by Sophia Gray
“I’m over it, Tess. I swear, don’t worry.” He smiled, and Teresa sat back on her chair, a little bit ashamed for her sudden outburst. “What about you?” he asked, trying to lighten the mood.
“Just some friends from town,” she confessed with a small smile. Vance looked at her, and she knew he wanted to know more, but she could not open up to him just yet. She felt bad not being able to reciprocate, but she still couldn’t. “I’ll tell you my sad family story some other day. Today, we should get our asses up from these chairs and head out to court! We have a wedding to plan!” she exclaimed, and was glad when Vance did not press her any further.
They spent the rest of the day getting ready for their wedding. They had agreed that they would only go to court with Teresa’s friends, who would act as witnesses. After the courthouse wedding, they’d have some lunch at a restaurant nearby. Having a flashy, large wedding was neither of their styles, so they settled for something small, intimate, and simple.
They managed to make an appointment two weeks from that day, so that left them fifteen days to figure out what they would do after getting married. One thing they had also agreed on was that Vance would move in with Teresa after the wedding. Her place was larger, in a better location, and almost paid up, whereas he still lived in a rented flat.
From then on, Teresa had no idea what they would do.
Chapter Sixteen
Vance
“Fifteen days,” Vance muttered, looking at the calendar in his kitchen where he had circled in red his future wedding. He could not believe it was happening and he had no idea what would happen after the ceremony. He had left his phone on vibrate during his day out with Teresa, and now that he was home, he saw he had five missed calls from his boss. These next few weeks were going to be a nightmare. He sighed. “What the hell do I do with the boss?”
He collapsed on a chair in exhaustion, rubbing his forehead. He already knew the answer to that question. Vance knew he should call the boss to explain what he was doing and act like everything was going according to plan. But as soon as he could, Vance wanted to swing by the club, grab some things from his old place, and vanish.
He didn’t want to do it all of a sudden because that would make his boss suspicious and he would definitely catch him before he got far enough. But he didn’t feel like calling his boss yet, so he decided to head out for a walk to clear his head and keep an eye open for a place where he could work. If he was going to have a fresh start, he needed to make an honest living.
Vance grabbed his leather jacket and headed out. The streets were crowded, even if it was late. The fresh air cooled him down, carrying away his growing headache. He walked mindlessly through the streets, paying attention to the businesses in the area. Where was he going to find a job? And what could he do, anyway?
He was good at working with his hands and as a teenager had liked working with wood. Maybe he could find a job at a carpenter’s and start from the bottom. He liked the idea of producing useful things out of wood, and he crossed the street to where he had seen a carpenter’s workshop a few days ago. Vance was turning a corner when he hit someone and had to take a step back.
“Excuse me, sorry,” he murmured, glancing at the person he had bumped into. When he saw his face, though, he did a double take. He felt as if he had swallowed ice. Standing in front of him, with the same vicious smile he had known and feared, was David Bailey, his lieutenant at the Grim Rebels.
“Well, well, if it ain’t Vance Tate. Is this where you have been holed up on your ‘assignment’?” Bailey asked with a friendly smile that Vance did not fall for. If Bailey was there, that meant the boss had put surveillance on him and probably on Teresa too. There was no way in hell this was an encounter of mere coincidence.
“LT!” Vance exclaimed, putting on his best façade. “I’ll be damned! What are you doing here?” He offered his hand and Bailey took it, saluting like they always did.
“Yeah, the boss wanted me to check up on some goods,” he explained. “Didn’t know you were here, too, though. I would’ve called!”
Bullshit. Vance’s smile widened. Some goods, he thought. He and Teresa were those goods.
“This is my new spot, yes. Boss wanted this mission to be a secret, so can’t disclose details, sorry.” Vance smiled apologetically and hoped that was enough for Bailey.
“You should come by the club someday, we miss you there. And it’s not that far from the city.”
“I was thinking of swinging by later tonight, in fact. To report to the boss,” Vance lied through his teeth. Bailey looked delighted at the news.
“Then I’ll see you there!” he exclaimed. Bailey clapped Vance on the back and left, waving goodbye as Vance stood there, watching him go. He cursed under his breath: now he definitely had to go to the club, or Bailey would bust his ass.
Vance turned around and headed home. Forget the carpenter’s; he can go later. He knew he would be out all night, so when he got to his place he made himself a large mug of coffee before changing into his old clothes and grabbing his helmet and motorcycle keys.
He had rented a spot in the building garage, and when he went down there, his baby was waiting for him, covered in a big gray sheet. He uncovered it, and for a moment he smiled: as much as he dreaded going to the club, he had missing riding his baby. He got on, and as soon as he hit the streets, the old feeling of freedom rushed through his body, like adrenaline being pumped into his veins.
