Left Together (43 page)

“But
the words
do
exist.”

“They
do?”

“Not
only do they exist, but we say them all the time. That’s what I realized.
Overthinking things like this causes so much unnecessary stress. We already
work perfectly together just the way we are. Being here today, making us a
formal thing, is wonderful and special. But whether we did this or not wouldn’t
change how we are. What is the one thing you tell me every single day before we
walk away from each other or before we fall asleep at night? It’s so natural
for you to say it, you don’t even think about forming the words.”

Evan’s
eyes tear up and his lips shape into the most handsome smile I’ve ever seen.
“You and me.”

“Exactly.
Those three simple words mean more to me than flowers, jewelry, fancy weekends
away, any of it. They may not mean a damn thing to anyone else but, to me,
they’re everything I need to know. How much you love me. How you can’t wait to
be with me again. How much you miss me. All of that and so much more. How do
you feel when you hear them back?”

“Complete.”

“See?”

“I
can’t believe you’ve known this whole time how I feel about you. I guess I can
stop doing all those little things now, huh?”

“No.”

He
chuckles. “I wouldn’t dream of it, sweetheart.” He lifts my hand up to kiss my
fingers, then touches the locket hanging around my neck. “You know she’s here,
right? She wouldn’t miss this day for anything.”

I
smile, thinking of the butterfly that was flying around a few minutes ago.
“Yeah, I know. Neither would your brother.”

“It’ll
probably always bother us how we were left behind by two people who meant so
much, but there’s not a doubt in my mind or my heart that they made sure we
were left together.”

“You
think so?”

“Absolutely.
Besides, Ethan owed me. He was always a pain in my ass.” We both chuckle,
remembering the stories Evan likes to tell about him. “What do you say? Ready
to be my wife?”

“I’ve
been ready.”

“Then
let’s do this. Looking at you in that dress is making me twitch. I’ve made love
to you in my head about five different ways since I came through that door.” I
can’t help it. I burst out laughing.

***

Noah
is pacing just behind the huge wall of tropical plants which is the only thing
separating the two of us from everyone seated in front of the gazebo. Meg already
made it to where Evan, Jake, Kyle, and Ethan are standing, and Jade is halfway
there. He keeps asking how it is possible that his baby sister is old enough to
be getting married. He takes a deep breath and calms himself so that he’s able
to stand still, then holds his arm out for me to take.

Once
my arm loops through, I kiss his cheek again. “Thank you for doing this for
me.”

“Are you
kidding? I should be the one thanking you for asking me.”

“I
think this is big enough that you can let yourself off the hook for not being
at graduation.”

“Fine.”
He looks down at me and smiles. “Are you nervous?”

“Nope.”

“Not
even a little?”

“Nope.”

“Why
not?”

“Because
this is what I want.” It’s only partly true. The whole truth is that Evan and I
already had our moment. I was nervous waiting for him to get to the garden, but
the second he took a step toward me, it vanished. That’s why we wanted our meeting
beforehand. We wanted a private moment for just the two of us that we didn’t
have to share with a crowd of people. Even though we absolutely adore everyone
who came, when it all comes down to it, the most important part is the love we
have for each other. As far as I’m concerned, I’m already his wife.

The
music changes, signaling Noah to his very important role. “I guess it’s time.”
He takes one more deep breath and we begin our slow journey down the aisle. My
eyes fix on the man standing at the end of it. I don’t look away until it’s
time for my brother to let me go.

“I
love you,” I whisper, looking at Noah.

“I
love you, too, sis. I always will.” He leans to kiss my cheek, then places my
hand in Evan’s.

My
focus switches back to the only man able to capture my heart, making everyone
and everything else fade away. Before the ceremony has a chance to begin, Evan
leans in closer to me, his eyes still fixed on mine, his smile unwavering.

“You
and me,” he says softly.

