Ties That Bind

by Neeny Boucher

  Don’t say anything stupid, she warned herself. Don’t ruin this! For once in your life, keep your blurt mouth under control.

  “Yes. Nicholas Xavier Riley,” Christina answered without hesitation. “I will marry you.” He slid the ring onto her finger, the metal cool in comparison to Riley’s warm hands, but it looked like it belonged there.

  “By the way,” he mock-whispered. “They aren’t blood and conflict diamonds. I remember that weird conversation. They’re white sapphires and black diamonds.”

  Christina went red and she fully conceded that she blurted random stuff at times. She was also so excited that any attempt at dignity was long over. She needed to channel this energy.

  “Let’s go to Vegas!” She urged. “Oooooh. We could get married in the Chapel of Love by Elvis! How cool would that be? We could do a road trip. Gabby and Andy could come. So could Bonnie and Mandy!”

  Riley’s eyes opened wide and he slowly shook his head. “No. As much as a road trip and being married by Elvis would be really cool,” he mocked, “I’d like to do something different. We eloped last time, sneaking off in the middle of the night like criminals. This time I want to get married in front of our family and friends. You wear the dress, I’ll wear the tux and we stand up in front of everybody.”

  “So, no second-hand wedding clothes, hooker-waitress bridesmaids, Chinese take-out wedding feast, and making out on the swings like last time, huh?” Christina deadpanned, making Riley guffaw and them both face-palm. What the hell had they been thinking?

  She nudged him with her shoulder and he nudged back. “Yeah,” Christina agreed. “Let’s do it. Let’s do the white wedding thing.”

  Riley wrapped an arm around her. “You are the most unromantic person I know, Christina Martin,” he laughed, kissing her on the forehead. “You get excited by watching planes and road trips, old trucks and menacing cats, but your own wedding? Nah. It’s no big deal. Someone else can do that.”

  Christina’s eyes lit up. Actually, that was a brilliant idea and she knew exactly the people she was going to ask to organize this. “Meh,” she shrugged. “You knew what you were getting and you’re marrying me twice.”

  “Slow learner,” she teased, making him push her backward on the blanket. He lay on top of her, resting his weight on his arms. He leaned his face toward her and she tilted her mouth up for a kiss.

  “Dumb as a bag of hammers,” he mumbled against her mouth. “The perfect woman.” Christina reacted in outrage and he laughed.

  They wrestled until their actions took a more passionate turn. As they were alone, clothes came off, and kisses were exchanged. They made love as planes flew over, but didn’t really notice, as they were so lost in each other.

  **********

  Shanwick, Saturday, July 27, 2013

  Christina and Riley were married in Shanwick on a sunny afternoon in front of their loved ones. Asha, Tessa, Grace Riley, Mandy, and Gabby organized the wedding with input from Christina and Riley. Mainly Riley, but Christina had given her approval.

  They held it at the farmhouse, setting up a large marquee with fairy lights. Christina and Riley had asked for a lavish picnic-style wedding feast with exotic finger foods, champagne, and multi-colored drinks. The wedding was designed around Christina’s engagement ring, with a dash of red to bring color.

  The bride wore a white 1930s vintage inspired dress, with an open back and slight cowl neck in the front. It was classic with a personal and modern twist. Christina had a nightingale sewn in dark silver diamantes across the hips of her dress. She carried a cascading bouquet of red and white flowers. The bridesmaids: Bonnie, Mandy, and Gabby wore black, the flowers they carried complimenting the bride’s. Connor and Aria Warnock were the ring bearer and flower girl.

  The groom wore a black tux and a white shirt. His vest and tie were dark silver, matching the diamantes on the bride’s dress. His groomsmen: Jed, as best man, Steven and Mason Glenn, were all dressed in black Tuxedoes with white shirts, black vests, and silver ties.

  A tearful Jack Martin gave his daughter away as Johnny and the band sang the wedding song, U2’s “All I Want Is You”. Their wedding vows were based off their ‘code of conduct’, much to the amusement of their friends and family. When the couple said, “I do” they kissed longer than was polite in company. They may have used tongue and continued until Steven and Jed gently coughed. Mason, however, applauded.

  Unlike last time, both families were ecstatic. Leo and Grace sitting in prime position. They’d kindly gifted the farmhouse to Christina and Riley as a wedding present, so they would always have their own home in Shanwick.

  Similarly to the Martins, the Riley family had expanded too. Heather and Steven brought their infant daughter, Piper Faith, to share the celebration. She sat with LiLi and Jax, two mommas, bonding over their children.

  The wedding and reception were private, but the party afterwards was open to the people of the town. A disco-inspired dance floor was set up in the middle of the marquee, and to the Martin children’s horror, Jack got on and wouldn’t get off. He danced all night with anyone that went near him, even if they didn’t know they were actually dancing with Jack, he pretended they were.

  The bikers turned up to give their well wishes and people were there that Christina had never seen before, but she didn’t mind. Mrs. Gustafson made an appearance, but the Anys chose to stay away. People danced until the early hours of the morning. One by one, drifting off, until only Christina and Riley remained.

  The last song they danced to on their wedding night was the song Riley had done his strip tease to in London, D’Angelo’s version of “Feel Like Makin’ Love”. The message couldn’t be clearer and when the song finished, they spent their wedding night in the farmhouse, christening the king sized bed Riley bought for Christina.

