by Jamie Knight
“Eileen, I’m so sorry that I broke up with you a few months ago and acted like a jerk. I’m sorry that I pushed your boundaries and embarrassed you and got you into a big mess. You have helped me through the toughest time in my life and honestly, I should have done this a long time ago because now my uncle will never know what your answer will be when I ask you…”
“I told him yes,” she interrupted me.
All the breath whooshed out of my lungs and I stammered, “What?!”
“On the plane ride to Las Vegas, Ronnie asked me what I would say if you asked me to marry you. I told him that I would say yes.”
I felt myself tearing up but held the tears back. The bastard had known that I loved her, even before I did.
I reached up and took her hand in my own. Eileen was shaking.
“Is your answer still the same?”
“Maybe you should ask and see.” She gave me a smirky smile.
Feeling warmth from the tips of my toes to the top of my head, I squeezed her hand between my own and said the words I had been wanting to say for days...maybe even months.
“Eileen Davies, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Tears started running down her face and she shook more.
“Yes, Ray. That’s all I ever wanted.”
I was on my feet and pulling her into my arms in a second. My heart felt like it was going to burst with joy. My lips found hers and I kissed my new fiancée as I spun her around in a circle.
Mr. Pugsly yipped and bit at my heels. He was catching on to our excitement, but I didn’t mind. He was my dog now too and I loved the little weirdo.
There was a general scream from the teams surrounding us and then Eileen and I were both clobbered by a mess that I now thought of as my brothers. Jakey hugged us together. Will patted me on the back so hard I wound up coughing and Danny slammed me on the shoulder. All of their faces were grinning from ear to ear with delight.
In one second, I had gone from having no family to having a ton of it.
Chapter Twenty-Nine - Eileen
The day after Ray asked me to marry him, my father called me at work to tell me to come to his office as soon as I could. He insisted that I could not bring my new fiancé. I was a little worried, but Ray assured me that he had indeed asked my father for my hand in marriage—this time—and Dad had agreed, so I wasn’t quite sure what my old man wanted.
Mr. Pugsly was allowed to come to work with me at McKenzie Tech now. Sloane was the new CFA—taking over for Ray—and she okayed it. It helped to be friends with the new big boss. I just hoped that the position didn’t go to her head.
Pugsly was the star of the office. The little pug got constant affection as he wandered from cubical to cubical and an endless number of treats. I even caught Sloane putting him in her lap once, but she assured me that he had jumped up there on his own.
In any case, when Dad called, it was the two of us who set off for a long lunch to see him. The walk between offices was pleasant. Manhattan was in bloom with the trees budding and I even saw some gardens that people planted starting to flower. It was all so beautiful. But to be honest, I had been on cloud nine since Ray and I had become official. Nothing was getting me down.
Twenty minutes later, I ran into my brother Will in front of the Davies and Sons’ office.
“Hey, Le Le and pug pug,” he joked as he bent down to give my dog and good scratch behind the ear. “What are you doing over here?”
I frowned. “Dad called me and told me to come in. Do you have any idea what about?”
Will scratched at his beard. “No clue. Although our main accountant did just put in her two weeks. Maybe he wants you to change jobs and come back to the family.”
The idea froze me in my tracks. Leave McKenzie Tech? Did I really want to do that? It was true that Ray had already left so he could officially run Silver, Inc and The Dark Club, but I had so many other friends there. Would I really be okay not seeing Mandy, Reese, Maria, and Sloane every weekday? I wasn’t sure. They were my girls and we had so much fun together. I didn’t want to lose that.
As I stood there thinking, I caught Will glancing over at me nervously. My older brother was shifting from foot to foot and rubbing the back of his head. It looked like he wanted to ask me something but was not sure how.
“What is it, Will?” I asked him, giving him a get-to-the-point glare.
He swallows hard. “Um…Your man’s club…What’s it called?”
Oh! Well that wasn’t something I wanted to know about my brother, but I’m guessing it wasn’t something he had wanted to learn about me either.
Not wanting to make the situation any more awkward, I reached into my purse and handed Will one of Ray’s new business cards with the address of The Dark Club on it. He grabbed at it quickly and with a big smile on his face.
“But, Will,” I said seriously, still holding onto the edge of the card. “Never go to the club on Saturdays. That’s my night.”
Will’s eyes went wide for a second and then he nodded. “Never Saturdays, I promise. Thanks, Le Le. Enjoy your talk with Dad.” He waved and set off down the street to get lunch.
I took a deep breath and started thinking of ways to tell my father that I didn’t want to join the family business. Nodding to the security guard and the secretary downstairs, Mr. Pugsly and I headed up to the seventh floor and my dad’s executive office.
His door was open, so I knocked lightly to get Dad’s attention and then headed inside. Dad turned from his computer and pointed to the chair in front of his desk. He looked very serious and had his professional-lawyer face on.
“Sit down, Le Le. We have several things to address today.”
He pulled over a folder filled with papers and I started to worry that there was a job offer inside. I really hated to disappoint my father, but I was happy where I was.
Dad flipped over the top of the folder and started pointing to the first page of the document—a page full of numbers.
