Forever & A Day

by Donalyn Maurer

  “No knowing about it, babe,” Levi says, and she lightly slaps his arm as her eyes bug out at him in silent warning.

  “Yeah, sorry, I have no idea why we slept this late,” I reply, and Levi’s smirk ratchets up a level or... ten.

  “I have an idea,” he teases, which makes me blush, and buys him another slap from Darcy, only harder this time.

  “Well, we appreciate it,” Max says as he glances back at the clock. He has no idea how late it is. “Oh shit,” he finally replies. “It’s almost eleven, so yeah, thanks.”

  “No problem,” Levi responds and takes Darcy’s hand, lacing their fingers together and tugging her down the hall, but not far. Nope. Max and I watch as they stop at the next door over from ours, and Levi pulls the key card from his pocket.

  “Oh no,” I mutter, and Max laughs softly, both of us now getting it. Levi and Darcy were on the other side of the wall when Max and I were… “Oh geez,” I whisper, as I take one last peek at Levi and Darcy. They both glance back at us, grinning before Levi pushes the door open.

  “See y’all later,” Darcy calls out and giggles, before her and Levi disappear into the room.

  “That was nice of them,” Max says, not at all phased by the fact that they obviously heard us last night.

  He wheels the cart over to the table and begins transferring the items from the cart to the table. When Max pulls the warming cover off one of the many plates, I see two huge Belgian waffles and I all but hop over and begin to help him. My sudden hunger has me letting my embarrassment go. I make us both a cup of coffee, then pour us some juice, while Max uncovers the rest of the plates. Besides the waffles are fresh fruit, croissants, butter, jam, honey, blueberry muffins, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage and fried potatoes.

  “Wow,” he mutters and sits down.

  “Wow, is right,” I exclaim. “We'll never eat all this,” I say as I peruse all the food. I slide Max’s cup of coffee and juice to his side of the table, then sit down and begin to prepare him a plate. After adding everything I can, I hand it to him, then proceed to make him a second plate with a croissant and fruit.

  “Jayc, I can do it. Eat before it gets cold,” he advises.

  “Going to cherish you, Max. Always going to take care of you,” I murmur, throwing his words back at him from the night after our party at Holloway’s. “Please let me,” I request, and continue to finish his plate by placing a few pieces of fruit on it.

  When I set it down next to his other plate, I finally glimpse at him. He’s leaned on the table with his arms crossed, and he’s watching me. It’s hard to ignore the power of his stare, but I try as I go on and make my plate, only mine is much smaller. I run my hands around to the back of my hair and gather it, before pulling it over to the side of my shoulder to rest, then pick up my cup of coffee. Before I take a sip, my eyes slide back to Max and he’s still watching me.

  “Max, you need to eat,” I say and take a sip of my coffee, my eyes now on him.

  “Thank you, love,” he whispers, then glances down to the table. He then picks up his fork and begins eating. “You know,” he says between bites, while I take a few more sips of coffee. “I admit, I like this. This is great,” he gestures to the food with the fork in his hand. “But your cooking, I’d take it any day over this.”

  “Really?” I probe and set my coffee down. “I’ve never really taken myself as a good cook. I can make things to sustain us, keep us alive, but I never really thought about it being good. More like necessary,” I admit, and fork up some eggs. “I mean I know it’s not terrible, but it’s not as good as my grandma’s, aunt’s or Violet and Abigail,” I bring the fork to my mouth and devour the eggs. I am hungrier than I thought as I go back for more. “I haven’t killed us yet, so that’s a plus. But, because of my beautiful kitchen, I’ll keep trying even if it does,” I joke and laugh.

  “You’re kidding, right?” Max sets his fork down and takes a sip of his coffee.

  “No,” I reply. I put my fork down and take a big bite of bacon, before picking up my croissant and buttering it up. “I mean, I figure over the years I’ll get better, but for now it’s hit or miss sometimes,” I confess, and pop of a piece of croissant in my mouth.

  “Okay, I’m confused, because there hasn’t been one thing you’ve made that I didn’t love,” he says, but I give him an, oh sure, look and he chuckles. “Truth, you’re a great cook. Your timing, has been off a couple of times, but even with that crispness, I love it,” he teases, and I burst into laughter while he shakes his head with a smile to die for and retrieves his fork.

