Everyone laughed.
"Is this really happening?" Tess said, looking around.
"It is. It's happening," Daniel said. "Everything's all set. Just follow us over there."
Within minutes, we were all parked at the enchanted chapel. We took our time getting out of our cars and walking toward the door. It was cold out, but we were dressed for it. We moved slowly across the small, gravel parking lot and up the path so that we could talk as we walked and let our parents and family digest this decision. Tara was bundled-up, and the crisp evening air felt good to everyone.
The whole group was easy-going about this unexpected detour. They all reacted with excitement. There were no questions about whether or not it was the right thing to do. Most of the questions were things like, "Will you finish out the school year, or will you quit and move to Georgia?"
Tess asked if we were planning on taking a honeymoon, and we laughed because neither of us had even thought of that. All of them were people we knew and loved, and they all seemed pleased with our decision.
Billy opened the door when we made it closer to the bottom of the steps. "Come on, what's taking y'all so long out here?" he asked.
Tess was beside me and she said, "There's your daddy," in a cooing tone to Tara. It was all so surreal that I took note of odd details like that.
Daniel had invited a few people from the base, and we spent several minutes making introductions and making small talk before Darren took over.
Chapter 16
Darren was an Army Chaplain, but he was off the clock, and he was wearing slacks and a sweater. A few of Daniel's friends came, but they were all dressed in mostly-civilian clothes also. I told Daniel I would be proud for him to wear his Army uniform, but he said that given the casual nature of our wedding, he would be more comfortable in pants and a nice shirt.
I was happy with that decision once we got there and I took in the whole scene. I had on a simple white cotton dress that my mother had made me in the eleventh grade. It was cold out, and I had on a long coat, so no one really knew what I was wearing underneath.
I took my jacket off and did a quick look in the mirror when we got into the church, but there wasn't a grand bride's entrance or anything. I just came out and met everyone, wearing my simple dress. I found Daniel as soon as I came out, and he smiled at me as I crossed to him. I didn't know if it was because I was wearing white or if he was just feeling that way, but he regarded me with a nostalgic smile that was so warm and genuine, I wanted to melt. I walked over to him, and he took me into his arms.
We made our way to the front of the chapel while everyone else found places in the first few pews. It was a good-sized room, so it looked empty inside with only fifteen or twenty people there.
Because there weren't that many of us, Daniel decided to leave the lights low in the back of the sanctuary and just turn on some in the front. I loved the way it looked. It was an evening wedding in an old church, and we were all road weary. Everything was dreamlike to me in the most beautiful, perfect way possible.
"Good evening, everyone," Darren said. He smiled. "I have to admit, this is the first wedding ceremony I've ever officiated where you, the guests, did not know you were coming till you got here." Everyone laughed. "I have to say, it's beautiful in here though." He looked around, smiling sincerely. "It's a beautiful chapel, and a truly wonderful evening. We're all in the middle of something right now. You're all living your own lives, doing your own things, having your own thoughts. And yet we're all here. We're all using this moment in time to stop and celebrate a life-changing moment in the lives of Daniel and Abigail. This evening, they join their lives in the blessed union of marriage. I know they're excited to be here and to share this time with all of you. I know Daniel personally, and I have talked with him a great deal about Abigail and his feelings and intentions toward her. I have prayed with him about this union. Knowing these things, I see absolutely no reason why these two shouldn't get married. If any of the rest of you have anything to say about it, I suppose now would be the time." Darren paused briefly. "And so it is that Daniel and Abigail present themselves to be married today, with their family and closest friends here with them. I know it is their goal to live a life pleasing to God. I know they want to help each other and be each other's biggest fans. They will, no doubt, go through peaks and valleys, but how wonderful it is that they'll be doing it all together." He looked at us. "You two will grow older and wiser together. Congratulations to you both. You'll remember this day as the day you gained a helper in this life, and that is priceless. My wife and I have been married for thirteen years, and I still love her with all my heart. I still can't wait to get home and see her tonight. I hope you two will be able to say that in thirteen years. I think you will." He smiled and focused on the crowd. "Both of them have written some things down in the way of vows, but I believe they're going to save it and share them with each other later. Is that right? Is that what we decided?" Darren looked at us and I nodded at him. "Okay, well, that brings me to the part where I say Daniel, do you come here freely and without reservation to give yourself to Abigail in holy matrimony? If so answer 'I do'."
"I do."
"Abigail, do you come here freely and without reservation to give yourself to Daniel in holy matrimony? If so, answer 'I do'."
"I definitely do," I said, excitedly.
This caused everyone to laugh and for Daniel to pull me into his arms. A few people whooped when he did that. Daniel looked at Darren like he could go on with the ceremony even though he was holding onto me. I loved it. I just smiled and hugged him back.
"Okay, Daniel please repeat after me. I, Daniel, take you, Abigail to be my lawfully wedded wife."
Daniel repeated the phrase.
"I will share the rest of my life with you. We will build dreams together. I will offer you support in times of trouble and rejoice with you in times of happiness. I will honor you and cherish you and give you my loyalty for all the days of my life."