“You
and me,” I repeat as he takes my mouth in his. Neither one of us care about
this not being how it was supposed to happen. Something tells me, we never
will.

Evan

Will
this shit ever stop happening? Whenever my beautiful wife walks into the room,
every part of me gets more excited than a teenage boy alone in his room,
staring at a poster of naked girls. As of today, I am thirty-fucking-years-old.
That’s entirely too old to be dealing with this shit in a room full of people.
I want to get up and go to her, but I can’t unless I’m going to show our
friends and family how much she turns me on. They already know, but they don’t
need to see it. This is ridiculous. Even with her swollen belly that is
protecting our growing baby, she’s the most stunning, sexiest woman I’ve ever seen.
Ever. When you throw in her other qualities like her thoughtfulness, huge
heart, and caring hands… Damn.

I’ll
never forget the day we found out Kacie was pregnant. She had been feeling
shitty for a few days. When day three of her not being able to keep anything
down rolled around, I packed her stubborn ass in my truck and took her to see a
doctor. She insisted she had picked something up from one of her students. At
that point, I didn’t give a shit where she got it. I wanted it to go away.
Right before they took her back to the exam room, someone from the club called.
She said to answer it. She’d be fine going back on her own. I should’ve known
better.

After
the longest half-hour of my life, a nurse came out to get me. “Mr. Pierce,
would you like to come back?”

“Is
she okay?” I asked nervously, following her down the hall.

“She’s
fine,” she said with a smile and a small chuckle.

When
she opened the door, Kacie looked worse than before she went in. She was
sitting on the exam table, holding one of those plastic things you always see
people throw up in on hospital shows. Tears were streaming down her face as she
stared at the floor, but she was completely silent. The doctor was standing
there and tried to greet me, but I couldn’t hear him. I rushed past him to get
to Kacie.

“Sweetheart,
what’s wrong?” I pulled her to my chest. “Please, tell me.” I was scared to
death.

“I
don’t understand how it happened,” she whispered.

“Kacie,
what the hell happened?” I turned her face to look at me.

It
took her a fucking eternity to start talking. I was becoming so impatient, I
almost shook her. “I’m… I’m… Ba…ba…baby…” she stuttered.

I
didn’t get what she was trying to say until the doctor started talking, “Mr.
Pierce, your wife is going to be just fine. She’s suffering from fatigue and
morning sickness, which is lasting all day. It’s all very normal for early
pregnancy.”

It was
my turn to stutter. “Ear…Early what?”

He
smiled warmly and patted my shoulder as I stood there, dumbfounded.
“Congratulations! We’ll leave you and Mrs. Pierce alone. No rush. Stay as long
as you need.” I heard the door click closed.

For as
long as it took me to comprehend what was going on, the excitement was instant
the moment I got it. Before I celebrated, I wanted to make sure Kacie was okay.
“Sweetheart?”

“How?”
she asked.

It was
really hard not to laugh, but I think I contained it pretty well. “Do you
really need me to explain how a baby is made? Actually, if you’d rather, I
could show you.”

“This
isn’t funny, Evan.” She was panicking. She was scared to death.

“You’re
right. It’s not funny. It’s absolutely amazing.”

“You
think it’s amazing?” More tears threatened.

“I
do.”

“But…
But… I can’t… I didn’t… We didn’t plan this.”

“You
and your damn planning! No, we didn’t, but we didn’t plan on meeting and
falling in love, either. I know I’m biased, but look at how fucking great that
turned out.” She went to wipe her face with the back of her hand, but I caught
it and handed her a tissue from the box someone had placed beside her. “We got
this, Kacie. You and me, remember?”

“Don’t
you see? I
can’t
do this. I have no idea how to be a mom. Don’t you
remember how I grew up?” And there it was. Her deep-seated fear. I could have
brought it up myself, but she needed to say it out loud.

