by CJ Bishop
Savannah ducked her head and smiled, but Abel caught the fresh well of tears rising up; she didn’t believe she could have any of this for herself.
“If that day comes…” She looked up and smiled softly. “I can’t think of anyone I would rather have walk me down the aisle.”
Abel kissed the tip of her nose. “When that comes, I will hold you to that.”
“Okay,” she whispered, swallowing her tears. She stepped back. “I think Noah is really nervous about today. You should talk to him. They’re in the bedroom.”
Abel nodded and touched her face. “You’re going to get your fairytale, too,” he said softly. “I promise.”
Her eyes filling, Savannah blinked and motioned toward the doorway. “Noah’s waiting.”
“Savannah…”
“I don’t want to do this, Abel. Not today.” She put on a smile and hugged him again. “Today is a good day. A happy day. Let’s not let anything spoil it, okay?” She kissed his cheek. “Your best man needs you to psyche him up. Go.”
Abel reluctantly obeyed and left the kitchen. The boys’ bedroom door was ajar, and he knocked as he entered. “Hey.”
The twins were sitting on the bed, talking quietly. They both looked up when Abel came in.
“I hear you’re feeling kind of nervous,” Abel spoke to Noah as he approached the bed.
“Yeah.” Noah’s quiet voice shook a little. “I don’t know how to give a toast.”
Abel smiled and sat on the edge of the bed. “You don’t have to give a toast. I wasn’t really expecting you to. I want you to enjoy yourself, not worry yourself sick. I asked you to be my best man because you’re my brother and you’re important to me. It’s enough that you’ll be standing up there with me today.” He looked at Noel. “Since I asked Noah before I knew I had two brothers, how would you like to be my honorary best man? I’d love to have you both stand with me. But if you don’t want to, it’s okay, I won’t be offended.”
“Yeah. Will you do it?” Noah grasped his brother’s hand and grinned. “Please?”
“I-I guess,” Noel mumbled anxiously. “Okay.”
“Awesome.” Abel smiled. “You’re going to have a good time, I promise. I just want you to have fun and not worry about anything, okay?”
“Okay,” Noah nodded, already looking more relaxed.
“Have you had breakfast yet?”
“No.”
“Okay.” Abel stood up. “Then we should get you fed. And after breakfast, I’ll help you with your tuxes.” He smiled. “You want to wear your hats and boots? Something tells me Clint’s going to be wearing his.” He chuckled. “He’ll make his tux adapt to his cowboy persona or else.”
I THEE WED
The Phoenix Wedding
BOOK SIX
Chapter 1
“Pastor Thompson?”
William looked up from his desk as the man appeared in his office doorway; Hank Milton, pastor of the First Christian Church a few blocks down from William’s church. “Pastor Milton.” William stared at him, alerted by the strain on Milton’s face that this wasn’t a casual visit for fellowshipping. He was certain he knew exactly what it was about. “How can I help you?” He closed the portfolio containing the scheduled detail of the wedding ceremony he would be officiating in less than an hour. William stood. “My apologies, I am a bit rushed this morning.”
“Of course,” Hank Milton nodded. “The…wedding.” The word forced out as the man was reluctant to apply such a tradition title to an event that he found thoroughly distasteful and abominable.
“Yes.” William picked up the portfolio. “The wedding. I will be marrying four couples, each with their own mini-ceremony.” He smiled. “It’s going to be a long day.” He looked at the clock. “I should be getting over there right away.”
Hank didn’t budge from the doorway, his brow pinched, and lips draw into a thin line, giving further evidence of his disapproval. “Couples?” His frown cinched tighter. “A couple is a man and woman. Marriage was ordained by God to be between men and women. I am baffled as to how you are justifying this…travesty of a wedding.”
“I guess we just have differing opinions as to what’s right and wrong in the eyes of our Lord.” William was ten years younger than Hank Milton who had just turned forty-five a couple weeks ago, and the older man surely deemed himself wiser in the teachings of the Bible. William disagreed. For the few years he had been a pastor, William’s church had always been affirming, accepting of all. And he believed he was well within God’s will.
