Chapter Thirty
Nick
She is stunning in that red dress, but all I can think about is getting that damn thing off her.
Meghan chats with her family, slowly sipping a glass of champagne. Her smiles are lighter, carefree even. She seems much more at ease than I’ve ever seen, at least since she lost her fiancé.
But tonight is a night of celebrating.
Earlier, I sat in the pew with Dean, Ryan, Levi, and Linkin, as well as a few babies, while Sawyer and AJ exchanged vows. It was an emotional ceremony for many, but for me? Well, I just couldn’t stop staring at the sexy bridesmaid in the middle. She kinda owns my heart.
Now, everyone is hanging out, drinking and laughing, and I find myself hanging back and just watching them interact. They’re a close family, sure, but they’re more than that. They’re friends too, and their love for each other is evident.
“Happy to see you here,” I hear behind me. I turn to find Meghan’s Dad, Brian, standing there.
“I’m pretty happy to be here myself,” I tell him honestly, taking a sip of my Sprite.
“I take it everything worked itself out last night?” he asks.
Nodding, I reply with a smile, “It did.”
“Glad to hear. I really like you Nick. You’re a good guy,” he adds, grabbing my shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.
I offer him a smile, not really knowing what to say. I feel like there’s so much more he’s not saying, but implying with his simple statements. “Thank you, sir.”
“Don’t let her push you away,” he says, turning and looking at his group of daughters.
I follow his gaze and smile when I see Meghan kissing her tiny niece Amelia on the cheek. The baby is once again in her father’s arm, where the big guy seems to prefer her to be. She must sense my gaze and glances over. When she sees me watching, she says something to her group and starts to make her way toward me.
“Hey,” she says when she reaches me. She quickly wraps her arms around my chest and steps in close. She smells like vanilla and champagne.
“Hey yourself,” I reply, placing a kiss on her forehead.
“Hi, Daddy,” Meghan says, offering her father a warm smile.
“Hi, sweetheart. Having fun?”
“The best,” she answers just as a pretty blonde walks up and stands at Brian’s side. “I still can’t believe you’re the woman my dad has been seeing,” Meghan adds, offering her a smile.
“Sometimes I can’t believe it myself,” Cindy says, glancing up at Brian. “He’s a pretty amazing man.”
Brian wraps his arm around Cindy’s shoulder and gives her a little hug. “She’s the amazing one,” he says.
Meghan was completely surprised when she saw Cindy at the wedding this afternoon. When she asked what she was doing there, Brian intervened and said she was the woman he had been seeing. Meghan appeared a bit shocked at first, but quickly recovered, wrapping the woman she considered a friend in her arms and hugging her tightly. She whispered something into Cindy’s ear that made her tear up, but I don’t know what was said.
“Dance with me?” I ask the beautiful woman in my arms.
“Always,” she replies with a grin.
I lead her to the dance floor, where Sawyer and AJ, as well as Dean and Payton, are already dancing to a slow song. The familiar melody speaks of love and forever, which is pretty damn fitting for this night. Not only are we celebrating the love of Meghan’s sister, but in a way, we’re celebrating the love I now share with Meghan. Last night, I took a chance, and while it may have been a little hairy during that time I couldn’t find her, it worked out for the best. Now I get to spend my days with this amazing woman, sharing our love and enjoying our time together.
Maybe someday, I’ll get to add the word forever.
I can’t wait for that day.
Meghan fits against me like a puzzle piece. We gently sway to the music, my arms around her waist and her head against my shoulder. We continue to move in time to the beat, and I secretly wish this song would never end. There’s no other place I want to be.
The dance floor starts to fill up. First, Brian and Cindy share a dance, and then the rest of her sisters. Brielle comes out and jumps into her dad’s arms, and together, the three of them dance to the song and share a few laughs. Levi holds Abby close, her hand in his. He toys with the engagement ring on her finger and kisses the top of her head. Jaime and Ryan take to the floor next. Their sleeping daughter is still in his arms, and as he brings his wife against his chest, they form a protective cocoon around the sleeping infant. Lexi and Linkin have Stella, while their twin boys left about a half hour ago to go home with Linkin’s mom.
Finally, Emma and Orval join us on the floor. He pulls his wife into his arms, and they move in time, their hips swaying to the music. He holds her so tenderly, so lovingly, that a lump forms in my throat.
I want that.
I want sixty years with the woman in my arms.
Years of love and laughter and inappropriate sexual innuendos.
Orval glances my way and gives me a grin. “Hey, Doc,” he whispers just over the music. “There are a few pieces of cake left in the back. I made it special just for tonight,” he adds with a wink.
Special cake?
Suddenly, I see Sawyer move uncomfortably, adjusting not only AJ in his arms, but his black tuxedo pants as well. Linkin moves a bit, juggling his daughter and his wife as he tries to get comfortable. Levi stops completely and glances down. Dean gives his daughter to his wife and tries to discreetly adjust his own pants.
And me? I’m stuck watching it all like a train wreck. You know the one where you should definitely look away, but you can’t seem to do it?
Abruptly, all of the guys turn and face the ornery old man. There’s no mistaking the problem they’re all trying to conceal and the looks of panic on their faces. They all go from wide-eyed shock to outrage in a matter of seconds. Even Brian looks a bit uncomfortable in this situation, but I don’t dare laugh.
And Grandpa just smiles, gazing adoringly down at his bride of sixty-some years.
My heart starts to pound in my chest as I look down at the woman I love. “Thank you,” I say, pulling her flush against my body, my own groin stirring in my pants, though not for the same reason as everyone else.
“For what?” she asks, stopping her dance and looking into my eyes.
“For taking the chance. For letting me love you.”
She gives me that smile. The one I hope to see on her face for the rest of my life. “Loving you is the easy part.”
“Loving you is pretty damn easy, too, honey. I’m just glad you realized it. But know that if you wouldn’t have, if last night had ended much differently, I wouldn’t have given up on you. I wouldn’t have given up on us. Because you and I? We’re forever.”
Her eyes fill with unshed tears, and even though I know these are the good ones, it still makes me unhappy to see them in her eyes. I never want to see those fucking tears again. She’s cried too much, and I make a silent vow to never put them there again, for as long as I live.
I’m about to tell her when the moment is shattered like a glass on ceramic tile. Even the music seems to stop and all eyes turn in one man’s direction. Tension (and erections) fill the dance floor as all of the guys stand there and gaze at the only smiling man still dancing with his wife.
“Orval!”