The cool night air awoke his senses, clearing his mind. He knew now what he had to do. He left all his doubts behind him as he crossed the streets of his new town and made the journey to his past. He saw it as clear as the moon shining above the road: he loved Teresa, and nothing else mattered.
He was exhilarated. He had fallen for her so hard he hadn’t even noticed until now how deep in love he was. He knew there had been something there and it wasn’t just guilt in deceiving an innocent girl, he just didn’t want to admit it before. He wanted to be with her forever. He wanted their wedding to be true, and he knew she would leave him for good once she found out the truth.
Vance had been too consumed by guilt – thinking about the tricks and lies he had told Teresa – that he had not been able to think straight. Now he could. He knew that he had to come clean someday and tell her the whole truth, hoping she’d forgive him, but now was not the time for those thoughts. Now he had to put on his old mask, play his part a little longer, and cut ties with the gang.
It took Vance about an hour to get to his old town. He crossed the well-known streets until he stopped in front of his old bikers’ club. The Grim Rebels logo shone bright, lighting up a line of motorcycles parked below it in red. He placed his baby at the end and walked to the door.
When he opened it, slowly, the old smell of smoke, alcohol, and decadence hit him like a hammer. The music was loud, banging in his ears. He could see his old buddies playing pool at one corner and Ella, the waitress, serving drinks for everyone at the bar. At the furthest end, hidden in the shadows, Jimmy Love was sitting in his armchair, with his second-in-command next to him, surrounded by several of his closest crewmen.
Silence fell for a moment when Vance entered, but it was immediately replaced with roars of laughter and cheering. Everyone came to greet him, slapping him hard on the back. Vance smiled at his old comrades and explained to everyone that he was there to talk to the boss, nothing else.
“I’ll have a drink with you guys later,” he promised until they let him go. Jimmy Love had not even moved from where he was and was looking grim when Vance reached him.
“Well, if it ain’t Tate. What brings ye here, ma boy?” Jimmy Love asked. His voice sounded hoarse, and Vance thought that he looked thinner than the last time he saw him. Was his mission so important for him that it was taking a toll on his health? Or was it something else? Vance figured it was the drugs, but he let go of that trail of thought and smiled widely at his boss.
“Boss! Told you I’d come by soon. Today I had a fre
e night, though tomorrow I have to be back. Don’t want to blow my cover just yet,” he explained, avoiding details purposefully. His boss understood: they could not really talk in front of everyone else, or they would find out that Vance was to inherit the club – something that not everyone would like, he knew.
“Come, let’s discuss it in me office.” Jimmy grunted. He got up, and Vance noticed that whatever was happening to his boss had also affected his ability to move. It took him a full minute to cross the space from his chair to his office, which was no more than ten steps away. “Ah, I am gettin’ old,” Jimmy muttered after Vance closed the door behind him.
“No way, boss,” Vance fibbed. “You are still rocking.”
“No need to lick me ass, boy. Ye already have me daughter and me club.” Jimmy barked and burst into a coughing laugh. “Well, tell me about Teresa.”
For the next hour, Vance summarized his advances with Teresa. He left out many things and made up others, but he had to tell a convincing tale of his advances. Jimmy did not let him go until Vance had told him everything.
“And when will the wedding be?” Jimmy shot the question at him when Vance was hoping he would dismiss him.
“I don’t know yet; we have not been able to set an exact date,” he lied. “She has to figure out her schedule and everything.” The last thing he wanted was for Jimmy Love to show up uninvited at their wedding. Jimmy looked at him hard for a long time until he clapped his hands and changed the subject.
“Well, boy, I want ye to start coming back more often. I need ye to do other jobs for me, now that this one is secured,” he told Vance. Vance nodded, trying to show conviction on his face. “Now off ye go! Have a drink on the house and go back to Teresa, do not keep the girl waitin’ and ruin everythin’!”
With a wave of Jimmy’s hand, Vance was dismissed and knew he needed to obey. He left the office and joined his old group, where Bailey was waiting for him. They had a couple of drinks before Vance insisted he had to go.
“Boss’ assignment, you know,” he muttered to everyone, shrugging as if to say, “What can I do?”
Back on the road, he drove carefully; he did not want to get a ticket for drunk driving. It took him longer to get home, but when he did, he crashed on his bed and fell asleep immediately. He knew the hardest part of his mission was about to start.
Chapter Seventeen
Teresa
“Girls, I have something to tell you.” Teresa had summoned her friends to dinner at a nearby restaurant shortly after Vance had left her apartment. Now that they had an official wedding date, she wanted to tell them. Anna giggled quietly while Karin, Jane, and Eva looked at her with curiosity. “Remember Vance Tate, my new co-worker at the Silver Spoons for Charity?” she continued, wanting to make sure they followed on.
All of them nodded.
“Yeah, the cute guy who wanted to have a coffee with you,” Jane pointed out.
“And who you rejected because you do not date,” Karin added.
