by Eden Winters
Lucky turned, taking in the scenery. Red and gold graced the trees, with cedars and pines adding a deep green to the landscape, the pines also scenting the air. Sun shone on the rippling river water, and he vaguely heard bits of hushed conversation. Glancing down, he took in his worn leathers, favorite Bob Seger T-shirt, faded jeans, and well-worn boots. Bo wore a plain blue T, jeans, and boots under his own jacket and chaps.
No tuxes, no uncomfortable shoes. Just Bo and Lucky, with no frills.
No pricey venue, caterer, flowers, rehearsals and rehearsal dinners. In a word: perfect.
“Um… Lucky? You’re leaving me hanging here.” Bo glanced up shyly, hands clasped in front of him.
He knew Lucky so well. If Lucky’d thought of it first, this would be the exact wedding he’d have wanted. “It’s us,” was all he said, taking Bo’s hand. But wait! Icy panic took a firm grip. “I didn’t… I mean… I didn’t bring…”
“I got you covered. And I didn’t read them, I promise. Charlotte sealed them in an envelope so I couldn’t.” With a sly smile, Bo dug into his pocket and then handed an envelope to Lucky. “You should be careful of what you leave lying around.” He then held up a single sheet of paper. “I’ve got mine right here.”
Lucky couldn’t make out any words on the page in Bo’s hand; however, Bo’d taken the time to neatly type out his vows. No sealed envelope would’ve stopped Lucky’s curiosity, or even slowed it down much. Bo? Although he’d relaxed some over the years, he still mostly followed the rules.
Ripping open the envelope, Lucky tried to hide the handwritten scrawl from Bo’s eyes.
They were so doing this. Lucky’s stomach flipped. Everybody watching. All eyes on them. Someone had set up folding chairs on the riverbank, leaving a path between the two sides. There didn’t appear to be a “Bo’s side” or “Lucky’s side.”
“We’re all one family now,” Bo murmured. He stopped. “Give me your ring.”
Lucky wriggled the ring off his right ring-finger, while Bo removed his from his left hand. They exchanged the shiny bands.
Bo smiled at Lucky, clinging maybe a bit too tightly to his hand. “You ready?
Lucky smiled back. “As I’ll ever be.”
“All rise.” Mrs. Griggs stood facing the chairs, wearing a long, flowing purple dress, hair neatly styled. She wore makeup?
“What’s Mrs. Griggs doing up there?” Lucky side whispered.
Bo whispered back, behind his hand, “Universal Life Church lets you ordain online, and they can marry folks in Georgia.”
Worked for Lucky.
“It’s not too late to run.” Bo turned to look at Lucky full on.
“Now, why would I do a fool thing like that?” Like hell would Lucky throw away getting what he’d wanted for years now.
The sparse crowd shifted and watched Bo and Lucky approach, most beaming, and Mrs. Griggs dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. Judging by the redness of her nose, she’d either already been celebrating or started crying a while ago.
Charlotte stood holding Andro, with Jimmy, Ty, and Todd, all dressed for a casual Saturday outing. Lucky spotted Jenny sleeping in the front row, her shock of dark hair peeking up over Lucky’s mother’s shoulder. Who’d Mom have to fight for baby-holding honors? Did she pull rank on Ty?
A tall man Lucky’d never seen before, with the short buzz cut of military or police, stood with Rone. Rett brought a date? Had to be serious if she brought him along. Why hadn’t she told Lucky? Rone held onto the guy’s sleeve, so he must be someone the kid knew and trusted. Lord knew it took Lucky long enough to win the kid over.
Lisa’s little boy squirmed in her arms, and her husband took the fussy child.
Cruz flashed his megawatt smile, and Vivienne gave them a little wave. Bo’s aunt and uncle sat in the front row, along with Lucky’s parents and Walter and Mrs. Smith.
Walter smiled and clapped Lucky on the back as he passed. Mrs. Smith gave them a warm smile. She wore a simple dress. Walter, jeans and a jacket.
Oh, dear God! Were Lucky’s parents actually holding hands? Maybe there was hope for them yet. Lucky wished them all the best. He wanted a marriage like theirs had been once upon a time.
Andro squirmed and squealed, “Da, da, da,” holding out his hands as Bo and Lucky passed by Charlotte. They stopped, and Bo removed his jacket to take his son.
