Realization suddenly dawned on me. “So Jonathan’s not in love with you? That shit he said earlier was made up?”
She nodded. “Yup. He’s actually really happy for us. In fact, his girlfriend’s sister is an event planner at this hotel, which is why I decided to have the wedding here. She set everything up for us. I’ve been talking to her for the past few weeks.”
I looked up and met Jonathan’s gaze. He smiled at me, and I suddenly saw him in a whole new light.
“Who knew about this?” I asked, looking at my band mates.
She smiled. “None of the guys knew until tonight. I couldn’t have them in on the secret since they have big mouths, but our families and friends knew, and Jonathan, of course. He was the one who suggested we do it here and fly everyone out.”
Shit, now I felt like an asshole for hating him so much. He was actually a decent guy.
“But what about what Andrew and Derrick heard? About you leaving me? They heard you talking to Rachel.”
She smiled. “More lies,” she said, shrugging innocently. I was afraid they’d heard me on the phone talking about the wedding, so I used evasive tactics to throw them off.
I smiled. “Baby, they’re not that smart.”
“I heard that,” Andrew said where he stood behind me. I’d forgotten he was there.
I turned and grinned at him. “Sorry, man.”
He just grinned back at me.
“So, Zack,” Emily said then, taking my hand in hers, making me turn back around. “Will you do me the incredible honor of marrying me tonight?”
A wave of emotion hit me as she said those words, so I just nodded, afraid that if I actually said anything, it would come out all choked up. I couldn’t have that, not when my fiancée was so rock solid right in front of me.
“There’s nothing else in this world I want more than to marry you, princess,” I said when I was sure I could keep it together.
Slowly her arms wrapped around my neck, and she kissed me, long and slow. “I love you, Zack Easton,” she said, when she pulled back. “I can’t wait to be your wife.”
I grinned at how awesome her words sounded. She really wasn’t freaked out. She was just a phenomenal actress.
“Come on,” she said, taking my hand and leading me to the arch.
I followed her, grinning like a dazed idiot as we passed our friends and family. They started shuffling around, taking seats on either side of the aisle. Rachel and Keely stood up behind Emily, and I turned to see Leo, Andrew and Derrick standing behind me – my best men.
A guy dressed like Elvis, who I hadn’t noticed before, stepped underneath the arch and addressed us.
I looked at Emily. “Elvis? Really?”
She took her hands in mine as she laughed. “I figured if we were getting married in Vegas, we had to let Elvis do it. It’s only customary, and he is the King of Rock n’ Roll.”
I laughed at the way her mind worked. “I love you,” I mouthed.
“Me too,” she mouthed back and smiled.
Then Elvis began the ceremony. Ten minutes later, we’d said ‘I do’ and were officially married.
The rest of the night was a blur of our friends and family congratulating us, dancing with Emily to song after song and letting it sink in that we were actually married. We even danced to Without You, which was strange considering it was me singing, and I’d never danced to one of my own songs before.
I looked down at my wife and smiled. “You look just like a princess,” I told her, loving the way her hair was flowing behind her and how the light from the twinkle lights danced on her bare shoulders.
She smiled. “And you’re the prince I always dreamed of when I was growing up. I just didn’t know it. I never imagined the guy who’d steal my heart would have tattoos and piercings and look more at home in jeans and combat boots than anything else. Or that he’d come riding in on a Harley instead of a white horse.”
I looked down at what I was wearing. Until then I’d forgotten I had on a black t-shirt with The Killers logo on the front, jeans and my boots. My tattoos were on full display, and I had both my eyebrow piercing and my tongue ring in. Not that I was ashamed of who I was, but I couldn’t believe I’d gotten married in what I’d worn on stage earlier in the night. What was wrong with me?
Emily just laughed when she saw me looking down in surprise. I looked up at her. “I should have changed,” I said guiltily, but she just shook her head.
“No way. You’re the guy I fell in love with. I wouldn’t have wanted to marry you in a suit. This was perfect.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “I look like a hood rat, and you look like a princess.”
She shook her head. “No, you look like you, like a hot rock star, and I look like a princess. I think it’s fitting. It’s who we are.”
Okay, she sort of had a point there.
I sighed and shook my head. “I love you so much.”
“I know,” she said, smiling at me as I pulled her close so I could kiss her. “Just don’t ever forget that. At this rate, we could be married for fifty years, and I can’t have you getting sick of me.”
“I think fifty years with you sounds like not nearly enough time.”
“Aww, that was so the right thing to say,” she said, and then she kissed me again.
Who said I wasn’t romantic? I knew how to turn on the charm when it mattered, and there, dancing on a rooftop in the middle of the night, having just married the girl I loved more than life, was one of those moments in life when it mattered.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Andrew
“You’re friends are a little crazy,” Cole said as we danced to a Joshua Radin song. “I hope you don’t mind me saying that.”
I laughed. “Considering this is the first time you’re meeting them, and with all the shit that went down tonight, trust me, I’m not offended. I’d think they were crazy too. We’re not normally like this.”
