by Lindsey Gray
Claire made an extravagant breakfast. After they finished eating, they lounged around for over two hours just talking as their stomachs settled.
Once they were able to move again, it was time to give Lucy and Jack the best birthday possible.
Finn strapped the girls into the new SUV, while Jack packed all the food and supplies. They drove to the lake to enjoy the glorious summer day.
Lucy looked far more than beautiful in her emerald green bikini. They spent the day swimming and playing games. Chloe and Finn teamed up for the sandcastle-building contest. He thought their castle was the best even though some of the towers were a little lopsided, and it didn’t look much like a castle, neither did any of the others. As the official winners, Finn and Chloe enjoyed the pleasure of stomping their competitors’ castles to the ground.
They grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for lunch. When it was close to dinnertime, they packed it up and drove home for one of Claire’s spectacular birthday dinners.
Finn stole Lucy away after dinner to give her his present.
“Finn. You know I don’t need anything.”
“It’s for tomorrow. It can be your something blue.”
Finn pulled the light blue box with the white ribbon from his pocket.
“Finn, you shouldn’t have.”
“Open it.”
She pulled the ribbon off and lifted the lid. He’d been hiding this gift for over a week.
“It’s…It’s g-gorgeous.”
He took the diamond and sapphire, white-gold bracelet from the box and placed it on her delicate wrist.
He kissed her hand as he saw a tear run down her cheek. “Lucy.”
“I can’t believe all of this is really happening. Today has been more than I could ever hope for. And tomorrow—”
“Is going to be just as wonderful.” He leaned down to capture her lips as the pad of his thumb wiped the tear from the apple of her cheek. “I love you, Lucy Butler.”
“I so love you, Finn O’Malley.”
“And by this time tomorrow, we will be husband and wife.”
“And you will get to see your surprise.”
“Don’t tease. You got to give me a hint.”
“Well…It’s not what Rylan had originally picked. But, I guess that worked out for Jack because she bought it for herself.”
“Do I even want to know?”
“I didn’t think you’d be up to the fur trim. I went for something a little less…kinky. A little more sexy in a traditional way.”
“Sounds promising.” Finn licked his lips before pressing them to hers again.
“You think you’ll be ready?”
She looked at him with pleading eyes. He knew she was more than ready by the way she moaned his name almost every night in her sleep. He hoped she was dreaming about the night they’d finally come together. He knew more than he ever had before that he wanted to make love to his wife. He knew it might not be crazy, passionate, up against a wall kind of sex, but he knew it would be wonderful.
“I will give you a real wedding night. Don’t expect fireworks the first time, but I think from all the exploring we’ve done so far, we’ll make a few sparks.”
“I can do sparks.” She kissed across his neck and up to his ear.
“Luce?”
“Hum?”
“You’ve got to stop. Rylan was expecting you in her room,” he said, looking at his watch, “ten minutes ago.”
She pulled away with a small pout. “A bachelorette slumber party.”
“It could have been a lot worse, you know.”
“I know. Until tomorrow, then?”
“Yes. Tomorrow.”
She left her last soft kiss gently on his lips before slipping out of his grasp. She reached the bottom of the stairs and turned back to him.
“I love you.”
“Love you, too.”
She blew him a kiss before running up the rest of the stairs.
Finn shook his head as he went off to find Jack and Aiden for his own bachelor party. In reality, he just wanted to speed up time so he could watch his bride walk through the garden to their favorite spot and to him.
“Ha!” Finn stood up victorious, raising his head above his arms. “I told you this was my game. You can’t beat me.”
Jack threw his controller across the room, having lost another game to Finn. “I can’t believe I was beat by a musician.”
“What’s wrong? Can’t take a little competition?” Jack shook his head before sinking it into his hands.
“He’s pissed because no one ever beats him. Don’t worry about it.” Aiden patted Finn on the shoulder before turning off the TV.
“So, what’s next on my last night as a bachelor?”
