Finn Again (The Finn Factor Book 5) (11 page)

He heard Brady’s muttered, “
Damn
” a second before Owen yanked him into his arms and kissed him, right there in front of everyone.

“Son, she didn’t tell you to kiss him yet,” Shawn called from the front row, causing a ripple of warm laughter to flow over the room.

“No one has to tell me when to kiss him,” Owen responded gruffly, but he took a step back, still holding Jeremy’s hands. “Is it my turn to talk?”

Jeremy knew Owen hated giving speeches. He hadn’t wanted to write any vows or speak at the wedding, insisting he’d already said everything during his proposal. Apparently he’d changed his mind. There was a moment’s fear that blowjobs would be mentioned, but it disappeared as soon as he opened his mouth. “I won’t try to top that. I will never be as good with words as you are. But with you I don’t have to be. You already know me. You always have. I’m not sure I deserve that heart you’ve given to me, but I’m not giving it back. And knowing me the way you do, you know that I’ll spend the rest of our lives together trying to earn it.” He tilted his head toward the justice. “Let’s say these vows so I can kiss my husband again.”

Jeremy vaguely heard himself repeating the words. Love, honor and cherish. Sickness and health and forsaking all others. He heard Owen promise the same in a low, reverent tone. The rings he’d picked out went on and then there was cheering as Owen kissed him again, pulling his head down and making him forget his own name.

Hands clapped his back and arms engulfed him as they pulled him away from Owen’s side. Jeremy turned from Noah to see Stephen on his knees beside Tasha’s wheelchair, his arm around her as she sobbed. He knelt down and kissed her hand. “You hanging in there, best woman?”

“Barely,” she choked out. “My baby is
married
. It was so beautiful.”

Stephen shrugged as if to blame her emotion on the pregnancy, but his eyes were suspiciously bright when he gripped Jeremy’s arm. “Proud of you both.”

Jeremy rubbed something out of his eye that was
not
a tear and kissed Tasha on the forehead. “No dancing now. Those little ones need their rest.”

“If Rory had gotten me a motorized wheelchair the way I asked him to, I wouldn’t promise anything.” She smiled up at him weakly and then started crying again. “I hate hormones. And I think the babies need cake.”

“Not until we have pictures.” Jen appeared beside them, her face glowing and a compact in her hand. “Back up brothers, I’m the best woman’s official touch up girl.”

“Yes.” Tasha pushed Jeremy and Stephen away. “And I’m standing for some of the pictures so deal with it and don’t try and stop me.”

Jeremy felt Owen’s hand slide back into his and he smiled in relief, allowing himself to be led away. He wasn’t sure how many pictures were taken or who they took them with, though he did remember that Trick had to snag the leash from Brady and run when Badass started to whine.

“Don’t forget to put on his booties,” Owen called, and the Finn men teased him mercilessly until the photographer said it was time to cut the cake.

Owen kissed his cheek. “Declan didn’t get cake,” he murmured. “Apparently really, disgustingly rich people like to get creative with their chocolate.”

“Holy shit,” Jeremy said, stunned as a life-size replica of the vigilante demon from his bestselling comic book series was wheeled out in front of him. It was made entirely of chocolate. White, dark and milk. He glanced at Jen’s boyfriend for a second before his gaze returned to the piece of art. “Holy shit, Declan.”

Owen slid an arm around his waist. “He had them make tiny pizzas for me, too. Very upscale, but I’ll need at least twenty to tide me over. The professor is good at sucking up.”

Declan snorted. “I’m standing right here.”

“You’re standing on the top ten list of my favorite people at the moment.” Owen’s voice was charm itself. “So don’t go changing.”

He saw Seamus grab his twins, Penny and Wes, as they ran full tilt for the statue, their legs bicycling wildly in the air. “You need to wait, guys,” he said with a patient smile. “This isn’t Willy Wonka’s, it’s your uncle’s wedding.”

“It’s Vini, Dad!” Wes cried. “Uncle Jer, look, it’s Vini!”

