by BJ Harvey
I struggle against the large lump in my throat as Mr. Baker turns to his daughter and murmurs something for her ears only before placing Faith’s hand in mine.
The moment we touch, I know that everything that led us here was worth it. Would I do it again? Hell no. Knowing what I know now, I’d have married her at twenty-two and gone wherever she wanted to go.
There is one regret I have that Faith’s surprise wedding has now granted me the opportunity to rectify. It’s something I set in motion as soon as I realized what Faith had done today. My wife deserves a wedding night she will never forget, and tonight, once the festivities here are over, we’ll be having a very long, very late, well overdue celebration of our own.
Because I’d move heaven and earth for this woman. I’d do anything to make her happy. I’ll take her back when she needs me. I’ll encourage her always. I’ll love her forever.
She’s not the only one who knew they’d only ever get married once.
There is—and only ever will be—one woman with my ring on her finger, who belongs at my side, whose taken my name and when the time comes, who will build a family with me.
The same woman stands opposite me, her eyes wet with tears, her hands shaking in mine, and her ruby-red lips curved into a smile I desperately want to taste right now.
“Fuck it,” I mutter before stepping forward, wrapping my hand around the back of her head and slamming my mouth down on hers.
Everyone else ceases to exist. The only thing that matters is Faith’s hands on my hips holding on for dear life and her breathy moans echoing in my head. When I tear my lips from hers and lean my forehead down, nothing could be more perfect than this moment right here. Right now.
“If you’re quite finished, maybe we should get the vows out of the way before you two start up again?” Jamie muses, earning a laugh from our family and friends.
“Talk quick,” I say, my eyes still locked on my wife’s hooded ones.
“Impatient much?” Jax retorts from behind me.
I smirk. “Have you seen how beautiful my wife is? Would you wanna wait?”
“Point taken,” he says with a laugh.
“Right. If Tweedledee and Tweedledum here would control themselves for a few minutes, we’ll get this show on the road,” Jamie says, garnering everyone’s attention. “Since these two crazy cats are already legally married thanks to my brother and his crazy plans, we aren’t required to abide by any of the normal formalities. With this in mind, Faith would like to say a few words to her husband.”
“Actually,” I say, surprised I still have the ability to speak. “I have one thing I’d like to do.” Faith’s eyes widen, her lips parting.
I run my thumbs over the top of her knuckles. “I know you’ve organized everything, but I need a do-over.” She scrunches up her nose, and it takes everything I have not to kiss her breathless.
“Well then, looks like these two crazy cats are determined to keep us guessing,” Jamie says, his voice full of amusement.
“Thanks, Jay,” I say with a chuckle, before shutting out everyone around us. I take a slow, deep breath, not once taking my gaze off my beautiful wife. “The first time I asked, it was the right thing at the wrong time. The last time, it was so much less than you deserved. So now, I’m gonna make sure I do it right.” Without breaking eye contact, I lower myself on one knee, still holding her left hand. Her other hand goes over her heart. I’m going to take care of you, babycakes because you’re mine and I’m never letting you go again.
“Faith Marie Cook, will you do me the honor of staying my wife, no fears, no doubts, all in and forever?” I marvel at the wonder of waterproof makeup as tears pool in her eyes and fall onto her cheeks. She bends at the waist, cups my jaw in her favorite way, and against my lips, whispers, “I’m yours. Always have been and always will.”
I stand, taking her with me. I gently tangle my fingers in her hair, kissing her soft and sweet, taking my sweet-ass time doing it. I try to compose myself and at the same time, steal a small pocket of time just for us—even if we are in front of thirty of our nearest and dearest.
Jamie coughs and grins wide when Faith and I slowly pull apart, and I glare at him.
“People to remarry, food and drinks to be consumed,” he says.
“I am pretty hungry, Dad,” my best boy says. He laughs when I narrow my eyes at him.