  “Max, my timing is not off. It’s in a different time zone. I don’t make things crispy, I burn one out of three meals,” I admit, because I do. I have this phobia about under cooking meats and I’m not sure why. I try to make it just right, but I always miss that small pocket after undercooked and before overcooked. “I’m surprised you don’t get tongue splinters from some of the meat I cook.” This admission causes Max to crack up.

  “I guess maybe I’m used to it that way. Mom did the same thing,” he discloses, and I look at him confused because Ana is a great cook. He deciphers my expression, nods and explains. “You’ve only had her Filipino food. Now that,” he points at me with his fork. “I’ve never tasted anyone’s cooking that can touch hers. No one. Not my aunts or even my grandma,” he shares, and takes a drink of his juice. “She can also make really good fried chicken, but anything else, she struggles and overcooks. When we would eat American food, it was Dad that usually cooked. He makes excellent soup and steaks,” he praises, and I smile. “Back in the Philippines my grandparents had a place, Bacsibio’s Bistro and Market,” he tells me, and I stop eating and give him my attention. “It was one of the top places in Manila to eat. My grandparents lived in Surigao del Norte where my grandpa was vice mayor, so he stayed there most of time after the election. My mom and Aunt Dai and Lei, ran the place in Manila, with Grandma and Grandpa traveling in a few times a month to check on things.”

  I never knew any of this, so I’m enthralled in the story. “Wow. That’s amazing,” I praise.

  “It is. Mom and my aunts lived above Bacsibio’s in a pretty nice apartment. I kind of remember it. That’s where I spent my first few years. Well, there and going back and forth to Surigao. Sometimes my grandparents would take me, and I’d stay with them for a few days.”

  “So where did Bacsibio come from?” I ask.

  “It’s my mom’s maiden name. It’s also my middle name,” he tells me, and my jaw drops.

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “That’s because it’s not on my birth certificate. When I was born, my dad was away. He was working there but his contract ended, and he had to leave a couple of weeks before I was born. From what my grandparents told me that tore my dad up.”

  “I’m sure it did,” I reply, feeling sad for Acer and Ana.

  “My mom and dad weren’t married either. There was lots of red tape to go through to make that happen, with him being an American citizen and her being a Filipino citizen,” he explains. “When my mom had me, she named me Maxwell Bacsibio. When Dad finally got back to us he added Bradshaw. It’s tradition in the Philippines for children to carry their mom’s maiden name as their middle name anyway, so it stayed. When Dad moved us here to the US, my parents filled out paperwork to amend my birth certificate, but when the final documents came in the mail someone had made a mistake and left off Bacsibio, so I became Maxwell Bradshaw. My parents tried to correct it with the copies of documents they had, but I guess it wasn’t enough. On our next trip to the Philippines my mom was going to fix it there, but the building that housed all the cities marriage licenses and birth certificates for Manila was gone. A typhoon had destroyed it, and at that time the city hadn’t converted all their records to digital. The most recent records were recovered, and most of the historical documents had been transferred over to the city’s courthouse basement and were safe. Unfortunately, mine was not one of them and we just let
it go. Now, all my school paperwork, my driver's license and military documents read just, Maxwell Bradshaw,” he concludes, and picks up his coffee cup then leans back.

  “Well, these days you can probably change your name fairly simple at the courthouse. If you want, you should check into it; add Bacsibio back,” I tell him and top off my coffee. “We should definitely have Pastor Mays include it today, since it is your birth name,” I suggest and lean back in my chair as well.”

  “That’s a great idea, Jaycee,” he murmurs. “Thank you.”

  “You're welcome.”

  43

  Max and I are not coming back to the resort after the ceremony, so over the next couple of hours Max and I shower and repack our clothes. When Max isn’t looking, I transfer his gift from my suitcase to my purse.

  It’s a little past two, and soon I’ll need to leave Max, and head to my grandma’s room. She and my aunts, brought everything I’ll need to get ready. I’m just zipping up my bag, when one of Max’s arms wraps around me from behind, while his other hand pulls my hair to one side. He kisses my neck softly, and I shiver.