Jeremy beamed. Five-year-old Wes wasn’t old enough to be into comics, but he’d seen some framed art when they’d come to visit and demanded to know everything about the strange little character that lived in Jeremy’s head. He wouldn’t stop talking about it. The adorable towhead would be pleased to know he was getting his own framed drawing of the demon on an adventure with Wes and his twin sister for Christmas.

Right now, however, chocolate was all Wes wanted. “Jake,” Seamus called. “Can you grab one of these sugar addicts?”

“When can we ditch this party?” Owen asked after distracting him by nuzzling his neck while the photographer circled them, snapping one shot after the other. “After we cannibalize that statue?”

“This is our party, Owen.” Jeremy laughed quietly, still watching Seamus trying to wrangle his children. His older son, Jake, had stepped in to help at his father’s request. “We can’t ditch our own wedding reception.”

“You shouldn’t tell him he can’t do things.” Jeremy turned to see Rory grinning at them with two strange men beside him. “You know he thinks the word is a dare.”

Owen stood behind Jeremy, wrapping his arms around his waist and resting his chin on his shoulder. “Pot meet Kettle,” he said lazily, practically purring against Jeremy like a contented lion. “Introduce us to your friends.”

Jeremy saw a warning in Rory’s eyes before his smile widened and he slid his arms through both of theirs. “Rig and David? This is my cousin Owen and his new husband Jeremy.”

Rig was not as tall as he was bulked up with muscle. With his Roman nose and dark hair he was definitely attractive, but he was eyeing them as if they were on the auction block at Owen’s favorite BDSM club. “Pleasure to meet you. And congratulations.” His words were polite, but his eyes were anything but. He was as sexual as Rory. No wonder they were friends.

The other man was different. Gorgeous, his tall, muscular frame had a more “naturally gifted” feeling. Very hot boy next door. Jeremy saw Rory steal a glance at his friend as though waiting for his reaction. “Nice to meet you both,” he said politely. “I’m David Mills. Sorry we horned in on your special day, but we’ve been hearing about this wedding for months and couldn’t resist when Rory called to invite us.”

“He talks about us,” Owen faux-whispered to Jeremy. “And you thought he didn’t like us.”

“You’re a conversation starter, that’s all,” Rory said with a smirk. “My proof that no man is a straight line.” His gaze flickered to David’s again.

What was
that
about?

“So true,” Owen agreed easily. “We
are
fascinating. Tell us how you know Rory, David.”

Brown eyes looked momentarily startled. “Oh. Well, we met in our senior year of high school. I was a transfer student and Rory took pity on the new kid.” He smiled at his friend. “He was all about school spirit back then. Everyone loved their mascot, so I had an easier time adjusting.”

But Jeremy frowned, suddenly realizing how little he knew about Brady’s brothers. At least, the lives they led between Finn Agains. They needed to fix that. He needed to fix that. “Mascot?”

Rory dug his elbow into David’s side. “Thanks for that.”

“College,” Rig joined the conversation, pointing to himself. “Back when Rory stopped being a mascot and became the campus wild child.”

“Then you’re practically family.” Jeremy was having a hard time forming sentences since Owen’s hand had drifted down to cup his behind. “You probably know half the people here.”

Rory looked uncomfortable, pulling at the collar of his dress shirt. “Noah and Wyatt. But they won’t be staying long enough to meet everyone else.”

David sent him a strange look Jeremy couldn’t decipher. “We’re not in that much of a hurry. I don’t have to be anywhere until brunch with my parents tomorrow.”

“That’s good,” Owen said, the smirk in his voice clear. “Flexibility is important in a friendship. If you can’t
bend
, you can’t friend. Right Rory?”

Rory seemed to know what he was talking about. He flinched and sent his cousin a withering glare. “You would know, Owen. Come on, guys. Let’s leave the newlyweds alone. I’m thirsty.” He tugged his friends away a little too forcefully.

“Have fun,” Owen called after them sweetly as they disappeared toward the champagne fountain. Jeremy sighed. They had a champagne fountain. Tequila would have been more appropriate.

“Are you going to tell me what I missed there?” Jeremy asked suspiciously. “I only left you alone for two days.”

