“Damn right,” he growls and kisses me. “Watched you walk down the aisle to me,” he growls when we break our kiss. “Me.”
“You,” I whisper, and move my hands to cup his cheek. “Always you.”
“I was so close to begging the pastor just to marry us right then. I’ve practiced more self-control over the last three days, than I have in my entire lifetime,” he mutters.
We lay there making out like two teenagers, for the longest time. We roll around, but don’t take it any further because we both know we have to get going. Only because we have to, we stand up and head to the shower.
“I love you,” Max murmurs and pulls me into his arms, after he turns the water on to heat.
“Sugar, God, I love you so much. Thank you for loving me,” I say.
“My love has been yours since I was a kid. It’s been yours since the day I entered this world, and it’ll be yours until the day I leave.”
After we make our confessions, we step into shower then begin to kiss for a while longer, before getting ready for our rehearsal dinner. Before we leave the room, I grab the gifts for Callie, Dillon, Abigail and Johnny that I wrapped in black and silver paper, and transfer them to a cute pink tote.
39
After Max and I are ready, we head to the elevator, me carrying the pink tote with the gifts. Max pushes the down button and takes the tote from me. He’s so sweet. As we stand and wait for the car to arrive, my eyes roam up and down Max’s body and a tremble runs through me. With the sun he’s gotten the last couple of days, he’s even more beautiful. He’s wearing a light rose colored, short sleeved, button down shirt, that is straining against all his muscles, and navy-blue cargo shorts with brown leather flip flops.
“Looking good, sugar bear,” I declare. He glances down at me and smiles. His deep dimples and bright smile are always my undoing.
“Thank you. You, too.” He wraps the arm not carrying the tote around my waist, and pulls me flush against him, my hands land on his chest as I stare up into his eyes.
I’m wearing a strapless summer dress that sits just above my knees. It’s white with blue flowers, and I added a wide brown leather belt around my waist. I wore my tan, lace up wedges, that tie above my ankles. I have gold dangle flower earrings on, with a thick gold cuff bracelet. Of course, my hair is down and because I didn’t blow dry it straight, it’s full, with gentle waves that lay down my back. Max’s mouth is descending on mine, and I close my eyes in anticipation, but before our lips meet, the ding of the elevator arriving stops us.
I slowly open my eyes; my face still tilted up at Max, and I see him smiling down at me. I smile back then lean up, and give him a quick kiss before we hop on. When the elevator reaches the bottom floor and the doors slide open, we exit and make our way across the lobby and it’s completely empty.
“Max, what time is it?” He pulls his phone from his pocket and glances at the screen.
“Hell, we’re late!” he exclaims, then takes my hands and pulls me quickly out of the resort, to his car in the parking lot.
“How late?” I ask, feeling bad for our guests that have been waiting.
“On a scale from one to ten, one being early, ten not showing up, we’re a six.” he grumbles, but he’s smiling.
“Oh no. Why do we tell them we were late?” I ask, as Max pulls out of the parking lot and turns onto the main road.
“I think they probably have an idea,” he teases, but he’s serious.
“Max,” I gasp, and drop my head into my hands in embarrassment.
“Love, its fine,” he tries to reassure me with laughter in his voice.
“Oh my God, it’s not funny,” I complain.
“It’s not, not funny,” he counters, and I look over and see he’s grinning.
A few minutes later we pull into Annie’s and rush inside. We open the door and step inside, and clapping breaks out. Kore and Jake are the first to greet us.
“Why, you two are very late,” Kore sings with a grin. “What could have kept you two?” she adds, giggling.
“I’m sure they were utilizing the resorts Holy Bible, and studying scripture, or something else other than what you are suggesting,” Jake responds emphatically. That remark causes both, Max and I, to break down laughing. Jake shakes his head, smiles, and gives me a one arm hug.
“Hey, it’s about time. Where were you guys?” Abigail asks, and I blush. “Ah.” She giggles.
“Let’s get a drink and mingle,” Max suggests, and I smile up at him, relieved to end the line of questioning.
“Okay.”
We walk around greeting everyone, and then head into a private room for dinner. Betsy Kay has taken care of this as well.
