by Jamie Canosa
***
“Do I really need to wear this stupid thing?”
When Mason arrived at the courthouse, he was directed to a room upstairs where he found Jay scowling into a full length mirror and yanking a tie from around his neck.
“Did Em give it to you?” Jay nodded and Mason laughed. “Then yeah, man. You gotta wear it. Let me see.”
Jay tossed him the silky black material and proceeded to tuck his crisp white button down into the black slacks he was wearing. Mason was relieved to see that he’d made the right call with the jacket. Jay didn’t appear to have one either. Looping the tie around his own neck, he twisted and tucked until a perfect double Windsor sat at his throat. Then he slipped the knot loose and handed it back to Jay.
“Thanks.”
Mason shrugged. “What’s a best man for if not to keep you from getting murdered by your wife on your wedding day?”
A round table, flanked by two chairs sat beside the free-standing mirror. There wasn’t much else in the room. A royal blue carpet, some framed documents on the walls and one oil painting of a rolling countryside. There was a second door that led to who-knew-where and a mostly empty bookcase in the corner. A sheer white curtain fluttered over an open window.
Mason wandered over to the window, but the view of the parking lot wasn’t much to look at. “Where’s Em?”
“Ashlyn dragged her out of the house this morning. Something about her hair. I think she was planning to drop her off at some salon or something and pick her up on her way here.” Jay settled the knot at his throat and studied his reflection. “So . . . you ready for this?”
Mason turned from the window and laughed. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
Jay smiled. Something that he rarely did, but made him look years younger, much closer to his actual age—which Mason was reminded was very near to his own. And he was getting married. “I’ve been ready for this for a long time.”
Mason returned his smile. They weren’t friends—not really—but today it felt like they were. “You guys are going to be great together.”
Jay sat and began tugging at the laces to his dress shoes. They were old and scuffed, but the fresh polish did a nice job of hiding it. When he finished his foot hit the floor with a muted thud and he ran a hand over his face. “I just want to make her happy, ya know? She deserves so much more than—”
“You made her happy when neither of you had anything.” Mason felt like he was pointing out the obvious, but it sounded like Jay needed to hear it. “As long as she’s with you, Em will be the happiest girl in the world.”
Jay sat a little straighter. “Thanks, man. Just a little nervous I guess. How are things with you and Ashlyn? I heard you moved out?”
Mason rubbed the back of his neck. Sleeping in his truck was a real bitch. “Yeah.”
“What happened?”
If Jay knew about him moving out that meant Ash had been talking to Em. And Em had been talking to Jay. And if Jay was talking to him about it, it meant Em had asked him to. On their wedding day. Low blow.
“Ashlyn has . . .” How to explain without breaking her trust? “The girl’s got defenses Fort Knox should install. She threw me out.”
Mason bit the inside of his cheek and turned back the window. The sting still hadn’t faded.
There was movement behind him and when Jay spoke again he was closer, leaning against the side of the table. “When I met Em . . . she had walls. I had more than a few of my own. It wasn’t easy getting past them. We had to fight—both of us—every single day. We’re still fighting for each other. And we’ve only made it this far because we refuse to give up.”
Harrison chugged his way into the lot outside and parked near the entrance.
“Ashlyn’s a special girl.” As if Jay needed to tell him that. “She was there for Em when I couldn’t be. I will never forget that. But you’re right, she’s got skin made of steel. She hides behind it. The question is . . . do you love her enough to break through?”
Love? Mason pressed his palm to the window frame and leaned forward to watch the girls get out of the car. Ashlyn shut the door to that bucket of bolts with a tenderness she rarely showed anyone else and patted the hood on her way past. When she reached Em, she linked arms with her and dragged her into a skip toward the front door to the courthouse. Love.
Mason turned around to tell Jay that it was show time and found he was being watched.
“Thought so.” Jay took one last look in the mirror and a deep breath. “One word of warning, though . . . You break that girl’s heart and I’ll break your face.”
