And of course the entire crew was here – Karl and Tamsyn, George and Nadine, Chris and Mindy. Even now Chris was busy video taping the guests as they arrived, and trying not to bug Lauren’s Uncle Malcolm – one of Chris’s professional idols – too much.
Speaking of idols, it was difficult not to notice all the stares being directed towards the very tall, very buff, dark haired man who’d arrived with the twins’ best friend Angela – a man who looked decidedly ill at ease in these surroundings.
“I can’t believe that Lauren’s best friend is actually living with Nick Manning,” murmured Karl, awestruck. “I was at a Tennessee Titans game once when the 49ers were in town. Manning put a hit on our quarterback that echoed through the whole stadium. The guy was a beast.”
“Still is,” acknowledged Nathan. He and Karl had been chosen as Ben’s groomsmen. “I made the huge mistake of working out with the guy a few weeks ago. I was ready to crawl to the car – or puke – while he was still going strong. Nick could probably suit up and play ball today if he wanted.”
Ben smirked. “I wish Lauren was here right now to see how this is going to unfold. Because I’ve got a feeling Nick is about to make the acquaintance of our boy George, and I can see the stars in his beady little eyes from here.”
The three men watched in amusement as George eagerly took a seat next to the brooding, hulking Nick and proffered his hand. Astonishingly, though, Nick not only returned the handshake but continued to converse with a starstruck George until the ceremony began.
Robert had arranged for a local string quartet to play the music for the ceremony, all four of the musicians longtime friends of the McKinnons. Ben had never been much of a classical music aficionado, and didn’t recognize most of the pre-ceremony pieces that were played. But once Nathan had escorted Natalie to her seat, the quartet struck up a tune that Ben not only knew but one that brought a huge grin to his face.
It was a Beach Boys song, entirely appropriate considering the setting they were marrying in. The song was one of the band’s lovelier, more poignant ballads – God Only Knows. The forty or so guests stood as first Angela and then Julia walked down the “aisle” – in this case a length of burlap fabric that had been stretched out along the sand. Both bridesmaids carried simple bouquets of wildflowers, and wore more of the same blooms in their hair. Angela was wearing a dark red cotton print maxi dress that made her look like a 1960’s flower child, especially given the long, straight fall of her raven hair. Julia’s dress was a froth of pale blue and lavender tiers, and the caramel curls that were identical to Lauren’s tumbled in lush abandon over her shoulders.
But it was Lauren to whom everyone’s eyes – especially his own – were drawn as she stepped onto the beach just as the music reached a crescendo. She was clutching Robert’s arm affectionately, her gorgeous face alight with happiness as she waved, winked, and beamed at each of their guests, blowing kisses to her Aunt Madelyn and her beau James, and then to Natalie. She looked so beautiful that she took his breath away, her simple cotton dress a hundred times more appealing to him than any designer gown of tulle and lace would have ever been. She, too, wore a wreath of flowers in her hair – white roses and yellow daisies to match the beribboned nosegay she carried – and she reminded Ben of some Greek goddess of the spring or the forest.
Halfway up the aisle her gaze met his, and her eyes lit up with pleasure as she gave him a quick onceover. He’d been relieved as hell when she had scoffed at the idea of him wearing a tuxedo or even a tie, and she had been the one to select the plain white dress shirt and tan slacks he wore instead. His two groomsmen were similarly attired, and, of course, all of them were barefoot.
Robert cupped his daughter’s left cheek in his hand as he pressed a lingering kiss to the right one. He whispered something in her ear that made her smile but that also brought a shimmer of tears to her luminous eyes. And then Robert was placing Lauren’s hand in Ben’s as the pair of them turned to face the shaman.
Ben had been greatly relieved upon meeting the man – whose name was actually Jeff and not something mystical like Golden Eagle or Oberon – to realize he was just a normal guy. Lauren, in fact, had met Jeff years ago while surfing, and he was part of the regular group who went out on their boards each morning. And instead of some weird ceremonial robes, Jeff was wearing cargo shorts and a Hawaiian shirt.