Owen turned him around and sent him a sensual smile. “I’ll tell you if you come upstairs with me.”

He made a face. “Owen, we can’t—”

“Rory’s right, can’t is a dare,”’ he insisted. “And we’ll be back before anyone knows we’re gone. I love you and I believe I promised to consummate the hell out of that ass.” He saw Jeremy’s lips twitch and pressed. “It
is
traditional, husband.”

He wasn’t wrong.

Christmas Day…

“But
why
?”

Seamus tweaked his daughter’s bright red nose. “Because people don’t marry blood relations.”

Penny put her hands on her hips. “Why?”

“Because then you can’t have babies.” The lie slipped from his lips out of self-preservation. This conversation was way too complicated for a five-year-old. Or the father of a five-year-old.

She scrunched up her face thoughtfully, looking adorably annoyed. “Jake and I have different blood, right? He had a different dad before you. So we
could
have babies if we wanted to.” She looked so relieved he wanted to laugh.

Seamus sighed and whistled for his brother’s dog again. “Come on, Lucky Penny. We need to grab Bad and get inside.”

She placed her gloved hand in his obediently. “That’s not his name, Daddy. And good. I’m cold and stockings were
hours
ago, but Gram said we had to wait.”

“Gram is right.” Not always, he silently amended, but often enough. They’d all stayed overnight at Declan Kelley’s hotel-sized house so they could spend Christmas together. Since it was the season of peace and love, when his mother sat him down this morning and asked him to forgive her for not practicing what she preached, he capitulated easily. After the outpouring of love at the wedding, it was hard not to. And he’d noticed Jen and his mother holding each other as Owen and Jeremy exchanged their vows. If his baby sister could start fresh after what happened, so could Seamus.

It bothered him more than he’d thought it would, her treatment of Jennifer. He was as shocked as anyone when Solomon told him the family secret. Stunned because he’d never had a clue. But that wasn’t what truly upset him. After the blind acceptance she gave to Owen and Stephen—hell, to him the first time he came home with a son that wasn’t his—he couldn’t wrap his head around the guilt she’d nearly buried her only girl under. When he realized how complicit he and the others had been by not seeing Jen as a grown woman—not noticing how unhappy she’d been before—he felt pretty damn bad about himself as a brother. And disappointed in his mother for the first time in his life.

He looked down at Penny. He was a protective father too, and there was nothing he wouldn’t do to keep her from harm and heartbreak. But he hoped he’d never load her down with his personal baggage. The last thing he wanted was for her to be afraid to take a chance on love because she’d learned the wrong lessons from him. 

“I think I’ll ask Gram.”

“Ask her what, angel?” Seamus finally saw the dog and whistled one more time. Hopefully he’d listen. Penny had been holding the leash when Badass bolted away in the snow, booties and all.

“I bet she thinks it’d be okay if I wedded Jake.”

“Married Jake. And I bet you’re wrong. Don’t bother Gram with that right now. It’s Christmas.” He’d become more open-minded about a lot of things this year, but he drew the line at letting her marry her brother.

Penny muttered under her breath, her little legs stomping beside his.

“What?”

“I want a chocolate state.”

Seamus snorted. “Statue.”

“That’s what I said. And a Jell-O.”

That one took him a minute. “Do you mean a cello? As in the instrument?”

“I said that, Daddy.”

Badass stopped beside them, panting happily with his leash dragging behind him. He grabbed it then picked Penny up in his arms. “We can get you a chocolate statue and cello lessons, I promise. But let’s save the wedding talk for a while. Until you’re twenty-five.”

“But I love him. And everyone says when you love someone you’re supposed to get wedded.” Her breath made clouds in the air and her big blue eyes made her look like a doll. She was so precious.

“Married. And of course you love him, Penny. He’s your family. Remember what the justice of the peace said? There are different kinds of love.”

“Was your married that nice?”

“Wedding?” He kept his tone casual. “Penny you know I never had a wedding. I told you that last night.” And last week. And the week before that. She’d gone just as crazy over the wedding plans as her grandmother. It brought up a lot of hard questions.