“Just take your seats and relax,” she orders me and Max. Somehow, she managed to get from the cabin to here, having changed, and still full of energy and looking fresh. The room is split up into four long tables, each seating twelve people. Our table and the next table over are filled with our family. The other two, seat our guests that drove in early. We sit and enjoy our dinners, while enjoying a few drinks and visiting for a couple of hours, before I get Max’s attention. I turn around and face him.
“We need to pass out the gifts soon,” I inform him.
“Sounds good,” he replies, leans over and gives me kiss, then stands. Everyone is talking, but when they notice him stand, their chatter begins to settle as they turn in their chairs and become quiet, waiting for him to speak.
“Hey everyone,” he begins. “Jaycee and I want to thank you all for being here. We’re touched and so grateful, you all took the time to travel here to be with us.” He glances down at me and takes a deep breath, before looking back out at the room full of our family and friends. “I fell in love with the girl of my dreams as a kid, and for over a decade she had no idea. Being given a second chance to make her mine, never seemed possible. Being here today, proves you never know what God’s plans are. You all joining us here, shows your belief in us and that we’ll do right by each other. I will make promises to Jaycee tomorrow, but here and now, I will make a few promises to you. I will love Jaycee until my dying day. I will do everything I can to give her the world, because we all know she deserves it. I’ll protect and give my life for her,” Max’s voice becomes thick with emotion, and he attempts to cough it away, but it’s too late for me. I grab the linen napkin from the table and wipe my eyes.
Max notices, and leans down and places a soft kiss on my lips, before placing his lips at my ear. “Sorry, love, didn’t mean to make you cry,” he whispers. “And you were doing so well.” I shrug my shoulders and laugh softly when he says that, and he graces me with his beautiful smile, dimples and all. I stand and take a deep breath, before addressing our guest.
“I want you all to know that I’ve been planning this wedding since I was fourteen years old. Lucky for me, when I confessed this to Max, it didn’t creep him out and send him running,” I try to joke, and it works, the rooms breaks out in laughter along with Max. “I remember tagging along with my brothers and Grandpa to any sporting practice or game, just to catch a glimpse of him. Every once in a while, he’d glance at me and smile, and when he did, my heart would do a flip. Today, when he gifts me with that same smile, my heart still does a flip. I want Max and his family to know, that I will make sure Max’s life is filled with love and happiness. I love him,” I whisper those last three words, but everyone must hear because ooo's and aahh's fill the room. “Thank you all for being here, and I can’t wait to see you all tomorrow,” I finish and glimpse up at Max. His face is soft and full of love. I lean up and give him a quick kiss, before looking back out at the room while Max begins to speak again.
“We have a gift for those in our wedding party, and we’d like to hand them out, if you don’t mind,” Max explains. I remove the gifts from my tote and set them on the table. I hand Max, Callie’s and Abigail’s, then stand up and we walk over to Abigail first.
“This is for you. You’re not only my sister and
maid-of-honor, but you’re also my best friend. Thank you so much for being here for me, and not just for this, but for everything.” My eyes become glassy and so do hers. Max passes me the little gift box and I hand it to her, then watch as she opens it.
“Jaycee,” she gasps, when she sees the heart necklace encrusted in diamonds and engraved with sister. “It’s beautiful,” she gushes, then carefully pulls it from the box and hands it to me. “Please,” she says and holds up her hair. I place it around her neck and fasten the clasp, then make sure it’s hanging straight around her neck. Abigail lets her hair fall, then stands and gives me and Max a hug before settling back in. Next, we walk over to Callie.
“Hey Callie, this is for you from me and Uncle Max.” She smiles as I hand her the box. She tears into the paper, but struggles lifting the snap lock lid, it snaps closed a few times. Her little tongue is stuck out in concentration, as she continues to try. “Daddy,” she finally gives in on a sigh. “Please, open this for me,” she requests, and hands Uncle Brock the box. He smiles down at her then takes it, opens it, and turns it towards her. “Pretty,” she squeals. “Two hearts,” she whispers and gently touches the earrings.
Max reaches down and points at one of the earrings, “Your aunt Jaycee’s heart,” he says softly, then points to the other. “My heart. Thank you for being in our wedding, princess.” She scoots off her chair and comes to Max, just as he squats down and pulls her into a hug, then lifts her up and turns her towards me.