Jamie winks at his son and looks to the crowd behind us. “Now, it’s Faith’s turn to say her own vows… amongst other things…” he says cryptically.
I look back to Faith, my brows bunched, my curiosity piqued. As if sensing it, she gives my hands a gentle squeeze before opening her mouth and proceeding to blow my ever-loving mind.
Then again, given the lengths she’s gone to today to guarantee I know I’m it for her just as much as she’s always been it for me, should I really be surprised?
26
Faith
With both of Bry’s hands in mine, I take a deep breath in and slowly exhale. It’s normal to be nervous, right?
“Bry, twenty-seven years ago I was sitting in my front yard, probably being ignored by my annoying big brother and sister—”
“Hey!” Delilah gasps.
“Probably true,” Ez says with a laugh.
I frown but end up poking my tongue out at both of them.
Bryant’s eyes are dancing when I look back at him, but he’s nodding. “Definitely true,” he mouths, and I can’t stop a snort escaping my lips.
“You were my first best friend, my first—and only—great love, my first husband…” Bry’s eyes widen, making my lips twitch, but I don’t let it sway me. I’ve waited long enough for this. “Now I know right down to the bottom of my soul that you’re going to be my last everything too. But before Jax hurries us along so he can hit the bar, there are two more firsts to get out of the way.” Bry’s brows bunch together, his eyes narrowing adorably, then there’s a dangerous gleam there.
“But I thought you said it was exit only?” he whispers just loud enough for those closest to us to hear—Jamie, Jax, the wives, and the sister’s ears only. Thank God Axel is clueless.
“Bryant…” I teasingly scold, biting my lip as I try not to burst out laughing.
“Ez?” I ask, calling him over. He walks toward us, a white A4 envelope in his hand.
When he reaches us, he puts his hand on my shoulder and leans in to kiss my cheek before handing me surprise number two for the day. Turning to Bry, he holds his hand out and shakes it before pulling him in for a man hug.
“No kiss on the cheek?” Jax pipes up, a huge smirk on his face.
“Fuck off, Jax,” Bry and Ez say in unison, earning a laugh from everyone watching the exchange.
I wait until Ez has retaken his seat before looking down at my hands, my fingers crinkling the paper with a nervously tight grip.
“Faith?” Bryant says, soft and low, as if for my ears only. “What is it? ’Cause if you’re about to tell me you’re moving to Antarctica to study penguins, then I guess I’m stocking up on snow gear.”
And somehow, that’s all I need to know that whatever comes at us, whatever we have to conquer in life from this point on, we’ll make it because we’ll always do it together.
“No penguins,” I reply with a wry smile. I lift my head to watch his face as I hold out the first surprise for him. “It’s hard to make a home if we’re living on the other side of the world.”
He purses his lips and studies me before he opens the envelope and pulls out a folded piece of paper. His gaze drops to the page as he reads the words before his head jerks up, his eyes wide, his lips parting. His breath catches.
He looks from Jamie, then back to me. “What?”
“C’mon, Bry, what is it?” Ez calls out.
“You… how?” he stutters, blinking rapidly as his eyes dart down to the paper then back up again.
“Pending approval from my husband, the owner has agreed to let us buy the pile of sticks we helped turn into a ho
me.”
I shoot another glance at Jamie, who’s grinning huge now, chuckling quietly at Bryant’s shock.
Bry’s mouth gapes, but he quickly snaps it closed again. His expression full of wonder as he takes a step forward to close the remaining distance between us. He cradles my jaw and leans in to touch his head to mine.
“You bought us the house?”
I reach out and rest my hands on his hips. “It’s where we found each other again. It’s where I fell even more in love with you than I already was—and that was already a hell of a lot. It’s our first house as a married couple. Why not make it our future home?”
“Wrecking ball?”
“Total destruction of any doubt that I’m going to be anywhere except by your side for the rest of our lives,” I whisper.
“I love you.”
