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“I’m so sorry, I had no idea, but you were wanted,” I muttered, as a wave of nausea washed over me again.
“I don’t want her money. I’m just glad I have finally been brought into a family who genuinely cares about me, who had no say in what happened to me, and who love me for who I am.”
“No, you must take the money. That way it’s gone back to the person it belongs to. You deserve to have it as compensation for all you’ve gone through. I want you to have some benefit from what we’ve suffered,” I insisted.
“You should have it,” Dad agreed, “do something outrageous with it, that would really piss Betty off. You could spend it on a ‘huge fuck you, Betty Mattison, look at me’ event. Go to Vegas and shoot craps.”
We knew he hadn’t meant it, but we all chuckled at Dad’s sense of humor. Despite all he’d had to deal with in those previous few weeks, he had still managed to raise a smile.
“I used to think we were a pretty conservative family, but from everything I’ve found out since my late wife died, it’s been an eye opener worthy of an episode of The Jerry Springer Show. By the sounds of things, we’d probably have aced the audition, had we applied to be on it.”
We all laughed heartily at my grieving father’s dark sense of humor, and my heart squeezed tight for him, because even though his world had been turned upside down, he had still found the strength of character to find wit in the absurdity of our situation.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“What kind of wedding do you want?” James rolled onto his side in the bed beside me, rose up to his elbow, and rested his head on his hand.
My eyes locked into his gorgeous blue ones that looked like calming pools, and my heart fluttered with the intense connection that passed between us. We each held the gaze for longer than we realized until he prompted me for an answer.
“You haven’t changed your mind, have you?”
“What? No, not for a minute,” I said and scoffed. “As if I’d ever do that. Sorry, I got lost in you for a minute.” I said. He snickered and cupped my cheek. “You make me do that sometimes,” I admitted again. James chuckled. “So, the wedding,” I said, and brought us back to his question. “Nothing big and flashy,” I decided, finally answering him. “We’re the wrong side of forty for that and I don’t like that kind of attention.
“Then what?” he prompted again.
“I don’t know really, getting married to you is plenty celebration enough,” I added, sounding corny.
“How would you feel about getting married in the next few weeks?”
“Before there’s more drama you mean?”
“Exactly,” he breathed, sliding his arms around my waist.
James pulled me over on top of him and cupped my face between his hands. He paused and looked at me for a moment before he smiled. My heartbeat quickened under his intense gaze, and in that moment, I had never felt more loved in my life.
“I can hardly wait for you to be my wife, Tricia,” he murmured, lifted his head, and brushed his lips against mine before lying back on the pillow. “Where do you want the ceremony to be?”
“I can’t wait either, and soon … the beach? No shoes, only family in attendance. I’d prefer a low-key ceremony followed by a few more stress-free days away.” Without another word, James rolled me off him and climbed naked from the bed. “Hey, where are you going?” I asked, watching him as he stood up straight.
“To call my mom, we’ve got a wedding to plan,” he said playfully, and pulled the comforter and sheet off the bed. He walked out of the room with them tucked under his arm, and I watched his firm sexy frame disappear out of view. Flopping back on the bed naked, I chuckled, rolled onto my side, and sat up.
His abrupt decision-making made my heart pound, and I shook my head in disbelief at how quickly he had sprung into action after our conversation.
Once I had adapted to what he’d said, I couldn’t wait to put a plan into motion.
“Yes, Mom, I know,” I heard James say, as I padded through in the T-shirt he’d worn the night before. It smelled delicious, a mixture of James and of his cologne. “I’ll talk to her and see what she says—actually—she’s here now, you can talk to her yourself,” he’d told her, and instantly held out his cell to me, and I silently cussed him for putting me on the spot.
“Congratulations again, and welcome to the family,” Harriett gushed down the line. My heart felt full when I heard how genuinely happy she sounded for us. My heart clenched because it meant the world to me that she approved of her son’s choice for his wife. “We never thought James would marry and we’re delighted for you both.”
“Thank you,” I replied graciously.
“Next couple of weeks—like James has asked for—will be a push, but if you don’t mind what day, I could reach out to the directors of the Peconic Beach Tennis club and see what availability they have. They’re well seasoned in beach weddings and it would give me great pleasure to take over the formalities of arranging the wedding out of your hands. I’ll consult about the menu, cake and such, of course—”
“Have at it, Harriett,” I replied, cutting her off. “I really don’t care. All I want is somewhere I can turn up, say I do, and spread my toes in the sand with James as my husband. I don’t want anything flashy and only close family to attend. I’ll send you a list of those on my end. I don’t know about your side of the family, but Billie will be my maid of honor and Brynn in a princess dress.”
“Would you mind if Tammy’s girls had dresses too? I hate one having all the attention and the rest being left out.” I chuckled, wondering what Tammy would think since she was the one dead set against James and me in the first place.
“No problem, but you’d have to clear that with Tammy since I’m not her favorite person.”
