Running Away With You (Running #3) (63 page)

There’s a knock on the door, and a dashingly handsome young man enters our suite.  Dressed in sharp khakis, a crisp white shirt, and simple loafers, Auggie stands before me grinning like a schoolboy. 

“Auggie, you look so handsome.  Are the boys ready?” I ask.

“We are.  But I have to tell you, the groom is a nervous wreck.  He’s pacing in circles and I think he’s wearing holes in the carpet.”

“Hold on, we’re not ready yet.  I know it’s superstitious, but we couldn’t let you get married without something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue,” Camilla explains.

“We want to bring in a little good karma and keep away the bad juju.  It’s just a little extra good luck on your wedding day,” Emmy agrees.

Evan's mother Jill uncovers my dress and motions for me to come take a closer look. "Evan wanted to be the one to give you something blue on your wedding day,” she explains.  Inside the bodice, in the place nearest my heart, there is a blue heart embroidered in the lining.  I am speechless.

I’ve had dreams about the man I would marry one day.  Would he be kind?  Would he be gentle?  Would he be patient and tender?  Evan is all those things, wrapped up in the most amazing package. 

Auggie reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small gift box wrapped in shiny silver paper.  “Open it,” he demands.  “It’s your something new.”

I fumble with the wrappings as I tear away the paper.  Inside, a square jewelry box waits.  I open the box and discover the most exquisite pearl bracelet I have ever seen.  Auggie takes the box from my hand and carefully removes the bracelet, securely placing it on my wrist.  “Do you like it?”

I wrap my arms around him, careful not to get any makeup on his white shirt.  “Auggie, I love it.  And I love you.  Thank you.”

“Don’t you dare mess up your makeup for a second time, Jette.  I don’t want to have to kill you on your wedding day,” Reese warns. 

Emmy comes bustling up to me carrying a small gift.  “It’s your something old.”  Her box is smaller than Auggie’s.  I make quick work of removing the bow and the wrapping paper, revealing another jewelry box. 

“Emmy, you didn’t have to do this.  It’s too much, really.”

She puts her hands on her hips.  “You haven’t even seen what’s inside yet.  Open it.  And it’s not just from me, it’s from all of us.”

All eyes watch as I slowly open the box.  I gasp when I see the diamond teardrop earrings that Evan bought me in Atlantic City.  The very ones I wore to our grand opening, and the same ones I pawned in Denver.  “Oh my God!”  I can’t stop the tears from falling.  “It’s perfect.  Absolutely perfect.  But how?”

“Adam and Derek, mostly, but we all pitched in,” she explains.  “The moment we found out about the wedding, Adam called the pawn shop and your earrings were still there.  We had them overnighted to the hotel.  Evan is going to freak out when he sees you wearing his earrings again.”

“I never should have sold them,” I mutter as I tearfully put on my earrings.  “Now all I need is something borrowed,” I proudly state.

My mother presents me with a small gift bag.  I peer inside and carefully remove a beautiful sapphire and white gold vintage hairpin.  “It was your grandmother’s.  She wore it on her wedding day and she wants you to have it.”

I hand it to Callie and she carefully places it in my hair.  I have a Greek-inspired updo with beautiful twists as accents, and the pin fits perfectly on the top of my curls.  “Thank you, Mom.  Tell Gram I absolutely love it.”

The girls help me to put on my dress, and as I stand in front of the mirror gazing at myself, I am gloriously happy.  I love my dress.  It’s a winter-white lace, cap-sleeved trumpet gown with a keyhole back.

Realization sinks in.  “Holy shit!  I’m getting married,” I blurt.  We all burst into effusive teenage giggles. 

“You’re stunning.”   Callie kisses my cheek and I smile nervously at her.   She is also striking in her simple chiffon gown. 

All my bridesmaids are wearing a different chiffon dress in a variety of neutral hues.  Reese chose a yellow-ivory gown to accent her vibrant red hair and gray eyes.  Emmy selected the perfect shade of grayish taupe that only she can pull off with her tasteful tattoos and pink hair tips.  Camilla chose a pale olive dress and Callie’s dress is a subtle peach. 

Every one of them looks positively beautiful.

Needing a moment to gather my thoughts, I slip away to retrieve my shoes.  I find the box sitting on the dresser.  I open the box to remove the bridal beach sandals, and carefully tucked inside is a note from the groom.  There are more blue hearts painted on the soles of my shoes.

T
here is a gentle knock on the door and Emmy cautiously peers in.  “I think it’s time to go.  Everyone is ready.  It’s time to get married.  Evan McGuire is waiting.”

A Match Made in Heaven

A
dam whispers in my ear, “Dude, would you please stand still?  You’re making me nervous, and I’m not the one getting married today.”

I can’t help it.  I want Juliette’s wedding day to be perfect.  She deserves it.  I tuck my white shirt into my khakis and check my reflection in the mirror for the hundredth fucking time.  “You gotta give that mirror a break, bro,” Marcus teases.

Juliette had originally helped me choose a classic black tuxedo, but when we moved the wedding to Hawaii, Auggie nixed the formality.  Today we’re all wearing khakis and simple white dress shirts with no ties.  But I insisted on wearing a suit jacket.

“Hey, McGuire, think you could tear your ugly ass away from that mirror long enough to celebrate the start of your indentured servitude before you have to start asking for permission to shit?”  Cole is standing there with a smirk on his face and a drink in his hand. 

“Fuck off,” I tell him, swiping the glass from his hand.  I’m so glad he’s here. 

As of today, the most amazing woman I’ve ever known will wear my ring.  A million hearts will break when I take her off the market for good.  I’d be a fool to wait one more day, or even one more minute. 

