“I’ll go anywhere with you.”
Chapter 11
SARAH LAUGHED AS RYAN muttered to himself the following weekend. Patrick and Rebecca’s kids raced around them in the kitchen, Rebecca was pacing back and forth with the screaming baby as she waited for the bottle to warm, and Patrick was carrying over a stack of pancakes and bacon, neatly avoiding the chaos.
“What do you think?” Sarah asked with a grin as she glanced over at Ryan. “Maybe this’ll be us one day?”
Patrick chuckled to himself as he set down the food. “I can’t wait to see that. No offense, sir,” he added.
“Maybe we’ll call you for advice since this is such the picture of serenity,” Sarah joked.
“It’s all under control,” he assured them before walking back to the stove. He plated some scrambled eggs and then dodged his son as he ran by again.
Ryan turned to Sarah, his gray eyes warm. “You call this calm? I can’t wait to see what chaos looks like. Hell, I’ve sent SEAL teams all over the world on simultaneous missions, but I don’t think I could handle a group of toddlers.” He shook his head, scrubbing his hand across his jaw.
“I think Ryan just volunteered for babysitting duty,” Sarah teased. “We’ve gotta train him somehow in case we have kids one day.”
“By throwing him into the lion’s den?” Patrick asked with a smirk. “We’ve had years of practice.”
Rebecca walked back into the kitchen, holding the baby in one arm and a bottle in the other. She sank down into a chair as she fed baby Madeline. “Sorry, I didn’t even offer either of you coffee yet. This little one is totally off her schedule today.”
“We’re good,” Sarah assured her.
“Well, this was supposed to be a brunch to celebrate your engagement—not to convince you never to have children of your own.”
“Kids grow,” Ryan said easily. “We know the controlled chaos isn’t forever.”
The sound of a car backfiring outside had both men turning their heads, and Ryan crossed over to the window at the same time as Patrick. “Just some teenagers in an old convertible,” Patrick said, relaxing his posture.
“Crazy kids,” Sarah said. “Anyway, the breakfast smells fantastic.”
Patrick quirked his brow. “Don’t worry, your egg-substitute eggs are almost ready.”
Ryan chuckled as Sarah crossed the kitchen to the stove. “I heard that,” she said, plating her own food. “Just wait—one of these days I’ll sneak my vegan substitutes into your breakfast, and I guarantee you won’t know the difference.”
“You’d have to make me breakfast first in order for that to happen” Ryan quipped.
She walked back over to the table, watching as Ryan and her brother exchanged a glance. “I saw that! And I do cook. Sometimes. It’s not my fault that you wake up at the crack of dawn every day and make it to the kitchen before me.”
“I’m hungry,” Ryan said. “And a man’s gotta eat.”
“Hoorah,” Patrick replied.
A few minutes later, they’d all sat down and were digging into their food. It was finally quiet now that the kids were eating, too, and the baby had fallen asleep. “I know I can’t say anything about what the dresses you tried on look like, but they all were amazing!” Rebecca said. “Thanks for sending me pictures. I can’t wait to see you in one on your big day.”
“God, they were amazing, weren’t they?” Sarah echoed dreamily. “I think I’ve picked the winner though.”
“Already? You only shopped at the one place.”
Sarah shrugged, brushing her hair back over her shoulder. “When you know, you know. There was a store I wanted to check out in Norfolk, and maybe I’ll pop by there, but I think I’ve found the one.”
“The man or the dress?” Ryan asked, his lips quirking.
“Both of course,” Sarah said, taking a sip of her mimosa. “But I swear I’d wear that one dress every single day if I could.”
“The third one,” Rebecca said knowingly.
“Yes!”
Ryan and Patrick exchanged a confused glance, and Ryan cleared his throat. “Did you tell them we’ve set a date?”
“Not yet! Three weeks from today. Mark your calendars!”
Patrick nearly choked on his food. “You’re getting married in three weeks? And you didn’t even tell us to save the date yet?”