Chapter Twenty-four
Ashlyn
The small town court where Em and Jay chose to have their ceremony was housed in a historic brick building. Tall stone columns cast shadows over them as they raced up the squat staircase and the metallic ping of the flag whipping against the pole followed them through the glass front doors.
Ashlyn smoothed her own hair, making a quick check of Em’s. Everything was where it should be. Her long dark locks, coiled on top of her head with tiny white flowers sprinkled throughout. Simple, yet elegant.
“Miss James?” A man in a black suit with a white collar stood in a long hallway with wood paneling and patterned tiles.
Having a priest perform the ceremony rather than a judge had been important to Em, so Jay hadn’t even blinked at the additional expense. Money trouble was a new experience for Ash and admittedly one she knew very little about, but she wasn’t spoiled or naïve enough not to realize what that simple act of love meant to them.
He strode toward them, the overhead fluorescents making his silver hair shine, and offered his hand. “My name is Father Michael. It’s nice to meet you, Emerson.”
Em flinched, but she took his wrinkled hand. “It’s nice to—”
“Em.” Ashlyn interjected.
“Excuse me?” The Father turned to her with a polite smile.
“Hi. My name’s Ashlyn.” She stuck out her hand and shook the way her mother had taught her to, the way that said she meant business. “And her name is Em. That’s what you should call her during the ceremony.”
“I see. It’s highly unusual for a person’s given name not to be used—”
“I get that it needs to be on the paperwork or whatever.” The door opened behind them and three women practically blew in on a burst of chilly air. Ashlyn sidestepped to allow them to pass and they continued to a wide wooden staircase at the far end of the hall, chatting amongst themselves. “She’ll sign it however she has to in order to make everything legal, but during the ceremony—”
“Ash, it’s okay,” Em insisted.
“No. It’s not.” Taking her friend by the hand she drew her into an alcove office doorway. “This is your day. It should be perfect. You’re not that person anymore. You’re you. You’re Em. That’s who’s marrying Jay.”
“I know that.” Em reached for a lock of hair to twist around her finger. Finding none, she folded her arms across her waist, instead. “It really doesn’t matter—”
“It does. It matters to you and that matters to me.” When Em opened her mouth to argue some more, Ashlyn waved a hand to silence her. “You made me your maid of honor, now shut up and let me do my job.”
Fretting on her wedding day was unacceptable. Ashlyn squeezed Em’s hand and looked to Father Michael. “Em. Please? And he’s Jay. It’s important.”
The old man smiled. “Well, God saw fit to change a name here and there, so why not? Em and Jay it is.”
The relief coming off Em was like a fresh breeze in a stale room. “Are the guys ready?”
“They’re upstairs. Your other guests have already arrived and are seated. If you two wouldn’t mind staying out of sight for just a few minutes, I’ll go get your soon-to-be-husband and his best man and we can begin.”
Em bit her lip and nodded. Ashlyn felt it, too. The rush, the energy in the air. This was really happening. Em was getting married. Today. Right now. Bare
ly managing to reign in the urge to squeal, Ashlyn grabbed Em’s hand and hauled her around the corner out of sight.
***
There was no music, no candles, no flowers other than the few white daisies Em carried in her hand tied with lace ribbon, but none of that mattered. Ashlyn gave Em one last hug before making her way down the aisle toward where Jay stood at the front of the room with Mason by his side.
Opening the door to him standing on her porch earlier had been a punch to the gut. There hadn’t been a single visit, not a phone call, an email, or so much as a text from him since she’d kicked him out of the house and then bam out of nowhere there he was. The thought of sharing a car with him, sitting beside him, touching him . . . she’d wanted that. Too much. It couldn’t happen. So, instead she’d stuck herself with the hunk of junk in the parking lot that she could only pray would get her home tonight.
Keeping her eyes glued to the spot across from them where she was supposed to stand, Ashlyn managed to make it down the aisle without tripping. And then everyone stood. All five people in attendance. Two older men, one with his arm around a woman near the same age. And a younger couple Ashlyn didn’t recognize. That was all she had time to process before Em stepped into the room. All eyes fell on her, but a sharp breath drew Ashlyn’s attention to where Jay stood.