“But who was cute as hell, as per your description,” Eva remarked, hiding a laugh.
Teresa looked at them, slightly fed up. They were always mocking her, and she knew that once she told them about the wedding, she wouldn’t hear the end of it. But she had to – as annoying as they sometimes were, they were her best friends.
“Yes, that Vance. I followed your advice and we kind of started dating,” she confessed, her cheeks turning red. Why did she always have to blush when she talked – or even thought – about Vance? Her friends all squealed in unison and started throwing questions at her, delighted.
“Oh, my God, congrats, Teresa! How was it? What’s he like?”
“Where did you go? Did he take you out to dinner?”
“Did you go dancing?”
“Have you kissed? Is he good?”
“Have you… you know? Done it?”
“Eva! Teresa wouldn’t sleep with a guy on the first date,” Jane scolded her, but Eva shrugged and kept on asking.
“Maybe they went on more dates. Teresa, how many dates already?”
Teresa raised her hands calling for silence and all of them obeyed. Anna looked at the scene, biting her lips to prevent herself from blurting out what she already knew.
“He took me to a café to have dinner and then we went dancing. Yes, we have met more than once… and he is a great kisser,” she said with a small smile. It was better to disclose some of these details, to convince their friends she was in love with Vance, so they would not object to the wedding so hard.
“Ah! I knew it! You are so into him!” Karin exclaimed. Teresa looked at her friends, and for the first time, a sincere smile came to her face and lit up her eyes. She was into him. How could she not be after spending all that time with him? They still had a lot to experience together and find out about each other, but she wouldn’t subject herself to a marriage with just anyone. She preferred to think that it was both out of convenience and her attraction to him, nothing beyond that, or she would freak out.
“There is something more,” Teresa said, looking down. Her friends looked at her expectantly.
“Are you pregnant?” Jane asked, suddenly concerned. This caused the rest to gasp so loudly that the people at the neighboring table looked at them in reprobation.
“Of course not!” she denied, a little bit offended. “I can take care of myself, thank you. No, that’s not it. The thing is…”
All four pairs of eyes were on her, and she found it very difficult to utter the words. She was suddenly very nervous. What if they disapproved of her wedding? If they judged her or did not want to come? Teresa had never had many friends throughout her life, and she had come to value these four girls a lot.
Even if they didn’t know about her dark, rocky past, she didn’t know what she would do without them. Anna leaned on the table and took her hand, squeezing it lightly, giving her a nod of support. She already knew and had not left her side, so why would Karin, Eva, or Jane be any different?
Her smile calmed Teresa, who took a deep breath and opened her mouth. “We are going to get married,” she blurted out.
She had expected silence, disbelief, or judging stares, but instead, she got: a joyful cry of unison that startled the whole restaurant. Teresa went bright red as her friends leaned closer, wanting to hug her and congratulate her, asking questions and exclaiming all kinds of things, all at the same time.
“Congratulations!”
“Oh, my God, I can’t believe this!”
“How did it happen? Why?”
“Are you sure you are not pregnant?”
“Eva! Of course I’m not!” Teresa laughed with her friends. She felt lighter. Why had she been so nervous? Her friends were the best.
Anna raised her glass and proposed a toast. “To Teresa and Vance, may they always be as happy as they are now,” Anna said, and they all toasted and drank.
“Girl, you have to tell us everything!” Karin urged her and Teresa sipped her drink, deciding how much she could tell.
She told them the details of the date, how he had appeared on her doorstep with daisies and books and had taken her to the most beautiful café in the city. They had gone dancing, and she had had a great time to all of their surprise. She also told them a little bit about the night – minus the most intimate details, or her father’s visit – and ended with how he proposed again, kneeling on her kitchen floor.
“I know it’s rushed and completely out of the blue… but I want to do it,” she admitted. Her friends looked lovingly at her. “And I want you to be there. I don’t think I could do this without you girls.”
“Of course we’ll be there, Teresa,” Anna assured her, giving her a gentle nudge on the shoulder.
“Do you have a date picked yet?” Eva asked.
Teresa nodded. “Yes. In two weeks.”
This drew new cries of surprise.
“Two weeks!”
“How are you going to plan a wedding in two weeks?”
�
��What about your bachelorette party?”
“Do you have a gift registry?”
“And the guests? Who is going to be available on such short notice?”
They were outraged and suddenly over-stressed about the many things that had to be done in so little time. Teresa had to silence them to explain everything.
“There will be none of that, girls. We’re just going to the courthouse to get married. You will be our only guests, and then we can go eat somewhere. And that’s it,” she stated. “Nice and simple.”
Her friends, though, would not want to hear a word of that.
“Nonsense!” Anna said. “You’re going to have a proper wedding! Starting with your bachelorette’s party! We’ll take care of the rest tomorrow – but tonight, you will celebrate your last nights as a single woman!”