  “Max,” I breathe and lean back into him.

  He places his lips at my ear. “I love you,” he whispers, and his arm around me tightens.

  “I love you too,” I reply, then turn and lift my face up to his. I glance at his lips, then his eyes. We keep each other’s stare for only a moment, before his lips descend to mine. With my back still to his front and his hand cupping my neck and chin, I raise up on my toes to deepen our kiss. When we break, I lean my head against his chest, and murmur, “I have to go now.”

  “I know,” he mutters, but doesn’t release me right away. “I’ll see you in soon,” he finally says, and slides his arm from around me, but keeps his hand on my waist.

  “You will,” I reply with a smile, and glance back at the clock. “Four hours.” My eyes tear up, because I’m just unable to hold back the emotion as I tuck my body back into his.

  “Seems like an eternity,” he admits, and I nod and wipe my eyes. “Come on. You better leave now, or I won’t let you go.” I sigh, and grab my purse then Max walks me to the door. He opens it, then braces it against his back to hold it open. “I’ll see you soon,” he mumbles, while cupping my face in his hands.

  “I’ll be the one in the veil,” I confess, and give him a soft smile knowing I just shared a little secret. His eyes flare, and he smiles down at me.

  “I can’t wait,” he growls, then slams his lips onto mine. Our arms immediately go to embrace one another and hold on tight, but the sound of the elevator dinging has us pulling apart. We both glance down the hall, and there’s Violet and Abigail exiting and turning our way. When they see us, they both stop and smile.

  “It’s time, sissy,” Abigail squeals, with a jump in her step.

  “Bye,” I whisper, barely refraining from squealing myself. I give Max one last chaste kiss, before I rush down the hall to meet them. Before I step onto the elevator, I chance a glimpse back and see he’s watching us. I blow him a kiss, and he smiles, before giving me a low wave. On that, I step inside and watch the elevator doors slide closed.

  “Jaycee!” Abigail all but screams, and jumps up and down.

  “I know,” I return on my own whisper yell, and grab onto her and laugh like a maniac.

  “Girls, let’s not go crazy,” Violet gently chastises, but then squeals herself. “Oh my God, I can’t believe the day is finally here. We have everything out and ready. The makeup is out, the curling iron is warming. We have champagne and Bud Light, of course,” she adds.

  “Really?” I smile surprised.

  “Oh yes. The resort set us up nice. There’s a spread of fruit, and cheese and crackers. They even sent up tiny quiches, along with coffee, tea, and chips and queso. Everything you could imagine. We can take our time and snack while we get ready.”

  “Oh wow!” I reply, but then think of Max. Even though we just ate, I’m sure he’ll be hungry before the ceremony. I’ll order him something as well, and have room service send it over. “Max…” I begin, but Violet puts up her hands and halt my words.

  “He’s being taken care of too, thanks to Betsy Kay,” she informs me.

  “Honestly?” I ask, in awe of the resort, but mostly of Betsy Kay.

  “Absolutely,” Abigail assures me. “His should be arriving soon. I forgot my shoes in my room. When I go back for them, if you want, I’ll stop by and make sure he has food. Johnny should be over there as well. Probably his dad too. I know Ana and her sister’s, went to check up on the food, but are coming back soon to get ready.”

  “Thank you, Abigail. Yes, please check on him. I appreciate it,” I say. “Oh, and will you give this to him?” I ask, and retrieve the wrapped binder from my purse and hand it to her.

  “Of course,” she smiles sweetly. “Oh, and when Mom talked to Betsy Kay, all is going smooth there. She said the flowers have arrived and almost everything is completely set up. Every single thing is a go,” she updates me.

  “That’s awesome,” I tell her as the elevator reaches our floor. The doors open, and we walk out. I follow Violet down the hall, where she stops in front of the second to last door in the long hallway and taps on the door. Aunt Savannah answers and yelps in surprise when she sees me. It’s like she wasn’t expecting me and hasn’t seen me in years. She outright laughs at her own response, then tugs me by my arm into the room. When I walk in, I glance around and my lips part in surprise. Grandma doesn’t have a room like ours, she has a suite.

  “Wow, nice digs Grandma,” I say, and whistle.