“Thank you so much for being our flower girl, Callie. I love you,” I confess something she knows.
“Love you too, Aunt Jaycee.” She leans into me and gives me a soft kiss on the cheek. Max places her back in her chair, and leans over to Aunt Paige to show her the earrings. Next thing I know, Aunt Paige is removing her tiny stud earrings and replacing them with our gift.
Max walks over to Dillon who’s sitting at the next table over. “Hey Dillon, Jaycee and I got this for you. I hope you like it,” Max voice is worried as he hands it over. Neither of us had a clue what to get a six-year-old boy, so I think we’re both a little concerned he won’t like it. Dillon is the cutest little boy. His hair is dark, almost black, and a little long and unruly. His eyes are a beautiful sky blue and he has super long eyelashes. He, like Max, has extremely deep dimples and cute smile.
“Thank you,” Dillon responds shyly as he takes the box. He places it on the table in front of him and rips off the paper “No way!” he whisper-yells, and holds up the box, his eyes as big as saucers. “This is a stomp rocket,” he exclaims. “The super deluxe,” he adds even louder, and Max and I both smile in relief. “Wow,” he breathes out still scanning the picture on the box.
“Say thank you,” his mom reminds him gently, with humor in her voice.
“Thank you!” He turns and stares up at us for a moment, before carefully placing the stomp rocket on the table, then scooting from his chair and standing. He then reaches out his small hand to shake Max’s. “So cool, Blue, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Max chuckles, and shakes his hand back.
“Thank you, Ms. Jaycee. I’ve wanted one for a long time. Thought I was going to have to wait until Christmas, since my birthday already went by,” he explains, and reaches his hand out to shake mine.
“Well, you’re very welcome. Thank you so much for being our ring bearer,” I respond while smiling down at him. He hops back up in his chair and turns to his mom with wide eyes
“Mom, can I borrow your phone?” he asks.
“What? Who do you want to call?” she asks while laughing.
“Callie!” he proclaims.
“Sweetheart, she right there,” his mom points across the room while laughing.
“Can I show her? Now?” he wiggles in his chair, ready for the okay.
“Umm, maybe we wait until, Jaycee and Blue, hand out the rest of their gifts,” she explains.
“Only one left, and then you do what you gotta do,” Max responds and pats him on the shoulder. Dillon nods and sits in his chair, then pulls the box from the table, and tucks it under his arm and readies for the go. Dillon and Callie really are best friends and are so cute. I love this for both of them. We walk back over to our table, where Johnny is sitting.
“Brother,” Max says with a grin. “Not going to say what I really want to, because I know you’ll get emotional and cry,” he teases, and the room fills with everyone’s amusement.
“Thank God,” Johnny shakes his head and stands. “Already on the edge,” he chuckles. Max laughs, and hands Johnny the gift. Johnny removes the paper and places it on the table. “Holy shit,” Johnny blurts out, and the room erupts in laughter. “Oh, sorry.” He flinches, and fresh chuckles can be heard. “Wow, brother, thank you.” Johnny is staring at the very expensive Macallan, eighteen-year-old bottle of single malt scotch.
“No problem. Thank you for always being my best man,” Max tells him gruffly.
“I’m saving this. The day we both welcome our first child into the world, we open this. When we’re both Dads. It sits until then,” Johnny discloses to my surprise. He smiles down at Macie, whose jaw is hanging open, like mine and like Max’s. No one comments about his remark, as we’re all still shocked. Johnny pulls Max into a quick, rough, but beautiful hug, before he pulls me into him and gifts me with a tight hug as well.
After Johnny sits back down, Max and I turn back towards Dillon, who’s on the edge of his seat waiting for the signal. Max gives him a thumbs up, and he drops from the chair and races over to Callie holding the stomp rocket. Callie is all smiles, as she listens to him explain all the super cool things it can do.
When he takes a breath he finally asks Callie, “What did you get?” Callie holds back her hair, and shows Dillon the tiny heart and diamond earrings, which cause him to frown but then smile. “Those are pretty Callie, but not as cool as this so I’ll share it with you,” he informs her. “Mom,” he calls across the room. His mom flinches at his loud voice, but she’s also trying not to laugh. “Can we play with this back at the resort?” he begs.
