“Whoa, remember what I said?” she scolded, and all but Milly, Tammy’s eldest, frowned, instantly corrected by her tone. I smiled when I looked at all their eager, happy little faces. Bethany and Brynn bounced with excitement, which in turn gave me my first set of butterflies for that day.
When I walked past the brightly colored wooden cabanas, the pergoda came into view and as it did, I heard a gentle drumbeat and then a guitar began to play. I frowned, puzzled and glanced toward Billie, whose face lit up when she smiled.
“That’s my daddy and Uncle Scott,” Brynn announced proudly, tapping my hip. Pointing a finger in the air to gain my attention, she cocked her head to one side, listening. When she joined in the chorus and knew all the words, I figured they had been practicing the song for my big day at home.
As Sawyer belted out “Make You Feel My Love” by Adele, accompanied by Hammer on the drums, or Uncle Scott as the children called him, a surging wave of emotion caught in my chest. My body vibrated with anticipation and I swallowed hard because I knew it had been chosen by James.
The tune immediately took me back to the dance floor when I had boldly cut in and asked him to dance. What had added weight to the song was the significance of the lyrics, all I had been through, and how he’d been there for me. But most significantly, it was the song we had danced to at Billie and Sawyer’s wedding and the fact neither of us had ever mentioned that again.
As the wedding party came into view, my eyes scanned past the sparce number of seats at the front of the white wooden pagoda, decorated with flowers.
James stood dressed in sky blue pants and a white button-down shirt, with a matching blue vest and jacket. His shirt collar was open and his blue tie hung loosely knotted. His outfit, like mine, was not overstated and perfect for a beach wedding.
The moment his eyes caught mine, we were locked in a gaze that felt like we were the only two people present. His eyes shone with delight as he stood and drank me in.
My heart pounded, suddenly conscious of how I looked and I’d hoped he liked the dress I had chosen. At the same time, I prayed I never let him down, and we lived a long happy life together.
The moment he smiled at me, I instantly forgot how to breathe. Breaking his stare, I finally exhaled and noted he wasn’t alone. Josh, his best friend stood beside him, dressed the same, and when I looked over at Sawyer and Hammer, they too were in matching attire.
Sawyer finished singing as my dad and I reached the pagoda and I heard Billie heave a proud sigh. Briefly, I caught Erin arrive as she sat next to Marnie and Franco and my heart swelled so tight, I thought it might die.
Once my dad had passed my hand to James, Hammer helped Dad to his seat and sat down beside him. James leaned in and whispered softly in my ear.
“You look exquisite. It feels like it’s taken forever to get to this moment, but I can’t wait to call you my wife.”
“Do I deserve you?” I asked, partly in jest because he had known the precise words to say, as my heart thumped with excitement. My question, although directed toward James, was also me asking myself.
“You deserve all the happiness in the world, my love, and I promise I’ll do my best to contribute to that,” he replied.
“Thank you for being you, for waiting for me, for not giving up when the going felt tough for me.”
The pastor cleared his throat and we realized we’d gotten lost in our own little world for a minute. James chuckled as the pastor placed his sash over our hands and the wedding ceremony began.
The wedding service was kept very short at our request, with both of us choosing the standard traditional vows. I felt I’d been through enough emotional turmoil and drama of late and lacked the creative imagination, which I was sure wouldn’t even have begun to convey what James meant to me.
To my mind, the depth of feelings we shared could hardly be defined by a few sentiments. Our connection was on more of a private, spiritual level than anything either of us could have voiced.
Thankfully, James had told me he’d felt relieved, citing the same sentiments as I had for not bypassing tradition, joking that Sawyer was the poet and romantic in the family. I had strongly disagreed on his romantic comparison and reminded James that romance wasn’t all about hearts, flowers, and love songs … Adele’s songs aside.
I’d have placed bets that the smoldering toe-curling kiss James gave me when the ceremony was over was longer than the ritual itself.
“Yuk, yuk, yuk,” Brynn commented in disgust. “Kissing is yukky. My mom and dad do that all the time, but when I grow up, I won’t be kissing any boys.”