“We’re telling you now, silly. And I know some people may not be able to come because it’s not much notice, but we’re ready. I don’t need a big, fancy wedding or a reception that takes an entire year to plan. I don’t care if the napkins match the boutonnieres or any of that.”
“You have to pick matching napkins?” Patrick asked.
“Nope. And we just want to be married. If our friends can join us, then great! But I want a beach wedding while the weather’s good, and neither of us want to wait an entire year. We’re getting married in three weeks, and we hope everyone we love will be able to come.”
“I get it,” Rebecca said. “Why wait to start the rest of your lives together?”
“Exactly,” Sarah said with a nod.
“I’ll notify the teams this weekend,” Ryan said. “Just to save the date. We’ll send out invitations ASAP of course. You already worked on getting those ready, right?”
“Yep! You can do all that stuff online now, which is perfect. They’re already ordered, and I asked for expedited shipping.”
“Did you find somewhere to hold the reception?” Rebecca asked. “Or will everything be on the beach?” She took a bite of her bacon, carefully trying to eat as she held the baby.
“We’re renting an outdoor area right by the ocean—one of the restaurants with a patio overlooking the water. We’ll have the ceremony and then walk right over to celebrate. They’ll cater it, too.”
“Sounds perfect!” Rebecca said. “How awesome that you planned it so quickly.”
“I think Ryan pulled some strings,” Sarah said with a laugh.
“Do we get to come Aunt Sarah?” Logan asked excitedly.
“Of course! It’ll be for families. I mean, shoot, it feels like half of Ryan’s guys all have kids now. Everyone will be invited.”
Ryan crossed his arms and leaned back, smiling. “It’s a hell of a change from just a year ago. I never thought I’d see some of those guys settle down, and now they’re getting engaged and married, too. Hell, some of them already have babies.”
“I’ll say it’s different,” Patrick agreed. “But every last guy seems happy as hell.”
“Whatever happened with those two men you were worried about?” Sarah asked, looking at Ryan and then her brother. “The ones who escaped from the Mexican jail? You haven’t said anything about them for a few days.”
“There haven’t been any updates,” Ryan confirmed. “They were part of a larger organization though, and their associates were already in the U.S. That’s the main reason I was concerned—if they wanted to come after any of the men or their families, they already had boots on the ground here, so to speak.”
“But that’s crazy!” Sarah said.
“We’ve got analysts reviewing all the latest intelligence. If they tell us there’s an imminent danger, we’ll take the proper precautions. There’s nothing to worry specifically about right now—just be cautious.”
“Which we are anyway,” Rebecca said.
Sarah looked over at her, recalling how Rebecca had dealt with a stalker several years ago. Patrick had cameras and surveillance around his house just like Ryan. And the guys were all used to being alert at all times. Goodness, when the car had backfired earlier, both men had rushed to the window to assess the situation.
“I don’t want you to worry about it,” Ryan said, reaching over and taking Sarah’s hand. “We’ll plan our wedding, pick a honeymoon destination, and get ready to start the rest of our lives together. If anything comes up in the meantime, we’ll handle it. But I for one can’t wait for you to become my wife.”
Sarah smiled, lifting u
p her mimosa. “Let’s have a toast. To our future!” she said happily.
“Cheers!” the others replied, lifting up their own drinks.
Sarah took a sip of her bubbly mimosa, and she could barely keep the grin off of her face.
Life was pretty damn perfect at the moment, and she wouldn’t let anyone or anything ruin what was going to be the happiest day of her life.
Chapter 12
MORGAN STOOD BEHIND Sarah a few days later at the salon, watching as the hairdresser twisted Sarah’s hair up in an elaborate style. The two women had taken the afternoon off to find Sarah a hairstylist for her wedding day, and Sarah frowned as the hairdresser continued to ignore her suggestions.
“No, that’s way too fussy for me,” Sarah said, shaking her head and watching a few pieces of hair fall free in the mirror. “I want to wear it down—loose and flowing. Maybe a couple of pieces pulled back, but I definitely don’t want an updo.”
“I know, I know. I was just trying to show you some options,” the woman said, looking flustered.
Sarah met Morgan’s gaze in the mirror.