“We’ll see. It’s dark and that needs to be played with outside,” she tries to reason, and Dillon’s face falls into another frown. Max witnesses all this, and walks over to her then bends down, talking softly. She smiles and nods, as Max stands.
“Dillon, Blue has a good idea, when we get back, we’ll go to the resort pool where it’s lit up and you can play with it there,” she shares.
Callie and him, both jump in excitement. “Are we leaving now?” Dillon asks, hopeful.
“Soon,” Max replies, and this seems to appease Dillon. “I’ll be right back.” he leans down, and kisses me softly. As he heads towards the main room, Mason stands and follows. While they’re gone, I walk around and speak to everyone, and it seems most are planning to switch into their swimsuits once we arrive back at resort, and hang out at the pool. After noticing Dillon’s excitement over the stomp rocket, they all want to see it in action.
Max walks back in about ten minutes later, with Mason. He seems frustrated, but he’s grinning. Mason seems satisfied with whatever happened between the two of them. Finally, Max reaches me, and I glance up at him in question. He sighs then takes my hand, and leads me back to our chairs. Before he can explain a man walks in and makes an announcement.
“I’m Evan, the manager, and I want to thank you all for coming to Annie’s this evening to celebrate Jaycee and Blue’s upcoming nuptials. We hope you enjoyed your dinner and drinks, and your time here.” The room explodes into clapping and cheers, which makes him smile. “Good. Well, your checks have all been taken care of, so unless you need something else, we are all settled, and I hope you all come back to see us again.” He smiles, waves, and exits the room, then a couple of bus boys come in and begin clearing the tables.
The sound of chairs can be heard scooting across the floor, and then everyone is thanking Max for dinner. Max points to Mason, “My grandma and grandpa took care of it,” he shares, and everyone
then turns to thank them. “I was going to take care of it, but he was too quick. He passed off his card the moment he walked in. Said it’s tradition for the groom’s family to pay. This wasn’t your average sized rehearsal dinner, though. I offered to split the cost, but he wasn’t having it. Told him thank you. Means a lot he did that,” he mutters.
“That’s so nice,” I reply, then walk over to Mason and Sophia and thank them. After giving them both hugs, we head outside to our cars to return to the resort.
40
It’s dusk, and almost all our guests are down at the resort pool relaxing, while the old folks have gone to the lobby to unwind, or stopped by the bar for a drink. The pool is huge and beautiful all lit up. On one end there’s waterfall next to a Jacuzzi, and along the sides of the pool are rows of loungers, with blue and white striped cushions. The girls and I are set up along one side of them, laid out in our swimsuits. All bikinis, but of different varieties. From solid colors to tie-dye, to polka dots and one, Allie’s, an orange, like sherbet, with fringe.
When my eyes reach Jenny, I stop and stare. Her suit is amazing. It’s a blue paisley, like a bandana, and has a sports top and full bottoms. I realize something is different about her, but I can’t put my finger on it. “Did she get a boob job,” I think to myself, when I take in her larger than usual breasts. When she picks up her cup to take a drink, I see it’s not filled with a margarita, wine, beer, or anything alcoholic. No, it’s filled with water. My eyes fly to her tummy, and there I finally notice it. It’s just the tiniest of baby bumps, but it’s there. That’s why she didn’t go out in the boat. Without thinking I could be wrong, or maybe she doesn’t want anyone to know, I swing my legs off my chair and point at her. She’s one chair down with only Bella separating the two of us.
“Jenny,” I call, excited. She’s been watching Patrick, but her eyes come to mine and she smiles. “You,” I smile, and gesture at her tummy. “Are you?” I ask. Her eyes bug out, and she covers her mouth as she spits out the water she hadn’t quite swallowed. “Oh shit! I’m so sorry.” I gasp and frown. Jesus, Jaycee if she wanted people to know she would have told them, I chastise myself in my head. Plus, now, all the girls are studying her as well. “Jenny, forgive me?” I whisper, and her eyes go soft.
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