“Damn straight you won’t, or I’ll be buying a nice shiny gun cabinet.” Sawyer scowled down at her and lifted her twin, Remy, onto his shoulders. Billie chuckled and shook her head as she held Brynn’s hand, but I saw how she loved Sawyer’s protective streak when it came to his girls.
“What’s a gun cabinet?” Brynn asked. Sawyer pulled affectionately at one of her curls and crouched down beside her. Remy protested because he’d been enjoying the view.
“You don’t need to know that if you don’t kiss the boys, because we won’t be having one.” Brynn considered his answer and shrugged. “We should have one already because you kiss Mom allllllllll the time,” she dragged out in an exaggerated whine.
“Is that so?” James asked, and squeezed my hand as he poked fun at Sawyer and Billie, by feeding into their daughter’s conversation.
“Yeah, but not like you do it … they do it differently.”
“Differently?” both James and I chimed in at once and chuckled.
“Uh huh,” Brynn replied, folding her arms and scowling at her parents since she’d sensed she’d captured all of our attention.
“I’m almost scared to ask,” Sawyer chuckled, and Billie raised a brow in question. “All right, I’ll bite, how do we do it differently from Uncle James and Auntie Tricia?”
“You do it lying down, you on top of Mom, Mom on top of you, side to side, all ways. They only do it standing up,” she added, cocking her thumb at James and me. Both James and Sawyer burst out laughing, while Billie’s face turned red and I bit back a grin.
“That’s true,” I agreed with a straight face and our husbands cracked up again.
“Maybe they haven’t learned to do it standing up,” James offered, barely containing his laugh.
“Hm, no I’ve seen them do it that way too … and sitting on a table, and on the counter.”
“Doing what?” Colby asked, as he came over and joined the conversation.
“Kissing. I was explaining that they,” she said, wagging her finger between James and me, “only kiss standing up. Mom and Dad, do it lying down—a lot … and they don’t wear clothes that much when they do it either,” she added.
“That’s because they’re probably doing it when they have sex,” Colby told her nonchalantly and walked away, leaving us all with the bombshell he’d dropped. Looking over his shoulder, he smirked and Sawyer chuckled.
“Right Sawyer, can you ask Hammer to go check with Harriett what time we’re sitting down to eat? The photographer’s waiting and we’re holding everything up,” Billie asked with a bright red face, looking flustered as she led Brynn away.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Sawyer had made way for Josh as James’ best man, because Josh and James had been through thick and thin together since they’d been six years old. It had been Sawyer’s idea, because he had already performed a key role by singing for us. He made James chuckle when he’d said the guests would remember his performance long after anything Josh had had to say.
Harriett had done an amazing job of putting everything together and the simple light lunch of chicken, pasta, and sushi dishes had been the perfect choice for us. A three-tiered cake—in ivory and lilac with gold leaf—was made by their family chef at home, and if I’d had a choice I couldn’t have chosen better.
For James and me, the day wasn’t about the food, drink, cakes, songs, or toasts. It w
as about us finally being husband and wife. We had plans to make and after he’d made the concession of the prenup agreement, I felt happy to make the compromise of working from home independently. James suggested I join the firm, and I told him I’d think about it.
I had considered the responsibility that went with being a wife of a CEO-in-waiting for a huge financial and property corporation such as the one James’ father headed, but felt confident I’d be a key person in place to support my husband when the time came for him to take over.
As the waitstaff cleared the dessert dishes away, Josh rose to his feet and banged a clean dessert spoon on his glass to get everyone’s attention. My eyes scanned the room and I reminded myself I’d married into a remarkable family.
Several times during the luncheon I caught Tammy watching James and I carefully. My first thought was she had been waiting for me to slip up, to say or do something that would justify her initial opinion of me. Pushing past those thoughts, I reminded myself of what Billie and Harriett had advised—to give her time. I figured I could do that since she lived in Arizona, and I could probably afford her all the time she needed as long as she stayed there.
