by Beth Rinyu
“Umm…I forgot I wanted to invite an old buddy of mine that I used to work with.”
“Okay. I’ll leave one on the kitchen table for you.” She walked over to my side of the bed and kissed me on the cheek. “Get some sleep. You look like a zombie. I’ll see ya later.”
“See ya, Gabby!” I turned on my side and closed my eyes. I knew that I was taking a huge chance. Gabby might end up being majorly pissed off at me, but she allowed me to have no regrets with my Dad. I wanted to do the same for her. I didn’t want her to look back on her wedding day years from now and feel like something was missing. I knew that, in the end, it would be worth the risk. She couldn’t stay mad at me for too long…I hoped.
The day I had dreamed about ever since I was a little girl was here. Until Will came along, that dream was starting to fade. The funny thing was that beautiful fairytale wedding in my dreams from years ago didn't matter to me anymore. All that mattered was that I was going to be spending the rest of my life with my best friend. Still, I was happy that Will's mom and Hope went above and beyond to help make this day extra special for us. I was a little sad knowing that my aunt and uncle were the only two people that I would have here from my family. I sighed, hoping that I made the right decision by not backing down to my mother. It’s for the best, Gabby. She probably wouldn’t have shown anyway.
I looked myself over in the mirror, hoping that Will would be happy with the girl staring back at me. My strapless, mermaid-style dress formed perfectly to my body, looking like it was made just for me. Delicate beading trimmed the softly curved neckline, while a beautiful hand-beaded design embellished the bust and the drop waist.
I gave my loose waves one last spray before taking a deep breath and looking out the window. I couldn't help but think how perfect the weather was, so much like that September from so long ago. Will and I were getting married outside at a beautiful winery close by his mother’s and brother's house. A hidden gem that I would have never known about if it weren't for Hope.
“Come in,” I said, hearing a light knock on the door.
A huge smile stretched across Hope's face when she entered. “You look absolutely gorgeous!”
“Thank you. I just hope Will thinks so.”
“Oh, Will is going to flip when he sees you.”
“Thank you so much, Hope. I really don't know how I would have done this without you.”
“No problem. I finally have a little sister. It took him long enough, but he finally did it,” she giggled. Her tone suddenly became more serious. “But that's only because he was waiting for you to come back to him after all those years.”
“You have no idea how much that means to me. My whole life, I've always felt like I had no one. I always wanted a brother or sister and now...” I took a deep breath, trying to fight the tears. Hope quickly grabbed a tissue and handed it to me. “Now I finally have that.”
She pulled me to her and hugged me as best she could, trying not to mess me up. “I am so happy for the both of you,” she said.
“Gabby?”
I jumped and my stomach dropped when I looked up to find my mother standing in the doorway. Suddenly, my happy moment with Hope was fading away. What was she doing here? Will! He must have sent her an invitation! I suddenly remembered the day he asked me for an extra invitation for someone he worked with. I took a deep breath while Hope looked at me with concern. I was pretty sure that apprehension was written all over my face. “Hope, this is my mother.”
“Oh, hi. How are you?” Hope said, extending her hand. My mother smiled and shook it. “Well, let me get back out there. Ten more minutes!” Hope smiled. Just hearing that calmed me down a bit. In ten more minutes, I would be removed from this awkward situation that I was in and be that much closer to becoming Will's wife.
My mother walked into the room once Hope exited. Of course, she was meticulously dressed in a beautiful teal dress that cost even more than mine, I’m sure. She looked me over and tears filled her eyes. “You look...” She shook her head, crying even harder. “You look beautiful, Gabby.”
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Thank you so much for inviting me. I wish that I could have helped you plan everything.”
I shook my head, trying not to cry. “I wasn't ready for that, Mom. I still don't know if I'm ready for this, but I’m glad you came.”
“Well, I'm honored to be here.”
She reached into her purse and handed me a card. “Here's a little something to get you started with your new life together. I really do wish you both nothing but the best.” She must have sensed my hesitation at accepting it. “Part of that is from your father, as well.” I creased my forehead in confusion. She briefly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and looked out the window. “The day you were born, your father started a bank account for your wedding day.” I bit my lip to halt the tears. “He always said it was the day that he was going to dread the most in his life, giving his little girl to another man. But if he had to do it, he wanted to make sure it was everything you ever dreamed it would be.”
I grabbed a tissue and quickly dabbed the tears flowing down my face. “I think Daddy wouldn’t have minded giving me up to Will. In a way, he already did when he trusted him with my life all those years ago.” I handed my mom a tissue to wipe away her tears, as well. “Thank you for coming, Mom.”
For the first time in a long time, she pulled me into an embrace and it actually felt real. “I’m so sorry, baby. I really and truly am.” I nodded, knowing that my makeup was probably running down my face. “Well, let me get out there. Andre is waiting for me to take a seat,” she said, dabbing her eyes one last time. I nodded as I watched her walk out the door.
