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Well I’m allowed to get butterflies the week before my wedding aren’t I? Especially now as it’s my Hen’s night and I stupidly left Sarah in charge of the arrangements. We are staying at the house and the guys are heading to their favourite pub for the evening. They have strict instructions that there will be no shaved eyebrows or any other embarrassing pranks. They agreed but somehow I don’t think they were actually listening to me as they all filed out the door.

Mum arrives early to help me set up the food and drinks. Enough champagne to do us all for the next week I think, but I know it’s better to have too much than not enough. We manage to put the food in the large fridge by transferring all the booze out to the drinks fridge on the back deck.

As the drinks flow freely, we laugh together and have a great time. Both mothers are having a better time than any of us I think, as I laugh at them acting like a couple of school girls over a packet of penis straws in front of them. The champagne is making me dizzy and relaxed and I watch Sarah describing a funny incident from when we were in high school. She accidentally tells both mothers and all of our friends about Dalton and my first time. I had confided in her after the event because it was such a huge deal and I needed to talk about it with my best friend. Something I regret right now as my mum raises her eyebrow and pierces me with a glare. Like she didn’t know back then. She knew all right. She’s my mum. Mums always know stuff like that. You can’t hide it and you don’t have to tell them. They just know.

When the doorbell rings I pin Sarah with a withering look, wondering who else she invited but hasn’t told me about.

Wobbling my way to the door I yank it open to see a cop standing there. My heart thumps hard in my chest as I wait for him to tell me Dalton’s had an accident, or been locked up, but instead he pushes past me with a smile and asks if I’m the Bride- to -be. I nod in reply, confusion dulling my brain as I realize he’s not here for bad news.

There’s a chorus of squeals from out on the deck as they realize that the stripper has arrived but it takes me a few more minutes to comprehend. By the time I do, I’ve been sat on a kitchen chair in the middle of the lounge room with everyone crowding around. The guy hooks up his IPod and the loud bass of Katie Perry’s Dark Horse fills the room. The dark haired, well-built guy begins to gyrate around me slowly removing his clothes to reveal a waxed chest, shining with oil. I try to keep my eyes closed, I really do, but it’s like I need to find out where he is in the room and what he’s doing. My eyes track him as he gives me a lap dance before spreading my legs and stepping between them. Just when I think the show is over he takes my hand and shoves it down the front of his G-string as the roomful of women all clap loudly, whistling and cat calling. My reflexes are too slow to instantly pull it out as I feel his hard length against my palm.

Leaning forward to whisper in my ear so nobody else hears, he says, “You I’ll do for free, if you can get rid of everyone in a hurry.”

I look at him in shock as I finally pull my hand away, accidentally exposing him for everyone to see. With a gasp of surprise, I finally notice that everyone is looking at him, focused on his crotch. Not sure if they thought he was pretending to slip my hand down the front of his leather underwear or they thought he had some kind of barrier between my hand and his manhood. It’s only now they’re noticing that he was indeed serious as he stuffs himself quickly back into his banana hammock, ignoring their stares. He’s probably used to it.

As mum shows him the door after he hurriedly dressed he rushes back in and shoves an envelope into my hands before leaving. It has my name on it. Thinking that it’s probably his invoice for his performance I rip it open and pull out a folded piece of paper.

DON’T THINK YOU’RE GONNA MARRY FARMER BOY.

WHY SHOULD YOU BE HAPPY?

YOU DON’T DESERVE IT AND I’LL MAKE SURE YOU LOSE EVERYTHING YOU LOVE.

MURDERER.

I drop the paper as tears stream down my face. I’m trembling as mum holds me in a tight hug that only mothers can do. Sarah ushers everyone out before retrieving the paper from the floor.

As she reads it aloud, mum’s arms tighten even more. Taking control, Dalton’s mum rings the police to report it.

We wait silently for them to arrive, my trembling not subsiding – in fact it increases as the words take hold and wrap around my heart. This bastard isn’t just targeting me; he’s now threatening Dalton and Milly and my family. A threat to me I can handle but why would anyone want to hurt an innocent child? I shake my head in disbelief as the police arrive. I explain what happened and Sarah gives him the stripper’s details so they can talk to him. I don’t know him, so I don’t think he was the one who wrote the note. It was more like he was the messenger.

