“Riley, I give you my word that I’m fine and you have no cause for worry. I will not have another seizure, and if I do, I’m already prepared for that. I promised my father and you that I would never be reckless again, so measures are in place.”
“Where are we going?” she asked, all upset. Oh she breaks my heart with her tears.
“Trust me?”
“With all that I have,” she replied.
“That’s all I need to hear and all you need to know…for now. Let’s go.”
“One more question, and then we can leave?”
“Go! You have 30 seconds,” I said.
“Your father? I’ve already gone a few rounds with him already. He’s going to lose his shit when he comes back to find you gone.”
“No, he won’t, and please don’t worry about my father. Your mother will take care of him. Liam has cleared me, and Richard will be with us.”
“He will?”
“Yes. A safe distance, but he won’t be far behind. I left a note here for my father and grandparents. Don’t worry, baby. It’s going to be okay.”
I wiped the last of her tears and held her beautiful face in my hands.
“I need this night with you, Riley, please?”
“Okay, anything for you, Jackson.”
“Thank you. You won’t regret it.”
I heard her whisper “I hope not,” but I wasn’t going to say anymore. Her nerves were rattled enough and arguing with Riley was not an option.
Richard already had our bag packed in the car. He was positive my father was going to fire him for sure, but I squashed that quickly and told him I would never allow that to happen. Richard was more than a driver and bodyguard to me, he was family. We made our way down to the underground garage and didn’t turn back as the hospital became a distant sight.
“Okay, Mr. Reed, now that you have me here, what do you intend to do with me?” Riley asked innocently, but with a hint of playfulness.
“Do you know why we are in a car with blackened windows?” I asked.
“To torture me?”
“Hey! You got it right! Obviously no, not to torture you, but rather to keep you guessing until we reach the first destination.”
“And where might that be? You know I love and hate surprises.”
“I do know. Can you close your eyes for a minute?”
“Jackson…”
“Close them, Riley. Do not open them until I say so, okay?”
“I get it. You can be so frustrating at times, boyfriend.”
I took in a deep breath and smiled as I looked at her. I could feel my pants tighten, especially in my lower region. I loved this girl, and someday she will no longer be my girlfriend, but my wife.
“Hold out your hands,” I asked.
She bounced in her seat with excitement. Who was she kidding? She loved every bit of this little game. I placed her gift in her hands, as her fingers ran over the soft surface.
“Open your eyes, baby.”
Her eyes brightened at the sight of her new furry friends. She eyed the bears and smiled.
“Really? Mr. & Mrs. Yankee bears? Oh you play dirty. You know I am an Oriole’s fan for life by the way.”
“That’s only because you’ve been misguided all of these years, but now you have me to set you straight. Be nice sweetheart, or I will take back my bears and give you a stuffed bird instead.”
“I love them and you, Jackson.”
“I love you too, and I’m happy you like your first gift. Are you ready for your next one? Because we’re at the first destination.”
Before she could ask, I crushed my mouth down onto hers and kissed her until she was silenced. She ran her fingers though my hair and pulled me closer. I wanted her so badly, but not like this. Riley had been more than patient with me, but tonight she would wait no longer.
“Behave, Riley. Let’s go in before I change my mind.”
Richard waited a minute before opening our door, just enough time for me to push down my growing erection. She knew what she just did and wasn’t sorry at all for it.
“Keep your eyes closed until I say open, okay?”
“Yes, dear.”
Her long hair was cascading down her shoulders. Riley’s hair was thick and gorgeous, and I wasn’t sure the hat would even fit on her thick mane of hair. I tucked her waves of caramel brown behind her ears and put her baseball hat on. I wore mine and had our shirts in my hand. She is going to flip out when she sees what I’m wearing.
I wanted to give her one more tease before I let her open her eyes. I kissed her behind her ear, placing five kisses down her cheek.
“Open your eyes, babe”
“What the…? How?”