I took a seat in front of the mirror once again, trying to pull it together. But it was useless. How I wished that my dad was here to walk me down the aisle, instead of walking it all by myself. I blotted my eyes once again and suddenly felt a sense of calmness overtake me when I looked in the mirror and saw Will standing behind me, his hands in his pockets, looking absolutely gorgeous in his black tux. A smile rushed from deep within my stomach to my face. In just a few minutes, my best friend was going to be my husband. Mine forever. I stood up and his eyes widened as he looked me up and down, taking in everything about me.
“Gabby, you look…” He shook his head and smiled. “Absolutely beautiful.”
“Thank you, but you're not supposed to see me. It’s bad luck,” I said, wiping away one last tear.
He moved closer to me and gripped my waist. “Haven't you realized that we're different? And I don't believe in superstitions.” He titled my chin up to him and kissed me softly on the lips. “I wanted to make sure you were okay with -.”
“Well, it certainly was a surprise.”
“I’m sorry, Gabby. I know I should have told you, but if she didn’t show up, I didn’t want you to feel bad about it. I just know that, somewhere deep inside, you wanted her here. You made me have no regrets with my dad, other than I wish that he could be here today. I just wanted to do the same for you.”
I pulled him close and hugged him. “Thank you for being able to see what I was feeling deep inside my heart, knowing that I would be too stubborn to act on it. I'm happy that she's here. And your dad is here, Will, the same way that my dad is.”
“I'm marrying the most beautiful girl in the world,” he whispered in my ear.
I kissed him on his neck. “And I'm marrying the handsomest man in the world. We’re pretty lucky, aren’t we?”
He flashed me that gorgeous smile of his. “I love you, Gabby girl.”
“I love you, too. Who would have thought that all these years later, I would be back in your arms again, just like on that horrible day?” I caressed the side of his face with the back of my hand. “My sweet angel.”
He smiled down at me before kissing me on the forehead. “I better get out of here before my mom or Hope catches me. They’d kill me before we even got married.”
I giggle
d. “Wait. I want to show you something.” I reached into my bag and pulled out my journal, opening it up to the very last page which was dated for today. I placed it in his hands and watched as he read it over.
An angel saved my life today and, just like that, he went away.
A halo and wings he didn't proclaim, but I knew he was an angel just the same.
An angel sat by my bed tonight, drying my tears, chasing away my fright.
I didn’t see him, but I knew he was there. I could feel his presence everywhere.
An angel came into my life today and something told me, this time, he would stay.
He's always there when I'm feeling down, making me happy, erasing my frown.
An angel is here standing right by my side. He’s to be my husband and I’m his bride.
The rest of my life will be filled with love because I will be spending forever
with my angel from above.
I could see the emotion building in his eyes. He looked up from the journal and stared into my eyes, biting his bottom lip. “Did you write this?” he whispered.
I nodded. “Didn’t know I was a poet, did ya?”
“Thank you, Gabby girl.”
“You're welcome.” I gently wiped away the teardrop that was starting to fall from his eye.
After placing the journal on the table, he leaned down and pulled me close, placing his lips on mine, kissing me deeply. I wrapped my arms around his neck. “So, I was thinking about how I really don't want to walk down that aisle by myself. It would be nice if I could have my best friend with me.”
“Oh, Gabby. You are so breaking tradition.” He grinned.
“Well, we're different, remember? And it is our day so we should be able to do whatever we want.”
He took my hand in his. “And, this time, I promise I won’t leave you.”
I looked up at him and smiled, trying to halt the burn of tears in my eyes. “Ready to start a new trend?”
“Let's do it.”
15 Months Later……
“Will, we have two days to finish Christmas shopping, not to mention that I’m starving! Why is it so important that we stop by your work at this very minute?” Gabby asked as we walked into my station.
“You’ll see.”
“Hi, guys!” Adam said as we entered. He nodded and smiled at me, while Gabby stared at us both questionably.
“Hey, Will. How you been?” Adam’s brother asked, shaking my hand.
“Gabby, this is my brother, Robert,” Adam said.
“Oh, hi. Nice meeting you,” Gabby replied.
“You, too. So, Gabby, Will said that you had a Golden Retriever when you were younger.”
“Oh, yeah. I had lots of them. My grandfather used to breed them. They are the sweetest dogs ever.”
He stepped into the side room and came back out carrying a large box, placing it at Gabby’s feet. The look on her face was priceless as she stared down at the litter of puppies. “Oh, my god!” she exclaimed. “They are beautiful! Can I hold one?”
“Sure, go right ahead,” Robert said.
Gabby leaned over the box and scooped one up in her arms. “Oh, my goodness. You are just too sweet,” she said as the puppy whimpered in her arms.
“That’s Lexie. She’s a female and one of the calmer ones out of the bunch,” Robert said.
“Well, she is absolutely precious,” Gabby said, kissing her on the head.
“Is she your favorite?” I asked.
She shrugged her shoulders. “I love them all.”
“But if you had to choose just one, which one would it be?”
Gabby’s jaw dropped and the smile that was on her face just moments ago was now replaced with a nervous expression. “Umm…Will.” She shook her head and placed the puppy back into the box.
