Juggling take-out bags in one hand, along with the mail and her satchel, Jade jammed the key into the lock and jiggled it around until she could get the tumblers to turn. The second she opened the door, the alarm started to chirp. She kicked the door shut, threw the deadbolt, spun, dropped her keys into the tray on the table, and silenced the alarm.

"Honey! I'm home!" She kicked out of her shoes and dropped her satchel and the mail. Food was a necessity, and she was taking it with her. The rest of the shit could wait.

"In the den." Nic's reply came from the back of the house.

"Be right there. Water or beer?" She made her way into the state-of-the-art kitchen while mumbling, "Or something a fuck-ton harder?" She glanced at the pristine kitchen with granite counters, an island that looked like it was made to seat twenty, and the industrial-sized appliances. The kitchen was used as little as humanly possible. Her usage consisted of making coffee and heating leftovers, but Nic was slowly teaching her how to make his mother's recipes. She wasn't a cook. Hell, they'd laughed until they'd cried when the pasta she tried to make became jammed in the pasta maker's guts, killing the machine. She mumbled under her breath, "I vote for something harder. Whiskey, bourbon, scotch.” Jade cocked her head in consideration. "Vodka, rum, a combination of all of the above?"

Nic sounded like he was distracted when he answered. "Beer unless you’re drinking hard liquor, then water and two tumblers."

"You know me so well!" She shouted back as she grabbed two bottles of water and carefully dropped them into one of the takeout bags. It was the work of five seconds to snatch two crystal tumblers as she headed toward the den.

His prosthesis off and propped against the wall next to him and his crutches within reach, Nic sprawled on the chaise lounge portion of the couch..

"How did it go?" He looked up as she came in.

Jade held up two tumblers as her answer. Nic grimaced. "That bad?"

"Well, it was, and it wasn't." The food landed on the table with a thud, and she left Nic to lift the closest portion of the convertible oak and chrome table toward the sofa. It was one of the best investments they'd made since Nic had lost his leg. The hinged system extended half the table, angling it up and over, perfectly aligning the surface to the sofa. They ate most of their meals in the den, watching television or relaxing. Unless they had company, the huge dining room sat vacant.

She cast a glance at what was available at their bar. Jade snagged the bright red waxed top of a bottle of Maker's Mark, bringing it to the table. Nic positioned himself on the couch so he could arrange the takeout containers. She sat down and uncorked the bottle, pouring them both a generous three-finger allowance.

Nic glanced at the amount of alcohol in each glass. "By the looks of that pour, I'd say more was than wasn't."

Jade took a healthy sip of the bourbon. The burn and flavor as it slid down her throat instantly took the irritated edge off her attitude. "Well, it was an experience." She opened several of the take-out containers until she found the eggrolls. Grabbing one she passed the container to Nic. "We have a couple problems."

"I figured this wasn't going to be an easy operation." Nic tore open a sweet and sour packet and doused his eggroll with the stuff. Jade wrinkled her nose at him when he offered some to her. Nic laughed and squirted the rest of the packet straight into his mouth.

"That is so gross." Jade took a bite of her food.

"Says the woman who likes blue cheese." He glanced over at the containers and moved the fried rice closer to both of them. He handed her the General Tso’s chicken and took the cashew chicken for himself.

"Blue cheese rocks." She grabbed a packet of soy sauce and poured it over his rice before doing the same to hers with another packet. "Tori and Jewell pointed out I needed to include Jasmine as a bridesmaid."

Nic hit his thigh with his free hand. "Ha! Told you."

"You can wipe that smirk off your face, right now." Jade pointed at him with her chopsticks."

"Not happening. I was right. Stop the presses. We need to record the date and time of this event." Nic chortled when she flipped him off.

Jade tilted the container and considered the contents before she picked out a piece of chicken. "I still don't see why. I mean, she eloped."

"She's your twin sister." Nic shrugged as if that was enough of an answer. Jade would never admit it was, but it… well it was. Dammit. "So, we have one more attendant. Still small. Doable."

Jade snorted, and Nic paused with a bite of rice halfway to his mouth. "What?"

"It was also pointed out that if I invite Tori to be an attendant, I had to invite Faith." She looked at Nic who was watching her like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop. "If I invite Faith, by extension I need to invite Ember and Dani."

"Dani? She's not married to Justin." Nic's confusion showed as clearly as hers had this morning.

"Yet." Jade stabbed another piece of chicken. "I can see their point, but that is six women which means you need to find four more groomsmen."

Nic put his rice down and leaned back against the couch. "This is starting to mushroom."

"Which is why I told them to stop everything until I could talk to you." Jade put the food down and picked up both tumblers. She handed Nic his and scooted back, fitting herself into the crook of his arm. "I mean, I get what they're saying, but what is blowing my fucking mind is how fast it morphed. I showed them the ring and then–boom! Twelve people up there in front of Father Clark, not counting us. Then they talked cake. Did you know there is a bride and groom cake?"

"Yeah, sure," Nic answered as he took a drink of his bourbon.

"Well, I didn't. Why can't we just have one cake?" Jade took another slug of her drink. The burn of the alcohol trailing down her throat wasn't there anymore. A pleasant warmth lingered in its place.

"That's fine with me. Did they think we could still pull this off as a surprise for Amanda if we go with six attendants each?" Nic scratched his chin. He hadn't shaved today, and his stubble was thick and dark.

"Tori seemed pretty confident. I need to call the ladies at the ranch. I'll talk with Dani and Faith on Monday. They suggested using Jazz's ranch to stage anything we need to ship out."

Nic grunted and took another drink. "What about the flower situation? I know it was giving you a migraine yesterday."

"Tori said Keelee used a florist in Rapid City. So, we'd have to drive down the day before and pick up the arrangements. That's doable, right?"

Nic nodded while staring into his bourbon, "I'm sure with all of us there someone can free up and go down to Rapid without Amanda noticing one of her chicks missing."

Jade rolled her head into his chest and sighed. Nic pulled her in closer. "Babe, we don't have to do this."

Jade nodded. "Yeah, but..."

"But you want to get married in South Dakota, and you'd love to surprise your mom."

Jade sighed and nodded. "It's stupid, isn't it?

"No, not at all. If I could still do that for my mom, I would in a heartbeat. You do whatever it takes, babe. You are a force of nature. Just tell me what I need to do, and I'll make it happen. The trappings of this wedding aren't what's important. As long as I have you with me standing in front of that altar, I'm a happy man. Take charge of this thing and wrangle it into submission. I've got your back."

Jade chuckled. "You know me so well."

"I've scratched the surface. I think it may take fifty or sixty years to understand what makes you tick."

She tipped her head up so she could see him looking down at her. "Wanna know a secret?"

Nic's eyebrows crept up, and a smile spread across his face. "Absolutely."

"You are what makes me tick." Jade leaned forward and put her drink on the table. She took Nic's and deposited it beside hers.

"Aren't you hungry?" Nic's smirk bordered on lecherous.

Jade nodded gravely. "Starving." She flipped the lever that dropped the table's extended leaf back into place and shimmied to the floor between Nic's thighs. Her hands slid up his jeans to his growing bulge. "I'm absolutely famished."