Adore Me

by Kelly Elliott

  Nash and I both smiled and bid him goodbye. Once they had pulled away, I let out a whistle.

  “I think we should go back to building skyscrapers. Fuck this residential shit.”

  Laughing, Nash hit my back.

  “Hey, don’t forget I need you to drive me and Kaelynn to the airport. Morgan said she was booked with patients all day.”

  “Yeah, no worries. What time do you need me to pick you up?”

  “Two.”

  We shook hands and headed to our vehicles. “I’ll see you at two.”

  Kaelynn was practically floating on cloud nine when I picked up her and Nash.

  “One suitcase is all y’all have?” I asked, putting into the back of my new truck. As much as I loved my Audi, it wasn’t it wasn’t exactly a family car. The truck was also better for business, since I was driving more and more to building sites.

  “Yep. We travel light,” Nash said, winking at Kaelynn.

  “So what made you decide to do a shower in Utah? I thought you were going to do it in September here in town?”

  “Oh, well, um . . . we’re doing that one too. Morgan and my sister Millie are planning this one. I really miss my mom. I think I’m feeling a bit homesick.”

  Smiling, I watched as Nash held Kaelynn’s hand while she climbed into the backseat of the truck.

  “Hey, you mind if I drive?” Nash asked, slapping me on the arm and jogging around the front of my truck.

  “My truck? My new truck? You want to drive my new truck?”

  “Yeah! It’s not that new anymore, anyway. You’ve had it a few weeks.” He jumped into the driver’s seat and buckled up.

  “That’s still new, Nash.”

  He looked over at me and grinned.

  “Okay, looks like he’s driving,” I mumbled to myself as I climbed into the passenger seat.

  The second Nash pulled away from his driveway, he launched into work talk. Then he turned and went in the opposite direction of the airport.

  “Dude, the airport is the other way.”

  “I have to make a pit stop first.”

  Staring at him, I laughed. “A pit stop? Where?”

  The next thing I knew, Kaelynn was attempting to put a blindfold over my eyes.

  “It’s a surprise, so you have to cooperate! Please don’t take this off, or we’ll be forced to tie your hands together.”

  “What in the fuck?” I said as Nash and Kaelynn both laughed.

  “You want to tell me what is going on, dude? I mean if you and your wife are into kinky shit, I am telling you right now, I’m not the guy for the job.”

  Nash’s blow to my stomach caused me to exhale and then cough.

  “Asshole. There is no fucking way I would ever let another man touch my wife. And she’s pregnant, for shit’s sake.”

  “Hey, you’re the one who blindfolded me!” I shouted.

  “It’s okay, Blake. I promise it will all be worth it. Now, you might as well close your eyes and take a nap. We’ve got a long drive.”

  “A long drive? What in the hell is going on, y’all? Oh, come on. If Morgan is throwing me a surprise birthday party, I’m going to kill her.”

  Nash hit me again.

  “Dude! Stop hitting me. I can’t see it coming, and it fucking hurts!”

  “If my sister wants to throw you a surprise party, you will be surprised. You will like it, and you will tell her how freaking amazing she is for doing it.”

  I dropped my head back against the seat. “I hate parties.”

  “It’s okay, Blake. It’s not a surprise birthday party. Besides, Morgan is at work.”

  “I’m calling her!” I said, reaching into my pocket and pulling out my phone. “Hey, Siri, call Morgan’s work.”

  Morgan had a landline at her office, so if she was there, she would answer.

  “This is Morgan Barrett.”

  I smiled. I couldn’t wait until the day she said Morgan Greene.

  “Hey, princess. What are you doing?”

  “Hey! Grabbing a quick bite to eat before my next patient comes in. I’m exhausted already. My last patient spent the entire two hours critiquing my paintings. I was ready to pull my hair out.”

  “Sounds like fun.”

  “What are you doing? Shouldn’t you be picking up Nash and Kaelynn?”

  “I did. Nash is driving, and Kaelynn has blindfolded me.”

  Morgan laughed, but when I didn’t join in, she stopped. “Wait. What do you mean?”

  “You’re not behind this?”

