She shook her head and chuckled. “Now those other little girls they sent in here to get you out of that bed might buy that. I’m sure you just batted those pretty eyes at them and they ran out of here giggling. That ain’t going to cut no mustard with me. You are getting up.”
He shook his head stubbornly and sent a furious glance over to Ian who was turning red from trying not to laugh. “This is not funny, amadan,” he hissed.
“Oh yeah, ‘tis,” Ian snickered. Looking at the nurse, he winked, “My other brother is out in the waiting room. Want us to get him up for you?”
James gasped in horror. “You wouldn’t, Ian. I’ll tear something loose if I get up and start moving around too fast. You wouldn’t want it on your conscience, forcing me to get out of this nice, soft bed and me on the very brink of expiring. I’m only thinking of you, you selfish bastard.”
“And Ma says I’m the dramatic one.” Ian rolled his eyes. “This nice lady here says you got to get up. They made me get up and walk around when I was in here, said I’d catch pneumonia if I didn’t,” he said, nodding to the nurse. “Isn’t that the way of it, ma’am?”
She nodded in agreement, happy to have someone in her corner. “That’s exactly right. Now don’t you go trying to butter me up,” she warned when James abruptly switched tactics and flashed her one of his famous heart stopping smiles, “I got a man at home just as pretty as you. His smiles don’t work on me, neither.”
James smiled for real when Lily walked in the room but brightened even more as Beth walked in right behind her. “What’s going on?” Beth asked, looking around at the varying facial expressions in the room.
The nurse appraised both women then asked James with a smile in her voice, “The rumor is that you proposed to your girlfriend since you’ve been in here. Which one is she?”
James gave Beth a puppy dog look of unabashed adoration. “That beauteous red haired lass there,” he sighed. “Ain’t she the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen?”
“Mmm-hmm.” Mrs. Watson immediately turned to Beth to enlist her aid. “He’s got to get up out that bed and walk if you plan on getting him out of here any time soon.”
Beth nodded and walked over to the bed, bent over and whispered something in his ear. Closing his eyes, James whimpered and nodded. She whispered something else and he beamed up at her as she held out her hand. He sat up slowly and with several overly dramatic, bone wrenching groans and with Mrs. Watson’s assistance, pulled himself up to a standing position next to the bed. Ian called in Sean and the two brothers took up positions on either side. “He needs to walk around the floor as much as he can to start building his strength back up,” the nurse directed.
Ian took one arm, Sean took the other and the three brothers shuffled out of the room, followed closely by the triumphant nurse. Lily and Beth sat down on the couch to await their return. Her curiosity getting the best of her, Lily blurted out, “Okay, I’ve got to know. What did you say to him to get him to move? Ian said they’ve been trying all day.”
Beth gave her a knowing smile. “I just asked him if it were possible to make love standing up, and if it is, how did he expect to do that lying down?”
Several days later, Beth and Lily were in Beth’s living room packing up the non essentials and getting them ready to store in James’s unfurnished bedroom. “I’m going to miss this apartment,” Beth said. “I’ve got a lot of good memories from here.”
“Me too,” Lily agreed. She pulled a stack of dust-covered magazines from the bottom of the bookcase and sneezed when several good sized dust bunnies flew up into her face. She blew them away with an unladylike snort. “There are geometry workbooks here from middle school. Why are you keeping these?”
Shrugging her shoulders, Beth motioned towards the rapidly filling trash bags. “In there,” she said with an imperious wave of her hand. “This place really needs a good cleaning out. I had no idea I was such a pack rat.”
Lily giggled. Beth never threw anything away if she could help it, just in case she were ever to need whatever it was, and they both knew it. Dusting her hands off, she grabbed two more empty liquor boxes from the stack in the kitchen. Puffing a stray curl from her eyes, Beth flopped down on the couch and reached into her card box. “I didn’t pull a card this morning; I stayed at the hospital again last night.”
“Have they said yet when they’re releasing him?” Lily asked.