The ceremony itself was also quite normal, save for a couple of the blessings that Jeff invoked, and the burning of some incense that smelled like rosemary and sage. As for their own vows, Ben and Lauren had opted to keep them simple, pledging only to love each other with all their hearts, to make every single day of their lives an adventure, and to cherish every moment they would get to spend together.
They exchanged their rings – identical bands of gold that had been delicately etched with the sun, moon, and stars – and shared a lingering kiss – to the delight of their guests who clapped and cheered.
And then, as Jeff pronounced them husband and wife, the string quartet began to play the recessional – another Beach Boys tune – and Ben laughed with delight as he recognized the strains of “California Girls.”
***
The reception went on for hours, long after the sun had set, the meal had been eaten, and the cake cut. The night was surprisingly balmy, and most everyone had gravitated out to the deck where a fire blazed in the outdoor pit. Karl was strumming his guitar, humming a tune or two, and rather unexpectedly Robert’s voice rang out in song.
Ben recognized the song as Ray Lamontagne’s Trouble, and smiled a little as he thought how the lyrics could have been written with Lauren in mind. Not just the part about her being trouble – which he’d known from the first moment he’d laid eyes on her – but the line that talked about being saved by a woman. And there was no question that Lauren had saved him – from a life of loneliness, from never knowing the love of a family or a woman like herself, from merely existing as opposed to actually living.
Karl and Robert were singing together now, their voices in perfect harmony, and Ben looped an arm around his brand new wife’s shoulder.
“It’s been a day for very appropriate music, hasn’t it?” he murmured against her hair, inhaling deeply of the fragrant roses she still wore in a wreath around her head. “Though I still don’t understand how you knew about the California Girl connection.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Well, duh. When your buddy Levi there called the apartment looking for you one day and I answered, he said “Oh, so you’re California Girl. The one Ben was all gaga over for so many years.” I figured it would make a nice little change from some traditional classical piece that most people have played at their weddings.”
Ben chuckled, hugging her a little bit tighter. “There is nothing the least bit traditional about this wedding. Or about the bride. But I wouldn’t have had either of them any other way, you know. Because in addition to being unique, you are utterly unforgettable, Mrs. Rafferty. Just ask Levi if you don’t believe me. I’m pretty sure he got real sick of seeing me moping over you.”
Lauren arched a brow at him. “Mrs. Rafferty, is it? You’re just assuming I’m going to take your name, are you?”
He shrugged. “Actually, it really doesn’t matter that much to me. You can keep McKinnon, hyphenate your name – hell, I’d change my name if it came to that. Because the only thing that matters is that you’re finally my wife. That after all that time apart we’re back together. And back in this house that is the only place I’ve ever really felt at home.”
“Speaking of which,” she murmured softly, “how has it been going with your dad?”
He smiled down at her, for she was still barefoot as she’d been all day, and the top of her head barely reached his shoulder. “Surprisingly well. My dad has always been the quiet type, a lot like me, actually, and talking about his feelings and such just isn’t his sort of thing. But he did manage to mumble something about not having been the greatest father over the years, and that
he hoped we could try to mend some fences. He’s divorced again, you know. Third time. He swears he’s never getting married again, that he makes a lousy husband, but that he wants to try and be a better father. We’ll see.”
“It takes two, you know,” she reminded him gently. “You’ve accused me of holding a grudge before, but I think perhaps you do as well when it comes to your family. I don’t blame you for being resentful, but maybe if we reach out a little to them it would make things easier.”
“Maybe,” agreed Ben. “At least with my Dad. My mother – well, that’s going to be a much tougher one to crack. But not tonight, hmm? The last thing I want to think about tonight is my screwed-up childhood.”
Lauren smiled at him very suggestively. “Okay, I’ll bite. What do you want to think about tonight, Mr. Rafferty?”
“How fast we can get all of these people out of our house,” he growled in a low voice. “And after that how fast I can get you out of this dress and what’s underneath it.”