Lips parted, eyes wide, he gaped at her as though he’d just seen an angel. Jay wasn’t an overly emotional person, but she could have sworn she saw tears in his eyes as Em made her way to him. Against her better judgement, Ashlyn’s gaze slid over Jay’s shoulder and landed on Mason. He wasn’t watching Em. Or Jay. He was watching her. Their eyes collided like a pair of high powered magnets and no matter how she tried, she couldn’t seem to look away.
“You two may be seated.”
Mason glanced at Father Michael and the spell was broken. The priest nodded to the front row of empty chairs and Ashlyn retreated as fast as her three inch heels would allow. Her speed being rendered completely irrelevant when Mason claimed the seat right beside her.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of . . . Em and Jay in holy matrimony.”
Paying attention after that became difficult when Mason bumped his knee against hers. When she crossed her legs away from him, it was his arm brushing hers. He knew exactly what he was doing and she had no escape. He knew that, too.
The heat in the room felt like it had been cranked to a hundred. Adjusting her dress, Ashlyn shifted again and fanned the damp skin on the back of her neck with her hand as the priest droned on. Why was this taking so long? The clock on the wall said they’d only been seated for five minutes, but that couldn’t be right. Could it?
“Now, I believe the bride and groom have prepared their own vows,” Father Michael announced.
Em’s gaze darted between Jay and their audience. She opened her mouth and shut it. Twice. Her hand went up, seeking those pinned locks again and Jay reached out and took it in his. “I’ll go first.”
He took a deep breath and for the longest time just stood there looking at her. His gaze never wandered. It was as though they were completely alone in their own private bubble he was building for them.
“Life isn’t perfect. It isn’t some fairytale. You know that as well as I do, so I’m not going to stand here and lie and say that it is. Or promise that it ever will be. But what I can promise is that whatever happens, good or bad, ups or downs, highs and lows . . . we’ll face them together. You never ever have to feel alone, or sad, or afraid ever again. Because I’m here. I’ll be with you. Your fear is my fear. Your tears are my tears. My love is yours. My heart is yours. I love you, Em.” He slid a thin silver ring onto her finger and one of his hands came up to cup her face. “Body, heart, mind, and soul, I love every part of you. And nothing on this earth will ever change that.”
Completely lost in one another, they drew together. Jay’s hand slid to the back of Em’s neck and he held her close as he pressed his lips to hers. Em sank into him, her free hand coming up to clutch his shoulder and it felt as though that kiss may have been timeless and eternal until . . .
“Save it for the end!” The blonde girl snagged a pen from who knows where and launched it at the happy couple.
It bounced silently off the carpeted floor and hit Jay’s foot. He chuckled and Em, of course, turned ten shades of red. If Ashlyn smiled any harder she was certain her cheeks would explode.
Jay traced the blush in Em’s cheek until she drew his hand between them and slid a simple silver band onto his finger.
“I lost a lot of sleep trying to figure out the right words to say today. I even made lists.” Jay grinned and a chuckle carried through the crowd. “But words like happy, safe, protected . . . even loved aren’t enough. I don’t think words exist to describe the way I feel when I’m with you. There are times when I feel like I can’t breathe unless I’m near you.” Tears choked her voice and Em sniffled. “You’re not just the reason I’m alive, Jay. You’re my reason for living. No matter what happens, no matter where we are, or where we end up . . . as long as I’m with you I know that nothing can hurt me. And I swear to you, no matter where that is, I’ll be there. I’ll stand by your side always. I’ll love you forever. And I’ll die to protect you.”
Jay’s finger’s clenched around hers. His features turned to granite and his throat worked convulsively struggling for control. Then he broke was a guttural, “Screw it.”
His lips crashed over hers for a second time and this time no one objected. Ashlyn was too busy trying to wipe the tears from her cheeks without destroying her makeup.