“I know. But,” he said, a smile gracing his beautiful face, “I can see how much you all care about each other, even Derrick. I mean, you were all right there with Zack tonight, drinking shots, trying to talk him down from the ledge. Shit, even when you both thought Derrick had a gun aimed at Jonathan, you ran right into the fray. That says a lot about your friendship.”
“You knew about the fake gun thing that got us up to the roof?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I was with Leo when he called you. I was honestly trying not to laugh my ass off since he had you on speaker phone, and you sounded so adorably panicked. It was cute.”
“I’m glad I could amuse you.”
“Aww,” he said, his hand cupping my face. “Don’t take that the wrong way, babe. You know I love you.”
“Yeah, I know,” I said sheepishly.
“Can I cut in?” a familiar voice asked, and I looked up to Jen standing behind Cole.
She was eyeing him. I was pretty sure he knew who she was even if he’d never seen her picture and they hadn’t been introduced. We’d been at the wedding for over an hour, and Jen and I had made eye contact from across the rooftop, but she had yet to approach me. This step was bold and sort of surprising. I’d assumed she’d just avoid me all night.
“Sure,” he said, nodding once as he stepped back and let her take his place.
Because I was supposed to, I wrapped my arms around her and started to dance. Cole had walked away and was over near the cupcakes talking to Zack, who was holding Lily in his arms. I smiled as he reached out and tickled her tummy, making her laugh.
I loved that little girl, and once upon a time I’d engaged in the notion that one day I’d be her stepfather and that my kids would be half-brothers and sisters to her. Now things were so different, but I wouldn’t change them for the world.
“Cole seems like a really good guy,” Jen said honestly, and I turned to look at her.
“You don’t have to say that just because you think you should.”
“I’m not just saying that. I’ve be
en watching you guys all night, and he’s hardly left your side. I can see how much he likes you, and to be honest, I’ve never seen you so happy.”
I nodded, not sure how much I should reveal. This was the first time we’d talked in over a month, not since the night I broke up with her.
“You are happy, aren’t you?” she prompted.
“Yeah, I am, Jen,” I said, my voice sounding strange, like I hadn’t used it in a while.
She smiled. “I’m glad.”
“Are you?”
She shrugged. “You want the truth?”
“Yeah,” I said, even though I wasn’t sure I did.
“I’m just okay with it. I want to hate him, because I miss you so much, but I can’t hate someone who makes your cheeks flush when you think about him.”
A smile crept up on my lips. My cheeks did feel hot.
“You love him, don’t you?” she asked, seeing right through me.
“Yeah, I do, very much.”
“Does he love you?”
I hesitated before saying, “He does.”
She cocked her head to the side and smiled. “I guess that makes you gay after all.”
I inwardly cringed at that label, not liking the way she said it. “I don’t know if really want to label what I am,” I said honestly, because for too long I’d tried to label it, put myself in a box, and it wasn’t that simple. “Right now, I’m in love with a man, but I’ve loved women in the past. I loved you, Jen.”
“I know you did. You were a great boyfriend, Andrew. Until the end, that is,” she teased, and I was glad she’d made a joke. Things were feeling too tense between us.
“I miss you too,” I told her, because I missed talking to her and sharing things with her. She’d been such a big part of my life for so long that it was weird that we hadn’t talked in over a month. “I’d like us to be friends.”
“I know, and we will be, but not right now. I need time. Give me a few months.”
I nodded. I could do that.
“So, how have you been, really?” I asked her.
She shrugged. “Okay, I guess. I’m moving on. I met a guy at the park last week. He has a son, Parker, who’s a year older than Lily. His wife died when Parker was a baby, so he knows what it’s like to have your love life ripped out from under you. We talked about it over coffee.”
I cringed as she said the part about me ripping her love life away so casually, but if it’s what she had to do to get through our break-up, I’d take the verbal hit.
“I’m really sorry, Jen. You know I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“I know, but it doesn’t change the fact that you did. I wish you hadn’t strung me along for so long, but I know you had your reasons.”
I shook my head. “It was never about you.”
“I know, but it doesn’t make it any easier. I loved you, and I thought you were the guy I was going to end up with.”
“It just wasn’t meant to be,” I said, because I honestly felt that way.
“I know. I can see that now. When you’re with Cole, you seem at ease, like you belong next to him. That’s what’s meant to be, but I never would have believed it until I saw it. And quite honestly, I’m a little jealous that you landed a guy that hot. He doesn’t have a brother, does he?”
I laughed. “He does actually. His brother Mason lives in Jacksonville with his wife, but he’s nowhere near as hot as Cole.”
Then Jen laughed, and it felt good to laugh with her.
“Make sure he treats you right, will you?”
“He will,” I promised.
The song we were dancing to was ending, and I was going to join Zack and Cole and get a cupcake.
“And maybe when you’re back in town, you’ll come over for dinner? I know Lily would love to see you.”
I smiled. “I’d love that, but can I bring Cole? We’re actually moving in together when I get off tour.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Seriously?”