Lucky shucked off his jacket in turn, gently took Jenny, and placed her against his own shoulder.
His brothers weren’t there, nor had he expected them to be. Just those close to him and Bo, and though Lucky and his brothers had made inroads to mending their relationships, they’d never be close. That was okay. The Lucklighters were back in his life, a miracle unto itself.
With one more nervous smile, Bo stepped forward, arms too full of kid to hold hands. Bo’s brother stood on one side, Rett the other, both dressed in jeans and T-shirts. Non-traditional. Screw tradition.
Bo juggled Andro to hand Drew Lucky’s ring, and Lucky handed Bo’s ring to Rett.
No rehearsals, no pre-planning.
Just the way Lucky lived his life.
“Family and friends of Simon and William, we gather here today to celebrate two lives becoming one, as they declare their commitment to each other.” How odd, seeing Mrs. Griggs without at least one cat.
But “Simon” and “William.” Nope. Not Simon and William. Lucky and Bo.
“You’ve written your own vows?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am,” Bo murmured.
Sheer terror turned Lucky’s mouth dry as dust. If he managed to move his lips a moth might fly out. What if he said the wrong thing? His vows were so lame. Was it too late to grab some off the Internet?
If only Bo had allowed Lucky a sneak peek at the paper in his hands, giving some idea of what Bo would say. Nothing Lucky came up with could compete, especially not when Lucky wrote his himself. No getting help from anyone else.
“I don’t care what you say, as long as it’s heartfelt and true.” Bo had an uncanny way of reading Lucky’s mind. Or maybe his body language.
Things could go so, so wrong. Especially when asking for truth from a man with no brain-to-mouth filter.
Bo faced Lucky, one side of his mouth curved upward. He stared downward for a moment, lifted his head, and looked straight into Lucky’s eyes. Though he held the sheet of paper, he never once glanced down.
“Simon sounds so formal. So official. It’s Lucky I fell in love with, fought battles with, and though we might have come out the other side a little worse for the wear, we always came out the other side together.”
Lucky’s mangled hand itched, a reminder of one of those battles. He rubbed the scars against his jeans, never taking his eyes off Bo’s face.
Andro grabbed for the paper in Bo’s hand. Bo let him have the typed vows. He wasn’t using them anyway.
“No matter what, we’ve found a way to combine our personalities, work through issues, and stay firm in the storms around us. You might argue, but in the end, you’re a solid, dependable force for good in my life. You have my back.” Bo blinked hard a few times, his eyes shiny. “I want to spend my life with you, raise our children together, celebrate good times, support each other in bad. Grow old together. Will you do me the honor of traveling life’s road with me?”
“You betcha” might not go over too well. Neither would “Sure.” A smart-assed comment could end the marriage before it began. No, not really. Bo wasn’t like that. Sometimes, traditional paid off. Lucky managed to squeeze words out around the lump in his throat. “I will.”
His heart pounded. All these people looking at him, expecting him to say something grand. Bo’s cocked eyebrow spoke loud and clear: “You better not say ‘Back atcha.’”
Suddenly the words Lucky’d agonized over for weeks weren’t good enough. Didn’t say all the things he wanted to say. Keeping the sheet of notebook paper he’d filched from Ty firmly gripped by his side in his sweaty grasp, he opened his mouth. “Bo. I’d like to
say something about how we fell in love the moment we met, but we all know that didn’t happen.” The guffaw had to come from Walter.
Lucky cleared his throat and continued, “It took time, it wasn’t easy. I’m not an easy person.”
Bo opened his mouth. Lucky hurried on. “It doesn’t matter. You don’t take the easy road. You put in a lot of effort, taught me what a partnership is, that depending on others doesn’t make me weak.” No, Bo, Alejandro, and Jenny made him strong.
A tear slipped down Bo’s cheek. He wiped the moisture away with a fingertip. Oh no! Bo wasn’t supposed to cry.
The horror must’ve shown on Lucky’s face, for Bo gave him a watery smile. “Don’t worry. They’re happy tears.”
Happy or not, Bo’s sniffling tore at Lucky’s heart.
“You challenged me to be a better person, kept me going long after I’d have given up on my own.” Lucky spared a glance for Walter, his parents, his sister. Rett. All who’d contributed to turning him from a cocky bantam rooster to a reasonably decent human being.