“What are you smiling about?” James asked and I shook my head, realizing my last thought had turned into a feeling.
“I’m your wife … there’s every reason to smile.”
“Wow, I like that answer. You’ve been taking lessons from me,” he replied, chuckling, until Josh called us all to attention.
“Let me start first by saying I’d have preferred a much larger audience for my first outing as best man.”
“And your last,” Sawyer heckled Josh by commenting to James, “none of my brother’s other friends are charming enough to fool anyone into marrying them.” The family chuckled and it was clear Josh’s longstanding relationship with James was a familiar and a much valued one.
“When James asked me to be his best man,” he winked toward Sawyer like he had been the loser, “I guess he was thinking about the wedding photographs because I look better than little Sawyer, so it was his strategic move to place his baby brother on the end. This way he can easily be cut out the pictures with the excuse the photograph wouldn’t fit in the frame.” Everyone chuckled. “Seriously though, it’s no secret to any of us that growing up, James and Sawyer haven’t always seen eye to eye, but I’m glad to say that nowadays they’ve never been closer. This warms my heart because it will mean extra party invites for me.”
The family chuckled again, and James smirked in Sawyer’s direction.
Sawyer shook his head with a smile on his face and muttered, “Always freeloading.”
Josh chuckled. “Just keeping things real,” he mumbled, and took a quick swig of his champagne to hide his smile. Placing his glass down, his face sobered and he gestured toward me. “Seeing James with this beautiful woman, his wife …” Everyone cheered loudly and banged on their tables. James and I grinned at one another before James laced his fingers in mine, lifted our hands, and brushed my knuckles against his lips. “… brings a couple of questions to mind. The first one being, exactly how drunk did he have to get Tricia before she said yes to marrying him? And secondly, where am I going to find a new good-looking wingman with the same wit and charm to replace James at my age?” The family roared with laughter.
For a moment James and Josh shared a look that said they’d had a lot of fun together, but Josh referring to James’ history as a playboy hadn’t annoyed me. James’ past, no matter how debauched, couldn’t have even begun to match the hurt knowing mine could have caused James.
“It’s no secret James and I were a hit with the ladies back in the day … that was mainly because he was with me, by the way. However, I’ve been strongly advised, mainly by James, to tone things down because it’s his wedding day, and I’ve been reminded that there are children present.” James’ dad and mine both laughed heartily. “I think this directive was borne mainly out of fear his marriage may well be annulled before it gets off the ground if I stray from the agreed script James kindly wrote for me.” Ronald slapped his hand on the table and guffawed loudly.
Josh pointed at Ronald as if to say, ‘you know what I mean’ before he continued by addressing me. I picked up my glass of champagne and took a sip when all eyes fell on me. “All I’m going to say, Tricia, is you’re welcome because if I hadn’t taken James under my wing all those years ago, you may have married The Hamptons last virgin.” I sputtered and almost choked on my drink when I laughed at his joke.
“I think that you have that statement back to front, if it hadn’t been for me—” James began humorously defending himself.
“You really want to go there?” Josh warned, interrupting him with a scoff, “don’t goad me, man, you would hate what’s behind these lips.”
James cracked up laughing and shook his head. “You win, I concede,” he replied, mocking a shocked face and holding up his free hand in surrender. They shared another smile, and Josh patted James on the back before he turned to look at our guests again.
“Okay, now for the sentimental part of this gig,” he told them, straightening up and smoothing his hand down his shirt, clearly enjoying being center of attention. “I’ve known this man since he was a boy of six years old. It would be an understatement to say we have been through a lot together. At one time I’d have had the confidence to say I knew his every mood, could anticipate his thoughts and responses, and how to support him. In short, I was blessed the day he became my friend. Now everything I’ve said was true … until the day he met Tricia, apart from the being blessed part, which is true to this day.”
“You’re jealous of my wife?” James asked in a mocking tone, feeding into what we both knew was going to be a heartfelt sentiment.
