She and Amanda both stood up and started to hug and kiss Ellie and me.
“We’ll be fine. They’re only a few minutes away, and we can talk wedding stuff,” Ellie said as she looked over at me and winked.
***
After Heather and Amanda left, I looked over at Ellie, who was smiling at me like a damn fool.
“What has you so full of glee, except for the fact that your hubby is taking you on a carriage ride?”
“You. I’m so glad to see you and Jeff finally happy.”
I let out a small laugh. “It sure has been a long bumpy-ass road.”
“Yep.”
I sighed as a wedding detail crossed my mind.
“Oh shit! I forgot to call Jenny about the bouquets.” Panicking, I reached for my cell phone.
Ellie reached over and grabbed my hand.
“She called me earlier. I took care of it. That’s what the maid of honor does, you know. Don’t worry. It’s all taken care of, and they’re going to look beautiful.”
“You know I would be lost without you, don’t you?”
Ellie smiled at me and squeezed my hand. “I would be lost without you, too. I love you, baby.”
“I love you, too. In case I haven’t told you in a while, that nose piercing is really adorable on you!”
Ellie threw her head back and laughed. Then, she stopped laughing and looked at me.
“Oh my god, you’re piercing!”
“Yeah, I know. Dr. Wyatt said I need to have it out no later than twenty weeks, but I already took it out. I actually thought Jeff was going to cry when I told him I was taking it out.”
Ellie let out a giggle and rolled her eyes. “He really liked it, huh?”
“Oh yeah, he loved it.” I said, moving my eyebrows up and down.
“Eww. Okay, I don’t need the visual in my head, thank you very much.”
I looked up and saw Jeff and Gunner walking toward us. I smiled, and Ellie turned around.
Jeff came up to me, leaned down, and kissed me. Then took my hand, pulled me up and just turned, leading me out.
He turned back around and looked at Gunner.
“You got the bill, right, bro?”
Gunner just laughed. “Y’all have fun!”
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
JEFF
The Wedding Day……
Gunner and I walked around, following Jenny. Everything was set up and ready to go and I was in awe at how beautiful everything was. The Mansion at Judges’ Hill really was the perfect choice for the wedding.
We had the rehearsal dinner here last night, and Ari had never stopped smiling. Her dad had even pulled me to the side and finally told me how happy he was we were getting married. Of course, he had to end it with a threat, saying that not only did I have to make Ari the happiest woman on earth, but I also better be the best damn father to his grandchild.
No pressure.
The reception room looked amazing. Ari and Jenny did an amazing job. I looked around and almost felt like I couldn’t breathe. In two hours, I was going to marry the girl of my dreams.
Gunner slapped me on the back, bringing me out of my thoughts. “Dude, I’m gonna assume by the smile on your face you’re thinking about your future bride.”
My smile grew as I looked at Gunner and Jenny. Jenny smiled back and then looked at her watch.
Immediately, she picked up her cell phone and made a call. “Those flowers were supposed to be here by 9 a.m. Yeah, you better be on your way.” She hit end and then looked back up at me.
“No worries. It’s for the reception. Susan wanted fresh, as in same day fresh, flowers for the tables.”
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. We walked out to the courtyard. It looked perfect.
“Okay, so if everything looks good to you, Jeff, I need to go and check on the bride. I actually just saw her peeking out the window up-stairs.”
I hadn’t seen her since yesterday morning when Ellie and Heather got to the cottage and practically dragged Ari away, kicking and screaming. They stayed here last night because Sue was worried that Ari wouldn’t be here on time.
I scanned the windows until my eyes captured hers. She smiled and waved at me, and I waved back. Her hair was pulled up, but I couldn’t really see how it was styled. No matter what, she looked beautiful. Then, I saw Ellie as she shot me a dirty look and pulled Ari away from the window.
Gunner laughed as he slapped me yet again on the back.
“Damn, dude, you’re one lucky son of a bitch. She looks beautiful.”
I turned and looked at Gunner as we started to walk back inside. Josh and Brad were talking to Sue and Mark while Matt was climbing all over Josh. I smiled, knowing my little buddy was so happy today.
We had told him last night that Ari had a baby growing in her stomach, and he was full of questions. I love that kid so damn much. As soon as Matt saw me, he came running up to me. So I bent down so he could run into my arms.
“Jeff! Are you going to marry Ari today?” Matt asked with a huge smile on his face.
Gunner reached over and rubbed his hand on top of Matt’s head. Matt looked up at Gunner and smiled the biggest smile ever.
“I’m gonna stand next to you, Gunner, and help you be the bestest man!” Matt said as he jumped up and down in my arms.
“I know you are, buddy. I couldn’t do it without you, you know that, right?”
“Yeah, I know. That’s what Ari said, too. She said you would mess it up alone. Gunner, I’ll help you to not mess it up, so you’re not an assmole like Jeff.”