But don’t push it.
Was that sniffling from behind him?
“Anyway, despite me being, well, me, we’ve made a home and a life together.” Jenny whimpered in her sleep, and Lucky swayed back and forth, bouncing a little to calm her. She snuffled and settled. Whew. Full blown howls now might cut the ceremony short. “I wanna keep the winning streak going, if you’ll let me.” Fuck. He’d been doing so good! Lucky needed to shut up now.
“I will,” Bo whispered, wiping at his cheeks. He put his forehead against Lucky’s. “I love you so much.”
“Awww…” came from the guests.
What did you know? Lucky must not have messed up too bad.
Andro dropped the paper, placing his small hands against Bo’s cheeks. “No cry, Dada. No cry!”
“It’s okay, Andro. Daddy’s fine.” He kissed Andro’s forehead.
Andro twisted around to look at Lucky, then back at Bo. He shoved his thumb into his mouth.
Mrs. Griggs wiped her eyes with a tissue again and gave a loud sniff. “That was beautiful. Now, do you have rings?”
Drew and Rett held up the rings. Drew reached for Andro.
“No!” Andro buried his face in Bo’s shoulder. He’d not seen Uncle Drew much. No wonder he pouted and clung to Bo.
Bo’s aunt came forward, dressed in her biker leathers, hair forming a neat braid down her back. “I’ll take him.” She didn’t live close, but made regular trips to the house so the kids would know her, sometimes coordinating with Lucky’s mom.
Talk about a dangerous combination.
“Come with Auntie, Andro,” she cooed, bouncing him on her hip all the way back to her seat.
Lucky looked around for a place to put his vows.
Rett held out her hand. Oh, yeah. Right.
Bo took Lucky’s right hand. “Let this ring be an outward symbol of our commitment, and a constant reminder of my love for you.” He slid the band on Lucky’s ring finger.
Lucky couldn’t help a glance at his left hand, wrapped around Jenny and holding her in place, missing a finger where the band would have traditionally gone. Rett shuffled forward, taking Jenny and handing Lucky Bo’s ring.
The ring fell with a plink against a rock.
“Oh f…” Lucky eyed his daughter. “Fart blossoms.” He knelt and dug through pine needles. Bo joined him, followed by Todd and Ty.
Soon, most everyone in attendance were clustered around, patting dirt and pine straw.
“I got it!” Ty held up the ring.
“It wouldn’t be a proper wedding if something didn’t go wrong,” Bo said, reaching down a hand.
Lucky took Bo’s hand and climbed back to his feet. Happy tears or no, Bo’s laughter beat crying any day.
The assorted family and friends shuffled back to their places.
Lucky gave Bo’s left hand a squeeze. He no longer needed the measly words he’d scrawled on that paper. “It feels like I’ve waited forever to give you this ring for real…” Without another word he placed the ring where it belonged.
Mrs. Griggs paused for a sniffle break and finally said, “By the power vested in me by the great state of Georgia, I now pronounce you legally wed.”
Lucky didn’t wait to be told to sweep Bo into his arms and lock their mouths together for the perfect kiss. Bo kissed him back with equal fervor. Who said marriage killed passion?
They pulled back and gazed at each other, undignified soppy grins on their faces. Ah, hell, Lucky wanted more and kissed Bo soundly again, to titters and applause from the onlookers.
Jenny slept through it all, now snug in Auntie Rett’s arms.
Lucky and Bo had done it. They’d actually gotten married. The sky hadn’t fallen, work hadn’t gotten in the way, and they wound up with the simple ceremony they’d wanted from the start.
When Lucky came up for air, just for a moment, he caught a glimpse of two well-dressed men sitting in the back. Family surrounded Bo and Lucky, and by the time he looked again, no sign of them.
He whispered to Bo, “Did I see Nestor and Victor?”
Bo nodded. “They slipped out quietly. Victor didn’t want to cause you any bad memories on our big day. I told him you were fine. He and Nestor wanted to be here. They’re heading to Mexico now for a visit before they return to France.”
Lucky’s guardian angels? Devils?
Rett and Drew escorted them to the folding tables set up under the trees, one long table covered with food, the rest set up for eating.
Lucky stepped toward Rett to take his daughter back.
