Reborn by Melody Anne
Chapter Twenty-One
Courtney was getting married. It was odd because, looking at herself in the mirror, she wasn’t sure what she was feeling. She knew she should be feeling something, but for once in her life she wasn’t sure what emotions were coursing through her.
She glanced at her perfect hairdo and expertly done makeup and saw herself, but it was as if she was looking at a stranger. Who was the girl looking back at her? Had this happened too quickly? Was she on the verge of a panic attack? Her breathing grew more accelerated.
“Don’t worry. I had a bit of a panic attack myself,” Erin said with a laugh. “It’s perfectly normal. You’re in love with this man and the only regret you’ll have is if you try to run.”
The words were exactly what she’d needed to hear. Erin placed the veil on Courtney’s head, and as the delicate lace whispered down the sides of her face, she finally felt like a bride.
“You’re stunning,” Erin told her.
“Here, here to that,” Amira said as she held up her mimosa and smiled.
Mallory stepped up to her with a little black box. “Here’s your something borrowed.”
Courtney took the box and opened it to find a stunning pair of teardrop diamond earrings. They were gorgeous.
“Oh, I don’t know if I want to wear these. What if I lose one?” Courtney asked. She’d never owned a piece of jewelry like the sparkling gems resting in the box.
“You won’t lose them, and they’re perfect for a perfect bride,” Mallory said.
“Let me help,” Avery said as she pulled the earrings from the box and handed one to Courtney who placed it in her ear. It took only a second to have both of them in and boy did they sparkle.
“They are a perfect match,” Amira said.
“And this is from all of us for your something new,” Avery said as she held out another box, this one a little bigger.
Courtney opened it and inside was a stunning diamond bracelet.
“You guys shouldn’t have done this,” Courtney gasped. “It’s too much.”
“We’re a team now. We’re crime fighters and all of us have taken the plunge into marriage with incredibly amazing men. We had to do this,” Amira said.
“We are pretty amazing aren’t we?” Courtney said with a laugh as Avery attached the delicate bracelet to Courtney’s wrist.
“Dang straight we are. We’re successful, beautiful, and confident. We might’ve had a few bumps in the road in our lives, but we’ve never let that hold us back. We have every reason to be proud of who we are,” Erin said.
“I’ll toast to that,” Amira said as she once again held up her glass. All of the women took a sip of their mimosas as they chuckled.
“Don’t forget the something blue,” Mallory said as she pulled out a sexy garter belt with a thin blue ribbon woven into it.
“Oh yes, Jon will have a fun time removing that from your leg . . . with his teeth.”
“I want to do my honeymoon night over and over again. We always have great sex, but that night it was magical,” Erin said with a sigh.
“I’ve decided I want to get married every five years. I think it’s smart to remind ourselves of how much we love our husbands. The world has a way of interrupting my marital bliss, so that means I have to work that much harder to show my husband how much I love him,” Erin said.
“I think that’s a brilliant idea,” Amira said. “You could get married in new places all around the world and always be on your honeymoon.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Erin said. “I think marriages fall apart for stupid reasons a lot of the time. If you fell in love in the first place, there has to be a reason. We just have to search for those reasons sometimes when life wants to kick us in the teeth.”
“How have we gotten so lucky?” Courtney asked. “Just a second ago I was panicking, and now I feel like the luckiest woman alive.”
“We got lucky because we were open to it,” Avery said. “I didn’t know I wanted marriage and babies until I met Carl, but now I can’t imagine my life without him.”
“Yeah, Sleep is one of the good ones,” Courtney said. “He and Jon have been friends a very long time.”
“I think the bond these five men share will last a lifetime,” Amira said.
“Oh, we almost forgot your something old,” Erin said as she pulled out a bag. “Jon left this for you earlier. I think he was trying to get a peek. It seems he doesn’t like this twenty-four-hours of not seeing his bride.” That produced more giggles.
Courtney opened the bag and found a delicate hair clip that seemed to have real jewels in it. It was gold with red and clear stones.
“Oh, it’s real,” Amira said. “He told us it belonged to his great-grandmother who wore it on her wedding day. Those are rubies and diamonds.”
“It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever been given,” Courtney said as Erin took the clip and placed it in Courtney’s hair. The sun streaming in through the window hit the clip and rainbows shot from it.
“Hey, the bracelet is so much cooler,” Avery said.
“Yes, it is,” Courtney agreed. She was so damn happy she couldn’t contain herself. Her momentary panic had been for nothing.
“Are you ready?” Amira asked.
“Yes, I can’t wait to marry the man I love,” Courtney told her.
“Good, because you are beautiful, definitely blushing, and you’re going to knock your man’s socks off,” Erin said.
The women were going to walk down the aisle with her. She didn’t have her father to lead her down the path so she wanted to be surrounded by her best friends. That’s what they were now, truly best friends. They’d bonded through circumstances that most people never even imagine existed in the world. They might go their separate ways, but they’d always come back together — Courtney was sure of that.
