Chapter Thirty-Five ADAM #2
I never thought love could tear me apart and put me back together in the same breath. With Jackie, every little step she takes to reveal herself feels like another chance.
“I love you, too.” I give her another quick peck.
She rises, adjusting her dress and straightening her new necklace, beaming.
I follow her, but before she can step out of the archway, I swat a palm over the curve of her ass. Because I never get tired of the feel of her. “Go and boss everyone around, you’re behind schedule.”
She yelps and spins wide-eyed, then rolls them laughing.
As we approach the gate, from somewhere past the hedges, the violin picks up again.
“It’s time,” she says.
And I step after her into the wedding chaos, no longer afraid she’ll go where I can’t follow.
Under the hydrangea arch, Carter is compulsively tugging at the cuffs of his shirt, glancing over his shoulder every two seconds.
“You’re supposed to wait for the music,” I tease.
He readjusts his cufflinks for what must be the hundredth time and shoots me a pointed look. “Oh, I can’t wait for you to stand in my place one day.”
There was no big talk about my relationship with his sister. No grand speech. No fist-throwing or awkward tension. Just us arriving at their Thanksgiving dinner, holding hands and grinning like two teens.
I’ll take his words as the official stamp of approval. Not that it would stop us either way, but it means a lot.
The first note of the quartet breaks through the murmurs of the families and friends sitting on both sides of the aisle, and everyone holds their breath.
Only the lulling melody and the sound of lake water lapping the shore accompany Jackie as she steps first into the warm light of the late June sun.
She gives me a wink before taking her place on the other side.
Then Quinn glides down the flower-lined grass, chin held high and a little smirk gracing her features.
When Eliza finally appears, Carter freezes next to me.
Sam’s mustache twitches as he walks beside her, clearly trying to hold it together. She’s radiant, wearing the biggest smile, practically floating.
I swear, Carter doesn’t breathe the entire time it takes Sam to give her a hug and a few whispered words. When Eliza steps in front of him, he clasps her hands and stares at her with a dazed look, like he can’t believe his luck.
His vows put a knot in my throat, while Eliza’s bring tears of laughter to everyone present.
My focus drifts instinctively to Jackie. She sits behind the bride, across the flower arch, clutching the bouquet to her chest, wrapped in their moment with unguarded joy.
“You could at least pretend to pay attention,” Logan says through clenched teeth, keeping his smile fixed. This man is actually scary sometimes.
A long kiss seals the ceremony. The guests erupt in applause and hollers, showering them with rice and flower petals.
As the sun dips lower, the music from the tent grows louder, and after hugs and well-wishes, we all follow the sound.
Inside the tent, the newlyweds have their first dance, champagne starts flowing, and the dance floor fills.
I never lose sight of Jackie. She moves effortlessly from the band to the caterer, and stops for a few words with the photographer. When she laughs, the yellow diamond on her necklace catches the string lights. Like a beacon in the festive chaos. Always guiding me to her.
These past months have been hectic, to put it mildly. Being thrown back into our busy lives was one thing. Untangling the loose ends was another.
Now, when we walk into events together, I feel lighter.
Because there are no more threats lurking in the background.
Because I know, without a doubt, that she loves me and doesn’t regret choosing me.
The fact that Robertson and Clara quietly used their weight on all the charity boards in the city to ban Blanca for the next couple of years was not a bad perk. At all.
As for Michelle, I kept my end of the deal and used my connections to secure her the best plea agreement possible. And Jackie, to everyone’s shock, included Michelle’s brother in the experimental trials for the Neural Interface.
Michelle made the same mistake I once made. She just assumed. Didn’t trust Jackie with the core of who she is.
A good person.
Most of the wedding guests are their friends from Silver Lake Falls. I spot Sheriff Walker in a corner by Quinn’s side. I didn’t think they made a suit in his size. He’s looking painfully out of place. Still, he sits next to her as she’s talking to Sam, dabbing her eyes.
When a slow song starts, I have only one direction in mind.
Two steps across the floor, and I’m nearly taken out by Carter’s uncle’s cohort of sugar-hyped kids, bolting past with suspicious, bulging pockets.