  “Me? Why in the world would I have Kaelynn blindfold you?”

  “Surprise birthday party?”

  There was silence on the other line. “I knew it! You are throwing me a surprise party. Morgan, I hate parties.”

  “Um . . . when is your birthday? I thought it was in October.”

  My mouth fell open. “You don’t even know when my birthday is? We are engaged! How do you not know when my birthday is?”

  “Well, yes. I mean. Oh wait! It’s next week! June seventh!”

  Sighing, I replied, “June fourteenth. It’s in two weeks.”

  “Oh shit. I’m so sorry, Blake. I’m committing it to memory right now. Listen, I’ve got to go; my next patient is here. But I hope y’all have fun with whatever it is you’re doing! Just don’t let them miss their flight! I love you!”

  “Wait! Morgan!”

  The line went dead.

  “Told you it wasn’t a surprise birthday party.”

  “How could my own fiancé not know when my birthday is?”

  “Don’t feel so bad, Blake. I didn’t know it either.” Kaelynn said, patting me on the arm.

  “Dude, this is going to be epic. Trust me.”

  “Trust you? You stole my truck, blindfolded me, and threatened to tie me up! You’re taking me to an undisclosed location, and you lied about your trip to Utah! That goes for you too, Kaelynn. You are both out of my trust circle!”

  Nash laughed. “Epic, dude. Epic. Close your eyes, and take a nap.”

  I turned to look at him, but all I could see was blackness. “Take a nap? Seriously?”

  “Epic.”

  My head dropped against the seat, and I closed my eyes. “I hate you, Nash.”

  I STARED AT myself in the mirror as Blake talked to me while Charlie attempted to put my hair up in what she called an elegant messy bun. I still wasn’t sure there was such a thing, but apparently there was.

  Blake was currently giving me his correct birthdate, which I already knew, of course.

  “Oh shit. I’m so sorry, Blake. I’m committing it to memory right now. Listen, I’ve got to go; my next patient is here. But I hope y’all have fun with whatever it is you’re doing! Just don’t let them miss their flight! I love you!”

  I hung up and set my phone down.

  My eyes met Charlie’s, and we both laughed. “Do you think he knows?”

  “No. He bought it. He thinks I’m at work,” I replied with a smile.

  “You don’t think he would suspect you would have your calls forwarded?”

  “Nope. He thought it was a surprise birthday party at first, but now he truly sounds confused. Poor guy, I sort of feel bad he thinks I didn’t know when his birthday is.”

  “He’ll get over it the moment he sees you.”

  I focused back on myself in the mirror. Chewing on my lip, I prayed I wasn’t doing the wrong thing.

  “Do you think he’ll be mad?” I asked.

  “I wasn’t mad when Tucker did it for me. I was over the moon.”

  “I wish Terri and Jim could have been here,” I said.

  Charlie leaned down and put her face next to mine. “I know how much you wanted them here.”

  Terri and Jim had taken a family vacation with Jim’s parents to Europe. They were supposed to be back two days ago, but Jim had jumped off a wall in Rome and landed wrong. He broke his ankle and ended up needing surgery. They missed their flights back and wouldn’t be heading home for anothe
r week.

  “What terrible luck,” I said.

  Charlie went back to putting small white flowers in my hair.

  “There. I think we’re done. Do you like it?” Charlie asked with a wide smile on her face.

  “I love it. I can’t believe I’m doing this. I am surprising Blake with a wedding.”

  There was a knock on the door that caused me to jump. Charlie called out, “Come in!”

  I looked through the mirror and saw Rick.

  “Everything is ready down in the cave. I think you should get dressed so we can start making our way down nice and slow.”

  With a nod, I smiled. “Thank you so much, Rick, for helping me do this all so last minute.”

  “It’s my pleasure.”

  It had been so last minute that even my parents weren’t there. It was the only day we could get the cave with the busy summer season. My folks were on vacation, Blake’s father was at a medical conference, and Dustin had gone out of town with his girlfriend to her brother’s wedding.

  “It’s time to get dressed!” Charlie called out. “Kaelynn called, and they’re thirty minutes out! Apparently Blake is livid and is accusing them of driving around in circles to throw him off.”

