Chapter 38 Emmett
Emmett
Reese was right. Miller does make a beautiful bride.
Did I cry a little when I saw her in her dress for the first time this afternoon? Yes.
Did I tear up while I walked her down the aisle then again during her vows? Also, yes.
Today has been special for a lot of reasons. Kai and Miller asked me to officiate the ceremony, so I got to stand up there with them and lead them through it. Isaiah and Kennedy acted as the only members of their bridal party, standing on either side of them.
And of course, Max was with us too, wearing a button-down shirt that refused to stay tucked in. He’s had a ring of something around his mouth all day, chocolate milk if I had to guess, and could hardly stand still as he listened to his parents make vows to each other.
It was perfect.
And every once in a while, when the timing was right, I’d look into the crowd and catch Reese’s eye. Sitting in the second-to-last row, wearing a pretty lilac dress and a sweet smile on her face as she watched.
It’s nice to see her enjoying herself. Since we got home from Colorado, she’s been a bit off, burying herself with work. When I asked if I could help with anything, she assured me she had everything handled—whatever that means.
But today, it’s clear she put all of that on the back burner and has been fully present and in the moment with me. It’s been more special having her here than I could’ve imagined.
When Kai and Miller had their first dance, I got to sit with her as we watched them together.
She had her hand in my lap, stroking soft lines on my thigh the whole time.
When Isaiah gave his best man speech, I had my arm around her chair and whenever she laughed, she’d fall into my shoulder.
After Miller and my father–daughter dance, Reese is who I came back to.
It means more than she’ll ever know, getting to share today with her. Getting to talk to her. Getting to sit next to her. Getting to take photos and dance with her. Getting to experience this all with her.
I know she was hesitant about being out in public with me for the first time. Although the team has assumed correctly about the two of us, they’ve never seen us together in this way or had our relationship confirmed. That changed today.
She was nervous at first, looking around anytime I reached for her hand. But soon enough, she settled.
Yeah, every one of the guys gave us shit at one point or another, but it was all good-natured. And it was nice. Being us in public for once.
But thankfully, other than the wedding guests, no one else is privy to seeing that.
It’s an intimate gathering of Kai and Miller’s closest people. There’s got to be fewer than fifty of us in attendance. The team is here, as are a couple of other athletes who play for Chicago—two hockey players and a basketball player. And a couple of other friends as well.
The wedding location is secluded and private.
We’re a couple of hours outside of the city, but it feels as if we’re in the middle of nowhere in the best possible way.
It’s all greenery and nature here. Oak trees envelop us, adding to the privacy factor.
Two long tables and a makeshift dance floor are set up under string lights for the reception.
And just on the other side of the tables, yurt-style tents are scattered around the property for all the guests to stay the night after the party. The camping vibe works for the two of them. After all, Miller used to travel the country living out of her van before she landed in Chicago.
“It’s kind of annoying how happy we are, huh?” my daughter asks from the seat next to me.
I wrap an arm around the back of her chair. “Yeah, the smile on my face is a bit painful. I could go for less of it.”
She drops her head to my shoulder as we keep our eyes on the dance floor.
Isaiah stole Reese for a dance and Kai took Kennedy. Max is passed out asleep in his mom’s lap, exhausted from the party, so I stayed behind too.
“She’s a good addition,” Miller states, nodding toward the dance floor.
My attention finds Reese, laughing at whatever it is Isaiah is saying to her.
I smile that same smile I’ve worn all day. “Yeah. She is.”
“What are you two going to do about work? You can’t keep your relationship a secret forever.”
“I don’t know, Millie. It’s either her name gets dragged through the mud for dating her employee, and we both know that’s going to stain her reputation forever, or I quit my job. I’m only okay with one of those options.”
“But you love your job.”
“Yeah, but I lo—” I stop myself.
“Oh shit.” She smacks me in the chest with the back of her hand. “You’re in love with her! Of course you are.”
There’s no use denying it, but I don’t confirm either. I should probably tell Reese before I tell anyone else.
“Have you told her?”
“Not yet.”
“Wow.” Miller drops her head back onto my arm. “She really is going to be my new mommy, isn’t she?”
“Let’s not scare her off with that weird shit, please. It’s her first time around the whole family like this, us being together, and I’ve already got Isaiah saying God knows what to her out there.”
But I can’t stop the smile from stretching my lips as I watch those four on the dance floor. Reese is holding her own just fine with Isaiah, saying something that causes his head to tip back in laughter. And Kai is joking about something with his sister-in-law as they finish their dance together.
The music fades out as the song comes to a close.
The reception has almost come to a close as well. A handful of the guests have already made it back to their tents for the night. But then you have the guys from the team who I have a feeling will be up partying until the sun rises.
That’s the benefit of Kai and Miller getting married on a random summer Monday, I suppose. We don’t start our next series until Wednesday, so everyone can recover tomorrow.
The four of them make their way back to our end of the table.
Isaiah takes a seat, and Kennedy slips onto his lap.
Kai presses a kiss to the top of Miller’s hair before lifting their sleeping son into his arms to give her a break.
And Reese stands behind my chair, sliding her hands over my shoulders and crossing them at my chest.
I had convinced myself I didn’t care that I was the only one in my family without someone. But now that Reese is here, I know I was fooling myself before. This feels right. The seven, soon-to-be eight of us, feels right. Unconventional little family that we may be.
I reach up and hook a hand around Reese’s wrist, holding her to me.
On the way to the bar, Cody and Travis stop by our end of the table.