He paused between each line so that Daniel could repeat the words, and then he did the same for me.
We exchanged rings after that. Darren said a few simple things about them and their symbolism. Daniel had a ring he bought me in Georgia. I had been busy with getting my classroom set up for the substitute teacher, but I drove to Lake Charles to buy him a band last week.
"I pray that your life together is blessed with good health and prosperity," Darren said. "I pray that you have open and honest communication. I pray that you always respect each other's individual talents and gifts and give each other full support in your professional and personal pursuits. May you create a beautiful home and life together. May all the years to come be filled with celebrations and moments to renew your love. May your marriage be filled with respect, loyalty, contentment, affection, and devotion." He took a deep breath and smiled. "And now, by the power vested in me by the State of Georgia and the United States Army, it is my great honor and delight to declare you husband and wife. You, Daniel, may finally ki—"
He just stopped talking and everyone clapped and yelled because Daniel was already kissing me.
He was insatiable. He took a hold of me with a firm grip. He kissed me lightly at first and then he pulled me closer and kissed me hard. He held me tightly around the waist, pulled me in, and kissed me like he meant it. It was the first time we had laid eyes on each other in a month, and there had been a lot of anticipation while we were apart. Especially in the last week—once we decided we were getting married.
Everyone was so excited about the impromptu wedding, that we stayed in the church and visited for a little while even though we all still had driving to do. Darren knew of a restaurant nearby, and he drove to it and picked up chicken and biscuits so that we could enjoy a meal together before getting back on the road. It was quick and easy and really delicious, and we sat around in the back of the chapel eating bites of honey covered chicken on the best biscuits I had ever tasted.
I was so excited and di
stracted, however, that I only took one bite of the meal. I wasn't hungry. I took a small portion of food, but I was talking so much that I just held it on the napkin and barely ate it. Daniel must've taken note that I wasn't eating because he held a piece of honey coated fried chicken up for me to eat. I was nervous and excited and not at all hungry, but I wasn't about to turn down eating out of his hand. I held his hand steady, guiding it to my mouth. I wasn't obvious with everyone around, but I took it from him slightly slower than necessary and I also accidently put a little bit of his finger into my mouth when I took the bite. Daniel's other hand was resting on my leg, and I felt his grip tighten, which made me smile.
Once we finished eating, everyone decided it was time to get back on the road. We were giving goodbye hugs when Billy said. "Tomorrow night, we've all been invited to share dinner and a party with Teddy Thomas. He said I should bring anyone who wanted to go. He lives in Atlanta, so it's at his home. But it'll be big—live music and lots of people and everything."
"No kidding!" Quentin said, looking excited.
Teddy Thomas was a famous boxing promoter. I knew he was the one behind this event but I never thought we'd all be invited to go to his house. Daniel and I were planning on staying at his house until Saturday when we drove up for the match, but I smiled at him when Billy mentioned the party.
"Maybe we could head to Atlanta a day early," I said.
He nodded easily. "I'll call tomorrow morning and see if there's any room in that hotel everyone else is staying in."
"Don't be silly," my mom said. "Even if there's no room, we'll just put you in with one of us. We'll make room."
"That'll be fun," I said, raising my eyebrows at Daniel. "Are you sure it's okay if we all go to that party?" I asked Billy.
"Yeah," Billy said. "Even you guys," he added, gesturing to Daniel's Army friends. "I wouldn't have mentioned it if I wasn't inviting everyone. Teddy told me I could bring the whole state of Texas if I wanted to."
"I'd be happy to go," Darren said.
"Me too," James, one of the other Army guys, added.
Laney's boyfriend had been talking to the soldiers since we got there, and he gave James, who was standing next to him, an excited pat on the back when we figured out we'd all be seeing each other again the following night.
And that was that.
I came into that tiny Georgia town single, and I left as a married woman—one with plans to go to big parties in big cities.
Chapter 17
One caravan took off for Atlanta, but I was with the ones headed to Fort Benning. Daniel and Darren both drove their trucks, and the other guys had hitched rides with them.
James was willing to squeeze into Darren's truck so that Daniel and I could ride back alone, but I assured them I was fine with having James ride with us. I wasn't just doing that to be nice. I was easy-going with that sort of thing, and it also gave me an excuse to sit even closer to Daniel while he was driving.
We had the same seating arrangement the following afternoon when we all made the trip to Atlanta. The exact same four guys who went to the wedding also went to Atlanta with us the following day. Daniel and I got a room near the Civic Center, in the hotel with everyone from Texas.
James had an aunt in Atlanta, so he and the other Army guys made plans to stay the night with her. Billy had secured them tickets to the match, so they would also be going with us to that the following night.
I didn't understand how much Billy loved and respected Daniel until recently. I knew they were close, but their relationship was deeper than I even realized, and that was a sweet, unexpected bonus. Billy looked out for Daniel's friends, getting them tickets and making sure they were invited to the party. It made me feel proud of both Daniel and Billy, which put me in a happy sort of settled, reflective mood.