“Forty years ago, your mother put her first pay check from her modeling job into a savings account for the wedding of her daughter.” He smiled at me wistfully. “Of course, we didn’t know about you then, but your mother, she was determined that she was going to have a beautiful daughter. Said you came to her in a dream, and ever since that dream, she planned for you.”
I found myself tearing up. My father talked about my mother some, but this was all new to me. I pulled the sheets of paper to my side of the desk and glanced over the numbers. At Mom’s first job she was paid only sixty-five dollars.
“After she passed,” Dad continued. “I took the money out of saving and started investing it. I used a modest portfolio and had a good bit of luck.” He reached over the desk, flipped through the pages, and pointed to the last line of the document.
I felt the air whoosh out of my lungs. “Dad! There is two million dollars in this account! How in the world did you manage that?”
He grinned at me proudly and scratched his chin. “I may have added in my first pay check when I became a partner at my old firm.”
I stared at the page, not sure what to say or do. I ran my fingers down the paper, feeling excited to see what my mother planned for me, but also confused, because I really didn’t need the money.
“This is too much, Dad,” I whispered. “But I can’t accept it. Ray and I were planning on a small wedding and we were planning on paying for it ourselves. Ray’s a billionaire, we can pay for our own wedding.”
Dad’s eyes, colored so similar to my own, widened a bit. “Ray’s a billionaire?!” he laughed. “You have got to be kidding me. I had no idea. Well, that makes me like the kid even more.” He laughed at his own joke and scratched his chin again.
“In any case,” he continued. “You mother wanted you to have this money. It is her gift to you, our gift, and I will not go against her wishes.”
I looked over the paper again, tears starting to stream down
my face. “This is so sweet. But why didn’t you want Ray to come to this meeting? I’m sure he would have been touched.”
Dad turned quickly and grabbed a large box behind his desk. “This is the second part of your mother’s gift.”
He set the box before me and pulled it open. Inside was a long sleeved, lace wedding dress with a golden yellow sash. It looked like it was one of a kind.
I reached forward and ran my hands over the delicate and probably hand-made lace. “God, this is so beautiful. How did she know what size to get? I was so young when she died.”
Dad looked over the dress and a sweet smile touched his lips. “I think she assumed your measurements would be the same as hers.”
“Oh!” I pulled my hand off the dress quickly. “Dad is this Mom’s wedding dress?”
He sat back and wiped a tear from his eye. “Yes, and you will be just as beautiful in it as she was.”
I reached out and ran my fingers over the dress again, looking at how the lace was sheer on the sleeves and lined in the bodice. My heart in my chest started to ache. It was like my mother was saying that she loved me even though she was gone.
“This is so wonderful,” I breathed. “Dad, how did you keep this all from me over the years?”
He reached forward and took my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. I rarely saw my manly father with tears in his eyes, but my mother was still a sore subject for him, even though she had been gone for twenty-years or more.
“I know the importance of surprises,” he told me, “and I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time. I see her in you, Le Le. Even more now that you have found Ray. It makes me happy. Your mother had such a bright light inside of her and so do you. You have opened up and are letting the whole world see the beauty that I see and I’m proud of you.”
The tears really started coming. I ran around my dad’s desk and threw myself into his arms. He held me close, like he had when I was a little girl, and petted my hair.
“You’re going to be beautiful on your big day, Le Le,” he whispered. “Just beautiful.”
Epilogue - Eileen
The day of my wedding came quickly. Ray and I saw no reason for a long engagement, so we dove in with both feet. I begged—although I didn’t have to beg hard—for Kane to let us use the rooftop garden at McKenzie Tech for our small affair. He just smiled and said, “Well, I guess that is where all the staff’s weddings will take place from now on. Perhaps we should add a ballroom downstairs for the receptions.” I laughed, thinking he was joking, but now I wasn’t so sure. Kane, since he had met Reese, was in love with love, and perhaps more weddings would be taking place at McKenzie Tech in the future.
As for the money from my mother, I used some, just to make her spirit happy. I bought Reese, Mandy, and Sloan new bridesmaids dresses in a golden yellow color to match the sash on my classic dress. They were long with a deep V neck and pleated skirt. All of the girls found the dresses fabulous. Something that Mandy reiterated as she spun around in a circle in Kane’s office that he was kind enough to let us use as a dressing room.
“I feel like a Greek princess,” my short friend squeaked. “I want my wedding dress to be just this style.”
Reese looked up from the gray couch that she and Sloane were sitting on. “Any grooms we should know about?” she asked.
Mandy stopped spinning and turned red just slightly. “No,” she admitted. “But I hope there will be soon. Seems like everyone is getting married.”
Sloane snorted and raised her narrow chin in the air. “Not everyone. I don’t need a man.”
“Yeah right,” Reese rolled her blue eyes. She took her coffee cup from the table and sipped a little. “You know, I think I can have you two married by next year.”
Both Sloane and Mandy turned to her. “No fix ups!” they both said quickly.
Reese smiled and put her fingers to the diamond pendant that she wore around her neck. “Let’s just say that I will be sending a little luck your way.”
