by Marie Force
He nodded.
“Will you come back, John?”
He studied her pretty face for a long moment. “Yes,” he said, leaning in to leave her with one last thorough kiss. “I’ll be back.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Getting married turned out to be a bit more complicated than Ted and Caroline had expected. Lillian was groggy from some medication she had been given during the night. While they waited for that to wear off, Theo tried to track down his friend, the retired Superior Court judge, who was playing in a golf tournament on Cape Cod. When Theo finally reached him, Judge Daugherty promised to be at the hospital by seven that evening. So they spent the day taking turns visiting with Lillian and tending to Theo.
Parker came bursting into the ICU at six. “I just got your message an hour ago,” he said, breathing hard from running. “I got here as soon as I could.”
Ted noticed his friend was wearing the same clothes he’d had on the night before. “Did you call Smitty?”
Parker nodded. “He’s coming. It’ll be Sunday morning before he gets here, but he’s on his way. Chip and Elise are, too.”
“Good. Thank you.”
Parker glanced at Caroline and then turned his attention back to Ted. “How’s Lillian?”
“She’s hanging in there. Come on, I’ll take you in to see her.”
Lillian was asleep, so they didn’t disturb her.
Ted was touched when Parker wept at the sight of her in the big hospital bed. He reached for his friend and was relieved that Parker let him offer comfort. Once Parker had collected himself, they walked out to the hallway.
“I was so happy to see you with Gina,” Ted said.
“Yeah, it went a thousand times better than I ever imagined it would.”
Ted grinned as he tugged on the lapel of Parker’s suit coat. “Apparently.”
Parker’s smug, satisfied smile faded when he seemed to remember there were other things they needed to talk about. “What the hell’s going on with you and Caroline, Duff?”
Ted checked his watch. “Well, in about an hour we’re going to be married.”
“What?”
Ted looked at his friend, and a thousand memories of joy and sadness and foolish fun passed through his mind. He hoped those memories would be enough of a down payment on what he was about to ask of him. “I want you to know how sorry I am that you found out the way you did. That wasn’t how I wanted it to happen. You may not believe me, but I’d planned to tell you at lunch today.” Parker started to say something, but Ted held up his hand to stop him. “There’s a lot we need to talk about. But not today. All I’m going to say right now is I’m going to marry the woman I love in less than an hour because I was going to anyway, and my grandmother asked me to do it before she dies.”
Parker’s cheek twitched with tension, and he got busy studying his shoes.
“I’d like very much to have you there with me when I get married. I’m asking you to remember what we’ve been to each other for more than half our lives and to put everything else aside for the time being so you can stand up for me at the most important moment of my life.” Ted’s throat tightened with emotion as he tried to prepare for the possibility that his friend might say no. “Do you think you could do that for me, Parker?” He held up the rings he and Caroline had bought earlier.
After what seemed like an endless pause, Parker reached for the rings. “Yeah. I can do that.”
“Thank you.”
Parker nodded.
In the waiting room, Caroline found herself alone with Ted’s sister while everyone else went to get something to eat.
“Um, Tish.” Caroline waited until she had the other woman’s attention. “I don’t know what you think of all this . . .”
“I think it’s very romantic,” Tish said.
“Really?”
Tish nodded. “I’ve never seen my brother light up the way he does when you come into the room. I can see that he loves you. I only hope you love him just as much.”
“I do.”
“Then that’s all I need to hear. My mother will put you through the paces at first, but you’ll come to love her if you can be patient with her and give her a chance.”
“I’ll try my best to do both. I know we don’t know each other that well, but I find myself in need of a matron of honor. Since my own sister can’t be here, do you think . . .”
Tish reached out to her. “I’d love to.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank you for what you’re doing for my grandmother.”
Caroline smiled. “It’s not really much of a sacrifice when you consider that at the end of the day Ted will be my husband.”
“That’s not such a bad deal.”
“No, it really isn’t.”
Judge Daugherty arrived at seven fifteen full of apologies and complaining about the traffic between Cape Cod and Boston.
“Where’re the bride and groom?”
“Right here,” Ted said.
Mitzi stood off to the side with her husband and watched as Ted introduced the judge to Caroline.
“Well, you’re all grown up since I saw you last, Ted.”
“All grown up and practicing pediatric oncology,” Theo said proudly.
“Ah, yes, the Duffy family business. Do you have a license?” Ted reached for the inside pocket of his navy blue blazer. “Right here.”
The judge propped glasses on the end of his nose and inspected the document. “Everything appears to be in order. Shall we?”
Theo led them to Lillian’s room where she was propped up in bed wearing a scarlet bed jacket Mitzi had brought from home.
“Hello, Warren,” Lillian said. Her voice was weaker than it had been the day before, but her eyes were still bright with life and, for the moment, excitement.
“Lillian, you’re as lovely as ever.” He leaned over to kiss her. “I’m sorry you had to wait all day for me.”
“You’re here now, so let’s get the show on the road.”