Sprawled out in Finn’s room, Aiden and Jack exchanged looks.
“Look. I guess I’ll take it upon myself as the best man and all to make sure you’re prepared for the wedding night.” Aiden tried to be as smooth as possible.
Finn’s hands went straight to his hair as the nervous frustration flew through him. He couldn’t believe he was getting the sex talk from his best friend and soon to be brother-in-law.
“We know you’ve been checked out and all, but if you’re going to get with my sister, you need to glove up.”
“Real smooth, Jack.” Aiden shot Jack a death glare.
“What? I don’t want to be Uncle Jack in nine months. Plus, I have kept my girl…you know—” Jack raised his eyebrows and tipped his head down to look Finn right in the eye.
“God, Jack! You’re talking about my sister.” Just imagining Rylan with him made Finn a little nauseous.
“We have more experience in this area.” Aiden spoke up. “You and Lucy have talked about this, right?”
“A little more than talked.”
“Okay. How much more?” Finn knew Aiden was trying to help, but he was finding it hard to be delicate with his words in front of Jack.
“We’ve explored each other…thoroughly. She’s comfortable looking at…um…all of me, and I’m more than comfortable looking at her.” Finn looked to see Jack’s expression.
“Hey, I know you make her happy. We’re cool, bro.”
Finn had never really talked about his sister’s sex life with anyone but Lucy. He’d certainly never talked to Jack about it. Aiden was a different story. Finn knew almost everything about his sexcapades.
“Thanks?”
“Finn, we want to make sure you guys are careful. I know we’ve talked about this before and things didn’t go well.”
“Lucy and I have come a long way, and I am prepared in every sense of the word.” Finn lifted his eyebrows, hoping they got the point.
“You’ll be double prepared then. We got this for you.” Aiden handed Finn a very poorly wrapped shoebox.
He tore the paper off and lifted the lid to find a few items he did not have.
“Warming liquid.” He knew what it was for but hadn’t imagined that they’d need it.
“Put it on you and her down there, everything gets nice and warm. Bing, bang, boom, orgasms all around.”
Finn furrowed his brow at Aiden’s bluntness before pulling out another item. “These don’t really help, do they?” A box of ribbed condoms? Finn wanted to make love to his wife without coming unglued. Did they really need to worry about the little ridges on the condoms?
“She’ll love it. Trust me. You do know how to use them, right?”
Finn furrowed his brow and narrowed his eyes.
“I brought a few visual aids just in case.” Aiden grabbed a few things out of his bag. “Bananas are the best representation I could find. Claire didn’t have any cucumbers.”
Jack burst out laughing and started rolling on the floor.
“What the hell?” Finn asked while he attempted not to laugh himself.
“Dad had the banana talk with me.” Jack tried to breathe through the tears streaming down his face. “He had it with Luce, too. If you can’t put it on, I’m sure she
can.”
Finn kicked Jack in the ribs. “I know how to put one on, dumbshit.”
“But you wouldn’t mind Lucy stroking your meat to put it on?” Aiden licked his lips before shaking his fist in a stroking gesture.
“I am a man!” Finn shouted before he banged his fists on his puffed out chest.
“I think that’s still up for debate.” Jack sat up while he wiped his face of the laughter-induced tears. “There’s one more thing. Take a look.”
He pulled the last item from the box—a long, white feather. He held it up.
“That was my contribution.” He looked to Jack for an explanation. “It’s kind of a sensual thing. Running it down her body, tickling all the little spots your fingers can’t get to. It’s very erotic but innocent at the same time.”
He returned all the items to the box with a shake of his head. His best friends could be some real assholes, but they could also show him a good time.
“Thanks. Just…thanks.”
“Now that we’re done with all the girlie shit, time to pull out the big guns.”
Finn looked quizzically at Jack as he motioned for Aiden to take the floor.
“Being the only bachelor party you’ll ever have, we’ve got a few rules to follow. Rule number one—naked chicks.” Aiden produced a DVD from behind his back.