A cool hand wraps around my wrists and tugs me out of harm’s way.
“You should be more careful.” Jackie smiles and brushes a kiss against my cheek.
My body instantly relaxes. “Worth going through a stampede for you.”
“I’d rather you kept most parts of you intact,” she says.
I wrap one arm around her waist and pull her flush to me. “Glad to hear you’d spare some pound of flesh.”
The wind swirls in from the lake, mixing the smell of forest and wildflowers in bloom into the air as we sway to the rhythm of the song.
“You could consider a career change,” I say, gesturing to the party.
“Maybe as a hobby,” she laughs. “Eliza was easy. Imagine me in a screaming match with a bridezilla.”
“Actually,” I hum. “I’d pay good money to see that.”
Jackie leans in, nose brushing mine. “Keep your money,” she whispers. “I can show you my wild side in another way.”
“Talk like that, and you’ll be ending this party early.”
She looks like she wouldn’t mind one bit. But then her gaze shifts past my shoulder, and her brows knot together.
“What’s up with Logan?” she asks, nodding to where he and his father stand behind the candy bar, in a visibly tense exchange. I have never seen Logan so pissed, even when he thought I hurt Jackie.
“I think it’s his love life. Or lack of one.” It’s a guess, but it’s been the root of every argument I’ve witnessed between them.
“You have a lot of acquaintances,” Jackie muses.
“Don’t even think about it.”
“Why not? Maybe—”
“I’m not playing matchmaker for a man with access to missile drones.”
She shoots me a pointed look and rests her cheek on my chest with a big sigh.
We sway in the golden light, laughter and clinks of glasses echoing around us, until her mom pulls her into the midst of her extended family from Maine.
Their dad pressured Clara to cut ties with them once the company took off. But she’s slowly rebuilding those bridges. Letting her kids reconnect with the people they were kept far away from. And by the looks of it, it’s working. Awkward smiles turn to full-blown laughter.
I let her be and decide to hunt down Logan. Just to see how long I can poke the bear before he snaps.
The party’s still in full swing, hours later. I’ve danced. Learned more local gossip from Martha than I wanted. I’ve eaten too much, chatted up all the aunts, and played with all the kids.
There is only one thing I want now.
And I’m not wasting another second without her.
I spot Jackie chatting with Walker. I stride over and plaster her to my side, as he’s showing her a video of an adorable boy having the best time of his life being chased by a goose.
“Sorry, emergency. Gotta steal her.” I shrug.
“What happened?” Jackie asks, looking frantically around the party.
He pockets his phone, smirking. “Don’t let me keep you.”
I tug her away, out of the tent, down the flagstone path.
“Did they drop the cake?” she pants behind me. “Tell me!”
I spin sharply, and she stumbles into me. Without a word, I crouch and toss her over my shoulder, continuing my stride to the boathouse.
“Let go of me!”
“No. I’ve shared you enough,” I grumble. “I need you for myself for ten uninterrupted minutes.”
She exhales, dropping her head onto my back. Then she stretches and pinches my ass. “Needy much?”
I push the door shut behind me, muting the party.
“Very,” I admit. “I’m not ashamed of it.”
Gently, I let her slide out of my hold on the familiar workbench, peppering her with kisses.
“Love this clingy side of you.”
“You haven’t seen the half of it,” I breathe into her neck.
She leans back on her hands, smiling. “Can’t wait for our big day,” she says. “Or…come to think about it, we could always elope.”
“It’s a strategy,” I say, sliding my hands down her knees. “Might keep us on the run from both our mothers for the rest of our lives.”
Jackie throws her head back laughing, the tips of her hair brushing the worn wood.
“But sure. I could rock a beard. Maybe some tattoos,” I add, as my fingers slip beneath the hem of her dress, pressing into warm skin.
Eyes hooded, she wraps her arms around my neck, soft lips gliding over mine. I taste her and bask in the heat of her touch, pulling her closer until there’s no space between us.
“It’s a good sign,” she breathes, “when your partner is willing to entertain your most peculiar ideas.”
Nine years later, I don’t know how we survived the distance. Or our mistakes. But the signs were always there.
Just waiting for us to be ready.
Waiting for the right time for love.
THE END