  I laughed as Charlie approached with the bag that held my dress in it.

  Twenty minutes later I stood in front of the mirror in Rick’s office, staring at myself in my wedding dress.

  My. Wedding. Dress.

  I smiled and met Charlie’s gaze in the mirror.

  “Morgan, you look beautiful.”

  I lifted my gown and revealed the special-order sneakers Charlie had gotten me. They were covered in crystals.

  “Thank you for these. They’re perfect!”

  We giggled. I turned around and looked at the room we were in. Rick had transformed his office into a dressing room for us. When Kaelynn and Nash got here with Blake, he would use this room to change into the tux I had brought.

  With a sigh, I said, “Well, it’s almost time. I really hope Blake doesn’t get upset.”

  Charlie kissed me on the forehead. “He’s going to so happy that you were so excited to marry him you made it happen. And in a place that means something to him.”

  I nodded as the nerves settled in slightly.

  “Come on, let’s get going so we don’t risk Blake seeing you.”

  I nodded. “Are the bouquets already down there?”

  “Yep. Between Tucker and Rick, everything has been taken care of.

  “Are you ready? Nervous at all?” Rick asked.

  “I’m not the least bit nervous.”

  They both raised a brow.

  “Okay, I am a little nervous. Mostly because I’m worried about Blake’s reaction.”

  Charlie wrapped her arm around mine, and we made our way through the lobby toward the cave.

  “It’s normal to be nervous. This whole relationship has been a whirlwind for you both. But I see the way Blake looks at you. I saw it months ago that night at the dinner party at my house. The man is head over heels in love with you. You’re wearing his ring.”

  I focused on the beautiful diamond ring on my finger. It had been Blake’s mother’s ring, and it meant so much to him—and now to me.

  “I can’t wait to be his wife.”

  Giggling like two high school girls, we lifted our dresses and made our way to the cave entrance where Rick waited to let us in and walk us down.

  “I don’t think we’ve ever done a wedding where the groom walks down to the bride!” he said with excitement in his voice.

  “First time for everything, Rick!” Charlie said as I took in deep breaths. My excitement and nerves were beginning to comingle, and I wasn’t sure which one would win.

  When I walked into the cave’s main cavern, I gasped at the sight before me. Rick and Tucker had candles and small bouquets of flowers placed around the cavern, and the lights the most breathtaking shadows. It was so romantic looking I was overcome with emotion.

  “I’m speechless. I remembered it being beautiful down here, but this is . . . it’s so . . .”

  My eyes burned with the threat of tears.

  Charlie wrapped her arm around me. “Do not cry. I’m already stressing about your hair down here in this cave! I can’t deal with makeup issues!”

  Laughing, I dabbed at the corners of my eyes.

  Tucker gave me a hug. “Are you happy with everything?”

  I looked around the large open area of the cave, taking it all in. At the end of the open cavern was an archway that was covered in the most beautiful array of flowers I had ever seen. Candles outlined the area where Blake and I would stand and exchange our vows.

  “It’s all so beautiful. You guys did such a great job.”

  Glancing over to Charlie, Tucker’s smile grew wide. “I wish Rick and I could take the credit, but Charlie and Kaelynn came here a week ago and took pictures. They got with the florist and worked out all the details.

  I turned to face Charlie. “Y’all did that for me?”

  She nodded.

  Now the tears did come, and there was nothing I could do to stop them.

  “No! No, no, no! Do not cry! Hanky! Stat!” Charlie cried out.

  “They’re here!” Rick said as he rushed past the three of us and headed out of the cave. Right then the pastor from the church I had grown up in made his way into the cavern with one of the park employees.

  “Well, I have to say I’ve married people in some pretty cool places, but a cave is the first for me.” He wore a smile, but it dropped when he saw me crying.

  “Morgan, sweetheart.”

  “I’m okay, honestly. I feel so loved right now.”

  Pastor Cole wrapped me up in his arms. “You are loved, my dear. Now, take a deep breath.”

  I did as he said.

  Charlie had magically pulled a compact from somewhere in her dress and was dabbing it around my eyes.

