Yours Always (16 page)

“Depressing?”

“Somewhat.  And…”

“Distant?”

“Yes!  I loved the old you, but I adore the new you so much more.”

“Thank you,” I say with a playful smile before sipping from the mug. 

“So, wedding date.  Wedding date.  Wed. Ding. Date.  What’s a good date?”

“Lizzy, I told you that we haven’t even discussed it yet.”

“Oh, you’re so cute.  Dear, you set the plans, and he follows.  It’s your day to be a princess.  He’s just lucky he gets to be there.  It’s completely your day.”

“No.  It’s
our
wedding, like for the two of us, so it’s our day.”

She holds up her index finger, takes her phone from the coffee table, and manipulates the screen.  “Hey, Fletcher.  This is Lizzy.”

“What!  You called him?” I say in an exaggerated whisper while grabbing at the phone.  Lizzy’s arm reach is much greater than mine, so she’s able to keep me at bay with her free hand.  “No, hang up.”

“Fletcher, Savannah’s here, and I just heard the news!  Congratulations!  Now, will you answer a question?  Your wedding, is it Savannah’s show, or is it the both of yours to plan? ...What?  You want it to be everything Savannah’s ever dreamed of?”  She holds her hand over the microphone.  “See, he got the memo, and he’s a dude.”  She removes her hand.  “Yeah, so I’m talking to her about dates, and she’s not sure what kind of timeline we’re, I mean you’re, dealing with.”  She pauses briefly.  “You’d marry her tomorrow if she were up to it?  You’re a good man, Fletcher Reilly.  I hear lots of good things about you, especially about your…”

I snatch the phone from Lizzy because I don’t even want to know what she was going to say.  It’s a fifty-fifty chance it will be obscene, and those odds are too great for me.  “Hi, Fletcher.  Hey.  I hope that my deranged friend didn’t scare the hell out of you.”

I hear him laughing.  “I’m not scared in the least.  Bring it on.  I’m ready whenever you are.”

“Be careful what you say.  She’ll have the entire wedding planned, and we’ll be hitched by the end of the week.”

“I fail to see the problem with that.”

“Fletcher, we only just became engaged last night.”

“Stop.  Take a breath and quit comparing our lives to others. What do
you
want to do?”

“You’re right.  We both know that this is right, and this is exactly what we want.  Fletcher, let’s go get our marriage license right now.  I want to be Mrs. Reilly by the weekend.”

“You’ve got it.  I’ll meet you at the courthouse.  I’m putting on my shoes right now.”

“Are we really doing this?”

Lizzy’s squealing and clapping her hands.

“We are.  Let’s get it all lined up.  I’ll see you in a little while.”

“Okay.  See you soon.  I love you, Fletcher.”

“I love you too, Savannah.”

I end the call.  “Lizzy, sorry to leave like this, but I’m meeting Fletcher at the courthouse.”

She jumps up and down, hugging me tightly as I make my way to the door.

“Let me know if you want to use the lake house for the ceremony!” she yells as I’m turning the corner to leave the building.  I throw her a quick wave. 

I’m on the way to the courthouse to get a marriage license.  Two months ago, I’d have laughed at the idea.  Lizzy’s right.  I am a much different person than I used to be, and it’s a great thing.  I smile when I see Fletcher, arms crossed as he props against his bike.  He wears a nicely fitted white shirt, blue jeans that hug his thick thighs, and aviator-style sunglasses.  I notice that his tattoos just barely poke out from underneath the short sleeves, while his scruffy beard and disheveled hair make him simply irresistible to me.

I feel unbelievably lucky and special when he opens the door for me, takes my arm in his, and guides me up the steps of the courthouse.  He stops at the Clerk of Court’s door to give me a brief kiss.  “Are you sure?  There’s no pressure.  We can wait as long as you want before we do this,” Fletcher says.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.  Let’s do this.”

We’re at my apartment tonight; I curl in my favorite spot on the bed while pondering a few things.  Fletcher snuggles up behind me. 

