Page 101 of Between Brothers

Chapter 45

Blue

Taking Hayley into my arms for our first dance was just as magic as it’d been taking her into my arms for the very first time all those months ago at the Harvest Festival. The band started something slow for us, a lazy, easy, slide of the bow across the fiddle’s strings and I stepped, taking her lazily around the dance floor, Melody snapping away with her camera.

I tried really hard not to think about anybody watching us and instead, focused on Hayley’s upturned face, her lovely brown eyes following every line, every plane, and every angle of my face as if the answer to existence itself could be found there… it took me a minute to realize that for her, maybe it had… that maybe it was for her just like it was for me.

“I love you,” she whispered up to me and I stilled, bowing my head and kissing her gently in what, unbeknownst to me, would become my absolute favorite photo of our wedding day.

I saw it then, as I would for years to come, on her face as I drew back. The same kind of peace I felt every time I looked at her or heard her voice. We resumed dancing, I held her close and let the music carry us around the floor and soon there were other couples around us. Beautiful, happy, a light in the dark for both Hayley and I.

“I wish we could afford a honeymoon,” she murmured quietly.

“We’ll take one on our first anniversary,” I promised her.

We were both holding onto every penny for the baby, to make sure he or she wouldn’t want for anything. We had a pretty grim outlook on the bills associated with a pregnancy but it was a good thing she’d thought of all that, otherwise we could have really been in financial trouble.

My girl was smart as well as beautiful, and I was so very damn lucky that she was forgiving and I silently vowed to her and myself, she would never have the occasion to need to exercise that forgiveness on me in that way ever again.

“You’re my life now, Hayley. I promise to take care of you and our family… I promise to be our safety.” I murmured and kissed the top of her head and she cuddled close to me.

“It’s a strange little life we’re building,” she said. “And I love it… even though it’s not how we planned or would have done things, I love it anyways.”

I smiled, a content and happy man, and we danced until after sunset, stopping only for wedding cake and to see guests off as they left.

Her dad came up to us and said, “Well, it’s your wedding night and I know you aren’t going anywhere, but for tonight the house is all yours. Dragon’s offered to put me up for the night so you two can have a little privacy and I’m going to take him up on it.”

“Dad! You don’t have to do that,” Hayley tried to argue but he and I exchanged a pointed look. I stuck out my hand and he shook it heartily.

“Thank you, Jake.”

He huffed a laugh and said, “Don’t ‘cha mean dad?”

“The word ‘dad’ has some rough meaning where I come from so if it’s all the same, I’d rather not go there yet,” I said.

He nodded and said, “My ol’ man was a bastard, too. It’s why I moved the hell out of Ohio and came down here in the first place. Why I never let him see Hayley.”

“I didn’t know that,” Hayley said softly.

“He died when you were ten. It’s not something your mom and I talked about. He wasn’t a good person to be around.” Hayley nodded but I could tell she wasn’t happy by the revelation. “Anyhow, that’s a conversation for another day. Try not to think about it too much.”

Her dad leaned down and hugged her tight. She hugged him back and said, “I love you, Daddy. I’m so sorry if I’ve disappointed you.”

He huffed a laugh and said, “Never in any way that’s really counted baby girl. You are all that is good and right in my world. I couldn’t be prouder of you if I wanted to.”

Hayley sniffed and came off her tiptoes. Jake looked at me and nodded saying, “I’m glad you get that.”

“I do get that. She’s too good for me.”

“Ha! She’s too good for all of us.”

Hayley wiped at her eyes and said, “Okay, knock it off you two!”

Jake and I chuckled and he walked away, down the drive calling over his shoulder, “Don’t either of you dare try to clean any of this shit up tonight.”

“He’s right, got a cleanup crew of some of the guys and the ol’ ladies coming over as soon as the hangovers are bearable,” Dragon said, coming up behind us and wandering around so he could face us and talk to us.

“Thanks for everything, Pres.”

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