by Bella Andre
Ari put her hand to her mouth, tears of love and joy glistening in her eyes. “He’s adorable. I love him so much, I’m going to cry.”
Gideon reached for Ari’s hand and squeezed it tight. He knew exactly how his sister felt.
Normally, the ring bearer would take a seat in the first row, but Noah marched right on by, following Will and Rosie. When it was his turn, he would stand between Matt and his best man, Will. It was exactly right; Ari was taking them both into her heart forever.
Then the pianist changed songs, signaling that it was Ari’s turn. With his heart in his throat, Gideon led his sister to the top of the aisle and waited for their signal from the wedding planner. In moments, he would give her away to her future husband. It was an awesome responsibility. One that meant more to him than Ari or Matt would ever know.
At last, Rosie and Will reached the front and separated to walk up the steps to the stage on either side of the groom and officiant. As Rosie turned to take her position, across the seemingly vast distance, their eyes met…and even though he knew it was crazy, he let himself imagine he was walking down that aisle to meet her. As if she were his future. His forever.
Of course, she wasn’t. She never could be.
But even Gideon, a man with a past that felt far too huge to overcome, had his secret dreams.
Chapter Five
Ari was radiant in her elegant gown, her hand looped through Gideon’s muscular arm as he walked her down the aisle. They were brother and sister through and through, his hair a darker blond, his face tanned from years spent working outdoors, but their eyes were the same blue.
When Gideon’s eyes had met Rosie’s just moments ago, she could have sworn she felt a thread of deep connection. Maybe it was simply their mutual love for Ari…but it had felt like more. Like something special was taking place between the two of them. Special enough that his walls were starting to drop, whether he intended that or not.
Seated in the first row with Susan and Bob Spencer, Jorge gave Rosie a thumbs-up for making it down the aisle without tripping in her heels. She’d been afraid she might. Oh, how she loved her kid with all her heart and soul. Though he could sometimes be a handful, especially around bath time, at least he still let her give him butterfly kisses on his cheeks—and when he was really tired at night, he still liked to curl up on her lap.
Matt’s expression as he watched his bride come down the aisle—as though Ari was nothing short of a miracle and he was the luckiest man alive—brought fresh tears to Rosie’s eyes.
Everything about the wedding was absolutely perfect, from Ari’s dress, to the flowers, to the song she’d chosen for her walk down the aisle. Her bouquet cascaded with pink peonies, peach orchids, white magnolias, and red roses. The bridesmaids carried mini versions. The garland of flowers in Ari’s hair matched the colors of her bouquet. The piano version of “The Rose” by Bette Midler was the ideal metaphor for the way Ari had blossomed to life with Matt and Noah.
Rosie would never forget their days in foster care, the hard times when they’d turned eighteen and were sent out into a world they weren’t prepared for. Then meeting Jorge’s father—and falling for his lies. Jorge’s birth. All three of them—Ari, Chi, and Rosie—had come so far. In the moments before she would reach out to take Ari’s bouquet, Rosie touched Chi’s fingers, curling their pinkies together the way they had when they were girls. She felt Chi’s smile straight through to her heart and smiled just as wide.
This was Ari’s fairy tale come true. And it was absolutely perfect.
Of course, thinking about fairy tales and Prince Charming shot her gaze straight to Gideon, standing so tall, so handsome, so proud beside his sister.
Rosie was surprised—and instantly breathless—when he turned his intense blue gaze on her again. Was it an artist or a writer who’d said the eyes were the windows to the soul? She was pretty sure they had been talking about the Mona Lisa’s eyes. Someday Rosie would take Jorge to see the famous painting. For years, she’d saved every extra dime so that they could walk through the Louvre in Paris and stand mere feet away from Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece.
For now, however, she could dream about painting Gideon’s eyes. Eyes that were faded blue when he was buried deep in the past, pale blue when he was standing on the edge of a party he wasn’t sure he should join, dark and stormy blue when someone he loved was threatened, a beautiful ocean blue when he was with the boys. And right now, sky blue with happiness, with joy.
