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“You would notbelievehow many I tried on before I decided this was just the right fit.” I grinned back at him. “I knew it was the one the minute I put it on, so I said yes to the ABU.”
“You’re ridiculous, Beckman.” His grin was sweet.
There it was, like he’d already gotten used to it.I loved it.
He lifted his arm like I was meant to take it, but instead I stepped close and threw my arms around him. “I’m just gonna scooch in real close like this for a second,” I whispered, and I loved his warm chuckle in my ear. “Seriously, Adam. This was–is–a big deal, and it’s a huge sacrifice on your part, so thank you. I promise to do the best I can for as long as you want to be around me.”
That last part hurt.
“Why wouldn’t I want to be around you?”Oh, so he saw through that one.He pulled back, keeping his hands on my shoulders, and the lump in my throat was so thick that I couldn’t respond. Instead, I waved a hand in the air like I was shooing away the very thought and I managed to croak, “Come on, soldier. We’re going to be late.”
He was the consummate gentleman, opening the truck door to help me in and closing it behind me. Then he drove us the short distance to City Hall, where we parked in the small municipal lot. Kennedy’s SUV was already there, as was Mr. Beckman’s beaten old truck, and I pulled in a deep breath.
“Having second thoughts, Madelyn?” Adam’s voice was low, no hint of teasing in it.
“You?” I asked, looking worriedly over at him as he adjusted the hat on his head.
“Not one,” he said firmly, and I melted a little. Maybe there was just a little hope he was in this for personal reasons, too.
I was getting everything I wanted in the space of a couple days. It was too good to be true and it scared me a little, to think that it was a fluke or that I’d owe some kind of cosmic debt when the universe got around to balancing her books.
Kennedy pounced on us when Adam opened the main door to usher me into the building: “You’re coming with me.” The tone of her voice made it clear there was no arguing allowed, and she shooed Adam away. “Go find Steve–he’s sitting on the bench with T.”
Dragging me into the bathroom, Kennedy threw her large tote down on the counter. “This is exactly what I was afraid of. For fuck’s sake, Madelyn, it’s your wedding day and you look like you’re ready for roll call.”
“There’s nothing wrong with wearing this to get married,” I protested. “Members of all branches of service get married in their uniforms all the time.”
“It would have killed you to wear a damn dress, wouldn’t it?” Kennedy huffed while she dug around in her bag. “Give that man a taste of what’s waiting for him underneath all those clothes.”
I was thankful she wasn’t looking at me, because I felt the heat start to creep up my neck. I’d already given him a sneak peek and he’d flat out turned me down.
“Aha!” She yanked a tube of lipstick from her bag like she’d extracted Excalibur from a rock, and she brandished the bright red bullet.
“Hell, no.” I backed away. “I put on lip gloss, Kenny. That’s enough.”
“I don’t care how flawless your ridiculous skin is,” Kennedy huffed. “Give me the face.”
It was pointless to fight with her. The woman always got what she wanted anyway, something my brother could confirm, and I didn’t dare look as she ran her ring finger over the lipstick and started tapping at my cheeks, then dabbed gently at my lips.
“You trust me?” she asked as she held up a tube of mascara, and I grimaced. I wasn’t very good at putting the stuff on without smearing it all over my eyelids, so I didn’t usually bother because it took so damn long. Still, when she told me to look up, then blink, I did. I was very good at following instructions when I applied myself.
“See?” She turned me to face the mirror and I had to admit my face looked brighter and better rested. The color made me glow just a little, like it was coming from the inside.
The way she was looking at my beret made me nervous. “That stays,” I warned her. “My hair is already beyond regulation length. I wore it like this for a long time to keep from getting in trouble.”
“You little rule breaker.” Kennedy grinned. “Clever workaround, too.”
The way she lifted her right eyebrow made me think she might not be talking about the length of my hair.
She smoothed here and fluffed there, then dabbed a little perfume just behind my ears and in the hollow of my neck.
“We’re going to talk about manicures later, Madelyn. I hope you’ve taken better care of the Promised Land than you’ve taken of these fingernails, or that man is going to need a headlamp and a damn compass.” She shook her head at me and I snorted, because there was nothing wrong with my fingernails or the Promised Land, thank you very much. I’d waxed my way back to the age of eight.
“What if he’s just doing this to be nice, Kenny?” I couldn’t keep my fears to myself.
“I don’t know any man who’d marry someone just to be nice, Mads. Have you lost your mind?”
“You know…” I looked around the empty bathroom, because suddenly my voice seemed awfully loud. “Because I want to adopt a baby.”