“Not yet. Maybe another week,” she said. “They just want to make sure everything’s okay, considering all the chest pains he was having before…” Spreading the deck across the table top, Beth pulled a card from the center. The Fool, she smiled. “The beginning of a journey. I guess a new life with my new husband would qualify. I still can’t get my head around the idea that I’m getting married. Me, of all people, marrying a rock star. You know, I still have the poster of him up in my bedroom. So many mornings I’d wake up, see his grinning face up on the wall and think I dreamt the whole thing.” She chuckled at the thought and stuck the card back in the deck.
Lily didn’t say anything as she lifted row after row of paperback books off the shelves and stacked them neatly in a box. She smiled at some of the titles, all historical romances. Beth glanced up from her reading and cautioned, “Don’t bother packing those - I’m donating them to the library.”
Lily’s mouth dropped open in undisguised shock. “You’re getting rid of all of them?” she asked. Feigning a swoon, she put her wrist to her forehead and flopped back on the floor. “Highlanders and pirates and rogues – oh, my!” she heaved in a dramatic sigh.
Beth gave her a softly curving smile. “I’m living my own romance novel now,” she said quietly, “and nothing in those books can compare to that.” Moving to sit next to Lily, she picked up one and gestured at the cover. “My Seamus is better looking than any of these men, and I know he loves me.” Her voice broke as she continued. “I doubted him – doubted both of us – for so long. This sweet, wonderful man actually threw himself in front of a bullet for me.” She swiped a tear away with the back of her hand and waved at the growing tower of paperbacks. “I don’t need a fantasy hero anymore,” she grinned, “I’ve got the real thing.”
She tossed the book back onto the pile and rose. “C’mon, let’s take a break. It’s dusty in here, and I’m parched.” As one, the two women scrambled to their feet and headed for the kitchen. Beth pulled out two cans of diet soda but before sitting down with Lily, she walked to the front door and poked her head outside. “Can I get you guys something to drink?” she asked the two large, muscular men stationed on either side of the doorway.
“No ma’am, Miss Vargo– we’re good,” they assured her. “Just let us know if you need anything.”
“I will, thanks,” Beth smiled, reclosing the door. Rejoining Lily in the kitchen, the women sat down at the small butcher-block table to enjoy their break.
“That’s gotta be weird–your very own bodyguards,” Lily remarked, glancing uneasily towards the door.
Beth sighed. “It is, but Seamus and Spider both insisted. You know…just in case.”
Suppressing a shiver, Lily changed the subject. “So what’s going to happen with the band?” Lily asked.
“They’re not breaking up,” Beth announced with a happy grin. “They’re just going to take the year off they all wanted. That works out well; Seamus is going to need time to build up his strength again.” She popped the can open, took a sip and continued. “He and the rest of the band are going to be meeting with their new manager sometime next month, and my understanding is that they’ve already got venues booked for the comeback tour. Spider’s signed on as their new road master.”
Lily cupped a hand to her mouth and asked in a conspiratorial whisper, “So…do you think you can get me good seats for the first show?”
Beth laughed outright at that. “I can’t believe I’m actually going to be traveling the world with him. They’re not going to be playing nearly as many dates as they were before, though, so
they won’t get so burned out.”
“I guess Meg’s going to be looking for help at the gypsy tent again,” Lily pointed out. “She’s not going to be happy about losing her best Tarot reader.”
“Meg was giving Seamus and Ian both hell the other night at the hospital for – and I quote – “using my place of business as your own personal hen house, stealing my best employees out from under me very nose,” Beth repeated in a good imitation of Meg’s lilting accent. “I mentioned the only unmarried Kelly left now is Heather and asked who we could fix her up with from the park. Meg damn near took my head off.”
Lily burst into laughter as she got up to investigate the freshness of a clipped bag of chips on the counter. “Poor Meg,” she giggled, then frowned. “What’s this?” she asked, pulling at the sheet of paper taped to the front of the fridge.
