Tear Down These Walls (38 page)

“I can’t resist you any longer,” Kellen murmurs. He grabs Teagan and
pulls her to him. “You brought me back to life.”

She looks into his eyes and says, “Emotionally or physically?”

“Both,” Kellen states. “Teagan, I really care about you, a lot.”

“I guess part of me is nervous.”

“Why?” He inquires with a curious expression.

Blushing, Teagan says, “You have been with so many girls, probably
beautiful girls, experienced girls. How do I compete?”

“Teagan, the girls from my past meant nothing,” Kellen groans. “You have
to understand where I am coming from. It was meaningless. With you, it’s
different. You’re special to me.”

“What if I am horrible?” Teagan mumbles.

“Oh, Baby,” Kellen reassures. “If we get there, we will make love slowly.
I can teach you everything there is to know.”

Teagan raises an eyebrow, “You know that much, huh?” She crosses her
arms.

“I have been around the block a few times,” Kellen laughs. “You learn a
thing or two.”

“So, you will take it slow?” Teagan whispers.

“We will take our time and do it right,” Kellen promises. “That’s if we
even get there.  You may change your mind after this weekend.”

Rolling her eyes, Teagan throws her hands in the air and replies, “I’m
not going anywhere.”

“That’s what you are saying now,” Kellen exhales. “That’s neither here
nor there. We have a rehearsal to get to.”

“Okay,” Teagan sighs. She pulls him down for a kiss. When she let’s go,
Teagan laughs. “You know, I need taller shoes, so I can stop standing on my
toes to kiss you.”

“Well, I’m 6’ 5” and there isn’t much I can do about that. Find yourself
a shorter man; that is my advice,” Kellen chuckles back.

“Or like some hooker heels,” Teagan snorts, as she steps away from him.

Kellen bursts out laughing.  “Like stripper shoes you would get at a
porn shop?”

“Those things are nasty,” Teagan gags.

A look of shock passes over Kellen’s face. “You have been in a porn shop!?
Really, you!?”

Teagan lets out an exasperated exhale, “Yes, Justin dragged me there when
we turned 18. I don’t know if he thought it would turn me on, but I was really
grossed out.”

“That is funny shit,” Kellen laughs some more. “Wow, I would never have guessed.”

“I bet you have seen your fair share of porn,” Teagan retorts with
attitude.

An even bigger grin passes over Kellen’s face. Finally, he says, “Nooooo,
I’ve never seen porn.” Grabbing her hand, Kellen snorts happily, “Let’s go.”

“Men,” Teagan responds as they leave the room.

A little while later, they enter the small country-style church through
the big, white doors.  They hear voices coming from down the hallway, so
they follow them  Teagan finds Georgia and everyone else standing near the
entrance to the sanctuary. “Oh good,” Georgia shouts. “Everyone is here!”

“Very good,” the minister says. “Okay, after everyone has been seated,
Dwayne will escort his mother down to the end and then take his place. The
music will change then and processional will start. Do you know the order they
will go in?”

“Yeah,” Georgia says. She starts to point to the couples, “Fred and
Ellen, you are first; Hank and Gabby, you are second; Justin and Teagan, you
are third, and Kendra and Leo, you are last.”

“Why don’t you all pair off, and we will run through this and go over
everything when we get down to the end,” the minister suggests.

Kellen lets go of Teagan and says, “I will be right here.”

“Okay,” she whispers, with a smile. Justin steps up to her, and she
glares at him.  “Don’t touch me.”

“I have to touch you,” he snaps back quietly. “We have to walk down the
aisle together.”

“Fine,” she growls, grabbing onto his arm. “Don’t talk to me.”

“Jesus, Teagan,” Justin groans.

She ignores him and pays attention to everyone else. Georgia gives her a
sympathetic look that makes Teagan smile a little.

“Okay, let’s start,” the minister says. With that, he presses a button on
the remote.  “Dwayne, you go down first.” He grabs his mother’s arm and
proceeds to walk down the aisle. Teagan hopes this part moves along quickly
because having to touch Justin makes her want to puke. She swallows back the
bile that rises in her throat just thinking of his hand on hers.

“Now, one by one, the couples will walk down. Try to go down with the rhythm
of the music. You don’t need to run down to the end,” the minister declares.

“I do,” Teagan mumbles.

Justin turns to her. “I heard that.”

“So, did I,” Kellen laughs loudly. “I will be waiting for you when you are
done, Baby, but Justin…”  Justin looks over at him. “Don’t talk to her, or
you and I will have a nice lengthy conversation in the parking lot.” Justin
glares at Kellen, and Kellen glares right back.