“What’s on your mind?” he asks, pulling me close to his body.

“Just thinking.”

“About good things or bad things?”

“Both,” I answer truthfully.

“Well, start with the bad, and we’ll end with the good.”

“Lizzy and I were talking earlier, and it made me realize that you don’t know what happened to my parents.”

“I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.  I assumed a car accident.  Am I right?”

I shake my head.  “A car accident might have been easier to handle.”

He sits up, and the sheet pools around his midsection.  “What happened, Savannah?”

I roll to face him, but I don’t sit up.  “You pretty much know the history—dad was gone offshore a lot, mom was gone when he was gone, I was at Lizzy or Grampy’s, but mostly home alone.  Right?”

“Yes.”

“I moved out to live with Paul as soon as we graduated high school.  I didn’t want to see my mother anymore, even if it was just random meetings every few weeks or so.  Once I left, she started bringing her boyfriends to the house.  Dad came home early from a hitch to surprise her, which was rare because he never left work early.”  I start to pick at my thumbnail.  “Whenever Dad ended a hitch, he’d faithfully call me when he landed at the heliport to let me know his flight made it safely.  A lot of helicopters crash out in the Gulf, and the weather turns on a dime.  He knew I worried, so he’d always call.

“
’Hey, Savannah!  I made it in a little early.  Perfect flying weather.  Come by for dinner tomorrow night, okay.  There’s something I want to tell you,’”
Dad said to me.

“I hated going over there, but seeing my dad countered having to deal with her. When I got there, all the lights were off, which I found strange, but essentially I shrugged it off.  My first thought was that Dad had forgotten about the arrangements he’d made with me and that they’d gone out to dinner or something.  I checked in the garage, and both cars were there.  That’s when I knew that something was wrong.  I flipped on all the lights, searching the house for any trace of them.  When I opened the bedroom door, and I was instantly sick.  Three bloody bodies…”

“You don’t have to go on,” Fletcher says softly.

“I’m okay.  You need to know.  I called the police, and the house was buzzing with people for what felt like an eternity.  I just sat in the corner, praying to be invisible.  I didn’t want to talk to anyone, I didn’t want sympathy; I just wanted to be left the hell alone.  But, it didn’t happen.  Interview after interview.  They wanted to know if I had touched anything.  If I knew what happened.  If I knew why the third person was in the room with them.  I answered what I could, and then I went off to mourn the loss of my father.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart,” Fletcher says.

“It’s another reason I resent her.  The third body was the guy she was screwing when my dad walked in on them.  The loser had a gun in his pants and pulled it on my dad before he had a chance to fight back.  After that, he shot my mom, and finally, himself.  It was all over the news for a while, but the attention slowly diverted to other news stories.”

“I see why you resent your mom.  I can’t say that I blame you.”

I nod.  “Lizzy had a fit when I told her that I’ve forgiven my mom.  I tried explaining to her that there’s a difference between forgiving and forgetting.  I’ll never forget, but if I don’t let go of some of the hatred, it only hurts me, not her.”

“Sounds like a good thing for you to do.  Your mother robbed you of your peace for nearly your entire life.  The best revenge is for you to be happy.”

“I never really thought of it that way.  My happiness has a dual purpose; it brings peace to my dad, and it shows my mom that she didn’t ruin me.”

Fletcher smiles while lying beside me again.  “Exactly.”

“Fletcher, do you believe in signs?”

“What kind of signs?” he asks, gently kissing my shoulders.

“Molly told me she believes that Brody gives her signs to let her know he’s around and watching over her.”

“She did?” Fletcher asks.  “Like what?”

“Like she said when she cries really hard, sometimes a stuffed bear he gave her will fall from the shelf and land on top of her like it’s giving her a hug.  There were some other things she mentioned, too.”

“Hmmm.  Interesting,” Fletcher says.

“So, do you believe?”

“Why do you ask?’

“Because I think my dad sent me a sign about you.  If it weren’t for that picture of you with the bike, our conversation would have ended at the Pole Co. console.”

