Reflected in the Rain (The Storm Inside)

by Alexis Anne

  Maybe her vagina was made of stainless steel.

  Jennie giggled then winced, yanking her foot away from the woman performing the pedicure. “Sorry… again…” The woman just shook her head and took Jennie’s foot back.

  “We’re spending two weeks in bathing suits; I’m just getting a little bikini wax. It will be fine.”

  Luckily Jennie let it go. We were quiet for a little while and it was nice getting pampered. But Jennie was Jennie, and she couldn’t keep quiet for too long. It just wasn’t in her nature. “No second thoughts? I don’t have to worry about a runaway bride or anything, right?”

  I rolled my eyes. “God, no. The only thing driving me crazy is the whole long, drawn out process. Let’s just get me hitched already.”

  “You’re not nervous?”

  “Not about Jake,” I said quietly.

  “What are you nervous about?”

  “Life,” I confessed. “I just want him to have the life he deserves.”

  Jennie leaned back over and made eyes at me. “Awww, you two are so cute. You’ve got the lovey dovey filters on.”

  I wrinkled my nose up at her. I didn’t like the idea that my feelings for Jake were fake or altered. “You’re telling me you wouldn’t do whatever it took to make Andrew happy?”

  Jennie’s eyebrows shot up. “Touché.”

  “I know Jake can take care of himself, but I don’t want him to have to. Does that make sense?”

  Jennie smiled at me. “Absolutely. You love him, he’s your man. You’ll walk through fire, climb mountains, and fend off hoards of zombies for his happiness, because his happiness is your happiness. His heart is your heart.”

  “Fuck,” I swore under my breath. “Yeah, that.” My chest actually ached a little thinking about it.

  “That’s why Greg calls you The Annihilator.”

  “He says what now?” I blurted out as I sat straight up in my chair. She had to be kidding. I mean, obviously Greg loved giving people nicknames, he and I together were a dangerous combination, but he’d given me a nickname… and I didn’t even know about it?

  “He calls you ‘The Annihilator’,” she said leaning back in her chair and closing her eyes, “because it’s who you are. You destroy anything that gets in your path, and you’re even worse when it comes to Jake. You two are adorably protective of each other. It’s not a bad thing.”

  The thing was, I kind of loved that Greg had a nickname for me. I loved even more that it felt right. I desperately wanted to make Jake happy. Anything that got in the way of that… well, I was prepared to go to great lengths to eliminate it. I remembered Greg’s words from lunch and realized just how seriously he meant them. Heaven help anyone who gets between you and Jake.

  ***

  Thursday morning Jake and I loaded into the Orange Beast, Jake’s refurbished orange Ford Bronco, for the drive south to my parent’s house. The weather was perfect. The cold front had cooled everything off for the customary twenty-four hours and it was warming up nicely.

  “Cassandra, Tim, and the boys are already there. June is flying in tonight because she couldn’t get out of her morning class. And Tom is flying in late Friday. Greg is getting him from the airport and driving him down Saturday morning.” I tucked the schedule back into my bag and leaned back in the seat, letting the air whip around me.

  “Sounds like everything is covered, darlin’. You should start relaxing.”

  All I could do was laugh at his suggestion. There would be no relaxing until Sunday morning. Well… maybe there’d be some relaxing late Saturday night, after the wedding…

  I looked over at Jake. He was grinning from ear to ear. There was a light stubble on his face that only made him more handsome, dark sunglasses, and a Ray’s baseball cap covered his dark hair. He’d let it grow a little longer over the winter and the ends of it were curling. He looked more relaxed and carefree when his hair was longer. Younger. It was a beautiful day, cool in the shade but warm in the sun. He was wearing jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows.

  “I have a present for you.” I said it so softly I was afraid he didn’t hear me at first.

  But then he smiled. “I have a present for you, too.”

  “I want to give you mine before the wedding, if that’s alright with you.”

  He nodded slowly, “Ok…”

  I wasn’t entirely sure what was coming over me, but I had a sudden intense urge to give him his present right then. He glanced over at me. “You want me to pull over, don’t you?”