“Baby!” Teagan shouts. “I will meet you at the end.”

“I am going to love watching you walk down the aisle,” Kellen quips. “I
will let my imagination wander.”

“Awwww,” Teagan replies. “Then does that make tonight our wedding night?”

A huge grin lights up Kellen’s face. “Teagan, every night is like our
wedding night. I will meet you up there.” He turns and walks away.

“Whatever,” Justin growls. He doesn’t say anything more, and a minute
later, they walk down the aisle. Finally, they make it down to the end, and
Teagan breathes a sigh of relief.

Going through the rehearsal doesn’t take too long. Teagan keeps glancing
over at Kellen and smirking at him. He smiles right back. She watches him
carefully, knowing things are changing between them. She is excited about the
possibility of a new relationship. The looks he gives her now are thoughtful,
and Teagan wishes she knew what he was thinking.

At the end, Georgia claps her hands. “All right, we are all done here. We
have a reservation in a half an hour at the steak house on 3
^rd
.
Dwayne and I are going over right away to have a drink, if any of you want to
join us.”

Teagan looks at Kellen, “Is that what you want to do?”

“No,” Kellen snaps.        

“Oh,” Teagan says slowly, confused. “What do you want to do then?”

“Ravish your body,” Kellen whispers, giving her a heated stare.

A warm blush creeps up on Teagan’s face. “We don’t really have time for
that.”

“I know; you just asked what I wanted to do, and that was it. Going to
the restaurant now sounds like a great idea,” he teases with a mischievous
smile.

“You’re awful,” Teagan hisses quietly.

Georgia comes up to Teagan. “Are you going over right away?”

“Yeah,” Teagan replies. “We’ll meet you there.”

“Sounds good,” Georgia says gleefully.

“Are you excited or nervous right now?” Teagan asks back.

“A little of both,” Georgia replies. “I’ll probably die from
anticipation.”

Teagan smiles. “You will do great, I know it.”

Grinning, Georgia squeals, “I’m so excited!” She claps her hands
gleefully.

“I know you are honey,” Dwayne says, coming up beside her. “Tomorrow, you
will be Mrs. Georgia Riggs. I love the sound of that.”

“I love you,” Georgia sighs happily.

“I love you, too,” Dwayne whispers; he bends over and kisses her on the
cheek.

That makes Teagan smile even more. She feels Kellen pull her against him.
He gently kisses Teagan on the head. She wraps an arm around his waist and
leans her head against him.

When Georgia pulls away, she looks at Teagan and Kellen. “Who knows
Teagan, maybe you will take on another last name sometime soon.”

Rather uncomfortably, Teagan laughs, “Uh….yeah…..awkward Georgia.”

“That’s all right,” Kellen retorts. “Teagan Grayson - it has a nice ring
to it.”

She thinks about it for a second and then looks up at him. “It does go
well together and sounds good. Well, at least I know I don’t have to keep my last
name.” Kellen gets a wicked grin on his face. Teagan instantly blushes and
looks away. “I mean, yeah…okay….let’s go to dinner!” Kellen laughs and pulls
her into a tight hug.

On the way to the restaurant, Kellen reaches over and takes Teagan’s
hand. “You look beautiful tonight.”

“Thanks,” Teagan whispers bashfully.

“I don’t understand why you are so timid about compliments,” Kellen
sighs.

“It’s been a long time since I had compliments from someone who matters,”
Teagan replies. She looks over at him. “Other guys saying I look hot don’t have
the same effect.”

“Well, I think you are hot,” Kellen chuckles. “I think you look damn
fine.”

Teagan laughs, “Okay, even that sounds better coming from you.”

“So….desirable….” Kellen lets go off her hand and starts to trace his
fingers up her leg. The higher he gets, the more her body clenches. Teagan
takes in a quick breath to reign in her nerves. He starts to push up the hem of
her dress. “You look very alluring in this,” he whispers in a husky voice.

A heat starts to spread over Teagan. She shifts herself a little bit, to
further his hand.  Kellen suddenly squeezes her leg and hums. Finally, he
says, “Let’s blow off dinner.”

Deep desire starts to stir in Teagan. “We can’t do that.”

“I know,” Kellen exhales. “A man can wish.”

Reaching down, Teagan brushes her fingers gently against Kellen’s hand.
“I have never felt this way before.”

“What way?”

“This…yearning that I feel,” Teagan murmurs softly.

Turning his attention towards her, Kellen raises an eyebrow. “You yearn
for me?”

