too.

"I love you, Megan." He tried again, trying to get me out of my sullen moods.

"You two love birds, done yet?" Amber shouted, as she was leaving the room. I hadn't realized when Laura had walked out. "I'm supposed to be in the next room. I'll tell Chris that you both are here. Don't elope before then." She said, before leaving us alone.

"That's not a bad idea." Miles muttered as I chuckled. When the door closed, Miles looked at me and gave me his handsome smirk. "Finally."

"I love you." I muttered as he pulled me in for a kiss. It was supposed to be a quick smooch, but as Miles pulled me in, I was lost in him. He held on my waist as my hands went up to his hair, pulling it slightly.

Just as the kiss was getting heated, as I heard the door open. "Hey, they are here!" Someone called and soon we were back from our little paradise. "You are supposed to walk together in next two minutes, guys!" Chris shouted at us.

I lowered my head in embarrassment as Miles proudly took my hand in his and walked past Chris, the wedding coordinator. "You still have two minutes, Chris."

"Take your bouquet." Chris shook his head. "Young love." He muttered.

Amber stood alone with a worried look on her face as she faced the white curtain before she walked out. "What happened?" I asked concerned.

"What if he's not there?" She muttered, coming near me. "What if he doesn't want to marry me?"

"Amber, he loves you." I said, rubbing her hand soothingly.

"And if he runs away, I'll go catch him and bring him back to you." Miles added, making her smile. "You can give all the punishments you want then." As Amber gave him a smile, Miles kissed her forehead. "Ready?

With a determined look on her face, Amber nodded her head and a radiant smile took over her features.

---

"You look so lovely!" Hannah beamed as Amber came towards us after her wedding vows. "Zack couldn't take his eyes off you for a second."

"He's looking at you for every five seconds." I told her, making her blush.

"Oh, stop it, you guys." Amber said. "Do you know when the dinner might start?"

"I can talk to Chris and let you know." Laura said.

"Please." Amber begged. "I've been dieting to fit this thing!" Laura walked away shaking her head with a smile.

"Do you know where you are going to honeymoon?" Hannah asked.

"Oh, he's taking me to New York. I've been dying to go there since I was a kid." Amber said, with excitement.

"He let you know that?" I asked, holding back a smile.

Amber shrugged. "He's just scared that I might not like the place which he selects. He would be the one to suffer if he didn't, right?"

"In another half hour, after the photo shoot, you have your dinner." Laura said, coming back to our little group.

"Fine, I'll go and talk to my college friends." Amber said, as she walked to another small group which was sipping wine.

"She looks so happy." Hannah said. "If only Smith was here to see her."

"He's watching." I said, leading us to a table for us to sit down. "Do you remember how he was to Zack when he first met him?"

Hannah laughed. "Yes, how can I forget that?"

"He sprayed a mouthful of water on his face, when he got to know that those two were dating, right?" Laura asked laughing.

"Yeah," Hannah laughed. "He actually thought that he was her cousin or something like that."

"Or something like that?" I snorted looking around. I found a guy with a tux who was laughing at something the other person said. "But that cousin is kinda cute, right?"

The two ladies watched my line of vision and nodded their head. "Yeah, but don't let Miles know that." Hannah said with a knowing smile.

"I guess he's taken already." Laura said, pointing at another bride's maid, who was eyeing him all the time he was talking with Zack.

"Well, all my kids are happy. That's all I ever wanted." Hannah said, smiling at us.

"So, we still have one more wedding to go." Laura said as her eyes twinkled in amusement. "Are you guys still fighting like kids? I'm sure I can hear the wedding bells ringing somewhere near."

"Laura!" I whisper shouted. "We haven't talked about it!"

"Can you please protect me from Amber?" Miles rushed at us and sat next to me. He took a glass of champagne and performed a bottom's up for courage.

"What did you do?" I asked with an amused smile.

"I just told her my plans after her wedding and let's just say that she was quite against it." He murmured. As Amber looked around, Miles put his head on my shoulder as if it was going to protect him from her.

Laura rolled her eyes. "After all that teasing, I can't believe she let two of your friends to be here." Laura said as Mark walked towards our table.

"I can be persuasive when I want to be." Miles said with a smirk. "Isn't that right, darling?"

My cheeks turned bright red in contrast to my peach dress. Talking of the devil, Dylan and Joe walked towards us with big smiles. Miles shook his head sideways and their smiles dimmed by a fraction.

