by Jolie, Mika
“When you meet the one who changes the way your heart beats, dance with them to that rhythm for as long as the song last.”
Kirk Diedrich
Lily adjusted the shoulder of the haven blue dress. She studied her reflection in the mirror; the fluid cut fit her perfectly. She blew out a breath and strands of her bangs danced away from her eyes.
“Ready?” Minka whispered in her ear.
She smiled. “Yes.”
The door to Martha’s Way that lead to the acres of land swung open and she stepped into the sunny afternoon. A hush settled over the crowd. With slow strides, she walked down the aisle. Her parents blew her a kiss, her brothers smiled. She caught sight of Adam’s parents sitting a few rows over and they smiled warmly at her.
It was early October. The leaves, having lost their green hue, seemed to be a mirror for the sun that day as both burned a delicious shade of orange. A sunny day with a few puffy, white clouds. A perfect day for Minka and Jason’s wedding.
Claire and Keely had already walked down the aisle and were now standing on the opposite side of Jason and his groomsmen. Blake blew a kiss across to Keely. Forrest and Claire made brief eye contact then eventually broke the connection. She peeked at Jason. He stood under the oak tree, strong and stunning in the navy shawl-collar Italian wool tuxedo with his three best friends at his side, patiently waiting for his bride. Then her eyes drifted to Adam. His face was carved in a granite expression. He returned her gaze, sending a startling jolt through her limbs. She hadn’t seen him since the whole ordeal with her parents; that was two days ago. He even skipped the rehearsal dinner. Her immediate reaction had been to go to him and made sure he was okay, but she sucked it up and stayed away.
She took her spot by Keely. Minka’s sister took her hand in hers and gave it a small squeeze. Lily smiled, appreciating the warm gesture. They all knew she and Adam were on the fence.
A pleasant breeze rustled in the surrounding shrubs. The smell of fresh cut flowers filled the air. Claire stepped forward to the microphone and her plangent voice drifted through the crowd as she sang the lyrics to I Feel That Too by Jesse Baylin. Guests and family members came to their feet, all heads turned to face the far end of the walk to greet the bride. Down the aisle, Minka stood in the beautiful embroidered gown. She held a bouquet mixed with rich reds, fiery oranges, and beautiful yellow fresh flowers. The combination captured the exquisite fall hues. Her father held her left arm and smiled at her as they reached the bottom step. The lighter-than-air floor length veil border of dainty crystals subtly flashed as the wind gently batted at the ends of her dress.
When Minka and her father reached the bottom step, her father leaned and placed a kiss on his daughter’s cheek then brushed his eyes. He shook Jason’s hand, let out a breath and placed Minka’s hand in Jason’s. Minka’s father was visibly shaken. Lily understood and shared the sentiment. Minka was her best friend, the sister she never had.
Claire’s voice faded, the clergyman stepped forward and so did Jason and Minka. Lily watched. Her eyes became moist; she didn’t care to brush them away. She caught the faint sound of Keely and Claire’s sniffles and knew they were all in the moment just as she was.
“Family and honored guests, thank you for coming to witness the beautiful union of Jason Montgomery and Minka Greene,” the clergyman’s voice carried over the crowd.
Lily steadied her breath and tried to compose herself, but Adam’s intense gaze drew her back to him. His eyes lowered to her left hand and she realized his gaze was fixed on the engagement ring she was absently rolling with her thumb. When he looked at her again, a hint of a smile teased his lips.
Her body reacted to him as always, but it was more than that. Her mind was aching for him too. I need you to love me. Shaking her head, she looked away, but not fast enough to miss the way his brows creased.
Lily watched the couple exchange rings. “By the power vested unto me I now proclaim you husband and wife.” Everyone came to their feet. A wave of applause echoed through the crowd. “You may now kiss—”
The word bride was never spoken. Jason wrapped one arm around Minka’s waist and pulled her to him. Their lips sought one another and they kissed passionately to a thunderous standing ovation.