Cody looks up at Reese then down to me, repeating that pattern a couple more times. “I don’t know if any of the other guys on the team are going to tell you, so I’ll be the one to say it. You two are hot together.”
“Jesus, Cody.” Travis shakes his head.
“What? It’s giving ‘power couple.’”
“It’s giving ‘he can bench your ass, and she can trade you.’”
“Exactly. Power couple. And they wouldn’t.” Cody looks at us. “Would you? You love me too much. But out of curiosity, with three happy couples here and all, just how many hookups have happened at the stadium?”
“I’m so sorry for him.” Travis pushes Cody to keep moving and doesn’t let up until he’s far enough away from our table.
“I’m not here to judge! You can tell me!” Cody yells over his shoulder at us.
I feel Reese silently shake in laughter behind me.
“What?” Kai laughs. “Mills and I have never hooked up at work. Well, if we don’t count any of the road trips from that summer she was nannying for Max.”
“Yeah, for sure,” Kennedy adds. “Same here. No hookups at work. Definitely not.”
Isaiah scratches the back of his neck. “But also, maybe don’t use the women’s restroom by the clubhouse.”
“I knew it!” Reese bursts. “You two looked guilty as hell when I found you in there last year.”
“Really, guys?” I ask. “The bathroom?”
“You two probably have no room to talk.” Isaiah lifts an accusatory brow. “Why don’t you go ahead and tell us what rooms we should avoid at work, huh?”
Reese stays silent.
“How about we don’t,” I answer for us.
“Please don’t.” Miller visibly grimaces. “I’ll never be able to go to another game there if this conversation continues. For the love of God, can we talk about something other than my dad’s sex life?”
She holds her left hand over her eyes to shield herself.
“Oh, Miller,” Reese sighs from behind me. “I hadn’t seen your wedding band yet.”
The conversation shifts as my daughter excitedly holds out her left hand to show her.
Reese takes it in her own, examining the diamond band nestled against Miller’s engagement ring. “It’s beautiful,” she says. “It pairs perfectly with your mom’s ring. I love them together.”
Miller beams, checking out her own hand. “I love them too.”
Taking Reese’s hand that I still have in my own, I bring it to my lips and press a kiss to the back of it. She didn’t miss a beat when I told her the significance of Miller’s engagement ring, which is just another reason I love her.
“We should get this kid to bed soon,” Kai says with Max’s cheek pressed to his shoulder.
Miller cranes her neck back to look up at him. “One more dance, the three of us, and we’ll call it a night?”
He wears this soft smile as he looks down at her. “Sounds perfect, Mills.”
“What do you say, wifey?” Isaiah asks Kennedy. “We’ve got a second wedding coming up ourselves. Maybe we should go practice.”
“This music is a little different than what I’m accustomed to getting married to.”
Isaiah laughs, standing to carry her out to the dance floor, following his brother’s lead.
Hand in mine, Reese backs away from the table, urging me to stand and follow her. “Come on, Em. I can’t let my final dance be with Isaiah.”
“Hey!” Isaiah interjects. “I’m an excellent dancer, Reese. Isn’t that right, Kenny?”
Kennedy hesitates. “Let’s just say I think it’s good we have time to practice before it’s our turn again.”
Reese leads me out to join everyone else, walking backward and facing me, a single hand of mine in two of hers.
It’s so different from the last time we danced together. I had to practically drag her onto the dance floor at her grandfather’s retirement party. Now, here she is, on display in front of our entire team, pulling me to follow her.
She doesn’t have to force me, by any means. I’d literally follow her anywhere.
Taking her arms, I drape them around my neck, then settle my hands onto her lower back. Chest to chest. Cheek to cheek. The song is slow, and we move to that same tempo.
“Thank you for being here today,” I tell her quietly. “It means the world to get to share it with you.”
“I wouldn’t miss it for anything.”
“Has everything been okay with you? You’ve seemed stressed at work since we got back from our last road trip.”
Reese goes silent for a moment before she says, “Everything is okay.”
“Can I do anything?”
She smiles up at me, hands on either side of my face. “Let’s not worry about work right now. Not tonight. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.”
I study her, trying to understand what’s weighing on her. But she’s right. It can’t matter tonight. I press a kiss to the top of her hair before she rests on my shoulder again, the two of us dancing as the party winds down around us.
Her fingers toy with the line of my hair. “You did such a good job officiating today.”
“You think so?”
“It was perfect. It was so special to hear you talk about them. The stories were personal, and the advice you gave them was delivered with so much faith in their future.”
“I do have a lot of faith in their future.” I have a lot of faith in ours too. “I was a bit nervous, though. It was my first time doing something like that.”
“Yeah, I didn’t know you did weddings.” She pulls away, tilting her head as she looks up at me. “Ever consider doing one as the groom?”
I huff a laugh. “Don’t tempt me, Remington.”
I’ve had the question on my mind for some time now, and standing up front during the ceremony today has only brought it to the forefront. I can’t think of a better time to ask.
“Reese, no wrong answer here. But could you ever see yourself getting married again?”
Her brows lift in surprise at my blatant question. But she doesn’t give me a yes-or-no answer. Instead, she asks, “Is that something you’d want?”
“I’ve never gotten the chance to be married before. I think I’d like to be.”
Her smile goes soft. “If I could have it my way, I’d marry you, Emmett. If that’s what you’re asking.”
I slip her curled hair behind her ear, running my thumb over her line of earrings. “Well, maybe one day, that’s exactly what I’ll be asking.”