  “Thank God for waterproof mascara,” she said.

  “Amen,” Pastor Cole added.

  The park employee cleared her throat. “I’m going to go on up to walk your other bridal party member down.”

  “Thank you so much,” I said, pulling myself together. This was it. Kaelynn was on her way down, and Blake would be right behind her.

  What if this was too fast? We hadn’t even talked about the wedding yet. Hadn’t set a date. Maybe he wanted a long engagement. Or a big wedding. I hadn’t even thought that it might be important to Blake to have his father and brother here. Then I remembered the night of our engagement. Blake wanted to run off and elope. The memory calmed my nerves some.

  “I can’t wait to see Blake’s face when sees you!” Charlie said, excitement filling her voice as she and Tucker exchanged a loving glance.

  My hand came up to my throat as I tried to smile and ignore my racing heart.

  Oh no. What have I done?

  NASH WAS LEADING me into a building as Kaelynn whispered something to someone behind me.

  “Nash, I’m going to go on in,” she said a moment later.

  “Okay, I’ll see you in a few.”

  “What in the hell is going on, Nash? I’m tired of this game.”

  A door shut, and the blindfold came off.

  Glancing around the room, I pulled my brows in when I saw Rick.

  “Rick?”

  “Blake,” he replied.

  I turned and looked at Nash. He was smiling from ear to ear. “You’re surprising me with a cave tour? Kaelynn can’t do a tour. She’s pregnant.”

  Nash laughed. “Dude, we’re going on a different sort of adventure.”

  Now my interested was piqued. “All right. I’m listening.”

  “I need you to get dressed.”

  Glancing down to the jeans and T-shirt I had on, I lifted my gaze back to Nash. “I am dressed.”

  “In this.” He held up a bag. “Your tux is in here.”

  I laughed. “My tux? What in the hell kind of adventure are we going on?”r />
  “One where your future bride is waiting down in the caves for you to marry her.”

  Tilting my head, I let out a disbelieving chuckle. “What did you say?”

  Nash placed his hand on my shoulder and said, “Morgan made all the arrangements for the two of you to get married today. Down in the caves.”

  My mouth dropped open. “Married? Today?”

  For the first time since my blindfold had come off, Nash’s smile faltered.

  “You do want to marry my sister, don’t you?”

  “Of course I want to marry her. I wouldn’t have asked her if I didn’t. It’s just, I wasn’t expecting to marry her today.”

  Nash took a step back. “I see. Well, this is a bit awkward, because she’s down there with Kaelynn, Charlie, Tucker, and the pastor of our church, waiting to marry you.”

  My hand jerked through my hair, and I started to pace across the office.

  Morgan had planned a wedding. A wedding.

  “I think I’m going to step outside for a minute or two,” Rick said, hitting me on the back and then walking out the door, quietly shutting it behind him.

  Nash tossed the suit bag onto the chair and folded his arms across his chest. I could feel the heat of his stare on me, but I needed a moment to process everything.

  “Listen, if you don’t want to marry her—”

  “I do want to marry her, Nash.”

  “Fine. Then you don’t want to marry her today. I’m not going to be the one to go down there and break my little sister’s heart. You’re going to have to do that.”

  Stopping my pace, I faced him. “What?”

  Nash looked pissed, and I couldn’t blame him. I was sure it looked like I wasn’t wanting to marry Morgan, when in fact I was trying to figure out what to do about the wedding plans I had quietly started making for us.

  “You are going to have to go down there and tell her you don’t want to marry her today.”

  I laughed. “Nash, hold on a second. Give me a moment to process all of this. You just told me I’m getting married.”

  “And if you really wanted to marry her like you said, you’d be jumping into the tux and running down there.”

  “And I will. Dude, I’ve been talking to a wedding planner up in Canada. I wanted to take Morgan to Canada this fall to a hotel I went to growing up as a kid. They decorate up for Christmas—they go all out, with trees everywhere—and I had this great idea about getting married surrounded by trees and lights. I know how much she loves Christmas, and I figured she would love it. I thought maybe we would have a small ceremony up there. About the only thing we’ve talked about is we want it to be small. Close friends and family only.”