“I love you too.” Then he tilts his head, runs a hand into my hair, and kisses me with so much feeling, I’m barely able to stay standing.
Jamie clears his throat, and I’m smiling as we finally pull apart. Tears fall down my face at the happiness and absolute peace I find in Bryant’s eyes.
I turn to look at April, Ronnie, Delilah, and even Abi and find every one of them crying. Then I look at Ezra, who’s beaming with pride, and my parents and the Cooks, who are all grinning at each other, and Axel, whose cute little brows are drawn together in complete and utter confusion.
“Bry, do you have anything you want to say?” Jamie asks.
Bryant is full of wonder and surprise, his shock still plain to see. He turns around and hands the purchase and sale agreement for the house to Jax, who cups a hand on Bry’s shoulder and nods approvingly at him before letting him go. Facing me again, Bry snakes an arm around my waist and draws me in close.
“I remember what you said to me in this very same backyard when I was a clueless thirteen-year-old. I remember you telling me even way back then that you were only ever going to get married once, and when you said I do, your husband would know that you meant it and that he’d be the only man you’d ever love from that day forward.”
I suck in a breath, my eyes flooding with tears.
He reaches up and sweeps my cheeks with his thumbs, his love, and adoration completely undeniable. “I knew the first time I saw you again that this was the chance I’d been waiting the last twelve years for, and that I would do absolutely everything in my power to make sure you’d never wanna leave again. What I didn’t count on was it being the easiest fight of my life because every step of the way, you’ve been right there with me.”
“You’d already won me the day I met you,” I whisper, loving the way his gaze turns soft.
“And every day for the rest of our lives, I’m going to be there. Through the hard times, the easy times, the challenging and the fantastic times, I’ll be there. I want to build a life with you, a family. I want everything with you because that’s exactly what you’ve given me,” he finishes.
“Well, by the power invested in me by absolutely no one, I now pronounce you husband and wife,” Jamie announces.
Bryant is beaming as he lowers his head to kiss me. I almost fall into my usual Bry haze, but manage to keep a level head just before his lips make contact and gently push on his chest.
I step back, loving his sexy, confused frown. “I kind of have one more thing to give my husband.”
“Wasn’t a house enough?” Cohen calls out, earning a round of laughter.
“It can’t be your V-card; that’s long gone,” Jax teases, which makes Bryant snort.
“Jax!” Ronnie says, shaking her head.
“Dad,” Ax whispers. “What’s a v-card?”
I tune him out though because the butterflies in my stomach are whipping up a storm and the nerves are kicking in. That’s because there’s one last thing I’ve been holding close to my chest, and now is as good a time as any to reveal it.
Dipping my chin, I look down and take a deep, fortifying breath. I lift my gaze to find Bryant staring at me.
I hook a hand behind my back, and as planned, Delilah discreetly places a final white box in my hand, one she’s been holding for me since just before I walked down the aisle.
I bring it around and pass it to Bry.
“Another memento?” he asks with a wry smile.
I nod toward the box. “Open it,” I whisper.
I’m sure my heart stops as I stare at his face, not wanting to miss a single moment as I wait for him to look.
Bryant
Placing my index finger under the lid of the box, wondering what the hell is left for her to give me. I’ve got the love of my life, I’ve got the house we’ve renovated and lived in. I can’t think of anything else that she could—
I go completely still. I’m stuck on the piece of plastic nestled inside the box. The white stick with the word pregnant on a small screen staring up at me. I jerk my head to find Faith biting her lip, her eyes wide and cautious as she waits for my reaction.
She doesn’t have to wait for long. I drop the box and wrap my arm around her waist, slowly drawing her in against me and bringing her face right in close to mine.
“I only found out this morning. I thought I might—”
There are soft murmurs around us, but nothing compares to the quiet, happy sob coming from my wife. A sound that represents everything and that I know I’ll never forget for the rest of my life.
