by J. M. Stone
I snatched a piece of bacon from a pile and she smacked me with the spatula.
“You go on and get everybody in here so we can eat,” she ordered.
“Yes, ma’am,” I answered cheekily, biting into the bacon with a grin.
Once everyone was at least half-awake, I ushered them into the kitchen where Nanny fed us all heaping plates of pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs.
The talk quickly turned to tales of last night’s activities, including Nanny’s blow by blow account of the “Buff Daddy” that shook his “man meat” in her face so close she’d been afraid he’d poke her eye out.
“So, I take it your night wasn’t as wild?” Chloe asked Brandon.
“Not really. We weren’t out too late because Luke and Jacks promised they’d get the kids from Emma’s dad and Noah, and it just wasn’t as fun without you girls around like last time,” Brandon replied, dryly.
“And you’re full of it, too,” Emma answered.
“Rule number one of Bachelor Party Law is you don’t speak of what happens!” Brandon called out, earning him a swat from Chloe. He just grinned, because he knew we knew he was kidding.
I thought of something then and turned to Allie. “Hey, you remember how many life savers you put on that Suck-for-a-Buck shirt you made Chloe?”
“Yeah, I think I stuck a hundred of them suckers on there. Why?”
“Holy shit! I made a hundred bucks last night?” Chloe exclaimed, looking around for her purse.
“Sweet!” Brandon said. “How come I didn’t get a suck me off shirt?”
Chloe sighed as Ian laughed without correcting him, or answering his question.
Breakfast was completed with a lot of laughter, good natured ribbing, and lots of Nanny-isms that had us rolling until Daisy decided we’d (she’d) had enough and left with Nanny in tow, clutching her clothes to her chest. She’d kept Ian’s t-shirt and hadn’t bothered asking if he wanted it back.
It wasn’t long after they left that everyone else started giving their goodbyes and leaving for their respective homes and spouses, until just Ian and I were left.
We collapsed in a heap on the couch and traded more stories from the night before, especially the one where Jenna tripped and landed face first in a ten foot snowbank in the parking lot of the strip club. It had snowed a good amount two nights before the party, so thank God they’d stacked the piles high or Jenna might not have had such a soft landing. Not that she was feeling much at that time…
During a lull in the conversation, Ian asked me if his mom had called me.
I so badly wanted to tell him yes, that she had called and apologized, but I couldn’t lie to him. “No, baby. She hasn’t called.”
He sighed. “She’s so stubborn. I just thought that maybe with…oh, well.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, laying my lips against his chest in a gentle kiss.
“Anyway, are you ready for school tomorrow?” he asked, changing the subject.
I nodded and the conversation turned back to more mundane matters, but both of us skirted the dark thoughts that circled in the back of our minds. I had a feeling we both knew it wasn’t over…not by a long shot.
The sad thing about it is, neither one of us knew just how right we’d end up being.
Chapter 22
I glanced around the room to make sure none of the kids needed help getting their coats on, smiling at a few of them that bounded over to hug me and tell me goodbye.
“Miss Jensen, do you hafta take Gerry?” a little voice called, a small hand tugging on my pocket to get my attention.
I sighed and looked down at Adam. “Yes, honey. I’m sorry, but Gerry has to go home with me. I can’t leave him here all by himself all weekend, can I?”
“Yes!” the little boy hollered, looking at me with that ‘duh’ expression that kids are so good at utilizing.
I sighed, but thankfully the bell rang, signaling it was time to go to the buses.
When the last kid was gone, I packed up my bag, put Gerry in his ‘weekend home’, and made sure I’d left the lesson notes for the substitute coming in to cover for me tomorrow. With everything set, I loaded up the car and set off for home, my excitement building more and more for the weekend festivities.
I made it home before Ian and decided to make a batch of homemade potato soup for dinner. It was almost done by the time Ian walked in the door.
“Hey, baby,” he said as he walked by me. He paused long enough to kiss me hello before he went to clean up.