Yes, someday she would take Jorge to the Louvre. And maybe someday she could also help Gideon to be ocean blue or sky blue all the time, every day.
She’d always been a wishful thinker. Even in the worst of times.
Rosie snapped out of her daydreams as Ari turned to give Gideon a hug, then let go of him and lifted her skirts to run up the stairs to Matt.
Matt met his bride halfway, capturing her tightly in his arms and kissing her as he swung her around, to the delight of every wedding guest. Finally, he let her back down, and together they walked to the center of the stage, with Gideon still standing at the base of the stairs.
The music faded, and the officiant turned a page of his book. “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”
Rosie was sure she saw Gideon’s eyes change to a soft baby blue. She had never seen him cry, but in this moment, she knew he was close.
“I do,” he said as he climbed the stairs, his deep voice hoarse, as if the words were almost too much. “For my parents who can’t be here. And for myself.” He kissed Ari gently on the cheek, whispering something that made her tear up.
Then Matt briefly let go of Ari’s hand to give Gideon a one-armed hug. “Thank you,” he said softly enough that only the attendants on stage could hear. “I’ll take care of her, I swear.”
“I know you will,” Gideon said, his voice solid again, but no less full of emotion. “I trust you to take care of my sister. To love her. And to stand by her side forever.”
For Rosie, the two men’s softly spoken words to each other and their mutual love for Ari made one of the most poignant moments she’d ever witnessed.
Then Gideon left the stage to take the empty seat reserved for him on the end of the first row, next to Jorge.
The officiant smiled down at Noah. “Who gives this man to be married to this woman?”
Noah stepped forward, taking his father’s hand tight in his. “I do.” His little boy’s voice rang out true and clear. “I give him to my mommy forever and ever.”
As Noah raised his hands to join Matt’s and Ari’s together, the makeup artist’s reminders not to ruin her hard work were forgotten by one and all. When Ari handed her bouquet to Rosie, she had to pull her friend into a hug, and Chi immediately joined. Tears were streaming down both Rosie’s and Chi’s faces as they whispered, “I’m so happy for you,” just as Ari said, “I love you both.”
Other than the night Jorge was born, this was the best day of their lives.
Rosie brushed her tears from her cheeks as the officiant began. “We are gathered here today to witness the marriage of Matt Tremont and Ariana Jones. Matt, would you like to begin by saying the vows you have written?”
Matt held tight to Ari’s hands as he looked deep into her eyes. “I love you,” he said, the three words resonating out to everyone at the wedding. “Until I met you, I was little more than a hollowed-out shell, faking my way through life. But you not only saw the real man inside me, you also made me believe I could shed the dark shadows from my past to truly become a better man. A good man. A trustworthy man. The kind of friend and father and partner I always longed to be. A man who will love you, just as Noah so perfectly put it—” Matt smiled at his son before turning his gaze back to Ari. “—forever and ever.”
Though Ari’s eyes were gleaming with tears from Matt’s beautiful vows, her voice was steady and strong. “The first time I met you, I lost my breath. Not just because you were so handsome, but because I could see in your eyes what a wond
erful man you are. And when I met Noah…” She let go of one of Matt’s hands to take Noah’s, with Matt doing the same, demonstrating to one and all that they were a tight-knit family circle. “I knew I would always love both of you, no matter what. With you, the dark shadows of my past can’t scare me anymore. With you, I finally know the kind of happiness I hadn’t dared to dream of. For richer or poorer, in sickness and health, wherever life takes the three of us—” She bent down to give Noah a kiss on the cheek, getting a fairy dusting of his gold paint on her lips. “—I’m yours, Matt and Noah Tremont. Forever and ever.”
The officiant had to clear his throat before saying, “By the power vested in me by the State of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Matt, you may now kiss your bride.”
Matt put his hand to Ari’s cheek, his gaze soft, his touch loving. At another wedding, they might have given each other a hot, sexy kiss, a bend-her-over-his-arm-and-ravish-her kiss, but with Noah looking on, Matt and Ari’s kiss was gentle, binding them into a family.