When they broke apart, Jay tucked his cheek next to Em’s and whispered words meant only for her. Whatever he said caused Em’s shoulders to shake, but when he drew back the smile on her face could have lit Paris for a year.
Chapter Twenty-five
Mason
“I get it, man. You and Em . . . you’ve been on your own for a while. It’s a matter of pride that you can make it that way. But you did. You made it. And you’re not alone anymore. You have friends and it’s alright to let those friends celebrate you guys once and a while. Especially on your wedding day. This is our gift to you, Ash and I. No refunds, no exchanges. It would be rude not to accept.”
Jay’s eyes slid across the lot to where Em was practically skipping, arm-in-arm with Ashlyn, toward Bart’s. He sighed. Mason knew a reception mattered very little to Jay. He’d gotten what he wanted out of the day. Em was his. Forever. That was all that mattered to him. That . . . and seeing her happy.
Jay shook his head at the sight of the two girls with a slight smile. Then he nodded at Mason. “Thanks, man.”
“Thank Ashlyn. It was her idea. And she was here all morning setting up.”
Bart’s hadn’t been their first choice, but with Ashlyn’s parents cutting her off and Mason suddenly paying his own expenses to live with her, their options had been limited. Still she’d found a way to make it work. White linens covered the stained and scarred tables—several of which had been pushed aside to create a dance floor—and white and silver balloons were scattered across the ceiling. Music pumped from Ashlyn’s I-pod, impressively loud through a home speaker system setup by the bar. The bar itself had a giant floral arraignment front and center, surrounded by trays wrapped in tinfoil, warming over candles.
Mason peeled back the corner on one of the trays to find stuffed shells. The others held chicken breasts covered with lemon slices, vegetables, ziti, and shrimp. Not cheap. He’d gone behind Ashlyn’s back at the beginning of the month to pay her mortgage. For days he’d expected an irate phone call, but it never came. Now he knew why. The girl was barely keeping her head above water, but she’d taken that extra money and splurged on her friends.
The sound of her laughter caused an unexpected sharp pang.
“Let’s get this party started.” Ashlyn hopped up on a barstool and started scrolling through her song selections. “Time for the first dance.”
E
veryone drifted toward the sides of the dancefloor, leaving Em and Jay alone as the first strains of music floated from the speakers. Em’s head found its way to Jay’s shoulder and they swayed together. Mason had never really noticed the constant fear and worry they both wrestled, but looking at them now—at complete peace—he realized just how rare that look was for them. Ashlyn had done this, given them this moment. Sure, he’d been an investor, but this was all her idea, her planning . . . her.
He watched her, watching them, a content smile playing on her lips. She found joy in helping other people. It satisfied a need in her. And yet she struggled so much with allowing others to do for her. Mason shook his head. That selfless, stubborn girl fascinated and drove him to insanity all at the same time.
The music took an upbeat and Ashlyn stole Em to jump and spin around. The other blonde joined them and together they created some pretty fancy dance moves that kept the guys entertained for a while. Jay poured drinks and chatted with Sam, Greg, and his wife Carol. Mason sat back, sipping his beer, feeling the odd man out.
“How’s it going?” The guy who’d come with the blonde slid onto the stool beside him. “Dean.”
He offered his hand and Mason accepted. “Mason. Looks to be going pretty well.”
Dean nodded, leaning back to prop his elbows on the bar top. “So, how do you know the happy couple?”
“Work.” It was the simplest answer. “You?”
“I don’t. Allie knows them from . . .” A shadow crept over his face and that was answer enough for Mason. “. . . the past.”
The streets was what he meant to say. Mason looked at the happy girl jumping around on the dancefloor. Long blonde hair flipping around behind her and a bossy, no-nonsense attitude, she reminded him a lot of Ashlyn. He tried to imagine what could have happened to that girl to drive her from her home and found he didn’t want to know.
“Well . . .” Mason swallowed the lump in his throat and took another sip of his beer. “Seems like the present is looking up.”