The poor man works himself to death, even in the winter when the construction business usually slows down. Ian, though, generally maps out his projects so that the majority of the building is done in the summer and fall months, so that all the finishing and indoor work can be done during the winter, therefore keeping him busy year-round.
It’s been even more hectic for him since Jackson had been recommending Ian to all of his clients, and vice versa. It was a pretty beneficial partnership for them both; Jackson would design the buildings or whatever they wanted, and Ian would make it happen. Win-win for everyone, right?
The week since the bachelorette/bachelor parties had been uneventful, which we were thankful for. Victoria went to her pretrial and, last we heard, she and her attorney were trying to work out a deal with the prosecutor, but her trial wasn’t until the second week of January.
I’d still managed to keep my own upcoming nuptials a secret, which had been unbelievably difficult, especially because my parents knew. So far, my mom hadn’t blabbed, but since my wedding was next weekend, I was getting more nervous that she’d slip up.
Turns out, it was my own mouth I had to worry about.
Early Friday afternoon, the girls and I had all met up to get manicures and pedicures in preparation for the wedding the next day. Once we were done at the salon, we were all due to meet at the church for the rehearsal, and then the rehearsal dinner.
I was halfway through my pedicure, enjoying the calf and foot massage portion of it, when Emma asked what I was doing next weekend.
Without thinking, I answered, “Getting married, why?”
“I wanted to see if you wanted to keep your niece for…wait, what?”
I glanced over at her. “What, what? You know I’d love to keep her, but I can’t because…”
It hadn’t registered in my head exactly what I had said just yet. Not until I noticed that Emma, Allie, Chloe, and Sarah, Chloe’s mom were all gawking at me wide-eyed as my words trailed off.
Oh. Shit.
“You’re getting married?” Emma repeated, cocking her head sideways. “Did I hear you correctly, Leah?”
I winced. “Uh…no?” I tried to backpedal, but...it didn’t work.
Chloe’s eyes narrowed on me. “Are you and Ian trying to freakin’ elope?”
I fidgeted, noticing that the whole salon was now staring at me, but none more raptly than the woman who was giving me my pedicure. Or, had been, rather, because she was gazing up at me, her hands frozen in place around my foot, waiting to see what I’d say next, I suppose.
I blew out a breath and closed my eyes for a second. Without opening them, I rushed to answer. “No, we’re not trying to elope, we are eloping.” My eyes popped open at the gasps that filled the air around me.
“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t mention it to anyone. We just decided that neither one of us really wanted to have a big wedding, and there’s the cutest little chapel down in Tennessee that’s perfect around Christmas time, especially when it’s been snowing, so…we’re getting married next weekend.”
Emma looked hurt. “But what about your family? Mom and Dad? They’re going to be heartbroken.”
Yikes. And just like that, I had to throw my own parents under the bus. “They’re coming.”
“What? They know? Are you kidding me, Leah Nicole Jensen?” she screeched, sitting forward. The tech doing her pedicure scrambled to the side, getting out of her way.
“You guys can come,” I threw
out softly, hoping to diffuse the situation. Jesus, Ian was going to kill me.
Allie snorted. “You can bet your sweet ass that we’ll be there, girlie!” She laughed dryly. “Can’t believe you thought you’d get away with doing that without everyone. Well, guess I know what I’ll be doing Sunday.”
Emma sat back and let the poor tech get back to her job. She crossed her arms over her chest and grinned smugly. “I can’t wait to tell Jenna and Calland,” she sang. “You’re in for it.”
I groaned, and not from the massage that had resumed.
I turned my head to look at Chloe, who’d been silent except for her initial outburst.
She was watching me, hurt still shining in her eyes, but I could also see understanding.
“Mad at me?” I asked, quietly.
She shook her head. “No. I understand. I just can’t believe you were gonna do it like my brother did, and cut everybody out of it.”
“No, no, no…it wasn’t like that, we weren’t trying to cut everybody out of it, we just, I guess we just didn’t want to make a big deal of it. I’m sorry,” I told her, reaching out across the space between our chairs to grab for her hand.