Rosie smiled, certain that the ravish-her kiss would come later…and go on and on and on, if Ari’s blushes whenever she dropped a tidbit about their love life were anything to go by.
At last, the officiant called, “I give you the Tremont family.”
Matt, Ari, and Noah descended the stairs together to the “Feather Theme” from Forrest Gump. It was so sweet, so beautiful, so simple. And Noah was adorable in his robot helmet and gold-and-black makeup.
Rosie took Will’s proffered arm when it was her turn to descend the steps. As they passed Gideon and her darling kid, she heard Jorge whisper, “Isn’t she the prettiest mom ever, Gid?”
Though she didn’t turn to see his reaction, she felt Gideon’s eyes on her like a physical touch. “Yeah, kiddo,” he said in that low voice that sent thrill bumps running up her spine. “She sure is.”
Chapter Six
“I swear,” Chi said with a happy sigh as she clinked her champagne glass with Rosie’s an hour later, “that was the most beautiful wedding in the world. Especially when Noah gave Matt away. Did you know he was going to do that?”
Rosie shook her head. “I asked Jorge if Noah said anything to him about it, but he just zipped his lips like it was a big secret.”
“Adorable,” Chi said.
Rosie agreed, looking over at the boys, who were once again fascinated by Henri the peacock. The bird had wandered onto the dance floor, his tail feathers swishing behind him, and the docent was helping Jorge, Noah, and Jeremy place a trail of breadcrumbs to tempt Henri back to the grass. By now, Noah had taken off the robot helmet, the paint on his face, and the black ducting on his arms and legs.
They’d finished the wedding-party photos—with and then without the robot costumes—and now Ari and Matt were posing for the bride-and-groom shots while the rest of the guests enjoyed refreshments and appetizers. The drinks were prepared with antenna-shaped swizzle sticks, which Jorge and Noah ran to collect whenever a glass was emptied, and the appetizers were served on gear-tipped toothpicks.
Though Gideon stood at the opposite end of the bar nursing a beer, he didn’t join Rosie and Chi. Instead, he remained alone, all of his thick walls back in place in the wake of the emotions that had obviously been roiling through him during the ceremony.
Rosie’s chest ached with longing to reach for him, to make him smile with gentle teasing. Not simply because she wanted to help heal him…but because she liked him. Liked him enough to want him to be happy. Truly happy.
Just as Matt and Ari had said to each other during their vows, sometimes the dark shadows from your past could be so thick that you got lost inside them. Chi and Ari had helped pull Rosie from that darkness.
But would Gideon ever allow anyone to help him?
Now that his photographs were done, he’d loosened his bow tie. To Rosie, he had never looked sexier. The man was positively mouthwatering.
Chi homed in on Rosie’s gaze. “He’s so sweet to have paid for the whole wedding, even splurging for the pianist from the San Jose Symphony.” Chi spoke in a voice low enough that Gideon couldn’t hear.
Gideon wouldn’t let the Mavericks pay for a thing, even though they were all as rich as Croesus. Gideon had lived on the cheap for years, moving from place to place so he could follow construction work, and he’d arrived in the Bay Area with nothing more than a duffel bag. And still, he had granted Ari’s every wish as though he were a genie.
“Ari said the guys finally stopped trying to give him money to help out when he refused to take even a penny.” Rosie tugged on a strap of her dress that had started to fall off her shoulder. She thought she saw Gideon’s gaze land on her bare skin, before skittering away as Daniel and the other Mavericks came up beside him.
Daniel clapped Gideon on the back. “You did a great job up there.” His voice was loud enough to carry to Rosie and Chi.
“Ari’s happy. That’s the only thing that matters.” Yet again, Gideon refused to take any credit.
Daniel had loosened his tie along with removing the black ducting from his arms and legs, as had all the Mavericks. His white tux jacket was undone, revealing his cummerbund. “I predict that in no time, you’re going to have your own construction empire.” He turned to Evan, Sebastian, and Will. “Another billionaire, I guarantee it.”