“I have my ways. Are you surprised? Do you like it?”
“Oh, you amazing boyfriend! I freaking love it. This game has been sold out for months with pretty much season ticket holders. Camden Yards, Jackson!! I love this ballpark. Oh. My. Goodness! We are at our first baseball game with our teams playing against each other. How are you not freaking out right now?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. Riley was just too adorable. I scooped her up in my arms and twirled her around. She needed this laugh, and so did I.
“Jackson, can I ask you a question?”
“Go for it.”
“Why are you wearing an Orioles shirt, and I have a Yankees shirt in my hand?”
“Do you remember what I wrote in my card when I gave you Mr. Yankee Bear?”
“Of course, I memorized your lovely note.”
“Good. Now, I’ve had time to think about it and realize that I can’t force you to love the Yankees like I do, as you can’t make me like your team. So I decided to have a little wager with you. I love you, Riley, and that means all parts of you, even as far as supporting your team, so here’s the deal. If the Yankees win tonight against your birds, then you cross the arbitrary line you have drawn in the sand and cross over to the New York side. If your team wins, then I will do the same for you. How does that sound?”
“I agree to your terms, but I’ll add a clause to our new deal.”
“And what might that be?”
“No matter whose team wins tonight, the only team I truly care about is ‘our team,’ you and me.”
“I agree to your terms,” I said.
And that was just one of the reasons why I loved my girl so much. My legs felt like jelly as I took in her innocence and beauty. Her eyes were shining like diamonds. All I see was my reflection when I leaned in to kiss her. It could only get better from here.
“Um…one more thing?” she asked.
“Yes, my love?”
“I want a crab mac-n-cheese dog. Stuggy’s makes them, and they are the best.”
“Only in Maryland,” I chuckled. “I’ll take your word for it and just have a good old fashioned dog with kraut and mustard.”
“Oh baby, you don’t know what you’re missing.”
“I’ll survive. Let’s go watch The Captain. I’m feeling a home run and a three run lead in the first inning alone.”
“Confident much?”
“Oh, yes. A Reed never loses.”
The banter between us was just what we needed after the last few stressful days we endured. I wanted Riley to remember every last detail of our time together. She would need the comfort of the good memories to help her when I’m in surgery. Seeing her cry broke me down and hurt my heart. I needed her to be strong not just for me, but for us. It was her love that was getting me through this.
Driving to our next destination, my head was spinning with shock. My girl was grinning and laughed so hard, I thought she was going to wet herself. My Yankees got beat tonight, and not by just a run or two, but creamed. They only scored three runs against Baltimore’s eleven. Eleven? Seriously? She’s still smiling at me. I guess I would be doing the same thing if my team had won, but my girl can really gloat.
“Are you finished?” I asked her. I was trying to be a good sport about it,
but this was a tough pill to swallow.
“Not by a long shot, but I will take mercy on you. Oh, Jackson, come on. Let me have my fun. I know in your Yankee loving heart you must see how happy I am? What were the chances?”
Honestly at this point, I didn’t even care about who won. I already felt I had won by just admiring the smile on Riley’s beautiful face. She was glowing, and I was happy. My girl wanted ice cream to complete her happy dance, but little did she know I had so much more planned. I stayed back in the car while she and Richard ordered our sundaes.
My vibrating phone was going off nonstop for the past couple of hours. I knew it was my father, and that’s exactly why I was ignoring it. I had Richard take the tracers off our phones, another act that would make my father lose his mind, but as I explained in my note, I needed this night with Riley.
Curiosity won out and I scrolled through my 43 text messages, all from my father. It was the usual, “Where are you” to “Come back to the hospital right now.” And then the last message read:
Walker: I love you, son. Be safe.