“She’s fine,” Rett said. “You and Bo eat.”
Eat. Food.
Pot luck. Lucky’s favorite. He heaped a plate with what had to be his mother’s meatloaf, mashed potatoes, likely courtesy of Charlotte, and did he see… Yes! Lisa brought banana pudding. He’d recognize the bowl anywhere.
He and Bo sat at the head of the table, looking out over a sea of smiling faces.
His mother and father spoke quietly, bashful grins a good sign.
They cut the cake, smooshed pieces in each other’s face, and took plenty of pictures. Bo and Lucky and the kids. Bo with his aunt, uncle, and brother. Lucky with various family members, and one complicated selfie that more or less caught everyone, or at least parts of everyone.
Instead of gifts, Bo had asked for donations to be made to a shelter that helped human trafficking victims, as Andro’s mother had been.
At last the day wound down, and folks drifted to their vehicles for the long rides back to their homes. Charlotte and Rett jumped into action to help clean up.
Walter and Mrs. Smith entertained the kids.
Bo’s aunt and uncle headed their Harleys to North Carolina, to spend some time on the Lucklighter farm. Oh, lord, they were so gonna talk about Lucky and Bo with Lucky’s folks. He did not need the mental image of the parental units wondering what he and Bo were doing.
Rett approached with a bashful smile, an expression Lucky never thought to see on her face. “Lucky, this is Sergeant Nick Zaborowski, Atlanta PD.”
“Nice ta meet, ‘cha,” the man said, in a “not-from-around-here” accent. Maine, maybe. He caught Lucky’s hand in a firm grip.
Oh, Rett was sure telling Lucky all about this guy later. He stood about 6’5” with dark hair and eyes. Nothing like her usual type. Then again, her usual type hadn’t worked too well for her in the past.
The moment Lucky returned to work he’d run a background check.
“Have fun,” she said, grinning and giving them a fluttery wave as she strolled off with her son and the sergeant. The mountain of a man swung Rone up onto his shoulders, and put an arm around Rett’s waist, helping her navigate uneven terrain in heeled boots.
Oh, yeah. She’d be answering one hell of a lot of questions—soon.
Walter surprised Lucky with a bone-crunching hug. “I remember the day we met. You were like a wounded animal, snapping at the world. Even then I
saw something the others at SNB didn’t.” He tapped a fingertip to Lucky’s sternum. “Right in there you have the biggest heart. It’s been my honor to watch you grow all these years. You’re still you, irritable, suspicious. You’re also loyal and will fight to the end to protect those you’ve claimed as your own. I couldn’t be prouder.”
He placed his other hand on Bo’s shoulder. “When you two met, oh, the fur flew and money changed hands through the office betting pool. Despite your differences, you two bonded, became good together, good for each other. Look at you now. Lucky, you’re heading up undercover ops and no longer stuck with wet-behind-the-ears rookies, which you’ve described before as your idea of Hell, and Bo runs the show.” Walter sniffed and looked away.
Instead of more words, he pulled them into another hug. “I’m so happy for you.” Walter’s voice came out croaked. “You’ve got a beautiful family. Congratulations to you both.”
Mrs. Smith approached and pecked them both on the cheek, then handed over the little ones. Lucky held a fully awake Jenny. Seven months old. Seemed like just yesterday they’d been anxiously awaiting her arrival.
Bo held Andro, the child who’d come into their lives with no warning, and burrowed straight into their hearts. Together they found chairs to sit in, Andro holding up a piece of pine straw for Bo to admire, and Jenny fighting to get down and crawl away. Give her a minute and she’d be halfway across the county. They’d been so thrilled when she’d started crawling early.
Now, those were just extra weeks to chase her giggling self across the living room. Lucky didn’t dare put her down here, where anything that fit in her hand got tried out with her mouth, be it a bug or a blade of grass.
What a day. Married. With kids. Occasionally Lucky turned his head and caught Bo smiling at him.
Charlotte made her way across the grass to where they were sitting. “Okay. You’ve had them long enough. Time to hand them over to Auntie Charlotte.”
“Umm… No.”
When Lucky didn’t relinquish Jenny immediately, Charlotte put her hands on her hips. “It’s your honeymoon. Yours and Bo’s. It’s not like I plan to keep them. Now hand them over. It’s just for a few days.”