The music began and Courtney stepped through the double doors at the back of Joseph Anderson’s huge mansion. She’d wanted to marry Jon quickly once they’d decided that’s what they were going to do.
She smiled as she thought of Joseph. If a person wanted to marry fast he was the man to turn to. He’d had the entire wedding set within a week, generously offering his backyard. It was absolutely perfect.
Her friends surrounded her in their teal dresses as they made their way down the aisle. Though there were a couple of hundred people there, the only person Courtney saw was Jon. He was absolutely breathtaking in his fitted tux, a smile on his lips and a sheen in his eyes as they gazed at one another.
When she reached him, he took her hand as her friends went on either side of them to stand with their husbands, who Courtney was sure looked just as handsome in their tuxes as her man did. She couldn’t testify to that as she had eyes for only one man right now.
She barely heard their vows as they promised to love one another, and then the preacher pronounced them husband and wife. Eyes swept Courtney up in a hug, dipped her back, and kissed her like it was the first time . . . and it was, it was the first time they were kissing as husband and wife. It was absolutely beautiful.
They went straight from their kiss into an epic reception. Joseph had hired a live band that started right up, beginning with Another One Bites the Dust as they made their way back down the aisle, making everyone laugh. Yes, another one had bitten the dust and he was now a married man.
They were swarmed with friends as soon as they cleared the rose-strewn path and Courtney found herself dragged away from her new husband. She couldn’t wait for their honeymoon where they’d have two solid weeks without interruption — no criminals, no friends, no work . . . just lots of sex, love, and laughter.
“What has that look on your face?” Avery asked as she stepped up next to her.
“I’m just thinking about how happy I am to be a married woman,” Courtney easily replied.
Avery laughed. “Yes, I still feel the same way. You’ll find it strange at first when people refer to Jon as your husband. I thought it would come naturally but it took a bit. However, in saying that, it always gives my heart an extra thump when I realize again and again that he’s mine forever.”
“I never would’ve imagined a year ago that I’d be married to the sexy soldier I’d interviewed years ago who’d intrigued me so much. I thought he was cocky and had too big of an ego,” Courtney said. “I was right, and I think that’s what I love about him the most.”
“Confidence is something these men have in spades,” Avery agreed.
“That’s for sure. But I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Courtney told her.
“Amen,” Amira said as she moved up next to them.
“I’ve gone from my career being the most important thing in my life, to it being second best. I want to be a great wife, a mother someday soon, and a friend. My career is great and I want it to grow, but it’s not everything. Family is truly what matters at the end of the day,” Courtney said.
“I agree fully,” Amira said.
“I’ll drink to that my lovely bride,” Eyes said as he walked right up and pulled Courtney into his arms. “This party is wonderful, but I want to get you all to myself. Want to run away now?”
“Yes, please,” she said with a giggle.
“Oh no. You two have to wait just like each one of us had to,” Avery said with a laugh. “Come on, let’s go cut some cake. I need some sugary carbs.”
Courtney and Eyes groaned, but they followed along. On the one hand Courtney wanted to run away with her husband, but on the other she appreciated all of the traditional moments of their wedding reception. She could look back at the picture in ten years and think about how happy she’d been on her first wedding day. She was going to marry this man over and over again, so she’d have many more times she’d get to add to her memories when times might seem rough.
Hours passed and Courtney found herself in her husband’s arms on the dance floor. Her cheeks hurt from smiling so much that day, and it was all worth it. She was tired, but she was happy, very, very happy.
“How are you holding up?” Eyes asked.
“Very well. There’s something I want to talk to you about, though,” she said.
His smiled dimmed as he reached up and cupped her cheek.
“You can talk to me about anything,” he assured her.
She couldn’t believe she was going to say what she was about to say. She felt as if she’d burst though if she didn’t get it out, and soon.
“I want to have a baby. I thought I wanted to wait. I know we should take time together, but all I keep thinking about is a beautiful little blond-haired boy with your eyes and laugh. I can’t think of anything else.”
Jon looked stunned, just as she’d been expecting. But then he shocked her when his lips turned up wide and he gazed at her with so much love she wondered how anyone survived not ever getting to feel how she was feeling now.
“We’re leaving. It’s time to start the honeymoon and make a baby,” he said.
She didn’t get a chance to answer him before he turned. “Thank you everyone. We appreciate all you’ve done. Now, we’re out of here.”
There were a few protests and then a lot of laughter as Eyes picked up Courtney, fluffy dress and all, then flung her over his shoulder and ran from the reception. She smacked his ass a few times, but she was laughing as much as the crowd was.
Courtney was happy. She was very, very happy, and nothing was going to stand in the way of that ever again. She’d still report, she’d still have a life outside of her marriage, but she was going to live like there was no tomorrow each and every day, because life was a gift and she wanted to unwrap it every single day.