She gave him a flirty pat on the cheek. “Honey, who said I’ve got anything on underneath? But let’s see if we can’t hurry things along here so you can find out for yourself.”
Ben wasn’t sure what Lauren said to her mother and sister, but within the next half hour everyone had left – after Lauren had tossed her bridal bouquet to the half dozen single women who’d gathered around to catch it. At first Angela had hung back, shaking her head emphatically when Julia had urged her to join the little group. But then Nick had taken her by the arm and marched her firmly out to take her spot, refusing to let her argue with him on the matter.
But it wasn’t the five foot eleven inch Angela who caught the pretty nosegay of roses and daisies. Instead, it was Madelyn Benoit who snagged the bouquet, to the utter delight of her sister and nieces. Lauren, bold as ever, had then turned to a beaming James Butterfield and told him quite plainly, “Well, now you have to marry her, Uncle James. After all, it’s tradition.”
James had winked at her. “Already in the works, my dear. Isn’t that right, Madelyn?”
Maddy had nodded happily. “We didn’t want to say anything, darling, didn’t want to take anything away from your big day. But James and I plan to marry on Valentine’s Day next year.”
Lauren had given her beloved aunt a hug. “Looks like you and I are more alike than we thought, Aunt Maddy,” she’d whispered. “Because we’ve finally snagged the men of our dreams, the ones we never stopped mooning over, even when we thought we’d lost them forever. I guess sometimes it just takes a little bit longer for dreams to come true.”
***
They honeymooned in Hawaii – a place that astonishingly enough neither of them had ever visited. They spent a week on the island of Maui, where they rented a spacious surf cottage only steps from the beach, and packed a month’s worth of adventures into just seven days – wind surfing, paddle boarding, ziplining, snorkeling, hiking, and driving to the 10,000 foot peak of Haleakala before dawn in order to watch the sunrise before embarking on a death-defying bike ride back down the mountain.
It was a wondrous, magical week, and the newlyweds quickly discovered they had each met their adventure soulmate, both of them up for just about anything daring and fun. They played hard during the day, basking in the hot sun and refreshing tradewinds, and then relaxed in the evenings with sumptuous meals of the local cuisine and Lauren’s new favorite drink – a Mai Tai with an extra floater of rum on top.
And of course they spent a great deal of time engaging in the sort of activities that honeymooners were notorious for – morning, noon, and night; in every room of the cottage; on the porch swing, the double hammock, and the hot tub; in their rented Jeep perched high atop a cliff; and on a deserted stretch of beach just before sunrise.
Ben had grimaced after that particular encounter, however, grumbling that it had taken three separate showers to get all the sand out of certain body parts. Lauren had merely laughed and offered to help him with any sand removal in the future.
It was their last night in Maui, their flight back to San Francisco due to leave late the next morning. They would spend a single night with Julia and Nathan before returning to New York. Ben had less than two months remaining in his editorial job, and would begin to train his replacement in about a week’s time. Lauren was scheduled to fly out on an assignment soon after their return – the second to last one she would embark on without Ben. And then, come January, they would be together all the time, every day and every night.
“You’re probably going to get sick of me,” she told him as they snuggled up next to each other in the hot tub.
“Impossible,” he assured her, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Because this next year is going to be the best time of our life, sweetheart. At least until the next year begins. All of those things you told me you wanted to do six years ago – we’re finally going to have the chance to do them together. And it’s going to be epic. Sensational.”
Lauren heaved a blissful sigh and tilted her head back to gaze up at the night sky. “Every time I would stand out on the deck of the cabin, or on a hotel balcony – no matter where I happened to be in the world – I would always think of you whenever I looked up at the stars,” she confessed. “And I’d remember that night like it had just happened. You know the one I mean?”
“Of course I do,” he replied. “Out of all the memories I have of Big Sur, that one definitely makes the top five.”
She laughed softly, looping her arms around his neck. “And I think I’ve finally got all those damned constellations right. That one right there – it’s Gemini, isn’t it?”
Ben shook his head. “’Fraid not, sweetheart. It’s still Cassiopeia.”