  I bit my lip and nodded, “It’s like Christmas. It’s burning a hole in my pocket. How the hell did you make it a whole week in the Bahamas’ with an engagement ring around your neck?”

  He was thoroughly pleased with himself, the cocky bastard. His smile just about ripped his face in two. “I hear that patience is a virtue, and since I have so few, I thought I might practice that one.”

  “Jake, it is entirely possible you have more patience than any man alive. It’s kind of infuriating.”

  Five minutes later he pulled off the interstate at possibly the most unromantic location possible: a barren parking lot in the middle of nowhere. But we were alone and I was absolutely giddy.

  “Eve, you’re vibrating. Take a deep breath.”

  “Oh shut it, Mr. Cool, Calm, and Collected. I’m excited.” I pulled the black box out of my bag and turned it over in my hands a few times. I was more than excited, I was a little nervous. I didn’t just want to be Jake’s wife; I wanted to be his family. This gift was a little symbol of what family meant to me and I just hoped it helped him feel part of something bigger for a change.

  I didn’t look up at him. Instead, I kept my eyes on the box as I explained his gift. “Have you ever heard my family talk about our ‘happy thoughts’?”

  He shook his head slowly. “Not really. Maybe?”

  “Do you know what a ‘happy thought’ is?” I asked.

  “A thought that is happy?” he chuckled.

  “It’s from Peter Pan. Think of a happy thought and with a little magic, you can fly. In my family we have a tradition. We keep our happy thoughts around us. They are usually pictures or objects, but whatever we pick, they’re something that makes us smile the instant we see it. A happy thought makes you feel like you can get through a bad day or gives you courage to keep going, but it is also a silent cheerleader. Every time you see your happy thought, you stop and take stock in what is going on around you, where you’re headed, and how you’re getting there. You can make your own happy thoughts, but sometimes we give them to each other as gifts, as well.” I took a deep breath and held the box out to Jake. “This is my happy thought, for you.”

  My heart was thudding inside my chest so hard it hurt. I wanted to cry and laugh and hug Jake until he felt as loved as he made me.

  His green eyes were a little wider than normal as he took the box from my hands. “The picture of me you keep on the visor in your car?”

  “A happy thought,” I replied with a smile.

  “And the lock screen on your iPad… it’s of you and your sisters at a game when you were kids.”

  “A happy thought, too. I keep one inside my Kindle case in my nightstand, under my keyboard at work, and the bottom of my underwear drawer.”

  “Your underwear drawer?” he asked, chuckling.

  “Yep. When I’m late for work and freaking out, it’s nice to have a picture of my dad showing me how to swing a bat to remind me to slow down. The world will still turn even if I’m a few minutes late.”

  Jake looked at the box in his hands for a long minute before saying anything else. He looked like he was just absorbing the idea. “Your necklace—the sunburst—that was my happy thought for a lot of years.”

  The necklace was around my neck and I pulled it out from under my sweater so Jake could see it. “And now, it’s mine. Open yours.”

  He gave me a cocky half-grin and opened the box. Inside was a silver and black Tag Heuer wat
ch. “My happy thought is a time piece?” he asked eyeing me carefully.

  I grinned and reached out for the watch, taking it out of the box.

  “Hey, get your grubby hands off my present, woman,” he grumbled, batting away my hands and taking back the watch.

  “Turn it over,” I replied. My heart was going to beat out of my chest if he didn’t hurry up.

  Jake released the clasp on the wrist band and flipped the watch over so that it was resting in the palm of his hand. A slow grin pulled up on the corners of his lips. “I love you so much it hurts. Thank you.”

  “You like it?”

  He didn’t say anything, just stared at the watch in his hands, running his thumb back and forth across the sunburst I’d had engraved on the back. It took me five jewelers to find someone who would do it. I never thought getting something engraved would be so hard, but it was. Inside of the sunburst there was an inscription: Follow the sun, it will always lead you back to me.