“Yes,
I do. I remember every story you’ve ever told me. You’re the one who’s
forgetting.” She gave me one of her “I’m going to punch you in the face for
being stupid” looks. “Take a deep breath.” She listened, but was skeptical.
“Now let it out.” I waited as she repeated the process a few more times. “You
better now?” She nodded. “Who raised you to be the wonderful person you are
today?”

The
panic quickly started to fade and the fear began to leave her. “Gram,” she said
softly, smiling slightly.

“Who
better to teach you how to be the best mom this universe has ever seen?” As she
thought it over, her hand moved to rest on her belly. I fell in love with her
all over again because I knew that was the moment she fell in love with our
baby. Our miracle. I lifted her chin, pulling her eyes to mine. “Kacie, you are
the only one in this entire world who I’d allow to be the mother of my child.
You’re going to be great!”

“You
knocked me up on purpose, didn’t you?”

“I
wouldn’t say I did it on purpose, but damn if I’m not fucking proud as hell.”

She
chuckled and wiped away the last of her tears. “You really think I can do
this?”

“I
know you can, sweetheart.”

“Thank
you.”

“For
what?”

“For
being you.”

“Anytime.”

“Could
you please take me home?”

“Sure
can.”

Kacie
received the rest of her instructions from the nurse, then I led her out to my
truck. After helping her into the cab, I leaned in to kiss her stomach.
“Listen, we know you’re there now. We’ll take good care of you, I promise, but
you have to give your mom a break. Let her eat and get some sleep. The poor
thing looks terrible and she’s scaring the shit out of me. Help me help her,
okay?”

“Did
you just curse in front of our baby?” she asked, playing with my hair.

“He
better get used to it because I won’t be able to stop.”

“He?”

“Yeah.”

“You
think it’s a boy?”

“It
has to be. There’s no way I’ll be able to handle a daughter, especially if
she’s anything like her mom.”

Kacie
started laughing. “Oh, man. I really hope it’s a girl.”

“That’s
just cruel, babe.”

***

Of
course, it’s a girl. Ever since we found out, my wife has been torturing my
ass. It’s all in good fun, though, because I’m excited as shit. I know she’ll
give me a run for my money and drive me insane, but she’ll be worth it.
Whenever we get to see her on the ultrasound or hear her heart beating, I love
her even more. I’m in love with someone I haven’t even met yet. The feeling is
amazing. The first time I felt her move, I cried like a girl. Maybe because it
made it real for me. I don’t know, but it was awesome.

Kacie
hasn’t been feeling so hot today. Despite my suggestion to take it easy, she
insisted everyone still come over. I haven’t celebrated my birthday since Ethan
died, but Kacie wants it to stop. She hasn’t given me much trouble about it
over the last few years but, with the baby coming, these things are more
important to her. The woman is carrying my daughter. How can I tell her no?

Kacie isn’t
out of my sight for very long. She walked to the garden with Adam, but the
attention span of a three-year-old is about five seconds, so they’re back
fairly quickly. I said I’d take him, but she wanted to. Now that she’s in the
room and away from the glare of the sun, she appears really winded. If I say
anything, she’ll blow me off. Maybe if Noah talks to her, she’ll be more
receptive. I already said something to him earlier when she was distracted with
Jax, Jade and Kyle’s three-month-old baby boy. When I turn to see if he
notices, he’s on his way over to her. It’s definitely not my imagination. He
whispers to her and she tells him she’s fine, just tired. I can read her lips
because that’s what she’s been saying all day. He takes her by the hand and
leads her to the sofa.

“Sit
and don’t get up,” he tells her. “I want to take your blood pressure. My
stuff’s in the car.”

“Stay
with her. I’ll get it,” Addison says.

“Stop
making such a big deal,” Kacie says. “I just didn’t sleep well last night.”

I
abandon my seat across the room to sit next to her. “Please don’t say you’re
fine.”

“But I
am,” she says, starting to tear up.

“Sweetheart,
why are you getting so upset?”