I figured that by the time he texted me the last message, all the fight had gone out of him, or Reese talked him down. No matter what, I wasn’t going back until tomorrow morning. I promised Liam we would be back by nine. I had no regrets of the plan I set in motion, but I still didn’t want to hurt my father, so I sent him a short reply:
Me: I love you too, dad. I’m safe. Please do not worry. And dad? Don’t blame Richard. He’s got my back and will make sure I safely return in the morning.
I waited a few minutes and received no response. Hopefully this was a good sign that he trusted me, and we were okay. His one promise to me was that we were always okay. He didn’t even know how much I needed that to be true. I wiped away a few tears before the back door swung open. Riley’s hands were filled with delicious ice cream.
“Take your pick. We have vanilla with hot fudge or chocolate swirl with hot fudge.”
“You kept it pretty simple. I would have thought you would have went toppings crazy and layered them up,” I said as I reached for the vanilla cup.
“You know me too well, but we did indulge a bit much at the ballpark, so dessert is light tonight. You like it, right?”
“I love it.”
We sat and enjoyed our sundaes. Riley couldn’t stop smiling. The divider was lowered and I couldn’t help but notice Richard texting away. No doubt he was going round and round with my father. Richard was ex-military. I have no doubt he couldn’t handle my dad. To have Riley here and snuggled up in my arms was so worth my father’s potential eventual wrath.
The drive to the next destination wasn’t too long. My girl had fallen asleep and was looking so peaceful. I almost hated to wake her, but we were at our final stop of the evening.
“Baby, open your eyes,” I requested.
I brushed her hair away from her face and eyes, and her nose twitched when I did it. She let out a light giggle and then snuggled closer to my chest. If I could, I would put her in my back pocket and keep her there forever.
“Come on, sleepyhead, I want to show you something.” I stepped out first and reached for her hand. She slipped hers in mine, a perfect fit. The sun had set hours ago, leaving us with a clear night filled with stars dancing over the water below.
“Inner Harbor! I love it here.”
“I know you do, and this is why I brought you here tonight. Walk with me?”
Hand in hand we walked around the harbor. It was still summer here in Maryland. The harbor was filled with tourists, the restaurants were packed, and the street musicians were out and about. Two guitar players were singing one of our favorite songs by The Goo Goo Dolls, “Let love in.” Riley squealed, she was so happy. I twirled around as we passed them. We walked for a little while taking in the beautiful scenery and the boats that lined the marina.
Throughout our talk, Riley talked about all of her long-gone, happy memories spent here with her father. They used to go sailing on the weekends when he could get away from his hospital. They would come down here every Fourth of July to watch the fireworks display. She tried to hide her sadness, but I knew better. I gestured over to a bench to sit for a minute. Riley didn’t know, but we had reached the end of our walk. I turned to my girl and took her in my arms.
“It’s okay to miss your father. Don’t you think it’s time for you to forgive him?”
“I wish I would have listened to you when you asked me to. I still feel you’re in this position because of me. I behaved so foolishly and adolescent with my father.”
“Hey, we’ve been over this already, and it is not your fault. You wouldn’t be you if you tried to hide your feelings. Life is too short, baby, let the hurt fall away and move on from it. He is the only father you will ever have, and I know he loves you. Find your way back to him and make things right between you two.”
“What’s wrong, Jackson? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, and I was fine when I asked you this a few days ago. You need to make up with your father and put the past where it belongs. Being angry will not change anything that has already happened. Your dad is going to be okay. I’m sure it would help him, knowing that you forgive him and love him like you always have.”
“I do, Jackson. I love my father very much. I’m not even angry anymore. The moment I realized what happened to you back at the restaurant, I only wanted my hero, my father, the great doctor who could come flying in to help you. How could I be angry with him anymore? He’s operating on your brain in two days.”
“That he is, but that’s not why I want you to forgive him. I want you to reconcile with your father for you and to make things right between the two of you again.”
“I promise I will talk to him tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay,” I agreed. “Now… are you ready for your last surprise?”
“Another one? My goodness, Jackson. You’ve given me so much already. You should be resting right now, not taking me all over the place.”