He supposed there was a brief period, when he first became a pastor, that he leaned the same way as Hank Milton and scores of other traditional pastors. It was after meeting Lex Roaman and overseeing the funeral of his brother and sister-in-law that William’s entire outlook on homosexuals had changed. Until Lex, he had never known a gay person as a friend, had never observed them up close. William guessed, like so many others, that he’d had a preconceived, even stereotypical view of gays and the gay community which was unfavorable. Lex changed all that. The man was a beautiful, compassionate human being who exhibited more Godly love than most Christians William was acquainted with. The protective nature of the man during the funeral as he’d held his niece and nephew and cried with them over their immense loss…it had touched William deeply. Not just his heart, but to his very soul.
And when Lex had come to him and requested William conduct the wedding of his close friends, William hadn’t hesitated. He had, in fact, been honored.
“It isn’t a matter of differing views, Pastor Thompson,” Hank said. “The Bible says what it says, whether we like it or not. I realize that affirming pastors like yourself have a different interpretation of certain scriptures, but you must be careful not fall into the dangerous habit of twisting the scriptures simply to appease a politically correct society. We are not to conform to a sinful world, but rather draw the sinners to Christ.”
This was not a new argument for William. He had been bombarded with this “reasoning” since he chose to travel the affirming path. “You view gays as sinners,” William said softly. “Yet you don’t extend a loving hand to them.”
“I don’t condone their chosen lifestyle,” Hank corrected. “Just as with any other sinful lifestyle. I can’t, in good conscience, welcome gays into my church if they have no desire to be delivered from their sin. Just as I wouldn’t welcome in an adulterer or those engaging in premarital sex if they were content to continue in their sin. But I am willing to help if they see the error of their ways and wish to change.”
“And I can’t, in good conscience, label someone a sinner for simply accepting the affections they were born to feel.”
“Would you feel the same about a child molester?” Hank stared at him, dead serious. “Their mind is wired in such a way as to cause them to desire children. Some might say, they were born that way. Does it make it okay?”
“Of course not,” William replied. “And I realize there are plenty of afflictions, if you will, that people are born with that aren’t good or healthy. But if you will examine them, you will see that they are harmful to either the individual themselves, others, or both. I would hardly clump a healthy love for another person—whether they are the opposite gender or not—into the same category as child molesters, serial killers, addicts, and the like. It is frankly ludicrous to do so.”
“You’re young, William,” Hank said, dropping the use of formal titles. “And-”
“I’m not that young,” William interjected. “And I don’t appreciate your patronizing tone. It is clear that you and I will never see eye to eye on this matter, so I suggest we drop it. Now, I have to be going.” He smiled as he stepped toward the door. “Four very lovely couples are waiting on me to join them in holy matrimony.”
♦
“Wow.” Maddy stepped into the dressing room and walked over to stand beside Angel. He watched Angel’s reflection as the older boy messed with his tux. “You really look great.”
&
nbsp; Angel took in his little brother’s own tux and smiled. “You, too.”
“Feeling nervous yet?”
“Yeah, a little.” Angel gazed at his reflection, his heart pumping with fear and excitement. “I can’t believe I’m actually getting married.”
“I know.” Maddy looked at him a moment then moved to the small counter and hopped up, sitting on the edge as he continued to stare at Angel.
“What?” The look that crept into Maddy’s eyes caused a knot in Angel’s chest. “Maddy?”
The boy lowered his eyes to the floor. “I was just thinking about…” His voice strained and wavered.
“About what?”
Maddy looked up, and dampness glistened his eyes. “The day I stole that gun from the store.” He swallowed thickly.
His heart pinching, Angel whispered, “Maddy…”
“I thought…I thought that things were just going to keep getting worse and worse.” He stared at Angel, his tears thickening. “I just wanted it to stop, you know?”