Gideon was a master of the impassive expression, likely something he’d learned in the military. But Rosie thought she could see something flicker through him as Daniel heaped him with praise—a combination of surprised pride, swiftly followed by disbelief that the praise was anything more than Daniel blowing smoke.
“Ready to break ground on the first warehouse?” Daniel asked.
Gideon nodded, a spark finally coming into his eyes, his excitement over the warehousing project getting the better of his natural reticence—especially when the other guys started asking technical questions.
Chi moved to block Rosie’s view of Gideon. “You’ve got it bad, girl.” Again, she spoke in a low voice no one else would overhear.
Rosie blinked in surprise at her friend. For all that they usually shared everything with each other, she had never admitted to either Chi or Ari just how much Gideon affected her. Not only how attractive she found him, but also how deeply he tugged at her heart. “Is it that obvious?”
“Only to anyone within singeing distance,” Chi replied with a playful smile. “The sparks the two of you have been shooting off today with all your secret glances have been totally hot.”
Hope lit in Rosie’s heart. “I wasn’t sure if I’d imagined the way he looked at me.”
“You aren’t imagining a thing,” Chi confirmed. “However much he might be trying to fight it, Ari’s brother has it just as bad for you as you have for him. The question is, what are you going to do about it?”
The billion-dollar question. “Gideon is a tough nut to crack.”
“Maybe I should buy you a huge nutcracker?” Chi suggested. She had a flair for the dramatic.
Though Rosie smiled at Chi’s teasing suggestion, she knew that was just the problem—Gideon was already cracked. Her heart ached with how badly she wanted to help mend his fractured soul by showing him that he was amazing, loving, caring, strong, and wonderful.
Before Chi could push her more on the subject, the DJ started the music, the “Feather Theme” again, and Ari and Matt entered their reception.
Ari clapped her hands to her mouth first when she saw all the robot-themed decorations and then again when Sebastian, looking like he would burst with pride, whipped the cover off another big surprise—Charlie’s champagne fountain. It was a cross between the Wizard of Oz’s Tin Man and the Lost in Space robot, and Charlie had added additional arms sticking out all around the fountain.
“You guys are amazing!” Ari said, laughing and crying at the same time.
Matt was grinning like a crazy person. Or like the happiest man in the entire world now that he had his friends, his son, and his wife to complete him.
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Ari was clearly awestruck as she picked up a crystal flute and tipped it under one of the fountain’s hands, marveling when the robot’s face plate lit up, swirling with reds and greens and yellows and blues like one of those old mood rings, and then the champagne flowed into her glass.
Noah wrapped an arm around Ari’s leg. “Can I try?”
Charlie bent down to his level. “I made a special arm for you and all the kids here today.” She gave him a glass and told him to hold it under an arm that stretched out from the robot’s hip, until his glass filled with lemonade.
“Me too, please!” Jorge was practically shaking with excitement as he filled his glass. “Wow,” he said with such wonder he might have been looking at the paintings in the Sistine Chapel. “This is so cool.”
Ari pulled Charlie into a hug. “It’s amazing, Charlie. Thank you so much.”
“You’re awesome, as always, Charlie.” Matt toasted her. “Thank you.”
“It was a labor of love,” Charlie replied, her cheeks beginning to turn as red as her dress. She grinned as she added, “I thought you could put it to good use at the barbecues at your house.”
“You mean the margarita parties,” Sebastian quipped, his arm tight around Charlie’s waist as he held her close.
Noah tugged at Ari’s dress to get her attention. “Me and Jorge helped with all the Legos on the tables.”
Ari stroked his hair. “They’re amazing. And you’re awesome, sweetie. Thank you.” Then she tapped Jorge’s nose fondly. “And you too. You guys are the best.”
“So tell me how it all works.” Of course, as the robot guy, Matt needed to know all the particulars.
While Charlie described her magnificent machine, the rest of the guests lined up to fill their glasses from the fountain. Gideon backed away, slowly, as if he didn’t want anyone to notice him.
But Rosie noticed.
Her heart fluttered with emotion—and desire. The desire to bring him back, to help him be a part of things, to show him how wanted and needed he was.