“Oh, that. I did a reading right after that estate attorney or whoever he was came asking about me at the Castle office. You know, no one ever did contact me about any will,” Beth wondered aloud. “Anyway, you were still on your honeymoon. I saved it to ask you about. I think I was a little too close to the subject matter at the time to be objective about it.”
Peeling the edges of the tape away from the refrigerator surface, Lily took the paper and sat down at the table with Beth. She studied the reading for a long time before asking, “This is about James?”
Beth nodded and traced the path of the Celtic Cross with her finger. “A lot more of it makes sense now. The Queen of Wands is me, of course. Crossing me is the Page of Swords reversed which are all the lies about me breaking up the band. Seamus is the Knight of Wands at the base, and the Moon reversed was our relationship being made public. The three of Swords is betrayal, when Aaron leaked the tabloid story and the ten of Swords…well, that’s easy enough.” Beth shuddered when she thought of how close they came to losing him. “The four of Swords is his recovery, and the Star is everybody being so supportive.”
She took a long sip of her soda and continued. “Now, I had to think back about the ten of Cups. Right after the rehearsal dinner…”
“…where you left James scratching his head in the parking lot,” Lily interjected with a happy laugh. “He was so upset – he stomped back inside the restaurant and accused Ian of scaring you off. I thought they were going to come to blows over it.”
Beth giggled. “Anyway, I did a reading when I got home asking what Seamus was after and it said what he truly wanted was happiness and family bliss. That was the hope card in this reading too. And the four of Wands will be our wedding as the outcome. I still don’t understand this one, though.”
Lily followed Beth’s finger to the King of Wands as the Clarifier card. She studied the reading again, but after only a few minutes snapped her fingers and broke into a wide smile. “I got it,” she exclaimed. “James is the Knight of Wands here, she said, pointing to the Base card. “This was the present when you did the original reading; it’s now in the past. Now the Clarifier is the King. What happens to Knights when they grow up, m’dear?”
Beth’s own smile was radiant. “They become Kings,” she said.
* * * *
Just over a week later, James said in an awe-filled voice, “I’ve sung in front of thousands of people and I don’t recall ever being this feckin’ nervous.” The light Gulf breeze tossed his hair about his face as he stood on the white sands behind the Don CeSar hotel.
“You’ll be fine,” Ian assured him, “it doesn’t take long, shouldn’t hurt too much and then it’s all over.” He grinned and straightened the rose boutonniere pinned to the lapel of James’s white tuxedo. “Just don’t lock your knees,” he added, “or you’ll pass out. You’re not completely recovered and I’m sure you’ll not want to be spending your wedding night back in the hospital.”
James nodded in agreement. “Ma’s still in shock, I think. I just didn’t want to wait for the planning for a big wedding, and neither did Beth. The whole family’s here, so why not? When I’m better we can all get together again and have the mother of all wedding receptions,” he laughed.
Ian chuckled. “You never were a patient one, Seamus. Why should your wedding be any different?” He looked around and nodded with approval. “It’s amazing what a couple of motivated women can put together with a little notice. We chose well, you and I.”
Under the bridal trellis laden with white hibiscus blossoms, the minister abruptly cleared his throat for silence. At his nod, the string quartet began to play.
The matron of honor walked slowly towards the arch, smiling at the gathered company of family and friends seated in folding chairs. Lily’s crimson chiffon bridesmaid’s gown fluttered as the breeze caught it, showing a little bit of thigh just above the knee length hem. James smiled when he caught her eye. She grinned back at him, eyes bright with happy tears.
Lily took her spot by the minister, clasping her bouquet of tropical blooms. The music played on for another moment, then stopped for a long beat as the sweet sound of a solitary classical guitar to fill the air. The guitarist bent low over his instrument, coaxing out the intricate notes of “Pachelbel´s Canon in D.” The assembled guests turned as one to look back at the dunes and stood as the bride approached. A vision in white satin ruffles and lace, Beth smiled tremulously at James through her long veil as she walked slowly up the aisle.