“For the last time, I’m fine and will be better very soon. Do you see what we are sitting in front of?”
Her eyes smiled at me, and she really took in the beauty of the boat that was in the harbor. It belonged to Brandon’s uncle Vincent. He was an investment banker in New York. This was his summer toy, and until tomorrow, I got to enjoy some private time with my girl. It wasn’t like I could immediately use my father’s yacht that was docked in California, so when Brandon told me about his uncle’s boat, all these ideas went off in my head.
Riley got up and examined our floating hotel. She studied it very closely and then turned back to me.
“Um…Jackson, this is not just an everyday boat. This is a yacht, and quite an expensive one at that. This is a Sunreef 80 Carbon Line Superyacht. By looking at this beauty, this has got to be about a year old. It’s breathtaking. Who does it belong to?” She asked so innocently.
I was just shaking my head at her obvious knowledge of boats. I thought I was being slick by bringing her here, but she showed me. Another amazing thing I love about her. She can bamboozle me and make my head spin in a thousand directions.
“Riley, once again you beguile me. How do you know so much about boats?”
“Yachts, Jackson. This bad boy is a yacht, not a boat. I spent my childhood down at this harbor, and I love to sail. My father took me to a Charter Club yacht show once a few years back, so this at the time was just a model in progress. Anything else you want to know?”
“No, I’m good. To answer your question, this belongs to Brandon’s uncle, and it’s on loan to us for the night.”
I reached for her hand and led her to the ramp that would bring us onboard.
“Wow! This is just out of this world amazing. Are you sure it’s okay for us to be here?” she asked.
“It’s more than okay, baby. We have it all to ourselves, and no one will bother us. Come, let me show you around.”
After giving her the grand tour of this magnificent yacht, I led
her downstairs to the cabins, bypassing the guest quarters, straight to the master bedroom. This Catamaran slept ten people. It had four large cabins with private baths/en-suites. There was a large size dining room, sun-bathing area. It was absolutely grandiose for the rich. My father raised me in this lavish lifestyle, but everything I had, he made me earn. He used to tell me that he hated the labels that followed him growing up in New York and the Hamptons. I was born into wealth, but that didn’t mean I was allowed to behave like a spoiled brat.
Leading her into the master cabin, Riley gasped at the sight of it. I had candles lit around the entire room. Rose petals covered the white bed linens. John Legend was crooning in the background on my iPod. Sparkling cider was chilling in the ice bucket, right beside a platter of fruits and cheeses. My girl wasn’t saying too much, which was beginning to make me nervous. Had I misjudged her? Only one way to find out.
“Riley, talk to me.”
I turned her around to face me as I could feel her skin tremble under my touch. Her beautiful skin was now lined with goosebumps. Her smile would be an image I would never forget. Her silhouette was glowing off the back wall from the candle flickering all around her.
“Make love to me,” was all she said, four words that she asked of me before, and now I would give her all of me.
“I love you, Riley Taylor Briggs, so very much. Yes, we will make love tonight. I can’t wait to show you how much you mean to me, but first I would like to give you something. Come here, baby, and sit with me.”
I led her to the couch. I couldn’t choose the bed, not now with how much I wanted her. This day and night was everything I wanted it to be, and now it was time to present my mother’s ring to her.
“WHEN YOU FIRST asked me to marry you back in New York, I thought you were completely nuts. I knew I wanted to marry you and after we left Georgia. I knew for sure you were the one.”
I continued, “I had everything planned out on how I would ask you and the exact location where I would propose. Somehow that doesn’t really matter to me anymore, because I know in my heart that right here, right now is our time. I truly believe I was meant to find you on the day of my mother’s dedication ceremony. I even told my father that I believed my mother sent you to me. After listening to our parents’ love story and seeing how love stands the test of time for Lila and Thomas, I know that can be our story too.”
Our Forever Promise Page 25