I sat in the front seat of Daniel's truck, sandwiched between Daniel and James, on our way to Atlanta. It had rained some early in the trip, so some of our bags were in the front with us. We were crammed in there, and it was glorious.
Billy gave Daniel directions that took us right to the hotel. We stayed there for a few hours before getting dressed to go to Teddy's party. I brought a couple of nice outfits with me so that I would have options once I got to Atlanta. I went with a red skirt with matching tights and a blouse that was mostly white with some pink and red.
Billy and Michael came to our room to hang out while all the guys were there. It was a small room, and they were sitting around, cutting up and looking handsome.
In years past, I would have killed to be in that room. It was teeming with good-looking, hard-bodied, well bred, good-hygiene-having, young gentlemen. There were athletes and soldiers, seven of them in my small hotel room. Years ago, I would have fought tooth and nail to stay in a room like that. I would have luxuriated so hard in a room like that.
But not anymore. I belonged to the best one of the bunch, and I only had eyes for him. It was pretty much a miracle how uninterested I was in other men. I had no desire to so much as look at anyone else.
I left the guys in the room while I went to Tess and Billy's room to finish my routine and help her get ready. We were in there for about a half-hour while we finished getting dressed, and then she fed Tara before we left.
It was the first time she and I had the chance to catch up privately since the day before, and she asked me some sisterly questions about our wedding night. She could see how very in love I was, and the whole conversation was full of loaded questions and giggling. We had heart-to-hearts all the time, but we always respected each other's privacy and didn't ask questions that were too personal. That being said, there was still a fair amount of blushing during that conversation.
Tess and Billy had an adjoining room with our parents, and Mom would be babysitting while Tess and Billy went to the party. Tess made sure Mom had Teddy's phone number in case they needed to get in touch, and she also promised they wouldn't be too long. Mom assured her that Tara would sleep and be fine and that we should take our time.
We went down the hall to my room where the guys were waiting. James had a deck of cards and he was dealing blackjack, using the king size bed as a table with all the guys standing and sitting around, playing hands.
He turned over a card, and they all yelled at once. They were being rowdy, and it made my heart race. I watched Daniel interact with them. It was a boys-will-be-boys situation with all of them spread out in the room. And Daniel was the one who linked them all together. They were laughing and enjoying each other's company, and the sight of it translated to me feeling proud of him. I was wearing the necklace he gave me with some dangly earrings. Tess and I were both excited about the evening out, and we dolled ourselves up like the good old days when we shared that apartment.
Daniel made eye contact with me during the commotion of the blackjack game, and I smiled shyly at him. That was enough. He tossed his cards onto the bed.
"I lost, anyway," he said easily. "And we gotta go."
He was walking toward me as he said it. I was by the door, and he came to me, looking hungry, looking predatory. You would think I hadn't seen him in days with how he was staring at me.
And that was how it went for the next two hours. Daniel had a hand on me constantly while we were at the party. And when he didn't, he made sure I knew he missed me.
Yesterday was our wedding day.
Last night was our wedding night.
Everything was still so new.
We had gotten to know each other in a new special way last night, but there was still so much to learn. Daniel was everything I could want in a man. He was full of contradictions. He was innocent yet confident, masculine and brutish yet gentle and considerate.
We moved around at Teddy's house, talking to different groups of people and checking out different rooms. It was cold out, so the party was all indoors, but it was a mansion, and most of it was open to guests. There were a lot of people at the party. I had honestly never been to anything like it, and I was thankfu
l and happy to have Daniel next to me, my strong, stable man.
His hands found me in some way or another all evening. Sometimes, it was up by my shoulder or arm, and sometimes, he would hold onto my waist or touch my leg. He touched me constantly. The way his hands roamed discreetly but confidently, with husbandly familiarity, made me feel all kinds of bodily sensations.
He was talking to a couple of guys to his left, but his right hand was on me, and I held it in place, loving my place in the room, loving how I was able to people watch and be quiet or get in on the conversation around me when I wanted.
"We're going back to the hotel," Tess said, leaning over to speak to me over the loud music that was playing in the living room.
This room had a loud speaker system. It was the same room where the live band had been playing earlier, but they were taking a break, so pre-recorded music was being pumped out of the speakers. The whole house must've been connected to the same speaker system because whatever was playing in this room was also playing in other rooms of the house. It was basically loud everywhere.
"It's only eight-thirty," I said, leaning in to speak to her.
"I know, but Billy's got to get back to get ready for tomorrow, and I want to get back to Tara, anyway. Marvin's riding with us. He was ready to leave an hour ago."
"Should we go, too?" I asked. It was fun there, but I didn't mind the idea of leaving.
"No, no, no," Tess said, shaking her head. "Billy already told Teddy we were leaving, and he made sure to say he wanted you guys to stay."
"I think they're about to play some cards," Daniel said, leaning toward us when he heard what Tess said. "James said Teddy has a table in the basement and he wanted him to set up a game down there."
The Trouble with Crushes: A Romance (Bank Street Stories Book 2) Page 11