Oh, darlin’, he thought, a tear slipping down his cheek, I have got to be the luckiest man on earth to be marrying a woman as wonderful as you. Unable to stop himself, he stepped from under the arch and met her halfway down the aisle, offering his arm to escort her. She accepted it with a shy smile, and he led her back to the waiting minister.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here…” the clergyman began. James couldn’t tear his eyes away from Beth. When it came to repeating his vows his voice was soft yet full of conviction as he slid the golden band onto her finger.
I, Seamus, take you Lisbeth to be my beloved wife, my friend, my lover, my partner in life and my one true love. I promise to cherish and honor you, to encourage and inspire you. I promise to love you more each day than I did the day before. I promise to trust and respect you, to laugh and cry with you, to love you without wavering through good times and bad, regardless of the challenges we may face together. I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward for as long as we both shall live.
So entranced by the beautiful man standing next to her, Beth had to be prompted to repeat the vows they had written together. Her hands trembled as she placed the heavy gold ring on his finger.
I, Lisbeth, take you Seamus to be my beloved husband, my friend, my lover, my partner in life and my one true love…
Together they repeated the Irish Vow of Unity:
We swear by peace and love to stand, heart to heart and hand in hand.
Mark, O Spirit, and hear us now, confirming this, our Sacred Vow.
James and Beth smiled radiantly as the minister completed the ceremony. “And so, by the power vested in me by the State of Florida, I now pronounce you man and wife.” After a long pause, he added with a wink, “You may now kiss the bride.”
James raised the edges of her veil then cupped her face in both hands. “Mine,” he said in a reverent whisper, then brushed her lips with his own.
“Mine,” she murmured against his mouth. She raised her arms to encircle his neck and his crept around her waist, pulling her tightly to him. Their kiss was long and sweet as they sealed their promise to each other.
His eyes glowed when he whispered, “So what do you think, Mrs. Kelly? Do you believe me now or do I have still some more convincing to do?”
She thought for a moment then answered with a sigh, “I guess I’ll believe you…” but her eyes sparkled when she added, “…for now.”
Epilogue
Three months later
“I look a right fool. I’m not coming out,” the disembodied voice called petulantly from the dressing room. The Castle Wilde wardrobe director glanced helplessly
at the door. Looking first to Beth then back at the door again, she wrung her hands in dismay.
“Oh yes, you are,” Beth chirped. She turned and admired herself in the mirror as Lily and an extremely pregnant Meg looked on. “I’m thinking I make a rather good Highland lassie,” she remarked with a toss of her head. Her white linen shirt was in sharp contrast with the red and black Bruce plaid skirt she wore and the effect was dramatic.
“It’s all that beautiful red hair,” Meg said. “You look as Scottish as Leslie.”
“Please James, you need to come out,” Lily coaxed. “We want to see.”
His tone now undeniably irascible, he snapped, “Where is your feckin’ no-good husband and why isn’t he here doing this too?”
“I have no idea, but he’s not getting out of it either. He can’t hide forever,” Lily assured him.
Beth rejoined her voice to the effort. “Please, Sweetie?”
A long-suffering sigh drifted out from behind the dressing room door and within moments, it swung open slowly. James stepped out and four mouths fell open. Dressed for promotional photos of the Highland games, he had donned the tartan of King Robert the Bruce and looked every inch a nobleman. He wore no shirt, just the plaid slung carelessly over one shoulder, covering the small scar near his heart. The kilt caught him just below mid thigh, and the leather strapped boots were butter soft. Around his neck he wore a golden torque and gold bands of intricate Celtic knot work adorned his upper arms. At his side, a claymore lay nestled securely in a double-looped leather belt. His arm bracers were leather, and he looked-like he had just stepped off the cover of a Highlander romance novel.
The fierce scowl on his face softened when Beth rushed forward, a look of utter adoration on her face. “A braw and bonny Laird to be sure,” she said in a soft Scots brogue. She dropped into a deep curtsey adding, “And ‘tis my fondest wish that grantin’ me a small boon ye’ll be.”
The Gypsy Ribbon Page 30