“Get comfortable.” Jack pushed Finn into the overstuffed chair right in front of the television while Aiden started the player.
Finn sat in rapt fascination as he watched flesh pound flesh, tongues caress intimate crevices, and bodies contort into positions he never thought possible. He could see Jack and Aiden snickering from the corner of his eye, but he really didn’t give a shit. It was educational. All the positions, all the ways a woman moaned, he wanted to do that. He wanted all of it with Lucy.
The movie ended, and Finn settled back in his chair with a soft smile on his face.
“Questions?” Aiden asked with a laugh and a punch to the shoulder.
Finn scratched at his forehead while he smiled at all the thoughts going through his mind.
“Is it bad to hope that Lucy is as flexible as that blonde chick?”
Jack clapped Finn on the back. “Our Finn is growing up.”
“He’ll be a real man soon, especially if you can get Lucy to do the second one.” Aiden fell to the floor and lay on his back, his arm thrown across his eyes. “That one feels so fucking good.”
“I bet.” Finn shook his head as he took pity on his friend who was currently girl-less. “So what’s next?”
“That would be another of my contributions.” Jack rubbed his hands together with a gleam in his eye. “Food, but not just any food. Wait right here.” Jack ran out of the room as Aiden sat up, still on the floor.
“Don’t look at me. The food was all his. It could be anything. Prepare yourself.”
When Finn discovered he was having a bachelor party, porn and sex toys came to mind. Having known Jack and Aiden so well, he hadn’t expected any less. But nothing could prepare him for the smorgasbord presented to him.
“What the hell is this?” Finn said between his fits of hysterical laughter.
“What the hell does it look like?” Jack retorted. “It’s the bachelor party buffet—buffalo chicken wings, greasy pizza, potato skins. You know, guy food. Then to wash it all down…” He motioned to the glasses that sat on the table.
Finn picked up a tallboy full of amber liquid. He took a sip and was surprised to find his favorite energy drink.
“Mama Juice?” He gulped some more down before he let out a hum of satisfaction.
“Yep, had to special order that shit. They only sell it in California, but I remembered Aiden saying you guys practically lived on the stuff.” Jack took a gulp of his own. “This is good.”
Aiden picked up his own glass and sighed after he took a long pull.
“Now for my toast. My very own limerick written for my new Irish brother.”
Finn and Aiden both lifted their glasses to Jack.
“There once was a man named O’Malley, who wasn’t one to dilly dally. He wanted to wed, take his woman to bed, and find happiness within her own valley.”
A three laughed before they drank to Jack’s dirty limerick.
“Now, stuff your faces while we play some poker with my special cards.” Jack plopped down on the chair and took out a fresh deck of cards with naked women in a variety of poses.
As Jack began to deal the cards and explain the rules of their game, Finn felt like the most normal guy in the world. Playing cards with his two best friends while laughing and telling dirty jokes was the best thing he could do his last night as a single man.
“I’m almost done.”
Rylan had taken on the monumental task to make Lucy’s hair perfect, which meant dying her hair back to its natural color. She assured Lucy she could do it, but Lucy wasn’t completely convinced.
“Okay, you can look now.”
Lucy got up from the chair she had practically been glued to for the past two hours and marched over to the mirror on the closet door.
Her face lit up with a smile when she saw the familiar auburn color restored. It was the same, maybe even a little more beautiful. She turned her head from side to side to see the light catch all the little hints of cinnamon running through it.
“I added a little extra. Gave it a little kick. You like it?”
“Rylan…I love it.” She felt Rylan standing behind her.
“And Finn will love it. You’re going to be the perfect bride tomorrow, and you’ll look amazing in that little number you got.”
“I tried it on, and it does look pretty good. I’m a little nervous.”
“Lucy. The first time is always a little awkward, but you and Finn have talked about it, right?”