“Of course, I’m jealous. Look at her, she has anatomy I can’t begin to compete with,” Josh replied in a rare moment hilarity, when his true personality shined through. Everyone in the room erupted in another bout of laughter, including the waitstaff. “But that’s not what I meant. Most people know it took you both years since you first met before you eventually submitted to your feelings for one another. And as two people with fiercely independent ways of life, submission is the appropriate word.”
James and I looked to one another and I knew James had confided his feelings toward me to Josh.
“However, I can pinpoint the day your wife stole your heart, because it changed you forever. You became broody, serious, and restless, and you often appeared troubled. At first, I thought that change in attitude had been your new career in the office or Sawyer getting married, and your competitive streak had taken a hit. It was only after you and Tricia finally dated, and I saw some of the old James drifting back, that pieced it all together.”
Josh addressed our guests, “I, like James, believe Tricia is his other half, the woman of his dreams and I couldn’t be happier for them. I once asked if she had a sister, but I was sad to learn Marnie had already been taken … so, Marnie, anytime you want a change of scene,” he mumbled through the side of his mouth and pointed at his own fine physique. To my surprise Franco shook his fist at Josh in a good-humored threat.
Josh glanced around the room and sighed. “All right, I think I’ve gone on long enough. The kids are getting bored and restless, and I’m wasting valuable drinking time talking.” The children cheered and Josh signaled an okay sign toward them with his fingers.
“I’m sure you’ll all agree with me when I say James and Tricia deserve all the happiness their future lives together can give them, so without further ado, would you please rise to your feet and raise your glasses in a toast to the bride and groom, Mr. and Mrs. Wild.”
Our families stood and did as he asked, saying in unison, “Mr. and Mrs. Wild,” each sipped a drink, placed it back down, cheered, and applauded loudly. James turned to look at me, swept his hand behind my neck, and pulled me in for kiss. It was slow and gentle, not long, but intimate and then he whispered into my ear, “I love you, Mrs. Wild.”
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Leaning back, he studied me with that same intense stare I’d fallen in love with. “You have the most incredible eyes, Mrs. Wild.”
“Thank you, husband, I love you.” My heart clenched when I called him husband and he rewarded my declaration with a wide toothy smile.
“I love my wedding band,” he said, releasing his hand from my neck to look at the ring on his finger and it made me chuckle. “What? I’ve never worn a ring before,” he replied innocently, and I grinned.
“At least we have that as a first.” Given our age we hadn’t found many of those. James laughed, pulled my head to his chest, and kissed the top of it. “We knew if we dug deep enough, we’d find one. You look stunning today, you always look beautiful, but this dress, the way you left your hair down for me, the bare feet … Can I confess I got a boner when I saw you walk toward me today?”
I nodded. “My core may have clenched a time or two, seeing you barefoot in this suit and the tie loose around your neck. Very sexy, Mr. Wild.”
“Glad I still turn you on because you’re stuck with me now,” he muttered and kissed the shell of my ear.
“Are you skipping the dancing and going straight to bed or what?” Josh butted in, with an amused note of sarcasm in his tone.
“Dance,” James muttered gruffy, “and no wonder you’ve never found a woman of your own if this is your sense of timing, it’s equivalent to pre-ejaculation.” I watched Billie usher the children outside toward the beach, trying to pretend she wasn’t listening.
Josh snickered and I turned my attention back to him. “And you’d know all about that right?” I loved the easy banter they had between them and Josh’s comment made me laugh.
James laughed heartily and slapped Josh on the back. “You’re ridiculous.” I laughed at the wide grin on my new husband’s face.
“And a cockblocker—ridiculous and a cockblocker,” Josh clarified, glancing at me with a wink, and then nodding toward Harriett. “But that’s only because I’ve got your back and I’m trying to prevent you fucking your new bride in front of your mom,” Josh said, in a low quiet tone before returning to normal volume. “There’s no need to thank me on that front as well, I’m the best man,” he added, like he had truly believed there had been a genuine risk of James doing that.
Resist Me (Unchained Attraction Book 4) Page 20