I knew it the moment I first saw her, sitting helplessly in the sand.  Every time I see a piece of her long, dark hair out of place, I’m reminded of that moment, with her face covered with sand, staring up at me.  She couldn’t move, but she was too proud to let me help her.  She was unbelievably stubborn and incredibly sexy.  Hell, she still is, and I think that’s what I love about her the most. She makes me want to do better, to be better.  She challenges me, and I’m a better man for it.

“Mac, get that ugly ass of yours over here and do a shot with the rest of us,” my brother-in-law Dean calls from the terrace.   What’s with all the “ugly ass” comments?

Everyone is here:  Adam, Marcus, Derek, Dean, Auggie, and my father.  Even my cousin Cole flew out to be here today.  I knew Juliette wouldn’t marry me unless they were all here, and I plan on spending the rest of my life making all her dreams come true.

My father asks all of us to lift our glasses for a toast.  “It is said that when children find true love, parents find true joy. Here's to your joy and ours, from this day forward.”

We all toss back the shots and Marcus quickly refills everyone’s glass.  When he gets to Adam’s glass, he asks, “How about a word from the best man?”

Adam walks over and shakes my hand.  “Well, I have a few words I’m saving for the big toast later, but I suppose I could say something now.”  He pats me on the back and clears his throat, holding up his glass.  “To Juliette.  May she always share everything with her husband, including the housework.”

He’s such a smartass.

I can’t stand still, I need to keep moving.  So I open the sliding glass door and step outside, trying to catch a glimpse of the ceremony site.  I look across the grounds, and from where I’m standing, I can see the lagoon lawn is ready with chairs, an altar, and an aisle, all overlooking the sun setting on the Pacific Ocean. It’s almost time to go.

“Nervous?” Derek asks as he joins me on the terrace.

Why does everyone keep asking me that?  “Nah, I just want to get this over with already.”

“Listen, Mac.  I know we’ve had our ups and downs over the last year.  All I’ve ever wanted was for Jette to be happy.  You make her happy.  I see that now.  Whatever you do, just don’t fuck it up.” 

I smile and nod, offering Derek a handshake.  “Understood.” 

There was a time when I resented Derek’s place in Juliette’s life.  I saw him as a nuisance and a cause of confusion for her.  But now, as I look back, I have to admit that I’m glad he was there for her when I wasn’t.  He’s a good friend, and I know he’ll be a good role model for Kai as he grows up.

My father quietly joins us.  “Evan, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I have to go collect your mother and Genevieve.”  He smiles and pats my back.  “I just want to tell you how proud we are of you and how happy we are to be bringing Juliette into the family.”  I thank my father for everything and watch as he leaves.

Marcus jumps up when his cell phone pings with a message.  “It’s Camilla.  The girls are almost ready.  Time to go.”

Cole interrupts my thoughts.  “Hey, lover boy, if it’s not too much trouble, what do you say we go and get you married?”

Together with my closest friends, I make the short walk across the pavilion over to the site where the ceremony will take place.  Auggie and the event manager have done an amazing job.  They were able to do everything I asked, and in only two short days.  It’s amazing what you can make happen with the right amount of money.

White wooden chairs line each side of the aisle and a small arbor stands at the end.  The sun is setting, reflecting intense orange and red colors of the sun on the water.  But more important to me are the flowers.  The place is covered with them.

The aisle is covered in gardenia buds – thousands of them.  They are meticulously arranged in a swirling pattern that perfectly mirrors the water behind us.

Garlands of white tropical flowers wrap around the magnificent and enormous Banyon trees that create a natural arch over the arbor.  Hanging from its limbs are nearly a hundred round bouquets of gardenias in all varieties, tied with white ribbons and swaying lightly in the wind.

Marcus catches me checking out all the flowers.  “Man, I have to ask.  What is it with you and flowers?  I know your sister’s a florist and all, but you’re really making the rest of us look bad.”

“Most of what I know about women I learned from how my dad treated my mother. My whole life, dad always bought my mom flowers, chocolates, and trinkets. I grew up watching my mother’s face light up every time flowers arrived, especially when they came for no reason at all.  That happened a lot. And that's what flowers are – just a simple, easy way of letting someone know they’re in your thoughts. That's it. It's not complicated.”

As the boys and I make our way toward the arbor, I stop to mingle with some of our guests.  There are a little over fifty guests here.  I only invited a few of the guys from the team along with their wives and girlfriends.  Carlo is here with his wife Willow, along with Anthony and Brianna Rivera, Troy and Delaney Duffy, Xander Parish and his fiancée Jocelyn, and Shaun Marise, who’s here without a guest tonight.  As a special surprise treat for my bride, Joey Griffin flew out to be here with us, along with his wife Maggie. 

There are a few faces I don’t recognize, so I assume they are Juliette’s friends from college –  Ben, Sara, and Simon.

Once the boys and I get to the arbor, our mothers are escorted to their seats in the front row by Carlo and Anthony.  Auggie thought it would be a good idea for a few teammates to seat our guests, and luckily for me, these guys were more than happy to help.

“Get your hands out of your hair,” Adam warns through gritted teeth.  I yank my hands down.  I guess Juliette was right – I do run my fingers through my hair when I’m nervous.  If I don’t see her soon, I swear I’m going to explode.

What the fuck are they doing?

Finally, I see the hotel doors open as the music queues.  I selected Justin Timberlake’s “Mirrors” as the processional, and the first to emerge is Emmy.  I give Adam a little jab with my elbow as she makes her way down the aisle.  He’s so captivated, I don’t think he even notices.