I stood up to greet them while Miles followed suit. Dylan picked me up and twirled me, making me laugh as I spun in the air. As he put me safely to the ground, I hugged him. "How have you been? It's been so long." I said. I hugged Joe who stood behind Dylan with a small smile of his own. "Joe! It's so good to see you."

"You look wow." Dylan said, as I put my hands on my hips and posed.

"Easy there," Miles said, pulling me closer to him. I suppressed a smile at his gesture. "Should I tell her about your last girlfriends? I think there should be some pictures somewhere."

"Hey," I playfully hit Miles' stomach with the back of my hand. "Don't be such a brat."

"You guys had anything to drink?" Miles asked and then turned towards the table. "Can I get you ladies anything?"

"Miles, can you get me a drink?" Laura asked batting her eyelashes. Miles looked at me and Dylan and then rolled his eyes muttering under his breath that she was taking advantage of him even when her husband was right next to her.

"You want something?" He asked me and when I shook my head no, he patted Dylan's shoulder before he went to the drinks section.

"You two are so cute together." Joe beamed. "I'm so jealous. When I'm going to be like Miles? So happy and in love?"

"You are happy and you love me." Dylan said, hitting Joe's arm.

"That you are." I said chuckling at the two.

"Did you know? Yours is the only call he attends to when he's in meetings." Joe added. "So, if we need to contact him the next time, I'm asking you for favours."

I laughed. "I would be happy to help."

"Since we are all clear now, come let's dance." Dylan pulled me to the dance floor where a few couples were already swaying to the music. "I would pay to see the look on your boyfriend's face."

I laughed as I complied as I walked along with Dylan to sway to the slow music that played.

"Gosh, Miles is so lucky." Dylan stared. "Maybe we can elope together?"

I rolled my eyes at him with an amused smile. "You flirt with every woman. How can I trust you?"

"I flirt with other woman only to disguise the fact that you are not with me." Dylan confessed in all seriousness that I couldn't help but laugh at his absurd ideas.

"I'm sure Miles and Joe would be satisfied with the answers." I said.

Just as Dylan was about to retort, Amber pulled me away from the dance floor. "It's the bouquet throwing thing! Hurry up!"

"Hey!" Dylan raised his hand. "We just got here."

I laughed as I shrugged my shoulders at the poor guy who stood without a partner in the dance floor. Given his experience, I was sure that finding another one was not an issue.

"Stand here." Amber said as she made me stand right behind her. She went ahead while all other single women gathered behind her, ready to catch the bouquet.

I hardly gave any importance to these rituals, but it had always been fun to watch the girls almost tear each other up to hold the bouquet that the bride held. Now, being one of the girls to catch, I was scared that I might be trampled upon.

"Ready?" Amber turned around, locking eyes with me giving a teasing smile. I shook my head sideways, knowing exactly what she meant.

She turned and swayed the bouquet and all the girls including me looked at it as if it was the precious prize that the world had to offer. Amber was losing balance at her every sway. She stumbled backwards as the photographers were ready to click her mighty fall.

By the fifth sway of her bouquet, she was almost standing two steps in front of us and I wondered if the bouquet might fall off the court for us to catch. What the hell was this girl doing?

"Throw!" One of the men shouted from behind tired of Amber making it a slow show. I laughed at that mean one worded comment, when Amber turned around and just handed the bouquet to me.

My laugh died halfway, looking at her in horror. I turned around to see if I was hallucinating, but there were only knowing smiles. I pressed my hand over my mouth as an overwhelming feeling launched itself upon me.

"Megan?" I heard a familiar voice beckon me and I spun around to see Miles on his knees with hundreds of spectators. The confident guy I had fallen in love was now looking nervous and jittery.

With his one knee on the ground, he looked up at me, as a mask of fear, faith and love passed through those dark eyes. He pulled out a velvet box and showed me an Egyptian diamond that I had my eyes once upon a time.

"Megan Taylor, will you marry me?"

---

A/N: Thank you all so much for making it this far. It's been a tough ride and it wouldn't have been possible without all your support and encouragement. 

What do you think Megan will say to this? Would she still be scared and run away or would she accept Miles?

Do you all want to know or should I just leave it for your imagination? And more importantly, how did you think the story came out? 

Follow Megan and Miles in their journey of love in the last series, MARRY ME WITH FLOWERS. I'll see y'all there!