  He slowly strapped the watch onto his wrist, then looked at the way it sat on his arm. He still didn’t say anything as he reached out for the necklace around my neck, holding it in the palm of his hand and fighting a sea of emotions. He finally looked up, locking eyes with me. It took my breath away. His eyes were a little wild; the green was almost mixed with a shade of blue. It was like a storm. A beautiful, perfect storm. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “It’s perfect.”

  Chapter 12

  -Jake-

  There are three things I have indelibly etched into my brain from our wedding day. One was seeing Eve in the window of her parent’s bedroom. The second was hearing her accidentally change our wedding vows. And the third was watching her come apart beneath me for the very first time as my wife.

  I’d never been so overwhelmed. If it was anything like being a celebrity, then I never wanted to be famous.

  There was always someone who wanted to talk to me (most I’d never met before) and there was always someone who needed something. Then there were the pictures. My face hurt from smiling so damn much.

  Greg, Tom, and I were standing on the back porch trying to get a few minutes alone. It was good to see my uncle and to be together with the two men I considered my family.

  Tom was shorter than me, but he was scary as hell. He was one of those guys who exuded power. You could feel it before he moved or spoke, it just surrounded him. And then, when he did finally speak, it confirmed everything your senses were telling you.

  You didn’t fuck with Tom.

  He fidgeted while he stood next to Greg, pulling at his collar and constantly readjusting his cuffs. He was not a suit and tie kind of guy. His graying hair was cut very short, his skin was weathered, and his brown eyes were the kind that cut through everything.

  I loved working for him. He was a no-nonsense kind of guy which was a huge part of his success. There was never any question where you stood with Tom.

  “Should I sit you down and give you a talk about what’s going to happen tonight?” Greg had such a serious expression on his face I actually second guessed whether he was joking or not. Maybe there was something else planned for our wedding night I didn’t know about yet?

  He and Tom traded “a look” and then both looked back at me expectantly.

  “What?” I finally asked.

  “Well you see,” Greg started. He was so serious I didn’t see it coming. “She’s going to have a lot of expectations. It is a big night in the life of a woman and it is your responsibility to take care of her.” Tom was nodding along and looking very concerned. “You’re gonna want to hump her like a rabbit, but you’ve got to stop yourself.”

  Asshole. Only Greg could pull off shit like that with such a serious face. “Fuck off.”

  Greg and Tom both laughed at me. They were both assholes. Tom put his hand on my arm. “Seriously son, have you two talked about protection?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I think we might have it covered.” Truth was I wouldn’t be devastated if we got pregnant. Having a kid with Eve would never be an accident.

  “Do you have any questions?” Tom was almost as bad as Greg, but he was having trouble covering his smile.

  I just shook my head. There was no stopping them until they got it all out of their systems. Maybe it was time for a whiskey.

  “You two didn’t do something stupid like abstain all week so your wedding night would be more ‘special’, did you?” Greg said it with a high-pitched voice.

  Now I knew I needed a whiskey. I flagged down a waiter I saw flying by us with a tray of drinks. “Whiskey, please.”

  “Bring the bottle,” Tom said.

  “Well did you?” Greg asked, looking pointedly at me. It was beyond me why he cared how much sex Eve and I were having.

  “Do you know Eve at all, moron?” I shook my head and adjusted my tux.

  Tom laughed, “I like her. She’s got spunk.”

  The truth was, nothing was different. We’d tried damn hard to make sure we were as normal as possible. We’d even slept in the same bed last night. I was supposed to leave before she woke up… but I didn’t. I was pretty sure she was going to make me pay for that one.

  But it was so worth it. I was awake before my alarm went off and I had one thing on my mind. My bride. She woke up to my tongue and my fingers teasing her into orgasm. I was almost positive she was asleep until just before it happened, because all of a sudden her fingers were in my hair as she tilted her hips against my lips. She was gasping and coming. It was perfect.

  And then she yelled at me.

  A lot.

  Only Eve would get mad at a wake-up call like that. I grabbed my stuff and ducked out of the door while she hid under the sheet. In my defense, I never looked at her face.