  “Your daddy and uncles really set me up nice,” she gushes, while giving a quick glance around. She clasps her hands together with a huge smile, but then opens her arms for me. I hurry to her and she wraps me up tight and squeezes. “I love you,” she says softly in my ear.

  “Grandma, I love you too,” I respond, but my words are choked with my emotion. Even though Max and I have been living together for a while now, it’s still causes a tiny bit of anxiety to know that in a way, I leave her behind today–even though I’d never leave her behind.

  “We have everything set up in the bedroom and bathroom, but help yourselves to something to snack on,” she says when she pulls back and smiles at me.

  I glimpse at the table, and see Violet wasn’t exaggerating at all. It’s loaded with all kinds of food. Abigail and I walk over and begin loading down our plates, when the hotel door opens and in rushes Callie, wearing a cute pink sundress with sandals, and Aunt Paige right behind her in shorts and halter top.

  “Aunt Jaycee, guess what?” Callie says, while jumping up and down like Abigail did earlier. “I’m going to get dressed here, with you. Mommy and me, are going to ride with you, and Aunt Abby and Uncle Stone to the cabin,” she rambles, and loses her breath on the last words, so she takes a deep breath before going on. “Dillon’s going with his mommy and daddy, because he’s getting cold feet again,” she says on a sigh, and places her hands on her little hips. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with that boy of mine, at all. Not at all,” she complains, and her eyes swivel to the ceiling seeming to contemplate her dilemma. Abigail and I, both, stare at her in surprise, while Grandma, Violet, her mommy and Aunt Paige all gasp.

  “Callie Regan McGinty,” Aunt Paige scolds. “You best not talk like that in front of your daddy, brothers, uncles...well, the whole lot of them,” she warns, but Callie is clueless as to what she’s done wrong. “They will lose their minds,” her mom forewarns.

  “That’s an understatement,” Violet reiterates.

  “Oh my Lord,” Aunt Savannah mutters. “This child is something else,” she says, then laughs.

  “Something else is right,” Grandma says on a laugh as well.

  “What did I say?” Callie asks, perplexed.

  “Um, Callie, I think it was the when you said, ‘that boy of mine’,” Abigail tries to explain.

  “Yeah, what makes you think that he’s yours?” I ask, gr
inning.

  “Because I asked him to be, and he said yes,” she huffs.

  “Okay, but what does it mean that he’s yours?” Abigail tries again.

  “Oh, well, he’s my best friend, and I’m his. And we promised to share all our toys and ice cream,” she apprises us of their situation, then walks off to the table and picks up a champagne flute. “Mommy, can I have some 7-up in this pretty glass?”

  “Okay, so I dodged a bullet there. I definitely need to advice Brock of this, before she says something to him,” Aunt Paige mutters to herself, as well as us. She walks over to the table and takes the flute from Callie, then fills it with the clear soda.

  While she does that, Aunt Savannah pops the top on the bottle of champagne, and we all let out a cheer. She pours us all a glass, and we stand in a circle when Grandma raises her glass and speaks. “Jaycee, I couldn’t have asked for a better daughter, and I know Blue couldn’t have a better wife,” she praises.

  “Honey,” Aunt Savannah says, and reaches over and cups my cheek. “Duke and I weren’t blessed with our own little girls, but you and Abigail are like our own. It’s hitting us both in the heart that you two are so in love, but more so, that the men you have chosen are wonderful and so in love with you as well. I’m so happy for you,” she compliments, with her hand over her heart.

  “Sissy,” Abigail begins, but pauses while looking out the window in thought. She shakes her head before looking at me. “That day at the cabin, you risked your life for me,” she whispers, tortured. “I don’t mean to bring up that day, but I heard what he said to you in that cabin. I also heard what you said. What you were willing to do for me,” she sniffles on a voice that’s barely there, and my heart absolutely breaks that she heard what happened. “When Nick and Linc rushed up on me, I waved them off. Told them they needed to get to you, and right then.” She’s now sharing something I never knew. “Nick picked me up and carried me off, while Linc went after you. We know what happened after that. But I want, no, I need you to know that I’ll never forget what you were willing to do for me. I love y..y..you,” she stammers, then chokes on a sob.