Angel released a shaky breath. “I know.” Angel had wanted it to stop as well. For one fleeting moment, he had surrendered to the belief that it was their only escape. One knew they were at a dead end when death became a sweet oasis, a longed-for destination.
“I never told you this,” Maddy whispered. “But deep down, I…I hated myself. I thought that what they were doing to you was my fault. I knew you were strong enough to get away, but you couldn’t because of me.”
His vision blurring, Angel stepped closer and gently cupped the back of Maddy’s neck. “It was never your fault.”
Maddy’s chin trembled. “I got the gun for both of us,” he said. “But I knew, even if you wouldn’t do it, if I was at least gone, then…then you wouldn’t have anyone to worry about but yourself, and you could run away.” His hand slid over his eyes. “I didn’t think anyone would ever care about us…not even God. I thought we were going to die in that apartment…in hell. And I just…I just wanted us to get out…any way possible.”
Angel hugged him tight and kissed his hair. “Without you, Maddy…they would have broken me. You were the only reason I survived. You weren’t responsible for what they did to me, you were responsible for keeping me alive.” He drew back and lifted Maddy’s damp face. “Because of you, I’m here today, about to marry the love of my life.”
Maddy sniffed and wiped his eyes. “I’m glad it’s Dane,” he said thickly. “Because I know he’ll always love you and protect you like I always wanted to.”
“Hey.” Angel touched his face. “The most important thing to me was that you came out of that hell in one piece, emotionally.” A small smile formed. “And you didn’t just survive it, you came out stronger than when you went in. And you proved that when you beat the living hell out of Byrd. You and Axel, you showed them that they didn’t win, that they didn’t break us. In real life, the good guys don’t always get to win. But we did.”
“Yeah.” Maddy smiled and wiped the tears from his face. “And today’s kind of like a celebration of that victory, for everyone…not just us.”
“Yes. Exactly,” Angel murmured with a smile. “A victory celebration for the whole family.”
♦
“How you holding up?”
Cole glanced around to see Lex lingering in the dressing room doorway. Cole smiled. “Nervous as hell.”
“Well, no wedding day is complete without the butterflies,” Lex chuckled and entered. “You look amazing.”
“Thanks.” Cole let out a slow, controlled breath. “I can walk out on that stage nearly naked and shake my ass with all the confidence in the world. But going out there to recite vows and I’m a bundle of nerves.”
Lex smiled. “That’s because this stage performance is going to change your life forever.”
“Well, that did…nothing…to calm my nerves,” Cole mumbled and smiled.
“You’ll do great,” Lex assured. “And you can take comfort in the fact that all the others are just as nervous, including Gabe.”
Cole sighed. “Not so sure about that.”
“Trust me,” Lex said. “No man faces his wedding day all calm, cool, and collected.”
Cole knew he was right. Though he and Gabe had been relaxed earlier that morning, as they had begun getting ready to head down to the club, he’d noted the nervousness settling into Gabe as well as himself. “So…” Cole cast Lex an inquiring look. “Do you foresee any proposals in your near future?”
“This is your day,” Lex laughed low. “We don’t need to be talking about me.”
“Oh, I don’t mind sharing the limelight,” Cole grinned. “Besides, I need the distraction. Have you entertained any such thoughts about you and Carl?”
Shrugging, Lex smiled. “I’ve…entertained a few. But I don’t want to jump the gun.”
“Not sure it’s what you want?” Actually, Cole was fairly certain that marriage and family were exactly what Lex wanted, and had always wanted.
“I’m sure,” Lex said. “But Carl and I have only been together a few months. And he hasn’t brought up the subject directly. I have no complaints about our relationship as it is so I can wait until he’s comfortable talking about us taking the next step.”
“Maybe he’s waiting for you to bring it up.” Cole smiled. “You think?”
Lex chuckled. “Possibly. But I don’t want to put him in a position that makes him feel obligated to make a decision he may not be ready to make.”