“Yes, we talked and talked and talked. We even talked to Dr. Styles about it. We’ve done almost everything except it.”
“Really? What did you do?” Rylan said in a voice pitched higher with excitement.
“You want to hear this stuff about your brother?” Lucy raised her eyebrows at her as she nodded.
“You hear all about me and Jack. I don’t see how this is any different.”
“Well…you know about the night on the beach, but that was before he told me everything. I think one of our favorite things is to shower together. While we were…away, it’s when we really felt close to each other. Skin on skin. Then the first night we were home, we got into the shower and he let me…you know.”
“Wow. He was okay with it?” Rylan asked cautiously.
“I tried to stop, but he asked me to keep going. When we were done, he told me how much it made him feel like a man. I was kind of proud that I could make him feel that way. The next night, he…did the same thing to me. It was like his hands were made to touch me. He might not have consciously known what he was doing, but his touch was hitting all the right spots.”
“It was that way for Jack too. He fumbled around a bit, but when he got used to everything, he was a pro. I know it won’t take Finn long.”
Lucy smiled knowing her friend let her talk to her about that kind of stuff. Friend…no, not friend anymore. Sister.
Lucy’s hair was perfect, gently falling down her back. The sides were delicately pinned back with diamond combs. She hoped they weren’t real diamonds. Being her something borrowed from Claire, she wasn’t sure. Her something blue was her new bracelet from Finn. She had several something news: her shoes, all her undergarments including the garter, and her dress.
Her dress, well, it was exquisite. It was strapless to show off her shoulders. The white taffeta wouldn’t have been her first choice of material, but it turned out stunning. The A-line design gently hugged her curves. It flowed out behind her with a short chapel train. Crystal beading and embroidery covered the bodice. She never thought she would ever look that beautiful. She prayed Finn would love it.
“Now for something old.” Her father handed her a small blue box
.
She opened it to find a pair of diamond stud earrings. “Dad…Grandma Butler’s earrings?”
“I knew she always wanted you to have them. What would be more perfect than to wear them for the first time on your wedding day?”
“Thank you.” She hugged her father as she began to cry for the tenth time that day. “Oh, crap. I’m going to ruin my makeup. Can’t have my mascara running again.”
Lucy dabbed the tears from her eyes as her father ran his hand across her shoulder.
When she pulled the studs from the box and slid them in her ears, she noticed Rylan standing in the doorway.
“Right. Now, I need to finish my maid of honor duties.”
“I’ll see you down there.” With that, Lane kissed Lucy’s cheek and left the room.
“I thought he’d never leave.” Rylan took both of her hands.
Lucy was proud of the maid of honor dress she’d selected. It was a knee length, strapless, cocktail dress in midnight blue with a silver ribbon below the bodice. It looked good on Rylan. The little girls’ dresses were only slightly different with spaghetti straps and a hem that went to their mid-calf.
“What’s left to do?”
“Nothing. I wanted to have this last minute with you before we went down. I just saw Finn, and I must say…my brother looks hot.”
“Really?”
“Would I lie to you? He looks almost as handsome as Jack.” Her nose scrunched up as she smiled. “You ready to become Mrs. Finn O’Malley?”
Lucy took one last look in the mirror. She didn’t see a girl there anymore; she saw a woman. All her best features highlighted to make her look beautiful. So many years had been leading up to that day. The first time she saw Finn eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, he offered half of it to her. The only time she beat him in a race, he was so proud; he took her in his arms and twirled her around. She loved to sit and listen to him play for hours. Their first wedding, toilet paper and all attested of their connection. The first time she saw him when he finally came home and the way his arms wrapped around her made her heart flutter. How he played for her, how she fell asleep in his arms, that first kiss, and all the kisses after that, even with all the tragedy, theirs was a beautiful love story. Though there were many things she would have changed, she knew she and Finn might not have reached that point if these shared experiences hadn’t happened. No matter what had taken place in their past, Lucy was ready to embrace their future.