Arms linked, Jason and Minka, with identical smiles on their faces, walked down the aisle as husband and wife for the first time in their lives. Blake and Keely held hands. Claire slipped one arm in the crook of Forrest’s. They stopped near the end of the walk, forming the start of the receiving line.
Lily stood still for a beat, her body tensed and very aware of Adam as he came to stand next to her. He reached out with arm extended. She bit her lower lip with hesitation.
“Liliana.”
“I can’t touch you…”
He stared at her, brow arched. “Why?” he asked in a husky voice.
“Because I’ll give in,” she confessed. “But I need to be…”
“Stubborn,” he finished.
She shook her head. “It’s more than that, Adam.”
Adam leaned into her a little bit, his lips brushing her ear. “I miss you.”
A whimper slipped through her lips. Her body would have collapsed had Adam not place his hand on her lower back for stability.
“Adam—” she started in a tortured tone.
“Sshh…later. Right now, it’s about Jason and Minka.” He gave her a gentle shove ahead of him. His hand stayed on her lower back until they reached their friends.
Shortly after family and guests filed down, pausing for hugs and kisses and congratulating the married couple.
* * * *
Adam watched Lily take center stage with microphone in hand, ready to make the traditional Maid-of-Honor speech. Her bangs swept to the side, giving everyone full access to her face. Her eyes were bright. Her lips, the color of a red rose, smiled and lightened the room. She looked happy with no care in the world. This was the Lily he’d known for the last year, always ready to face the world head-on. She didn’t dwell on obstacles, even if the obstacle was him. His heart clenched at the sight of her, just as it had done earlier when he watched her walked down the aisle. She made him feel way too fucking much. He lowered his gaze to the aged scotch in front of him, brought the glass to his mouth and let alcohol burn his insides.
“Life is about risk. Love is risky. Often time it leaves us heartbroken and empty.” Her voice flowed like a river in the room, grabbing everyone’s attention. “Common sense tells us not to expose so much of who we are to another person. Our insecurities, fear, wounds, and even what makes us happy. Because really then we become exposed, naked.” She lets out a little chuckle. “But then love tends to happen. Usually we stumble upon it. And everyone knows falling in love is a crazy roller-coaster ride.”
Heads nodded in agreement. Voices echoed her sentiment. Adam continued to look on.
“When we fall in love, our heads tell us we’re going to die.” She paused, glanced at Jason and Minka and smiled. “But our hearts tell us that it’s okay to become less guarded and to trust because we can fly.”
She absently touched her stomach and Adam’s heart bumped against his ribs.
“I’ve watched this beautiful couple fall and learn to fly together. Neither was looking for love, but the best things in life tend to happen unexpectedly.” She smiled. “I.” She paused, waved a hand toward the crowded room. “We celebrate your love. Your trust in each other. Kiss often, and don’t ever stop showing or telling each other the love you carry in your heart. I love you both.”
Applause exploded in the room. Adam’s blood rushed through his head. Once upon a time he used to not feel anything deep for the female gender. Lily had managed to change that. She got to him, big time.
As she walked back to her table, she looked in his direction and their gazes collided. She paused, studying him for an exceedingly long minute, then walked back to her table and joined her family. They sat distance away facing each other but her attention now belonged t
o everyone but him. Max placed an arm over her shoulder and pulled her to his side. The two exchange words, Lily smiled and reached for her purse. She pulled out her phone, frowned and excused herself from the table.
Adam counted to twenty, pushed his chair back and left the room.
“Stop texting or calling me.”
Adam slowed his steps at the sound of Lily. The pitch of her voice rose slightly with anger and frustration. She stood in the garden of Martha’s Way, under the smeared autumn red sky, with her back to the door. He had followed her with the intention to talk and make her understand they didn’t need damn words to express anything between them. Now he stood stiff, listening to her talking to whoever was on the other end. “You had your chance, Nate,” she continued after a slight pause.
Nate. Her fucking ex-cheating fiancé. Adam stepped closer and leaned against the doorway. She stood in the garden with her back to him, one hand holding the mobile phone to her ear, the other rubbing her bare arm. He fought the urge to go to her and warm her with his heat.