“My handsome looks and charming smile weren’t enough to win me a date?  I’m crushed.”

“I’m sorry to hurt your ego, but you wouldn’t have had a shot.  However, I will admit that I found you very attractive.  What was it about me?  You couldn’t see me, and I’m sure you’ve made hundreds of calls to customer service lines.  What made you want to meet me?”

“You made me laugh.”

“I made you laugh.  What if I’d been a seventy year old woman with blue hair and ten grandkids?”

“Then I’d have treated you to a nice dinner as a thank you and sent you on your way.”

I laugh.  “I love you.”

“You’d better.  You’re supposed to be marrying me soon.  Speaking of, we have some things we need to figure out.”

“Like what?”

“Like, whose apartment are we going to live in?  We really don’t need two.  And where is this wedding ceremony supposed to take place?”

“I already know that.”

“You do?”

“Yep, where you proposed—the gazebo in the park.  Since there won’t be lots of guests, I think an early morning ceremony will be pretty.  What do you think?  Saturday?  At eight?  The ceremony should only be fifteen minutes or so, and then we’re off to start our lives together.”

“It sounds perfect.”  He kisses my forehead.  “If it was your dad who encouraged this, he has my undying gratitude.  That’s kind of a nice way of looking at things.  I wonder if Brody’s been sending me signs, but I’ve been ignoring them.”

“I don’t know, but I can tell you that I’ve been a lot more open minded to the possibility since talking with Molly.”

Fletcher smiles.  “So, which one of us is doing the packing?”

“You are.  My apartment’s in a better location.”

“I like being in the middle of nowhere.  At least as middle of nowhere as I can get in the city.”

“Why don’t we look for something we both like?  Maybe even a house?” I suggest.

“Yes, let’s do it.  Let’s look for a house with lots of bedrooms that we can fill with babies.”

I laugh.  “Maybe I should finish school first?”

“Okay, school first, lots of babies after.  Until then, we simply get to have fun practicing.”

The good thing about Triceratops expanding is that Fletcher’s job expands with it.  He’s still able to work from home for the most part, but he’s been much busier.  He and Ben have a meeting to iron out the salary, and suffice to say, Fletcher goes from making okay money to really good money.  This means that I’ll be able to quit working and concentrate on school, and though I was excited to start before, I’m super excited to start now.  But first, marriage. 

Saturday arrives before I know it, and I smile broadly as I drive past the house that Fletcher and I will soon be buying.  The offer has been accepted, but we’re waiting to close.  Our house.  Ours.  It’s only a couple of blocks from Julia’s, where Lizzy joins me to put on the finishing touches before heading out to the park for the wedding.

The rule is that no one is to go crazy for this wedding.  I want everyone to wear something comfortable, and something they already own.  Molly is wearing a super cute white dress dotted with yellow daisies and a black tulle underskirt, while Julia dons a beautiful pale pink pant suit.  Lizzy opts for an ice blue A-line with a bateau neckline and a wide matching belt.  I’m wearing a white, empire-waist chiffon dress that falls to the floor.  My hair is swept up into messy, loose curls accented with white daisies.  The girls all go on about how I need a touch of this, and a bit of that, and once they finish, I must say that I’m more than happy with my appearance.  My makeup is soft, perfectly matching the flowing chiffon of my gown. 

“Are you ready?” Lizzy asks with a squeal.

“I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life,” I say.  Lizzy takes the box that contains our flowers and searches the counter top to make sure we’re not forgetting anything. 

“I have the ring in my purse.  Flowers are here.  I think we’re good to go.”

Julia and Molly get into one car, while Lizzy and I get into the SUV her parents bought her.  I make a comment about how nice it is, but she shrugs it off with an “ehn, it’s okay.”

We arrive at the park, and I’m even more excited when I spot Fletcher and Ben standing with the Justice of the Peace under the gazebo.  Fletcher and Ben are wearing white button down shirts, jeans, and boots.  I’m surprised to notice that Fletcher is clean shaven, and I can’t wait to see his face up close.  I practically run from the car, but Lizzy quickly catches up to me and stops me. 