She let me take her hand, squeezing my fingers briefly before letting them go. “You’re just lucky that we were already coming home on Friday from the honeymoon. Now, instead, we’ll just take a detour and be at your wedding, along with everyone else.” She winked and grinned.
I groaned again. Yep. I was totally dead.
Finally, the conversation turned away from the topic of my wedding, and as soon as it did, I palmed my phone and texted my mom on the sly.
Me: Remember how I told you not to tell anyone about the wedding?
Mom: I didn’t tell anyone, I swear!
Me: I know. But I sure as hell blabbed by mistake.
Mom: Yay! Now I can tell everyone!
Me: No! Mom, no, not yet. I haven’t even told Ian that I let it out yet…
Me: Mom?
Me: Jesus…
“Right, Leah?”
I jerked, sliding my phone back into my pocket as I looked up to see who’d been addressing me. “Hmm? What?”
Chloe gave me a weird look and repeated what she said. “I’m staying with you tonight, because Brandon and I aren’t supposed to see each other. Right?”
“Yeah,” I confirmed, nodding.
“You okay?” she asked me, still looking at me like I was crazy.
I waved her off with another nod and changed the subject. “So, Emma. You heard who our brother dearest is bringing to the wedding as his date?”
Emma snapped her head around, eyes wide. “No, who? Tell me, tell me tell me!”
I sighed, letting my shoulders sag with disappointment. “Damnit! I thought you knew, that’s why I was asking.”
“No, the rat bastard won’t tell me,” she replied, glaring at even the thought of our brother keeping a secret from us.
Chloe giggled beside me and shot me a knowing smirk.
I narrowed my eyes at her, growling out, “You know, don’t you.”
It wasn’t a question.
She only grinned.
Once all of our fingers and toes were all prettied up for tomorrow, we headed out to the church, still trying to get Chloe to rat out Calland. For the rest of the night, no matter what we did to cajole her, she refused to tell us who Calland was bringing as a date.
The rehearsal went smoothly, though Sarah had to smack a couple of serial gigglers throughout the process. And no, one of them wasn’t me.
Okay, so she smacked me once…but she was laughing right along with me!
The rehearsal dinner was being held at Manny’s in the back party room, and the wine and beer was freely flowing. We toasted the happy couple so many times that Brandon finally held up his hand and stopped Luke’s next one.
“Dude! You guys aren’t gonna have any toasts left for tomorrow!” he cried, laughing.
Luke winked at him. “Trust me. I have plenty of material left over for tomorrow, brother.”
For a brief second, Brandon almost looked scared, but then ended up laughing and clutching his brother’s shoulder as Luke continued wishing the couple well.
I settled back in my seat, nestling into the arm Ian had draped over my shoulders. He was grinning at me, so I just went with it, figuring it’d be a good time to tell him that I let the cat out of the bag. I picked now for two reasons; One, because there was a crowd of witnesses, and two, because he was in a good mood and there was a crowd of witnesses.
“So…you love me, right?”
He nodded, still grinning. “Of course.”
“Good. Cause I let it slip about the wedding to the girls today.”
His grin stayed, but I did see his eye twitch just a little bit in surprise.
“Are you mad?”
That’s when his grin slipped away. “Mad? How the hell could I be mad? Baby, I would never get mad for you wanting your friends and family to be a part of this. I know we said we wanted to just keep it quiet and not make a big deal of it, but I think it’s gonna work out the way it should. You know?”
I bit my lip. “But what about your parents? I know mine were already coming, but I’ve been feeling horrible about you not having anyone there for you.”
He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “I was already gonna tell them, give them the option of showing up. But don’t get your hopes up. Besides, now I have friends coming.” He gave me a wink and another grin, kissing me briefly on the lips before turning back to the party.
Chloe caught my eye and raised a brow in question. I smiled in response and settled back against my fiancé once more, enjoying the rest of the night with my friends and family.
***
Music swelled through the speakers, letting us know that it was time to get into place.