“No, I’m not angry at you. Not anymore. I haven’t been for a long time.” She paused again, giving the jerk a chance to say whatever he needed to say. From what Adam gathered, the asshole was trying to get her back. Well, too bad. She was unavailable.
“You’re my past, Nate, not my future.” Another pause, this one a little longer. She gave her body a little shake under the cool breeze. “I’m pregnant.” She exhaled. “And no, it’s not rebound sex. I’m in love.” Her voice trembled on the words, tearing Adam’s inside. Another pause. “Yes, that mad, crazy love I’ve always wanted.” She paused again. Adam imagined the cheating bastard was probably measuring the love she once had for him. “I let you go, Nate, a long time ago. Now it’s your turn. Goodbye.” She disconnected the call and stood there for a beat.
Adam remained by the doorway, fighting the urge to throw her over his shoulder and take her back home where she belonged.
“You can come out now,” she said over her shoulder.
He closed the space between them and pressed up against her back. “I wasn’t eavesdropping.” His hands ran up and down her arms and she shook a little from his touch.
“What do you want, Adam?”
“You,” he answered without a beat. He’d missed her terribly the last two days. Everywhere he turned, Lily’s face was there. Her smile, her laughter.
She whirled around to face him, their faces inches away. Her heart-baring eyes searched his. “For sex.”
The sharp-edged words cut him. He deserved her venom in a way. His hands fell to his side and he took a step back. “You know it’s more than that.”
There was a beat of silence, as if she was processing the weight of his words. “Where were you last night? You didn’t come to rehearsal dinner.”
“I flew to Italy Thursday after we talked to your family.”
Another silence.
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I had to do some damage control after Souza’s piece, so I gave an interview to a local station there. It will be aired in a couple of days.”
“When did you come back?”
“Around two this morning.”
“How do you feel? I mean, are you okay?”
The concern in her voice made his heart clench. He stroked a finger along her cheekbone, then tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear for the sheer pleasure of touching her. “I’m fine.” He leaned in. “I want you home with me.”
She stepped out of his grasp and walked in silence. She stopped next to various shades of Chrysanthemum plants. From the distance she studied him. “I saw it in your eyes that night. I will never forget that.”
“Liliana.”
She held up a hand. “You never want to say it, do you?”
Adam released a deep breath. And she let out a soft chuckle.
“I can’t, Adam. As much as I want you and me, I can’t.”
Pain poured out in her voice like a river. And it hurt because he didn’t want to be the reason for her heartache. He took a step closer. She took a step back. An overwhelming silence dominated the space between them. She was a woman who needed to hear those words. She believed in them. Everything in her life was about love. Her family, her friends, Even her damn brothers.
“I see it in your eyes,” she repeated. “I feel it when you hold me.”
“Isn’t that enough?”
She smiled, a sad smile. “I wish it was, but you see I never want to have doubts. I have no problem telling the world how I feel about you.” She held his gaze. “I need the same from you.” She shook her head. “And you’re not there, Adam. I want it all. I’m greedy like that.”
Another long awkward silence fell between them. The autumn breeze filled the trees with a rustling murmur and swept the dried, crispy leaves across his path. Lily shivered, let out a deep breath, then walked past him into the warmth of the inn.
Hours later, well after the speech, toast, and all the things that newlyweds did to celebrate their love, Adam loosened his tie, sat back and watched Lily dance her ass off on the floor doing the conga line. She moved as if she was connecting to the song, swaying her sexy curves left and right, as the rhythm carried her feet across the dance floor. One of Jason’s friends Adam had met and actually liked until now, jumped behind her and held on to her waist like it was his lifeline. Lily turned, made eye contact with the bastard and laughed. Adam winced. This was going to be a long fucking night.
Since their conversation in the garden, she had gone out of her way to avoid him, and it was driving him nuts. He downed the last drop of the scotch in front of him, and pushed his chair back. What was that, his third now? He couldn’t remember. The alcohol wasn’t doing its job, he wasn’t numb.