“You been cutting and coloring my hair for years,” Morgan said. “But Sarah’s regular hairstylist is in Norfolk. She really wanted someone local to do her hair on her wedding day, but this totally isn’t what we had in mind.”
“I’m sorry—it’s just—some brides say they want it down and then are upset not to have a fancier style. I just wanted to show you some other options.”
“I understand,” Sarah assured her. “But I’m definitely not one of those brides.”
The woman’s cell phone rang, and she excused herself, saying she had to take the call from her kids’ daycare.
Sarah let out an exasperated sigh as the woman walked away. “I can’t let her do my hair on my wedding day. She’s totally ignoring everything I’m saying.”
“I know,” Morgan said sympathetically. “I’m sorry. I’ve gone to her for years for regular cuts and highlights. Maybe Bree knows someone?” she said, referring to Sarah’s other bridesmaid.
“Ugh. I’ll text her and ask. Too bad she couldn’t get the day off.”
“We can keep looking for someone,” Morgan assured her.
“Yeah, we’re going to have to,” Sarah said, climbing down from the chair. “Unfortunately, my wedding is less than three weeks away, and no one is available on such short notice.” She looked in the mirror, running her fingers through her hair to tousle it a bit, then grabbed her purse. Pulling out some lip gloss, she swiped it across her lips.
“All right, should we leave and knock some of the other stuff off your to-do list?”
“Yeah. Let me just text Ryan back first,” Sarah said. She tapped at her phone and then shoved it back in her purse, slinging the hobo bag over her arm.
Morgan raised her eyebrows. “That’s it?”
Sarah shrugged. “He’s observing one of the team’s drills today and said he wouldn’t really be available. I was just letting him know we might actually have to run off to the courthouse and get married like he wanted.”
“No!” Morgan cried out, grabbing Sarah’s arm. “Don’t be so dramatic. And I’ll text my hairdresser and apologize later, but we’re leaving. Let’s go grab a late lunch and then call around to a few places and see if anyone can fit you in for a hair trial this week. And make sure they’re available on your actual wedding day of course.”
Sarah shook her head as the two women walked to the door. “I knew we should’ve had a long engagement. It’s way too stressful dealing with all of this nonsense.”
“Girl, you’re going to look amazing! You already ordered the dress, right?” she asked as they walked out into the sunshine. The salty breeze blew through Sarah’s hair, and she closed her eyes and looked up, letting the warm sun beam down on her face.
“I did,” she said, taking a deep breath. “I’ve got the dress coming in this weekend; the invitations are in the mail, and of course I’m marrying the man of my dreams.”
“And you got out of your lease, right?” Morgan asked encouragingly.
“I did,” Sarah said with a grin. “When we get back from our honeymoon, I’ll officially move all my stuff out and into Ryan’s place. Most of my clothes and personal stuff is already there. It’s just the furniture and things like that.”
“Are the guys helping?”
“Yep,” Sarah confirmed. “I wanted to hire movers, but of course Ryan and Patrick wouldn’t hear of it. The week after we get back, both teams will be hauling stuff into a U-Haul for us and moving it into Ryan’s house. Our house,” she corrected herself.
“Might as well make use of those burly SEALs,” Morgan teased. “So where should we eat?”
“Want to grab Mexican at the place over by the bridal shop? I want to pop in and maybe look at the lingerie section there.”
“Whoo-hoo!” Morgan whooped with a wink.
Sarah did a little shimmy in the middle of the sidewalk, laughing. “I was so into trying on wedding dresses the other day, I didn’t even get a chance to look at all the sexy little underpinnings.”
“You can’t leave out that detail,” Morgan said.
“No way,” Sarah agreed. “I’m thinking garters and stockings for our wedding night, and of course a knockout bra and panty set to wear under the dress. I’ll probably be barefoot for the ceremony since it’s a beach wedding, but I also want to get shoes somewhere for the reception.”
“Well thank God we took the afternoon off,” Morgan said. “That’s a long list to get through.”
Sarah giggled. “Yep. But it’ll all be worth it to see the expression on Ryan’s face on our wedding day.”