“Fuck, I love you,” I growl before dipping her backwards and giving her a long, slow, and very deep kiss. I languidly stroke my tongue against hers, groaning when she gives it all back to me, not giving a single shit that we’ve got an audience as I set about exploring every inch of my mouth.
The sound of applause and catcalls fill the air, but I ignore it all, too lost in the taste, smell, and feel of my one and only forever love.
There is one voice that does break through, and of course, it’s Axel’s. “Dammit, why didn’t I bring my swear jar? I could’ve made a killing. Son of a bit—”
A chorus of “Axel!” rings out, and I feel Faith smile against my lips but nothing—not even Ax being Ax—can tear me away from kissing my wife right now.
My life began three months ago, and within the next year, it’s going to change all over again when our baby is born.
There’s a lot to be said for working your way back. It’s just that in our case, it was Faith working her way back to me the way she needed to, and for me to continue loving her the only way I’ve ever known how.
Completely.
The End
Hard Work - Book 4
Prologue - Cohen
ONE YEAR AGO
Another day, another dollar. Or, in this case, another night, another patient.
I hand off a code-three at Northwestern Hospital’s ER, and my stomach lets out a loud, rumbling growl.
“I’ll do the call sheet and buy dinner if you drive,” my EMT partner, Corey, says, bumping my shoulder with a laugh as we walk out into the chilly night.
“I definitely need food. It’s been call after call since this morning,” I say, swinging open the ambulance door then jumping behind the steering wheel. Corey hops in the passenger side and picks up the clipboard to do the paperwork.
“It has. And I know how hangry you get when you miss lunch.”
“Hey, I’m not that bad.”
“Dude, you once snarled at the McDonald’s cashier when she said the fries would take two minutes.”
“Look, she caught me on a bad day,” I say, still feeling guilty about the look of fear on the woman’s face. Before that, she’d been kind of flirty, and although I had no intention of going there, I’ve never seen the harm in not returning the favor. It’s the gentlemanly side of me. Well, that’s what I tell myself anyway.
Corey chuckles. “I wouldn’t inflict you on anyone in that state.”
“My appetite is both a blessing and a curse,” I say with a grin. “Blame my mother.”
Twenty minutes and a good burger-and-fries meal later, we’re ba
ck on the road, heading for the station.
“So I’ve got something to tell you…” Corey says, breaking the comfortable silence in the ambulance.
A quick sideways glance while we wait at a set of lights shows my EMT partner for the past two years, clenching his jaw and not looking at me.
“Cor, what gives?” I ask when he doesn’t elaborate. He sighs, flips a completed call sheet over so it’s ready for the next call, then dumps it back on the dash.
“Look, I was going to tell you sooner, but the captain thought it was best to wait until you could actually meet her.”
“Meet who, Cor?”
“I’m going back to college in January, so I’ve given my notice, and your new partner is coming by the station at the end of shift to meet the guys—and you.”
I grip the steering wheel and clench my teeth as we take off again.
It’s not that I’m not happy for him. But it sounds like I’m the last to know, especially since there’s a new girl I’m about to meet. Yet another new partner to learn how to work with.
“And, um… saying she’s new might be a bit of a stretch…”
Oh shit. Is this like the ghosts of girlfriends past? Is it that stage-five clinger from dispatch I had a brief grope-and-stroke with at a Christmas party at HQ a few years ago? Or that female firefighter candidate who slipped and just “happened” to find herself naked and lying on top of me in the back of the ambulance six months ago.
“What do you mean?” Please, no clinger. Please, no clinger.
“Your new partner is Marco and Luca’s baby sister. Which means you can’t—”
I roll my eyes. Once a man-whore, apparently always one. “Cor, I’ve only ever been with two CFD employees. Two!”
“And the fact I know that,” he says with a smirk, “and Marco and Luca know that, means you have absolutely no chance of surviving with your dick intact if you even look at their sister sideways.”