He glanced at the dance floor again, the music switched to Moves like Jagger by Christina Aguilera and Adam Levine. Lily kept on dancing. That same asshole wrapped his hand around her waist and pulled her against him close enough to feel his junk. She turned to face the asshole, placed a gentle but firm hand on his shoulder and put some distance between them, setting some boundary.
Too fucking late. Adam removed his jacket and slung it over the back of the chair. He rolled up his sleeves. The fucker now had his hand on her lower back. That same spot he’d kissed many times in the last year. The bastard said something to her and she laughed again. Yeah, someone needed to wipe that smirk off this guy’s pretty face. As for Lily, evidently she’d forgotten they were still engaged. She was still wearing the damn ring, for Christ’s sake. Total disrespect.
Adam paddled through the crowd and headed straight toward Miss Happy Feet and Sir Touch-A-Lot. Halfway there, he passed his parents and Lily’s parents dancing and laughing. Lily’s father was doing some fancy dance move with his mother while his father and her mother applauded. One big, fucking happy family.
“Adam, darling,” his mother called after him, breathless.
He stopped, gaze on Lily. The dude was still trying to cop a feel.
“Lily’s parents are wonderful.” His mother continued smiling. “We are going to have dinner with them next time we’re in New York.”
“Great,” he said, not really caring his voice showed he had no desire to hold a conversation with his parents and in-laws at this time. As the music switched to Cupid Shuffle by CUPID, the asshole spun Lily so she ended right in front of him. Adam swore under his breath. He spotted her brothers, dancing away like major goofballs. Neither one tried to step in and stopped this asshole from manhandling their sister.
“What’s wrong, son?” His father followed his gaze and chuckled. He was already moving to the right, to the left. Adam stepped away to avoid being kicked.
“I have to go.” He kept moving.
The “Cupid Shuffle” was in full swing. Adam dipped, leaned back once or twice to avoid crashing into a dancer or two as he crossed the dance floor. Jason, Blake, and their wives were leading the whole mess. He shook his head in dismay. Some songs paired with a specific wedd
ing dance should be prohibited at weddings. The “Cupid Shuffle” topped the list.
He reached Lily just as she took two steps to the left and crashed right into the wall of his chest. Her eyes widened and her lips formed into an O. He caught her wrist and started to drag her off the dance floor. Adam secretly admitted that was very caveman-like, but he didn’t care.
“What are you doing?” She planted her feet firm on the floor, her lips pressed into a thin, angry line.
“I’m taking you away from sticky fingers.”
Sir Touch-A-Lot walked up a little too close to Lily. Adam’s shoulder accidentally checked him. He would have liked to pop him too, but this was one of his closest friends’ wedding after all. So he played nice. Sort of.
“Hey man, we’re dancing,” Sir Touch-A-Lot said.
Adam pinned him with a look. “That’s my fiancée you’ve been groping the whole night. She’s also very pregnant with our child.” The asshole looked at Lily for confirmation. She grinned. Asshole backed off. Adam gestured her to the empty table. “Come on.”
“Why are we going there?”
“To talk.”
“I’m not walking off this dance floor.” She stood firm, hands on hips, challenging him. “Unless you’re ready to tell me you’re in love with me.” She held his gaze. “Are you?”
Adam raked a hand through his hair.
“I thought so.” She smiled at him.
He couldn’t read her. The vulnerability he caught earlier was now gone. A server approached them with one flute in the tray. Lily snagged it and gulped it down and thanked the server by using his first name. Bryan, the handsome waiter, beamed at her. Everything now made sense. She was drunk, and pregnant with his child. Adam silently counted to one hundred very quickly to stop his head from blowing off.
“Are you drunk?” He watched her frown and realized his voice sounded more accusatory than he intended.
“This was seltzer water. See?” She tip-toed close to his face and blew warm, minty breath on his face. No trace of alcohol and the move was erotic as hell. “Geez, Adam, I tend to be on the responsible side, in case you haven’t noticed.”