  **********

  Christina, Seattle, Thursday, July 10, 2014

  “Riley,” Christina scrunched her face up. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to try and kick you or swear.”

  Shaking his head gently, Riley shrugged. “It’s okay. At one stage, I wanted to swear at me too and set myself on fire.”

  “Can we just… pretend you didn’t see that,” Christina begged, grimacing as she moved on the bed. She’d just spent six hours delivering nearly nine pounds of giant Riley head and it hadn’t been pretty. She’d turned into Satan, threatening all and sundry, begging for drugs and a caesarian. Both had been denied her.

  Riley dragged his eyes away from their child for a moment, staring at her in pain. “I don’t think I can, honey. I’ve never felt more helpless in my life.”

  Christina cringed. Her one abiding memory was of him wandering around the delivery room, waving his hands through his hair. She’d never seen him cry before, but when the big giant head finally appeared, he’d given her double thumbs up with tears streaming down his face.

  Even though labor hadn’t been pleasant, she was ecstatic. Leon Martin Riley had been born at eight minutes to three in the afternoon. His name was a combination of both his grandfathers and his middle was his mother’s maiden name.

  Leon was dark haired, long and lean, like his father. The moment he’d entered the world, Riley had laid claim to him, only handing him over for feeding. She knew it was probably the hormones, but as far as she was concerned, Leon was perfect. He was the living embodiment of her and Riley’s love.

  “Riley,” she prodded to get his attention. “Leon’s beautiful. He looks just like you.”

  A smile lit up his face and he glanced her way briefly, before continuing to gaze in wonder at their child. “He has your mouth and nose,” Riley said. “I think he’s going to have your eyes, too.”

  Christina knew she was being irritating, but hey! She’d done all the hard work on this one. She had a subject to broach and was working her way up to raising a sensitive topic.

  Chewing on her bottom lip, Christina finally plucked up her courage. “Do you think we should tell him? You know… about the thing with
the thing.”

  Riley laughed quietly, shaking his head. “Not until he’s much, much older. Would you like your parents to tell you that?”

  No. She definitely would not. On agreement, Riley and Christina decided to tell Leon Martin Riley, only when he was ‘much, much older’, that they were pretty sure he’d been conceived on the back of his father’s truck, when planes were flying over.

  THE END

  About the Author

  Neeny Boucher is a nom de plume because my real name sounds like a 19th Century suffragette. Originally, I'm from New Zealand and am a long-time supporter of the All Blacks. Currently, I am living in Europe and a trailing spouse, following my husband all over the world for his work. This not only gives me the opportunity to write, but also, experience the world and indulge in one of my favourite past-times: people watching.

  My own employment history is varied and ranges from the sublime to the ridiculous. All of those experiences and encounters, however, have allowed me to collect amazing stories, which now form the basis of my writings.

  I have always loved the weird, the outcast and those on the margins of society because they see the world in a different way. These are the people my characters are based around.

  I have a BA Hons. (English and Pacific Studies) and a PhD in Sociology/Indigenous Studies.

  Fade to Black by M. Stratton:

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MT3TK8E

  Devlin Cross is one of Hollywood's biggest stars. He has his pick of the scripts and his pick of the women. While on a break from filming his current movie, he takes a drive through the countryside and stops at a local art gallery. There, the owner isn't star struck by having him in her shop.

  Lily Walker is a single mother who wants nothing to do with men. Her goal in life is to raise her son to the best of her ability and give him the stable home life she never had. With her failed marriage behind her, the last thing on her radar is a relationship, especially one with a famous movie star.

  Not every breakup is mutual. Some ex-lovers never let go. Some will do whatever it takes to have that person back in their lives. Dead... or alive.

  Life’s Perfect Moments by S.H. Pratt

  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NU30N2O/

  Madilyn Chambers lives and breathes music. It is the lifeblood that courses through her veins and gives her control over the temper that also flows through her veins, a constant reminder of her Chambers’ heritage. But Madi knows the rough edges of life and knows that even her music can’t smooth them all out. Her abusive father is serving a life sentence in Chino, her mother is dead and her brother is lost in a sea of drugs and alcohol. Through the nightmares of her life, one single dream has remained bright and unbroken, buoyed by the music in her soul… and that is to have Logan Marshall see her as something more than his best friend’s little sister, and love her.

  Ten years after leaving Santa Barbara and the memories that taunted him, Logan Marshall is back and he is thrilled when he gets a call from his best friend, Mick. When he finds Mick’s little sister angry, upset, and in need of help, his self-control is tested when he finds out that Mick is the one she needs protection from.

  When Mick’s trouble spills into Madi’s life, Logan refuses to leave Madi to face it alone. As he spends more time with her, however, he realizes that his feelings for Madi are anything but big-brotherly. But with Mick’s trouble growing desperate, his own past pressing in on him and Madi’s heart his fondest wish, Logan knows it’s time to put his priorities in order.

  As Madi spends more time with Logan, her heart and dreams begin to crack under the pressure of his mixed signals and break with the truth of his past. Can Logan convince Madi that his heart is hers before she gives up on her only dream completely? Can he make her dream a reality of life’s most perfect moments?