“Pick out the one you that you want, Gabby. I told Will I’m giving you first pick,” Robert said.
“Umm…” She laughed nervously. “Well, that’s very nice of you, but –.”
“Pick one out, Gabby. It’s one of your Christmas presents from me.”
“Will, this is so sweet and these puppies are absolutely adorable, but a puppy is a really big responsibility. We both work such crazy schedules. I just don’t think we have the time to commit to that right now.”
“Ah, Gabby, it will be fine. You’ll see!”
She cleared her throat and her eyes widened. “What?” I asked as she stood there staring at me.
“Can you guys excuse us for just one second?” she asked.
“Oh yeah. No problem,” Adam and his brother said in unison as they both walked away.
She waited until they were completely out of earshot and whispered in my ear, “I’m pregnant.”
Those two words were magic to my ears. We had been trying for almost a year without any success. Even though Gabby would try and disguise her disappointment each month, I knew it was weighing heavily on her mind. “Gabby girl, I love you!” I picked her up and swung her around.
“Well, I was going to wait until Christmas Day and surprise you, but since you almost got us into a furry little predicament, you left me no choice.”
“When?” I asked.
“Well, I have a doctor’s appointment next week, but if my calculations are correct, I’m thinking sometime in July.”
“Do you have any clue how happy you have made me?” I leaned down and kissed her belly before taking her in my arms and hugging her tightly.
“So did you guys decide on which one you wanted yet?” Robert asked as he and Adam walked back over.
“None,” I blurted out. “We’re gonna have a baby instead!”
“Oh, man! Congratulations!” Adam said, shaking my hand. “Congratulations Gabby,” he said, giving her a hug.
We walked out of the station into the falling snow. I stopped dead in my tracks on the busy sidewalk and grabbed her by her waist. “What are you doing?” she giggled.
“I’m just so happy, Gabby. I am so fuckin’ happy right now.”
She smiled at me and rubbed her thumb along my jawline. “Me, too!” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the lips, ignoring all of the people passing us by.
As I stared into her beautiful eyes, I was brought back to that September day when I looked into the eyes of that sad little girl named Bree one last time before walking away from her. I never imagined that, one day, I would be looking into them again and that she would be the love of my life, the mother of my child, my entire world.
We may never know why some things happen in life, but one thing was certain. Gabby was my soul mate, there was no doubt in my mind about that. We were living and breathing today because of each other. What if she hadn’t forgotten her homework that day? What if I had never gotten called into work that night and gotten hurt? Our paths never would have crossed again. I had spent my entire adult life trying to disprove the theory of falling in love and here I was, totally and completely in love with the woman in my arms. She had come into my life all those years ago, stealing my heart and keeping it under lock and key, before finally coming back to me to release those chains. She allowed me to become a much better person. A person that I never thought I could be, but leave it to my Gabby girl to show me otherwise. Her great big heart and undying love gave me a beautiful life, a reason to smile, and a will to change.
Blind Side of Love
Prologue
Releasing fall 2014
My life as I knew it began on the day I met Drew Bryant. He taught me that it was okay to not always be perfect, that it was okay to loosen up and have a little fun in life, and that it was okay to fall in love.
My life as I knew it ended on the day I met Drew Bryant. He taught me that giving my heart to someone completely was the most dangerous thing I could ever do, and that the perfect world I was living in didn’t matter anymore without him in it. But the most important lesson that he taught me? A broken heart turns into a reckless one, and what we feel inside that heart at one particular moment
can set our destiny, making us a stronger person, a weaker person, or leading us into a darkness from which we can never escape.
My heart closed on the same day as my eyes, until he came into my life…
They say that the eyes are the window to the soul, but I don’t agree. I could see deep into his soul without ever looking into his. The images in our heart are much more vivid than those we can see, and I saw Mason Boudreaux completely with mine. His touch, his voice, and his love allowed me to envision more things than I had ever seen before my life became filled with darkness. He had awakened my heart from its long slumber and had become my light, my hope, and my strength. He was a strange kind of familiar that I never wanted to lose, but something somewhere deep inside told me that I just might.
Ignorance can take on many forms. Sometimes it’s just a mask to avoid what we already know buried deep within our hearts. Sometimes it’s just a means of keeping us preserved in the happiness of the here and now. Sometimes it could lead us to a place where we had once been and never wanted to return…
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Table of Contents
Dedication
Prologue - Will
Chapter 1 - Will
Chapter 2 - Gabby
Chapter 3 - Will
Chapter 4 - Gabby
Chapter 5 - Will
Chapter 6 - Gabby
Chapter 7 - Will
Chapter 8 - Gabby
Chapter 9 - Will
Chapter 10 - Gabby
Chapter 11 - Will
Chapter 12 - Gabby
Chapter 13 - Will
Chapter 14 - Gabby
Chapter 15 - Will
Chapter 16 - Gabby
Chapter 17 - Will
Chapter 18 - Gabby
Chapter 19 - Will
Chapter 20 - Gabby