A phone call from the police later on informs me that as I suspected, someone handed him the note with instructions to give it to me and paid him a hundred dollars to do it. He was just the stooge but couldn’t really help with a description of the other guy. He was average build, dark haired, thirty to forty years old. Not much for them to go on. He met him in the pub and said that he needed to get the note to his sister who refused to see him, so the stripper cop gladly promised to deliver the note for him.

I think Sarah must have rung Micah because soon the house is full of hyped up males ready to do battle. Brave on alcohol, all of them. As soon as Dalton enters he pulls me into his arms and wraps them as tightly around me as my mother did.

“What the hell? Do they know who it was yet?” he asks after roughly kissing me.

I look up at him, trying to be brave but failing miserably. “No. Not yet. They only know the stripper was paid to deliver the note but they aren’t sure who by.”

Looking at me, his eyes hardening, he growls, “Stripper?!! Sarah! I need a word...now!” he swings his head around looking for her amongst the guys filling the room. When he sees her his eyes harden even more, turning them into crystals, the force of which can be felt across the room as she makes her way over.

“What’s this about a stripper? I bet this was your doing wasn’t it? Nobody told me about any stripper!”

“And this would be why.” She tells him with a nod. “Calm your farm Dalton. It was innocent enough.”

Looking from one to the other he growls again. “Innocent enough? What the hell does that mean?”

“It means mind your own business Grumpy.” She says with a smile. “Does this mean that you didn’t get your stripper gift that I organized?”

“What stripper? We were just at the pub having a few drinks. There was no stripper there, and just as well.”

“Well I’m arranging a refund first thing tomorrow then. There was supposed to be female cop there to “Arrest” you and do wicked things to you while everyone watched.”

Whipping his head around to focus on me again he snarls, “Is that what happened here? What the hell kind of ‘wicked’ things did he do to you? Do I need to go and tear this jerk limb from limb?!”

“Dalton. Calm down. The important thing here is not the stripper. It’s the note. It means that whoever was causing trouble before is back again and we need to figure out who it is and get them put away. He’s threatening you and Milly for Christ sake. I think that’s more important than a well hung stripper.”

“He was well hung? What the hell?” he growls as he tries to control the rage inside. I can see the battle on his face. He’s torn between staying and protecting me and going to rip the stripper apart.

Finally, he decides to calm himself enough to think about our dilemma. He nods at me as he says, “You’re right. Sorry. Got carried away there for a moment. The most important thing is that you’re safe. We can deal with everything else later. Why don’t you go pack a bag and we can pick up Milly and head out to the farm and figure out what to do next?”

“Listen Babe, you know me. I had three beers all night. Everyone kept trying to feed me more but I wouldn’t let them. I don’t like getting drunk. Not really much of a drinker, never have been.”

“Then take me home. I don’t feel safe here right now, knowing someone’s out to get us. I’ll be back in a sec.”

Racing off to pack a bag I quickly throw in a few sets of clothes and my toiletries.

The darkness in the country is much worse than in the city. Blackness enfolds everything outside of the car’s headlights. At any moment a kangaroo or emu can jump in front of the vehicle and you have to make a split second decision which could cost you your life. Luckily we make it home safe and sound. Dalton puts Milly to bed and kisses her goodnight. I watch from the doorway as this gentleman runs his finger over his child’s cheek softly before pulling up the covers. She sighs deeply and turns over to her side.

“Na she’s my world. You know that. I’d give my life for that child.” He says leading me down to the master bedroom. “Let’s hope it won’t ever come to that, but I’d seriously do it. For her...and for you.”

I wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him close for a long lingering kiss. “As I would for you both also.” I assure him seriously.

“Despite everything that’s happened, I want you here forever and the sooner the better. Next weekend can’t come soon enough for me. I’ll be the one pacing the floor of the church waiting for you to arrive.”

“I’ll try hard not to keep you waiting long” I say softly, pulling him back in for another kiss.

“You’d better not or I’ll come looking for you.” He growls, peeling off my dress and carrying me to the bed. Our lips remain joined as we declare our love to each other with our bodies.