“I don’t know how else to describe it,” Teagan replies. “It’s a burning
need for you to touch me…..everywhere.”

“Dear lord,” Kellen groans, as he pulls away his hand.

“What?” Teagan gasps. “What did I say?”

“Nothing,” Kellen gulps. “Just….that is very….erotic, and it is taking
every ounce of me not to pull over.”

Looking down, Teagan whispers, “Oh, I will stop.”

“Please, don’t….” Kellen starts. “I want to know these things. I want us
to be honest with each other. There is no need to hide anything.”

“That goes for you, too,” Teagan retorts, giving him a look.

Kellen chuckles as he grips the steering wheel. “I promise; I will tell
you when we get back.”

“Is it that bad?” Teagan whispers. “Do you secretly have an STD?”

Kellen laughs, “No! No, Baby, I have been tested.  I am clean.”

“Oh,” Teagan mumbles. “I thought maybe…..”

“Because I was a slut?” Kellen chuckles loosening his grip on the
steering wheel. “No, thankfully, I never caught anything. I used protection
every time, but that doesn’t always matter.”

She quickly shakes her head. “Let’s stop talking about that. What is the
big secret, then? I can’t imagine it’s that bad.”

“It’s not bad,” Kellen states. “It’s just something
big,
and I don’t
know if you will be able to handle it, but, again, we will tackle that when we
get home.”

“Okay,” Teagan exhales. “I won’t leave you.”

“I hope not,” Kellen sighs.

The restaurant is busy when they get there. They find a lot of the
wedding party at the bar. Georgia looks at Teagan. “We were about to order a
round. What do you want?”

“Here,” Kellen says, reaching into his pocket. He pulls out a hundred
dollar bill and throws it on the counter. “I will buy the first round.”

“Sweet!” Georgia yells.

“Order an appletini for me,” Teagan instructs.

“I will have a glass of Chardonnay,” Kellen states. Georgia nods and
leans in by the bartender. Teagan looks around the bar, and her eyes fall onto
Justin. He looks at her and then nudges his head to the side.

Teagan scowls at him and mouths, “Hell no.”

Kellen suddenly steps in front of Teagan and blocks her view. “Is that
better?”

“Yes,” Teagan snaps. “Thank you. God, that guy is irritating.”

“I know,” Kellen whispers. He gently puts Teagan’s hair behind her ear.
“Forget about him, and concentrate on your friends. This is about them.”

Nodding, Teagan says, “You’re right.”

“Usually am,” Kellen quips. Teagan playfully glares at him and then rolls
her eyes.  Kellen laughs and then pulls her in for a kiss. Teagan happily
follows his lead.

*            
*            
*            
*             *

The next morning, Teagan helps Georgia get dressed in the basement of the
church.

“Gosh,” Georgia exhales with a groan. “This thing is heavy.”

“It’s a wedding dress,” Teagan laughs, as she ties up the corset. “You
wanted the princess dress.”

“I know,” Georgia giggles, sticking her arms out. “I have to wear this
all night, too.”

Teagan laughs some more, “It’s good exercise.”

“I will get all the exercise I need tonight after the reception.” Georgia
winks.

“I bet,” Teagan retorts with a smirk. “There you go, all set.”

Georgia turns around to her bridesmaids. “So, the end result?”

Most of them cover their mouths. “Oh Georgia!” Teagan exclaims. “You’re
beautiful!”

“Really?” Georgia blinks back tears of joy.

“Look in the mirror!” Gabby demands with glee.

Stepping in front of the mirror, Georgia gasps. “I look perfect!”

“You do!” Kendra agrees.

“All right, let’s get you down to the sitting room to hide you away until
the ceremony begins,” Teagan says. “We are already late.”

“I know, I know, I am coming,” Georgia sighs happily.

Shrugging her shoulders, Kendra states, “They can’t do this without you
either way.”

“No, they can’t,” Georgia laughs. “Let’s go.”

After they all make it downstairs, they hand Georgia her bouquet.
Suddenly, someone walks in from the side door. It is the best man, Leo. “Are
you girls all set?”

“Yup,” Georgia replies. “Is Dwayne here and ready?”

“Totally nervous but yeah he is here,” Leo says. “All of you look
beautiful.”

Teagan glances into the mirror next to her. Her hair is all in curls
pinned on top with two lilies on the side. Her dark green, empire waist dress
grazes the floor. Teagan loves it. She just hopes Kellen thinks she looks
beautiful. Teagan hasn’t seen him all day. He said he was going to come with
her parents. Butterflies stir in her stomach. She wants him to think that she
is as pretty as she feels right now.