“Because
it’s your birthday. I wanted it to be special, but I feel like shit,” she
confesses.

“You’ll
always be more important to me than anything else, Kacie.”

Kristen
and Jade have both come over to sit with her, Kristen on her other side and
Jade on the coffee table in front of her. “What’s wrong?” her mom asks,
concerned.

“Your
granddaughter isn’t giving me a break today.”

“It’s
because you won’t tell us her name,” Jade grunts. “Even she knows that’s
wrong.” Kacie smiles. She’s keeping something to surprise them with and it’s
driving them all crazy. “But, seriously, you need to take care of yourself.
Don’t worry. We’ll carry on with the party if you have to go to the hospital.”

“Here,”
Addie interrupts, giving Noah his black bag. He pulls some stuff out and
Kristen moves so he can sit. Kacie has had her blood pressure taken so often
lately, it’s instinct for her arm to extend. Chatter has died down around the
room. I’m sure that alone will stress her out.

“It’s
a little high. How about we check it again in a little bit?” Noah announces.

“Okay,”
she says as the doorbell chimes. Aunt Grace jumps up to get it. Everyone is
here, so I’m not sure who that could be.

“Is
Aunt Kacie, okay?” Ethan asks.

“Of
course. You know how tough she is,” I assure him.

“Tougher
than you,” he mocks me. I wrap my arm around him and pull him to my chest. He’s
lucky I love him so much.

“Um…
Evan?” I tilt my head toward the sound of my aunt’s voice. “Someone’s here to
see you.”

I shift
my eyes to the door. Standing next to her are my parents. She shoots me an
apology for not knowing what to do.

“It’s
not a good time,” I say. Kacie’s hand slides to my thigh for support.

“Son…,”
my dad starts and Uncle Tim walks over to him.

“Really?!”
I snap.

“We’re
sorry for dropping in unannounced. We weren’t planning on this. It just sort of
happened,” my mom says nervously. Ethan stands in between me and Kacie. He
doesn’t even know the people standing in my living room are his grandparents.
How fucked up is that?

“You
just
sort of
jumped in your car and drove here from New York?”

“We
heard about your wedding…”

“
My
wedding
? I’ll be married for three years next month!” I stand up and turn
to them. Uncle Tim is trying to decide if he should kick them out or not.

“We
know, but since finding out about the baby, we thought… We didn’t want to miss
another one of our grandchildren being born.” She glances at Ethan and gets
choked up.

Kacie
stands beside me. Her hand slides up my chest, relaxing me. “Give them five minutes.”

“But
Kacie…” I’m ready to remind her of all the reasons in the world I shouldn’t and
she gives me the one reason I should.

“Grief
and what it can do to a person is something we both understand. Five minutes is
all I’m asking.” She kisses my cheek.
You and me
, she mouths.

“Thank
you, Kacie,” my mom says, offering a smile.

“Don’t
thank me. If you so much as look at my husband the wrong way or make him upset,
I’ll make you regret ever stepping foot into my house.” Kacie motions for
everyone to go with her outside. It would be easier if the three of us went
out, but I’m not going to cross her.

“Don’t
worry,” my dad says as I watch Kacie, who is having trouble walking. “Your mom
was a bear when she was pregnant with you boys. She’ll be fine once the baby’s
born.”

“You
got off easy. That was nothing, and it had nothing to do with the baby.” The
last word comes out of my mouth as Kacie goes still right outside the door and
grabs onto Jake, who was behind her. His eyes meet mine and I take off. I get
to her the same time Noah does. “Kacie?!”

“It
hurts. Why the fuck does it hurt?!” she gets out. Her eyes and jaw are squeezed
shut.

“We’re
going to the hospital, okay?” Noah tells her. He hands Adam off to Jake and
supports Kacie.

“I got
her,” I say, picking her up. She wraps her arms tightly around my neck and
starts to sob as I rush her through the house to the front door.