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Five years ago, I may have found that impressive, but now I just feel bad that he may never experience the kind of love that Logan and I share.
The music cuts out as my dad stands front and center, tapping his champagne flute with a butter knife.
“Oh shit. It looks like Daddy J has some words for you two.” Zanders stands, pointing towards my dad. “Go get ‘em, Jack Attack.”
Zanders pats me on the shoulder and takes off for his table as the rest of the guests clear the dance floor, taking their seats once more. Logan tries to stand from my lap to take the chair next to me, but I tighten my hold on her, needing her to stay put. She settles back into my chest as one of the wait staff brings us two new glasses of bubbles.
“In case you don’t know who I am,” my dad begins, projecting his voice throughout the tent. “I’m Jack. EJ is my son.” He motions towards me. “This is typically the time of the night reserved for the father of the bride to say a few words. Logan’s father couldn’t be here tonight, so,” he turns towards my wife, “Logan, is it okay if I speak for him?”
Logan’s breathing hitches in my hold before she nods to tell him yes.
He gives her a soft, understanding smile. “My wife and I met Logan almost three years ago now.” I look over to my stepmom, her eyes filled with love and adoration as she watches my dad give his speech. “She was introduced to us by my other son, Marc, as his best friend because EJ got himself a little tongue-tied in the moment.”
A small laugh from the crowd fills the tent.
“Regardless of EJ’s moment of speechlessness, I knew from the get-go how important Logan was to my son. Both my sons. I had never seen EJ in love before, but I picked up on it from the first meeting with Logan. I knew he was all in. We liked her right from the start. She knew her basketball, which impressed me, and Mary was just over the moon to have another woman around.
“But it wasn’t until later on in the night during that first meeting, when Logan told us a bit about her past and losing her parents at a young age, that I recognized why both my boys loved her so much. She is as strong as it gets, but she’s kind and resilient too. And it’s rare for someone to stay open when the world was as harsh as it had been to her.
“For those of you who don’t know, my sister passed away when I was EJ and Logan’s age. And that night, when I met my future daughter-in-law for the first time, I recognized some of myself in her. We were kindred spirits of sorts, and it was almost as my grief recognized her grief, and I just understood her. Would you agree, Logan?” He turns back to look at us as my wife nods her head and wipes her eyes. I take a moment to wipe my cheeks, too, as I keep one arm holding her firmly to me.
“Not only did I relate to the loss she endured, but I also recognized the strength it takes to go on with your life after all is said and done. And not only that, but to be able to do it with the kindness and maturity she has. She impressed me from the first day and has continued to impress me every day since. We have formed a friendship that I cherish, and I might not be your biological father, but you’re my daughter, Logan. You know that.” He looks our way again. “And I couldn’t be happier that today we got to make it official.
“Thank you for loving my son. Thank you for loving our family. Thank you for being who you are. We love you so much. We love you both so much, and we are so proud of you guys.”
He turns back to the audience as his eyes gloss over. “John and Josie Leo couldn’t be here today, but they did a hell of a job raising my daughter-in-law. So...” my dad lifts his glass of champagne in the air. “This is a thank you to Logan’s parents. They’ve been on my mind and heart since the first time I met her. And this is a toast to the new Mr. and Mrs. Maddison.” He turns towards us as we both pick up our champagne flutes from the table, holding them out in my dad’s direction. “Congratulations. We love you both.”
Logan turns to face me, both of us in tears from my dad’s exquisitely thoughtful words, as she presses her lips to mine. We lightly clink our glasses together before I take a sip of the bubbles in a toast to my dad’s speech.
As I raise the glass to my lips and take a drink, I keep my eyes on my wife. Instead of taking a sip of the alcohol, she replaces her untouched champagne on the table.
My brows furrow. “Logan,” I draw out. “Why aren’t you drinking?”
She turns back to look at me, the sweetest smile covering her face.
“Logan,” I repeat. “Why aren’t you drinking?”
Again, she doesn’t answer. Instead, she continues to look at me, her dimples showing more than they ever have. Thanks to my dad’s speech, her green eyes are rimmed in red, but they’re still shining with amusement.
“Logan,” I begin again, prepared to repeat my question. But I can’t continue because the emotions are all stuck in the back of my throat. The words can’t come out.
Because I already know the answer.
The tears sting my eyes once again. “Baby, are you pregnant?”
Logan’s emerald eyes sparkle under the soft lights, her golden skin glowing, her smile radiating the entire space.
“Yes,” she finally says.
My entire world pauses as I stare at my wife. The champagne flute in my hand catches my eye, and I briefly think about what it’ll sound like when it drops onto the floor because I currently can’t feel any part of my body.
“You’re pregnant?” I gently ask, needing confirmation that I heard her correctly.
She nods her head repeatedly, biting down on her lower lip as her eyes well with happy tears. “Yeah, baby. I’m pregnant. We’re pregnant.”
As I take in her words, my trembling hand goes to place my glass of champagne on the table in front of us, but I’m too distracted to set it down carefully, so it tips over, coating our table, the bubbly liquid flowing over the edge away from us.
Logan’s face fills with amusement as she looks at the mess I just made. “You’re a clumsy one, Eli,” she says with soft eyes and a knowing smile.