I nodded, excited about the prospect of being domesticated with the guy I was completely head-over-heels in love with. “Yeah, he suggested it, and I couldn’t say no. We’re going to look for a house in Chapel Hill, probably downtown.”
She nodded knowingly. “That’s right, you’re making the big bucks now.”
I shook my head. “It’s not that. Cole’s an architect, so he doesn’t want anything cookie-cutter.”
“Wow, that’s a really sexy job, Andrew. Is there anything he isn’t good at?”
I smirked and shook my head. “No, not really.”
The song ended, so we stepped apart, and she put her hands on her hips. “Does he give better head than me?” she asked, and then she turned bright red and held up her hand. “Don’t answer that! I was kidding. I don’t want to know.”
And I wasn’t going to tell her since the answer was yes.
“Come on,” I said, putting my arm around her shoulder. “Let’s go get a cupcake. I’ll introduce you to Cole.”
“I’d like that,” she said sincerely. “And yes, you can bring him to dinner when you’re back in town. I’ll invite David over. We’ve sort of been seeing each other since we had coffee, but we’re taking things slow. He’s a good guy. I think you’ll like him.”
I smiled, so glad we really were going to be able to stay friends. We had so much history. “Sounds great. I can’t wait to meet him.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Zack
“Well good morning all you insane people out there who are up at seven in the morning. I’m Johnny B, and this is your favorite morning show in Sin City. We’re here with the band Liar’s Edge whose show last night at the Temple Theater was off the hook. Seriously, they rocked the place apart, and panties were dropping left and right. I even got laid, if you can believe it.”
“They can’t believe it, Johnny,” the other DJ, Billy, chimed in. “No one wants to sleep with your ugly mug. It’s why you’re on the radio.”
“Video killed the radio star . . . ” Johnny sung off-key into his microphone.
“This is true,” Billy said.
“And enough about me. Let’s talk about these four talented guys sitting in front of me who, let’s face it, are way too good looking to be in a band together. Are you sure you’re not a boy band?”
I laughed. Ordinarily, a comment like that might have irritated me, but nothing could wipe the smile from my face that morning. I’d barely gotten any sleep between getting married, celebrating with my friends and family and then taking Emily up to the honeymoon suite – which was where she’d moved her stuff earlier in the night – and making love to her for several hours. I was flat out exhausted, but I didn’t care. Nothing could faze me that morning.
“No, we play instruments,” Derrick said, a rough edge to his voice.
“And you can’t sing,” Andrew told him.
Derrick just laughed. “Yeah, no kidding, but give me sticks, and it’s game over.”
“I’ll vouch for that,” Johnny said. “Derrick was tearing it up last night on drums.”
“Thank you. Thank you,” Derrick said playfully.
“Okay, so you guys are here in Vegas. Is it your first time?”
I looked around at the guys. “It’s mine,” I offered.
“Yeah, me too,” Andrew said.
“I’ve been here before,” Derrick said, which was honestly no surprise.
“Not me,” Leo said.
“Ah, three Vegas virgins,” Billy said. “I love it.”
Johnny rubbed his hands together. “Okay, so we’re going to play a game we like to do with all of our guests. It’s called, The Craziest Thing I Did on My First Trip to Vegas Was . . . You guys want to play?”
“Sure,” we all said.
“Okay, it’s simple really. All you have to do is say the craziest thing you did on your first trip to the city. Who wants to start?”
“Uh, how graphic can we be on the radio?” Derrick asked, which was probably a good question.
&
nbsp; “Let’s keep it PG 13, shall we?” Johnny told him.
He nodded. “Got it. I’ll just have to leave out a few details then, if you know what I mean.”
“We all know what you mean,” Andrew said.
Derrick looked way too excited. I wasn’t sure we actually wanted him to tell his story.
“Okay, I’ll start,” Derrick volunteered, having no issues airing his business.
“Oh jeez, brace yourselves,” Leo chimed in, and Derrick elbowed him.
“Okay, so when I was here the first time, I was fifteen. We came for a family trip, because my dad had some sort of conference for work. I was supposed to be asleep in my hotel room, but there was no way I was staying in, so I snuck out and went down to the casino.”
“That doesn’t seem very radical,” Billy said.
“He’s probably not done,” Leo told him.
Derrick grinned. “I’m not. Anyway, I meet this girl, and she tells me she has a limo. It’s her twenty-first birthday, and she tells me she wants me to come celebrate with her. So, of course I go, because she’s really hot. And I just knew I was going to get laid, right? So we get in the limo and one of her friends is already there. One thing leads to another, and before I realize it, I’m doing two chicks at once. I lost my virginity that night,” he said triumphantly as he made a ‘suck-it’ gesture with his hands.
“I don’t think I believe you,” Johnny said playfully.
I shook my head. “No, it’s the truth. You don’t know Derrick.”
Derrick just smiled at him before looking over at Andrew. “You go next, Drew.”
Broken Fairytales Series Box Set (Broken Fairytales, Buried Castles, Shattered Crowns) Page 91