“Understandable. But sometimes, you just got to bite the bullet and take that leap. When you’re ready, I mean.”
“True,” Lex nodded. “It’s just, Carl is the first man I’ve been in love with in years. I guess I’m afraid of pushing too much and maybe losing him.”
“Losing him?” Cole chuffed. “You couldn’t pry that man off you with the jaws of life. He’s head over heels for you.”
“He seems to be,” Lex smiled. “We certainly enjoy each other’s company.”
Cole smirked. “I’m sure that’s an extreme understatement.”
Laughing softly, Lex nodded.
“I’m sure you have nothing to worry about.” Cole squeezed his shoulder. “When the time comes, I’m betting he’ll jump at the chance to marry you.”
“I hope so.” Lex stared at Cole through the mirror. “Were you the one who proposed to Gabe?”
The memory brought a warm smile to Cole’s lips and an ache to his heart. It had been months since that day in the hospital, but it still felt like yesterday…all of it. “No,” he said quietly. “Gabe asked me.” He laughed softly. “What he actually asked me was if, one day, I might want to marry him. But it worked for me. A month or so later, he officially proposed.” After another close call, Cole thought with a sick feeling in his gut.
“How did it make you feel when he proposed the first time?”
Cole smiled. “I cried. Of course, to be fair, I was already in tears.” His smile wavered. “He proposed at the hospital, the morning after he was shot.” Lex slid his arm around Cole and hugged him. Lex had been there for all of it; the shooting, the rush to the hospital, the terror Cole had gone through waiting to see if Gabe would survive the surgery.
“That was an awful night,” Lex whispered. “Lucky for all of us, God made Gabe tough as nails. He really had His hand on him that night.”
Tears blurred Cole’s vision. “I think God knew he would have one hell of a fight on His hands if he tried to take Gabe from us just then.”
“I think you’re probably right,” Lex murmured with a smile and kissed his head.
Cole stared at his reflection, his gaze sinking to the ring that Gabe had given him when he’d proposed the second time. “If he had died,” he whispered. “I would have died with him.”
Lex moved behind him and hugged him around the neck. “But he didn’t. And you didn’t.” He kissed his head again. “And today is the start of a whole new beautiful chapter in your lives. So, dry those tears and put on a happy face, your dre
ams are about to come true.”
Chapter 2
Max paced the office, listening to the hum of the guests gathering in the club. He hadn’t expected to be this nervous. Hadn’t imagined he could ever be more nervous than the night of the bachelor party when he had to get up on stage and dance. But somehow today surpassed it.
He paused when someone knocked on the door. “Come in.”
Carl entered with a smile. “It’s almost game time. You ready for this?”
“Just trying to get a handle on the jitters,” Max chuckled as he flexed his hands anxiously. “Kind of scared my mind will go blank, and I’ll forget everything I want to say.”
“Nah.” Carl crossed the floor and stood before Max and lightly gripped his shoulders. “Once you’re standing face to face with Horatio, about to be wed, everything else will fade away, and it’ll just be the two of you up there. All that you want to say to him will be right there, ready to be spoken.”
“How can you be so sure?”
Carl cupped his face and kissed him with warm affection. “Because this is your destiny. And it has no choice but to be the perfect moment.”
“I like that,” Max murmured. “Thank you.”
“All part of my best man duties,” Carl smiled. “Keeping the groom positive and inspired.”
“You’re doing great so far.” Max hugged him and held on for a moment. “You’re an amazing man, Carl,” he whispered. “I want you to know that the time we spent together was very special to me.” He drew back. “You’ll always own a piece of my heart.”
Carl touched Max’s face, stroking his thumb down his cheek. “Our time together was special to me, too, Max. You have a piece of my heart as well.”
Blinking back dampness, Max murmured, “I hope that when you and Lex finally tie the knot, that you’ll consider me for your best man. Nothing would give me greater honor than to stand with you on your perfect day.”
