“It’s showtime, babe. We’re beginnin’.” Mrs. Lee was oblivious to the tension Scott, and I had created inside the bedroom. And the pain he might be under from being hit in the face. She smiled sweetly at her son. “I’m proud of you, Scott. Get your hat then wait behind Beau to take your place close to the preacher.” She kissed his cheek and hurried from the doorway.
The nerves were back in my friend, but they ended soon. Since the hallway had been set up to be the aisle, I went first, liking the energy building inside me.
Thoughts of Dash pulled at me like a magnet in every moment we were apart. While quiet in the hall, visions of him in his stylish suit danced around my head as the piano began to play. He’d be the best-looking guy here.
I took my place then searched for Dash. I wasn’t wrong. When he grinned, I did too. What a beautiful guy, both inside and out.
As I lugged the rental chairs from the house back into the van, a couple of yawns escaped. When Mr. Lee found out I was leaving first thing in the morning, he instructed me on the different post-wedding jobs, all heavy, that needed to be done before I left. He’d effectively transformed me into one tired pack mule. I felt sure he’d find some way to justify me digging out the muck in rain gutters pretty soon.
“Hey, Beau!” Mrs. Lee called from the front porch. “They need you.”
“Mama, let him finish up out here,” Mr. Lee said from the cover of the garage where he watched me work.
“Quit slackin’ off,” she hollered at her husband. “He’s done enough of your work around here. We need you, Beau. Wipe your shoes on the rug in the mudroom. Don’t listen to him anymore.”
Since I was on Mrs. Lee’s side of the argument, I put the last rack of chairs in the truck and trudged through the garage and into the house. These expensive boots weren’t living up to their price tag. If I hurried, I risked a comical slip and slide episode where I’d likely land on my ass.
“They’re namin’ the godparents,” his mom said, standing inside the laundry room, or as she called it, a mudroom.
“Who did they pick?” I asked, scooting my boots on the inside rug to clean them.
“Well, you,” his father said from directly behind me. My face instantly contorted into horror.
“What?” I burst out as if that were the dumbest idea I’d ever heard. I didn’t know anything about children. “Why me?”
“Where’s Beau? Everybody’s waitin’,” Scott hollered. Mr. Lee came in behind me, close enough to squeeze my shoulder.
“Consider it a ceremonial gesture. You won’t actually be takin’ my grandchildren from me,” Mr. Lee said with a chuckle.
“Wait, there’s more than one kid?” I asked in panic, finding myself propelling into the dining room where Scott and Lauren stood before their guests. Katie was on Lauren’s side. I was shoved close to Scott.
“Finally,” Scott grumbled, his frustration with me palpable. He raised his voice for his next words. “Hey. He’s finally here. Focus on us again.”
The house was comfortably spacious. Yet the twenty or so guests were well into their drink and catching up with each other. It took a second much louder bark by Scott to gain their attention.
“Hey! Listen up, everybody! We’ve got an announcement to make then you’re all welcome to keep the party goin’. We have dinner waitin’ on the back porch. We’ll cut the cake afterward. Right?” Scott glanced down at Lauren who was tucked securely underneath his arm. She nodded with pride.
“This is our wedding day, but also a day to celebrate family,” Lauren said, and put a protective hand on top of her belly. “We wanted to introduce this soon-to-be baby’s godparents to our families,” Lauren said, a giant grin spreading over her lips. “They’re Katie and Beau, our best friends.”
The guests whooped loudly and pushed forward to offer their congratulations. There I was with my hands tucked into my pockets, feeling completely overwhelmed with the way the guests bore down on me. Like a high-functioning bobble head, I nodded over and again, accepting the well-wishes. Slowly, I stepped several feet backward until my ass bumped into the dining room table where the three-tiered wedding cake and punch bowl sat waiting.
My gaze shifted above the guests’ heads, an action I had repeated countless times over the course of the evening. All to catch brief glimpses of Dash. My life’s joy and light had regulated himself into the shadows, close to the front door, doing his best to blend into the wood paneling. I doubted he accomplished such a lofty goal, but with as busy as Mr. Lee had me, I didn’t think anyone understood that the most handsome man in the world was there to be with me.
Standing beside Dash was my mom, chatting away while they both held white plastic cups in their hands. His gaze latched onto mine. He gave the slightest lift of the cup in recognition. His dazzle was constant.
His plump lips curved into a perfect grin, growing wider with each moment I stared.
What was I doing? If I continued to allow emotional distance between Dash and myself, I was still only a puppet in the circus my father had created. True, I had a mountain of baggage to sift through. I wouldn’t pretend otherwise, but look how far I’d come from dear old dad’s shadow? Every fiber of my being now hingedon Dash’s unwavering conviction that we belonged together. I believed that too.
My old man wasn’t going to win in his efforts to keep us apart.
The strangest sensation shivered down my spine. Both my chest and cock swelled, growing hard and heavy within seconds. The sudden unrelenting desire had a laser-focused direction and purpose. I released a long, steadying breath. That attention narrowed with each step I took toward Dash.
He shot me a puzzled stare as I moved through the crowd toward him.
My shoulders rolled, doing my best to keep under control.
“What’re you doing?” Dash asked. With my gaze fixed on his lips, I took the cup from his hand and passed it off to my mom. She never faltered in her assignment, making her the best wingman ever. I circled Dash’s neck with my palm, drawing him toward me. I leaned in until no more than an inch of space separated our lips. My depth of love overwhelmed me. Especially since I saw it reflected back in Dash’s beautiful blue eyes.