  “Jakey-poo!” June was running from the house waving an envelope in the air. Her blonde hair was down in long waves and her yellow dress was floating around her as she ran.

  I swore under my breath and jogged over to meet Eve’s youngest sister.

  “Give me that…” I said, grabbing it from her hands.

  She scowled at me. “You two are so weird. It’s just a letter. My money is on a torrid secret she’s never told you before. The guilt is killing her, so she’s confessing before you make a huge mistake.”

  Oh my little, innocent Junebug. If she only knew what was inside that envelope. I pulled my matching envelope out of my tuxedo jacket and leaned in. “If you call a list of places we want to have sex on our honeymoon a ‘last minute confession’ go right ahead. But I’d prefer you stop waving these in the air. Please.”

  She scrunched up her face like I’d just handed her a bucket of vomit and took the letter, pressing it against her chest. “Gross.”

  Maybe. But it was damn hot and fucking fun. “Just deliver the letter, June. And this.” I handed her a small giftwrapped box.

  She stuck her tongue out at me and left. When I turned around, Tom was gone and Greg was wandering toward the reception tent with our bottle of whiskey.

  Since our “quick” wedding had become a rather massive affair there was a pre-wedding party going on in the tent for all the guests being bussed in from hotels and the mainland.

  I could catch-up with Greg and Tom later—I wanted to see what Eve sent me.

  I glanced up at the window and saw her outline. She was there and I knew she was watching me, but I was almost positive she didn’t know I could see her. She looked beautiful. There was a smile on her face and her dark hair was loose and wild the way I liked it. It always made me think she was ready for anything. I grinned and winked up at her just before I looked back down at the letter.

  There was only one line and it was full of pure evil: I hear patience is a virtue, you should practice.

  I resisted the urge to crumple the card in my fist as raw sexual frustration raced through my veins. Eve knew me far too well. If there was one way to drive me crazy and want her more than I already did, it was to dangle mystery sex in front of me.

  When I glanced
back up at the window I could see her much clearer than before. Sometimes I wasn’t sure what I believed about life and death, but when I looked at Eve, I knew I believed in one thing.

  I believed in angels.

  It was the easiest way to explain how I felt about her. She showed me a life I didn’t know I could have. She believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself.

  She helped save me from myself and that sounded an awful lot like an angel to me.

  Chapter 13

  ~Eve~

  June returned with my envelope from Jake. “You two are weird.” She thrust the envelope and a box into my waiting hands and turned to leave.

  “You’re just jealous,” I teased her back.

  She turned at the doorway to stick her finger down her throat and fake a few gagging noises. “I’m surrounded by a bunch of love freaks!”

  I didn’t argue. I just tucked the letter into my bag to read later. The exchanging of cards wasn’t really for me—it was for Jake. I knew the day was going to be overwhelming and I thought the letter would help serve as a distraction. Based on the grin I just saw through the window, I had succeeded.

  Then I looked at the box in my hands. It was wrapped in thick cream paper with a blue bow on top. It wasn’t large, just big enough to fit in the palm of my hand. It must have been gift-wrapped. I couldn’t imagine Jake with his large hands folding the expensive paper so precisely. I set the envelope aside and pulled at the corners of my gift. Inside was a box with the distinctive blue of Tiffany’s.

  My heart was racing as I opened it, but it fell into my stomach and stopped beating altogether as I saw what was cradled inside. Sitting against the satin fabric was a gold necklace. Hanging from the chain, encrusted in diamonds, was a perfect golden sun. There was a small card tucked in beside it.

  For special occasions and new happy thoughts.

  I love you.

  I touched the necklace he’d given me last year. I was already wearing it, and had planned on wearing it down the aisle. It wasn’t nearly as fancy or expensive as this new necklace, but it was perfect because Jake gave it to me. I sat and stared at my present for a few minutes. The contrast between the two was hitting me hard. The necklace around my neck was a tie to our past, but it was also a testament to our journey. The necklace in my hands was precious and beautiful, like our future.