AN HOUR LATER, THE women were laughing over margaritas as they finished lunch. Sarah took the final sip of hers, setting the empty glass down on the table. Her vegetarian fajitas had been phenomenal, and she was ready to finish up her to-do list for the day.
“So where to next?” Morgan asked. “The bridal shop?”
“Yeah, let’s stop by there first. I want to check on when my dress will come in while we’re there. Supposedly this weekend, but I want to make sure. I have to schedule a fitting, too. The dress is so long, and I’m not wearing stilettos for a beach wedding, so I’m sure I’ll need it shortened.”
“Save the stilettos for the wedding night,” Morgan joked, dunking another chip into the salsa and taking a bite.
“For real. Some pretty new lingerie, sexy shoes—Ryan won’t know what hit him,” she said with a wink. “This restaurant is good. I know we usually get Mexican down by the beach, but we should come here sometimes, too.”
“For sure. Although it’s missing some of the eye candy,” Morgan said. “You may have a man, but I don’t mind watching the shirtless guys jog by on the beach when we eat at the patio of the other Mexican place.”
Sarah snorted. “I hear you. I love eating down by the water anyway. And lunch is on me today. You took the afternoon off to help me do all this wedding planning, so I owe you big time.”
Sarah slid her card into the billfold and signed the receipt a few minutes later when the waitress returned. “All set? Let’s do this! I feel like I’ve got a million things left to do.”
“Sounds good,” Morgan said, glancing down at her phone. “Oh, I need to quick call my office back. They left a message while we were eating. Meet you at the bridal shop?”
“Yep,” Sarah replied. “See you in a few!” She walked down the sidewalk of the shopping center, humming to herself. Lunch had been delicious, and now she was ready to look through some of the sexy lingerie at the bridal shop. Although Ryan loved whatever she had on in the bedroom—including when she had on nothing at all—she wanted something special for their wedding night.
They’d decided to jet off to a tropical island for their honeymoon, so she also wanted a new sundress and bikini to wear. That would have to be a stop for another day though.
“Well hello Sarah!” a male voice called out, and she turned to see Juan, the
guy from the beach walking toward her. He had on loose linen pants and a tropical print shirt, and when he stopped in front of her, she could smell the strong scent of his cologne.
“Hi Juan, getting another massage today?” she asked, nodding toward the massage parlor.
“Ah, you know me too well already,” he joked. “I have an appointment, yes. No work today?”
“I took the afternoon off,” she said. “Just doing some wedding stuff with a girlfriend of mine. I had an appointment at a hair salon earlier to try out some wedding hair styles, and it was a total disaster. Not that you care about my hair,” she added. “I’m just stressed.”
“A friend of mine is a hairstylist,” Juan said. “Maybe she can help. When is your wedding?” he asked.
“Two weeks from Saturday.”
“Wow, so soon,” he said, surprise registering across his face. “And your husband—fiancé—isn’t helping with the last-minute planning?”
“No, he’s in the Navy and is busy on base,” she explained. “As long as he can take off for the wedding and honeymoon, we’re good,” she added. “Anyway, I won’t keep you.”
“It’s no trouble,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m on vacation, remember? I could call my hairstylist friend and see if she has any openings today. This is for your wedding day, no?”
“Wow, that’s nice of you, but I’ve got a million things on my plate already today. Plus, I need someone who can do my hair on my actual wedding day, too, so that cuts down on my options, unfortunately. Everyone’s got limited availability at the last minute, you know? Even if she can squeeze me in for a session this week, I need someone for the actual wedding.”
He nodded. “I’ve known her for years—she’s a good friend. Why don’t we exchange contact information? You let me know the time and day you’ll need her, and I’ll see if she’s free.”
“What could it hurt?” Sarah asked with a shrug. “I’ll take any lead I can get at this point.” She pulled her cell phone from her purse and keyed in his cell number, sending him a text so that he had her number, too. “Oh, there’s my friend Morgan,” she said, waving. “We’ve got to finish up this massive to-do list. Thanks again for your help!”
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