“Girl, you need to take it down a notch.  Give Julia a chance to park before she misses the damn ceremony with your impatient self.  Here, duck behind this tree so he can’t see you.”  She starts to touch up my makeup with her fingers.  Julia smiles at me, and Molly blows kisses as they walk past us to join Fletcher at the gazebo. 

“Okay, you give me to the count of twenty to get down there so you can make your entrance, okay.  And don’t count as fast as you can either!  Do the ‘one-Mississippi, two-Mississippi’ thing.”

“Alright, just get moving.  I want to see my man.”

“Here, take your flowers.  Remember, count slowly.”

“I said I will,” I tell her with a forced smile.

“I love you,” Lizzy says.  “You look beautiful.”

“I love you too, Lizzy Lou.  Thanks for being my best friend.”

“Thanks for being my best friend, too.”  She quickly fans her hand in front of her eyes.  “Dang it.  I said I wasn’t going to cry.”  With that parting sentiment, she pageant walks toward the gazebo with her head held high.

By the time I mentally count to fifteen-Mississippi, I say, “Screw it,” and begin the walk toward marriage.  Lizzy turns once she arrives, and I see her gesturing her exasperation about my not listening to her.  Her heart’s in the right place, but every minute I waste hiding behind a tree is one minute I’m robbed of being Mrs. Fletcher Reilly. 

His smile beams just as brightly as mine when I join the guests.  I love Fletcher with a scruffy beard, but I LOVE Fletcher clean shaven.  I can’t wait to feel his lips on mine, his body…  Okay, I need to stop and enjoy the present, but surely it can’t be a bad thing to be so incredibly attracted to your husband, right?

“You take my breath away, Savannah,” Fletcher says, cupping my cheek in his hand.  His thumb softly strokes my cheek as his eyes intently search mine.  “I love you.”

“My handsome man, I love you, too.  I can’t wait to be your wife.”  Fletcher smiles and gestures to the Justice of the Peace that he should start the ceremony.

The Justice of the Peace has a little table set up behind him which has the marriage license on it, and he asks us to be sure everything is correct on the pages before he proceeds.  It is, so next he asks, “The wedding party: bride, groom, matron of honor, and best man?  Correct?”

“Actually, sir, there will be four best men,” Fletcher says.  “Ben Thibodaux.” He points to Ben. 

I give a confused look as I search the area for any friends or family I might have missed.

          Ben hands him a small duffel bag, and after Fletcher unzips it, he pulls out a folded American flag and places it onto the table.  “Brody Halsey.” 

             I look to Julia, who is fighting back the tears.  Molly, beaming with pride, grips her mother’s hand. 

            “Matthew Mason.”  He pulls a well-worn oilfield hard hat from the bag and places it on the table.

“Daddy,” I whisper as tears well in my eyes.  “You?” I ask Lizzy.  She smiles and nods.

The next thing he pulls from the bag is a tiny little baseball glove complete with a matching stuffed ball.  “Lucas Calloway.” 

I recognize it as one of the few gifts I was able to give Lucas, and I keep it tucked away in a special box with the things I’d saved after his death.  Red faced from all the crying, I grab Fletcher and hold him tightly.  “Thank you for doing this.  Thank you. Thank you.  Thank you.”

Lizzy passes around a box of tissues.  The only dry eye is that of the Justice of the Peace, and that’s because I caught him dabbing the tears with his collar before the tissue disbursement.   

“Who’s ready for a wedding?” the Justice of the Peace asks, sniffing hard.

I raise my hand, as does Fletcher.  The remaining guests raise their hands, and the Justice of the Peace begins the ceremony.  The service is short and to the point, and within a matter of minutes, I’m officially Mrs. Fletcher Reilly.  Savannah Reilly.  I say the name over and over in my head because I absolutely love the sound of it.