I dabbed at my eyes once more as I took in the sight of my best friend, standing there in her wedding gown, so beautiful it was breath taking.
“No crying,” she scolded, dabbing at her own eyes as tears began to well.
“No! No crying!” Emma called frantically, flapping her hands in both of our faces as if to dry our eyes that way. “That’s our cue to go stand in line, so pull yourselves together this instant!”
“Okay, Mom,” I told her dryly, dodging her hand when it darted out to slap me, jokingly.
“You ready?” I asked Chloe, who nodded, and then turned to Sarah, Chloe’s mom. “Are you?”
She nodded, flapping her own hands in front of her face to ward off the waterworks that were threatening. She blew Chloe a kiss and strode from the room to get into place and to collect herself a bit.
As soon as she did, I glanced around the room, feeling my heart swell as Jackson stepped forward, handsome as ever in his tux, and reached for his sister’s hand. He didn’t say anything, just smiled softly and kissed her forehead before motioning for us to precede them out of the room, holding tightly to her hand as he prepared to give her away.
It was a gorgeous ceremony; everything went smoothly and it couldn’t have been more picture perfect for them, and they didn’t deserve anything less.
We moved through the pictures and all the normal post-wedding/pre-reception requirements as quickly as possible so we could all get to celebrating. Chloe finally told me and Emma that Calland wasn’t bringing anyone to the wedding with him, but half an hour later while I was sitting at the head table eating my dinner, I realized she’d been lying when I noticed the blond girl sitting next to my brother.
I nudged Emma, who was seated to my right, jerking my chin at Calland when she looked my way. Her eyes widened and we both glared at Chloe, who wasn’t paying any attention until I elbowed her.
When she followed the direction of my gaze, she laughed out loud, shaking her head at us and shrugging unapologetically before she turned back to her new husband.
We didn’t get a chance to corner him until later, once we’d gotten the requisite wedding party dances out of the way,
and Chloe and Brandon had cut the cake.
Emma and I finally approached him as he was sitting with Mom and Dad and Jenna and Noah.
I held out my hand for her to shake as I introduced myself. He hadn’t said anything about dating anyone new, so I figured this must be one of the unfortunate sisters. The bad part? I couldn’t remember which one he was supposed to be with at the moment.
So I took a chance…and failed miserably, much to the delight of my sisters, and the comical horror of my brother.
“You must be Grace! Nice to finally meet you!”
She froze with her hand in mine, her eyes narrowing on me. “Um, no. I’m-”
I cut in again, trying to rectify the situation by letting her know that I did know her name…which I didn’t. “Lucy! I’m so sorry…I don’t know where…I…hi!” I finally finished, my cheeks pinched into a wide smile so fantastically fake it might as well have been plastic.
She pulled her hand from mine and gritted out, “Lilly. My name is Lilly.” With teeth still clenched, she turned to Calland (who was glaring at me, by the way) and asked, “Who’s Lucy? And why would she call me Grace? That’s my sister’s name…oh my God. You’re the douchcanoe!” She wailed the last part, then buried her face in her hands before standing abruptly and darting out of the room.
My eyes found Calland’s and I smiled sheepishly. “Wow. She picked up on that pretty quickly, huh? I uh, take it you didn’t tell her about her sister yet?”
He glared at me and then yelped as my mom swatted him, calling him a cad and man slut while my dad grunted with what sounded like muffled laughter.
“Jesus, Leah, what a way to ruin my date!” Calland growled. “I hadn’t had a chance to tell her yet.”
“Well, I’m sorry. I honestly thought I had the right name at first. It’s not my fault that you’re a whoredog,” I replied snarkily.
He sighed. “Oh well. The only reason I brought her was because I hadn’t figured out a way to tell her, yet, but that’s not how I wanted it to happen.” He puffed out a breath again and turned, mumbling about making sure she got home okay.
When he’d walked away, I noticed that the rest of my family was all looking at me and shaking their heads, but their lips were twitching with smiles.