I had to give Gunner credit for not laughing. Matt had quickly learned that we all laughed when he said assmole, so he said it all the time now. Unfortunately, when he said it, he was usually saying I was the assmole. That seemed to please Mark…a lot.
“Ari said that huh?” Gunner asked.
Matt nodded with a huge smile on his face.
Sue walked up to us, reaching out of Matt. “Matt, come on babe, we need to let the boys finish getting dressed and ready, and you need to get into your new clothes that we bought just for today.”
Matt turned back at me, smiling as he hugged me. “I’m so glad you’re going to be my brother. I love you, Jeff.”
With that, he ran over to Josh and hugged his leg. Josh leaned down and returned the hug as he glanced at me. Josh had really taken to Matt. Ari had told me that Josh had even started stopping by the house, so he could play video games with Matt because I had not been able to since we moved.
Gunner let out a sigh and looked at me. I took one last look around the giant ballroom that had been turned into a winter wonderland. I sucked in a deep breath.
Holy fuck, I’m getting married.
“Gun, were you scared?”
Gunner smiled at me.
“Let’s go for a walk outside.”
Once we got outside, I felt like I could breathe again. The day was beautiful, and I was so thankful. With an outdoor wedding, we had all feared having bad weather. Ya never know what the weather in Austin is going to be like in December.
Gunner and I sat down on two chairs and didn’t talk for about five minutes.
“How much do you love Ari, Jeff?”
I snapped my head over at him and just stared at him. What the f**k kind of question is that?
“I love her more than life itself. I wouldn’t be able to breathe without her. I wouldn’t want to breathe without her. It amazes me that she can just look at me from across a room, and I have to catch my breath. The sound of her voice just about brings me to my knees. Her smile… damn, her smile….makes me want to keep her happy every second of the day just so I can see that smile.”
Gunner let out a gruff laugh. “That pretty much sums up how I feel about your sister.”
Then, he slapped me on the back again and stood up. “You ready to marry the love of your life?”
I looked up at him and smiled. The sense of calm that swept over my body was unreal. I loved Gunner like a brother. The fact that he just eased my panic without even saying a damn word just showed me how lucky I was to have him in my life… and in my sister’s life.
I stood up and slapped the living shit out of his back. “Let’s do this thing!”
“Fuck! Why the hell did you hit me so hard, you bastard?”
“Because you’ve been doing it to me for days now. Payback, bro.”
Jenny came walking up to us. I could tell by the look on her face that we were about to be told to go get ready.
“Alright, guys, show-time in less than two hours. Let’s go. Ari wants to take a walk around before she gets dressed. So help me, Jeff, if you look out a window and see her, I’ll break both your legs.”
“Wow, does Aaron know you have this side to you, Jen?” I asked.
“Yes, yes, he does. Now, let’s go.”
I looked up one more time before I walked in, and there Ari was, smiling down at me. I waved to her, and she waved back.
In less than two hours, she would be forever mine.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
ARI
I had walked up to the window to see Jeff and Gunner sitting down in the court yard. For a few minutes, it’d looked like they weren’t talking. Is Jeff nervous? Maybe he was having second thoughts. Oh shit.
Just then, I felt that fluttery feeling again. I put my hand to my stomach and smiled. It was the three of us now. For some reason, thoughts of Rebecca popped into my head. Things could have turned out so differently if that baby had been Jeff’s.
“He loves you so much. You know that, right?” Ellie said from behind me.
I smiled as I watched Jeff and Gunner together. They both loved each other just like Ellie and I loved each other. I turned to look at my best friend. She was also smiling while she looked down at Gunner and Jeff.
“Thank you, Ellie.”
Ellie glanced over at me, still smiling. “For what?”
“Just being you.”
Ellie turned and brought me in for a hug. “It’s about f**king time this is happening. Now, we just need to work on dysfunctional couple number three.”
We both laughed as I hugged her tighter. She pulled away and gave me a smile that melted my heart.
I turned back to the window and saw Jenny talking to Jeff. He looked up at me. We both waved at each other, and my heart started pounding. I put my hands to my stomach and closed my eyes.
I wasn’t sure how long I had been standing at the window. When I felt a hand on my shoulder, I turned around only to have my mother take me into her arms as she hugged the living shit out of me.
“Oh my goodness, my baby girl is getting married. I just can’t believe it, Arianna. It seems like it was just yesterday when you were ten years old, and you came back from your first bike ride in the new neighborhood. You walked into the kitchen, and your father and I were unpacking dishes, so we could make dinner. You hopped up on the kitchen counter and made an announcement that almost had your father heading to the hospital.”
“I don’t remember this. What did I say?”
“You looked at us both, and as serious as all get out, you said, ‘I found the boy I’m gonna marry someday. So Daddy, you better start saving ‘cause I want a big wedding when I marry Ellie’s brother.’”
Oh my god, I totally forgotten all about that. I let out a laugh. “Mom, I so remember that now! Daddy told me to dream on, and then he asked what Ellie’s brother’s name was because he was going to start having him watched.” We both busted out laughing.