They all laughed at Lillian’s feistiness.
The judge arranged Ted and Caroline so his grandmother had the best view.
Mitzi stood in the doorway.
“Do we have witnesses?”
Parker and Tish stepped forward.
“Very good.” The judge gestured to Ted and Caroline. “Now, if you two would face each other.”
Ted reached for Caroline’s hands and smiled at her reassuring squeeze.
“Ted, repeat after me: I, Edward Theodore Duffy, the third, take you Caroline Ann Stewart as my lawful wife. To have and to hold from this day forward, to love, honor and cherish, forsaking all others, until death do us part.”
Ted heard weeping in the background but had eyes only for Caroline as he said his vows in a voice heavy with emotion.
Tears running down her face, she followed suit.
“Do we have rings?”
Parker produced them.
After they had exchanged rings, the judge said, “By the power vested in me by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Ted, you may kiss your bride.”
Lillian clapped when Ted wrapped his arms around Caroline, kissed her, and then hugged her until he had gotten his emotions under control.
“I give you Dr. and Mrs. Ted Duffy,” the judge said as the others applauded along with a group of doctors and nurses who were watching from the corridor.
“Theo, give them our gift,” Lillian said.
Theo reached into his pocket and withdrew what looked like a credit card and handed it to Ted.
“What’s this?” Ted asked.
“A key to the honeymoon suite at the Ritz,” Lillian said with a gleam in her eye. “If you get going now, you’ll still have most of the night. It’s yours tomorrow night, too.”
“I’m not going anywhere tonight, Grandy,” Ted protested.
“You are not spending your wedding night in this hospital, Ted Duffy,” she said, taking a dee
p wheezing breath.
Ed settled her back against the pillow. “Take it easy, Mother.”
“I want you to go,” she said to Ted. “I’ll still be here tomorrow. I promise.”
The others began to filter into the hallway, leaving Ted and Caroline alone with his grandparents.
“I don’t want to leave you,” Ted said.
“We’ve had thirty-eight wonderful years together, my love. Go be with your wife now. You’ve made me very happy today. Both of you.”
Ted leaned over the bed to receive her hug.
In his ear, she whispered, “I’ve done my part. Now you do yours.”
Ted pulled back to look at her and was taken aback by the calculating expression on her face.
Before he could ask her what she meant, Caroline nudged him aside so she could kiss and hug Lillian.
Theo hugged Ted. “I hope you’ll be as happy with your wife as I’ve been with mine.” He welled up when he looked over at Lillian, who was worn out from all the excitement.
After Caroline shared a tearful embrace with his grandfather, Ted took her hand and led her into a hallway, lined with people who wanted to wish them well, or who were at least pretending they did. Parker hugged them both, as did Ed, Judge Daugherty, Tish, and Steven.
Mitzi leaned against the wall on the other side of the hallway.
“Mom?” He could see the battle she waged on her face. She made no overture toward him. With a sinking feeling in his gut he reached for Caroline. “Ready to go?”
She nodded and took his hand.
They had made it to the ICU door when Mitzi called out to them. “Wait.”
Ted kept his hold on Caroline’s hand as he turned to his mother.
Mitzi reached up to frame her son’s face. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” He leaned down to kiss her. “Mom, I’d like you to meet my wife, Caroline.”
Mitzi shook Caroline’s hand. “Pleased to meet you.”
“Likewise, Mrs. Duffy.”
“Please call me Mitzi.”
“I’d like that.”
“Be good to my son,” Mitzi said, her voice wavering. “I love him very much.”
“I do, too. With all my heart.”
Mitzi nodded.
Ed put his arm around Mitzi to watch their son and his wife walk hand-in-hand though the ICU door.
When they were out of sight, Mitzi collapsed against her husband and wept.
“Well done, honey,” Ed whispered. “Very well done.”
Ted and Caroline emerged from the hospital into the warm summer evening. When they got to his car, Ted stopped her.
“What is it?”
“I just need . . .”
“What, honey?”
He put his arms around her. “This.” A deep sigh rattled through him. “Thank you for what you did with my mother. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you’d told her to go to hell.”
“I couldn’t do that. She’s my mother-in-law.”
Ted smiled in amazement as the whirlwind finally slowed long enough for him to consider just how much had changed in the course of that day. “Yes, I guess she is.” He held the car door for her.
After he got in, she said, “I’m glad I got to see her in a less stressful situation last weekend. Because of that I know there’s another side to her than what I’ve seen in the last few days.”
“She’s usually so amazing.”
“I was relieved for you that she took the first step just now.”
“I was relieved for all of us. With my grandmother so sick, we don’t need any more tension.” He reached into his pocket and withdrew his cell phone. “What do you say we call my mother-in-law and fess up to what we’ve done?”
Caroline winced. “Do we have to?”
He smiled and nodded.
With great reluctance she took the phone and dialed the number.
“Hi, Dad.” Caroline sent a fearful look Ted’s way and tipped the phone so he could hear.