There was a soft knock at the door. Sloane got up to answer and let Jakey inside with Mr. Pugsly in tow and our newest find—Ms. Puggle. That was the other part of Mom’s money that I had used.
I had wanted to donate it all to the shelter where I found my pug love, but when Reese and I went inside, I saw Ms. Puggle and knew that she had to be part of our family as well. The fawn and black pug was in a bit better shape then Mr. Pugsly, but she was missing her tail from a house fire that took her owner’s lives. The poor girl was still a little shaky, but with Pugsly’s help, she was starting to relax.
Today, both of my pups were all smiles with their best finery on. I stooped down to give each of them a scratch behind the ears and coo at them for being such good dogs. Each had a special collar with our wedding rings attached.
Jakey had to lead them down the aisle, a job he was kind of annoyed about. My other brothers were groomsmen—along with Kane as Ray’s best man.
“Ready, Le Le?” Jake asked. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
I could hear the music starting just behind the door and butterflies flew through my stomach. I found myself smiling and tearing up all at the same time.
Each of my bridesmaids gave me a hug and then headed out to wait in the hallway with the groomsmen. My other two brothers were looking dapper in their tuxes and both smiled at me as I peeked out the door.
“Where’s Dad?” I snapped.
Dan nodded back towards the elevator. “He went to get a drink of water. Just relax, Le Le, he’s been waiting for this moment for years. There is no way that he is going to miss walking his little girl down the aisle.”
The procession started in earnest and my bridesmaids and groomsmen went to take their places in the rooftop garden. I peeked towards the glass and caught just a glimpse of Ray standing at the front of the aisle with the priest. I smiled when I saw him nervously tug at his cuffs; I had bought him some fun cufflinks just for the day—silver buttons that said Mrs. And Mr. on them.
“Ready to go, sweetheart?”
My dad came up behind me and tugged lightly on my veil. I turned to look at him and ran my hands nervously down the front of my dress. He looked me up and down and gave me a big smile.
“You’re as pretty as your mother was in that dress.” He leaned in and gave me a kiss on the forehead. “She would have been delighted.”
I found tears in my eyes and gently rubbed them, trying hard to not muss my makeup. “Thanks, Dad. I really miss her today.”
He helped me pull my sheer, cathedral-length veil over my head and then offered me his arm. I took it and clutched my bouquet in my other hand. My whole body was shaking a bit.
Dad leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Don’t worry, Le Le, this is just another kind of performance.” He gave me a wink. “Ready to go make this real.”
“More ready then I have ever been in my entire life.”
The music swelled as we headed towards the door to the rooftop garden. My life was about to change forever.
****
For our honeymoon, Ray took me on a tour of the worlds most popular nude beaches, while our pugs stayed with Jakey. The first stop was Red Beach in Greece. I was beyond excited and a little nervous; I had come a long way with my feelings about being nude, but my first nude beach experience was still a big deal.
After a short boat ride, we arrived at the secluded beach with its famous clay colored sands and blue waters. Jutted cliffs rose up behind the beach, making it feel like a tucked away pocket of paradise.
I reached up and grabbed my wide sun hat just before a light breeze carried it away and looked at Ray. He was grinning from ear to ear.
“I think this is perfect,” he said. “I’m going to have Ronnie moved here. Are you ready?”
I nodded. We started to move forward through the beach’s orange lounge chairs that each had a blue and white stripped umbrella. There were many sunbathers already out, taking in the war
mth and oblivious to our arrival. They were of all body types, none afraid of what they looked like or caring what we did.
We found two unoccupied chairs towards the back and set our stuff down. Ray sat down and looked up at me like he was waiting for a show.
“What?” I asked him.
“Go ahead.” He waved his hands. “Take your bathing suit off. Let the world see you.”
I pulled my hands up over my chest, a lingering feeling of shyness filling me.
“You first!”
Ray shrugged. He pulled his T-shirt off and then his swim trunks. He relaxed back in his lounge chair and let it all hang out—every glorious inch. My eyes swept up and all over his body, from each perfectly defined pec to his washboard abs to the deep V before his…well, perfect cock. My body answered and I started to feel my pussy quiver a little.
Taking his boldness to heart, I reached back and unhooked my yellow bikini top. The fabric fell away revealing my breasts and my already hard nipples.
Ray’s eyes fixated on my perky tits. “That’s my girl,” he whispered. “I know you like showing off that beautiful body.”
I grinned at him and slid my hands down my sides until my fingers found the ties for my bikini bottom. I pulled. First the left side came loose and fell, then the right. The small bit of fabric slid down my legs and then hit the beach. I was nude…in the sun and fresh clean air…and I loved it!
“God,” Ray hissed under his breath. “You look like a queen. Walk from one end of the beach to the other for me.”
I looked into his deep blue eyes. “Yes, sir.”
Ray flushed a bit as lust overcame him. He grabbed at me, but I strutted away to carry out his orders.
Keeping my head held high, I did my best model walk along the beach. Some people looked up as I walked by, but I no longer cared. In fact, I liked it when they looked. It made me feel beautiful.
The sand was soft under my bare feet and I did a little turn when I reached the end of the beach furthest away from Ray. Then I strutted back.