“Dammit!” she swore, slapping her palm on top of the water and inadvertently splashing Ben in the face.
He gave her a mock glare before pulling her astride him. “That’s two things I have to punish you for now,” he teased. “Splashing water in my eyes, and still not knowing your constellations. Let’s see – what would a fitting punishment be? A spanking?” He swatted her butt.
Lauren rolled her eyes. “Really? I barely felt that.”
Ben grinned. “How about I find some rope and tie you up again?”
She gave him a scornful look. “You’d have to catch me first, Blue Eyes.”
“Hmm. Let me think then,” he drawled, tapping a finger against his chin. “I know. Just thought up the perfect punishment. No sex for a week.”
She gasped in outrage, just before laughing riotously. “Oh, that’s a good one! Like you’d really hold out that long. Honey, all I’d have to do would be to parade around in my underwear for five minutes and you’d forget all about your so-called punishment.”
Ben’s mouth moved to the side of her throat as his hands cupped her ass. “Especially since I’d be punishing myself at the same time,” he murmured in her ear, his tongue tracing a wet, erotic circle around the lobe. “So I think instead that your punishment should be you on top for the next seventy two hours. That way you can do most of the work.”
Lauren laughed softly just before grasping his fully erect cock and then impaling herself on him in one fluid movement. At the guttural sound that escaped from his throat, she bent and whispered, “Honey, if that’s your idea of punishment, then I’ll take that sort of discipline all day long.”
He couldn’t even try to dream up a witty comeback, for her lips claimed his in a long, dirty kiss as she began to ride him with slow, almost lazy movements, rotating her hips in one direction then the other. Her breasts were crushed up against his chest, her thighs splayed wide apart as she began to pick up the pace of her movements. Ben groaned beneath her mouth, his hands gripping her ass firmly as he urged her to ride him faster.
Their cries echoed through the night as they both came hard, Lauren’s teeth biting down almost savagely on the flesh between his neck and shoulder blade, but he was too far gone to even wince at the pain.
“It’s a good thing,” he told her
raggedly a few minutes later, “that our closest neighbor is at least a quarter of a mile from here. Though as loud as you just were, it’s possible they still heard you.”
“Hey!” she protested, giving him a little shove. Tenderly, her fingers traced over the purple mark she’d left on his skin. “Oops, sorry about that. But at least now you’ve got a matching set of hickeys.” Her hand slid to his other shoulder, where she had left a similar mark two days ago.
“Bloodthirsty little witch,” he growled, giving her a much harder smack on the ass this time. “Now, look. You’ve got one more chance to redeem yourself. Tell me what constellation is right up above us.”
“Okay. I’ve got this one,” she assured him, squinting up at the night sky. “It’s – um – don’t give me any hints now. I know!” she exclaimed proudly. “It’s Sirius, isn’t it?”
Ben shook his head, the look on his face one of pure deviltry. “Nope. Still Cassiopeia. Looks like you’re stuck doing cowgirl for a few more days.”
Her green eyes were full of mirth as she whispered, “Yee haw” just before bending her head down to his for another kiss.
Epilogue
Four Years Later – Christmas Eve, Carmel
James Butterfield smiled as he and his wife observed their great-nieces and nephews as they excitedly opened the gifts that he and Madelyn had brought for them. All four children – a pair each of male and female twins – were around two and a half years old, having been born within just a few months of each other. Every adult here this evening was thoroughly enjoying watching the youngsters as they got caught up in the Christmas spirit, and James was no exception.
It still pained him each time he thought of the child that Madelyn had lost all those years ago – his child – and that she’d had to deal with the trauma and sorrow of her miscarriage all alone. And he deeply regretted that she had never had a child of her own, for he knew after seeing her with her nieces and their children what a wonderful mother she would have made. But she had assured him repeatedly that it didn’t matter any longer, that she not only had her sister’s children and grandchildren but James’s son and daughter and their offspring as well. More importantly, she had told him, they had each other after all those years apart.
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