He reached for her free hand.
“Is Mom home? Can you ask her to pick up the other extension?” Caroline waited for her mother to come on the line and with a deep breath and another glance at Ted for reassurance she told them her news. After a long silence, she asked, “Are you guys still there?”
“We’re here,” her father said. “This is very surprising, Caroline.”
“You did a nice thing for his grandmother, honey,” her mother said. “I’m sorry we weren’t there to see it, but you did a good thing.”
“That’s how it feels to us, too, Mom. I promise you we’re going to do it again very soon and have all of you there. Ted wants to talk to you guys, okay?”
She handed the phone to him.
“Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Stewart.
“Hello, Ted,” she said.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions and a lot of worries, but I want you to know I love Caroline very much, and I’m going to take very good care of her.”
“That’s good to know,” her mother said. “We’re looking forward to meeting you.”
“Depending on what happens with my grandmother, we’ll be up next weekend, if that’s all right with you.”
“Of course it is. We’ll keep your family in our prayers.”
“Thank you. Well, I’ll give you back to Caroline.”
She talked to them for a few more minutes while Ted drove them home to get what they needed to spend two nights at the Ritz.
After she ended the call, Caroline turned in her seat so she could see him. “Were you born with that or did you acquire it along the way?”
“Born with what?”
“The ability to charm the mothers, even over the phone, and even after you’ve just basically eloped with their daughters.”
He rolled his eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Since I’ve never eloped before I don’t have a whole lot of experience with how to talk to mothers-in-law.”
“Well, you said exactly what she needed to hear.”
“That’s good. I was afraid we were going to be adding them to our list of problems by telling them after the fact.”
“Why don’t we put that list aside for tonight, okay?”
He squeezed her hand. “Absolutely.”
On the way back into the city, Ted called the hospital and was relieved to learn there had been no change in his grandmother’s condition.
“Your grandparents were so sweet to do this,” Caroline said as they rode the elevator to their suite on the top floor of the Ritz Carlton.
“It’s just like them to think of something like this. Their generosity has always been astounding and even overwhelming at times. I wanted to kill them when they bought me the Mercedes.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “It just seemed so excessive and embarrassing. But it’s the giving that delights them, and because there was never a single string attached to any of it, I stopped saying no and learned to just say thank you.”
“You’re a good boy, Ted Duffy.”
With the rakish lift of an eyebrow, he said, “I’m a good boy who’s having some very naughty thoughts about his wife at the moment.”
She smiled and stepped aside so he could open the door. “Oh,” she sighed when she caught her first glimpse of the opulent suite.
“Wait.” He lifted her into his arms and carried her across the threshold. “I don’t want to forget anything I’m supposed to do tonight.”
She looped her arms around his neck and kissed him senseless.
That’s where the bellman found them when he arrived with their bags. Embarrassed to have been caught, Ted eased her down and went to tip the man.
“Will there be anything else, Dr. Duffy?”
“No, thank you.”
“Have a nice evening.”
Ted closed the door and leaned back against it to gaze at Caroline. “Oh, I plan to.”
She giggled at his lascivious expression. “Shouldn’t we eat at some point?”
“Probably.” He crooked his finger at her.
She went to him.
Reaching for her hand, he said, “Let me see.” He took a good first look at her two new rings. “I like the way they look on you.” He sighed. “My wife.”
“Let me see yours.”
He gave her his left hand, and she kissed the ring on his finger. “My husband.”
“It’s still kind of hard to believe, isn’t it?”
“Totally. A week ago tonight I couldn’t imagine how we’d ever find a way to be together.”
“And now we have the rest of our lives.” Still leaning against the door, he buried his hands in her hair and fell into a deep, soulful kiss, the effects of which he felt everywhere. When he finally resurfaced, he peppered her face with kisses. “My grandmother said the strangest thing to me before we left.”
“What was that?”
“‘I’ve done my part,’ she said. ‘Now you do yours.’ What do you suppose that means?”
“I don’t know.” She pressed against his erection. “But it seems to me you’re doing your part at the moment.”
Ted groaned and everything else was forgotten.
Chapter Thirty-Four
“Then he asked me to stand up for him,” Parker said.
“Damn, man, what did you do?” Chip asked, astounded.
Parker handed Chip another beer. “The way he asked me. . .” Parker shook his head. “You wouldn’t have been able to say no, either.”
“So then they just got married?” Elise asked, still stunned by the news. “Right there in the hospital?”
Parker nodded. “It was short, sweet, and legal.”
“Do you think they’re really in love?” Elise asked.
“Yeah,” Parker said with amazement. “As crazy as it sounds, they really seem to be. This is exactly what he said—‘I’m marrying the woman I love, and because I was going to anyway I’m doing it now because my grandmother asked me to do it before she dies.’ I’ll tell you one thing, though, Mitzi was steaming.”
“When in the world did this happen?” Elise asked. “I mean she and Smitty just broke up on Sunday! I don’t get it.”