Games of the Heart (82 page)

Then again, Mike was pretty much always in the mood to be alpha.

So I guessed I wasn’t moving.

“Right,” I muttered.

He grinned at me. Then his head dropped and his mouth started working my neck again and I wondered why I wanted to move in the first place.

* * * * *

Mike stood, bent at the waist, hands on the counter, eyes on the blonde haired little girl in her kelly green flower girl dress with a dish towel wrapped around her front sitting on the counter in front of him. Her Mom’s long, shining hair that was on her little girl head was a mass of curls with a wide, satin, kelly green ribbon threaded through them holding the hair away from her face.

She was engaged in downing a glass of chocolate milk.

And she was determined.

She accomplished this feat, dropped the glass she held in both her hands, looked up at her Dad with her big, dark brown eyes and dramatically gasped a long, “
Ahhhh.
”

Mike grinned and asked, “That good?”

His youngest daughter, Amanda grinned back with a chocolate milk mustache and nodded fervently.

“Right,” he muttered, “you’re topped up and good to go.”

Then he took the glass from her, set it aside and pulled the dishtowel from her front to wipe her mouth with it.

He was lifting her off the counter when Reesee, hair done, makeup perfect, wearing a shimmery short robe, raced in, took one look at him and shrieked, “
I can’t find my shoes!
”

Then she turned and raced out.

Mike put Mandy on her feet but dipped his chin into his neck to look way down at her and saw her head tipped way back to look up at her Daddy.

“Reesee’s nutty,” Mandy declared.

“Got that right, baby,” Mike muttered then turned and saw Austin, his dark blond headed, dark brown eyed, six year old son wearing a little boy’s tux complete with a yellow rose boutonniere pinned to his lapel wandering in.

“Reesee’s losin’ it, Dad,” he announced the obvious.

“I think I got that,” Mike told him.

“
I can’t get married without shoes!
”
Reesee shrieked from what sounded like upstairs.

It was then Dusty walked in. She was wearing a pale yellow dress that skimmed her figure, a sheer, flowy layer of material over the same colored satin underneath. Sleeveless, v-necked and showing a minute amount of cleavage which exposed just a hint of her gunshot scar. It was v-backed as well but the back vee went lower. The skirt hugged her ass, hips and thighs and the satin stopped above her knees but the sheer layer fell in a flippy edge to skim them. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail at the nape of her neck, wrapped in a pale yellow, satin ribbon. She had her diamond studs in her ears, the diamond pendant Mike gave her for their second anniversary (the second most important one, the day she forgave him) at her neck and that was it.

She looked stunning.

“We have a shoe crisis,” she proclaimed. “All hands on deck and by that, I mean you, Dad.” She looked down at Austin, “You, big man, I need to look after your sister. Her dress has to stay perfect for t-minus one hour and fifteen minutes and only
then
can she set about destroying it. Until the shoes are located, this is your mission. My suggestion, go into the family room and recruit Uncle Jordy to help you accomplish it.”

Austin looked up at his Mom and nodded solemnly. Then he moved to his sister, took her hand and led her toward the family room.

Dusty’s eyes slid through him and then she disappeared.

Mike winked at his daughter who was gazing back at him then he moved to join the search.

He was surprised Reesee wasn’t together but then again that day of any would be the time to lose it. Usually, she was quite a bit like Dusty, except in a quieter, softer way. Confident. Laidback. No-nonsense.

He figured in one hour, fifteen minutes, she’d come back to that.

He moved through the house mostly going through the motions considering he had no fucking clue what he was looking for.

This was not a hardship.

When Dusty was pregnant with Amanda, she’d sold her ranch to the couple who’d been renting it since a month after she got shot.

Then they’d moved from the development into The ‘Burg. A big, established house on Green Street. Huge yard. A line of peony bushes that ran the long, side drive that every May burst into huge, downy blooms of colors ranging from the richest cream to the deepest pink. In the summer Dusty hung four big pots of ferns from the roof of the front porch that ran the length of the house and she put his Adirondack chairs out there. The house had big rooms, a kitchen built to make Thanksgiving dinner and lots of sash windows where, in the living room at the front of the house, they put their Christmas tree every year. Out in the vast, sweeping backyard there was a detached two car garage and an enormous, heated shed where Dusty made her pottery.

And as he wandered the rooms looking for a shoebox, like he did when he did his walkthroughs randomly at night, he took it all in and he didn’t miss what he saw.

He had it all. The full dream. His family in a big, old, graceful house in The ‘Burg, Christmas tree in the window, ferns hanging from the porch roof in the summer.

And a beautiful, smart, funny, loving woman in his bed who was his wife, the mother of two of his kids and the adoring stepmom to the other two.

He was living the dream.

All of it.

He looked into the family room hoping Rees hadn’t lost her mind and stowed her shoes there and saw Mandy on Jordy’s lap, Jordy pushed back in Mike’s recliner happily watching cartoons with Mike’s kids.

Jordy’s eyes came to his and he reported, “I already reconned the area. No shoes.”

Mike chuckled and jerked up his chin then he moved out of the door and wandered up the wood steps with their dusky blue carpet runner, rounded the middle landing and hit the top where the kids’ rooms and his office were. He’d just walked through the door to what would soon become the guest room considering Reesee wasn’t going to be in it anymore when she emerged from her closet with a scary-spiked-high-heeled, ivory satin shoe in each hand and she declared, “Found them!”

“In your closet,” Mike noted and his daughter’s eyes cut to his.

“Mike,” Dusty muttered but her voice was vibrating with amusement.

She was on her hands and knees on the floor, ass pointed in the air, her own scary-spike-high-heeled shoes (hers were pale yellow and they were strappy sandals) already on her feet, clearly having just been engaged in checking under the bed.

Mike tore his gaze from his wife’s ass and looked to Audrey who had a piece of luggage open on the bed, the folded contents of which her hands had suspended from carefully pawing through. Her dancing eyes were on Mike and her lips were pressed together to stop herself from laughing.

“Cut me some slack,
Dad,
” Reesee snapped and Mike looked at his daughter. “I’m gettin’ married today.”

“Yeah, to a man you’ve been with for seven years. Jesus, Reesee, you’re already practically married. You’re just doin’ this to have a party and cash in on presents,” Mike replied.

“Mike,” Dusty muttered again, now on her feet and her voice was still vibrating with amusement.

Audrey actually snorted.

“Mom!” Reesee shouted, glaring at her mother.

“Honey, your Dad is funny,” Audrey defended herself.

Mike crossed his arms on his chest and grinned at his daughter.

“I’m just cuttin’ the tension with a joke,” he told her and her eyes sliced to his.

“If that’s what you’re tryin’ to do, you’re failing!” Reesee clipped.

Mike’s grin faded and he whispered, “Calm down, beautiful. It’s all gonna be okay. Everything is going to be perfect. You’re marrying a good man who loves you, you love him and you’re starting on a journey that’ll make you happy until the day you die.”

He watched his daughter’s eyes fill with tears then she waved her hand in front of her face and exclaimed, “Don’t make me cry! My makeup! The makeup girl just left! She can’t do repairs.”

“Come here,” Mike ordered.

“No. You’re gonna make me cry,” Reesee returned, still waving her hand in front of her face.

“Reesee, honey, come here,” Mike said quietly but firmly.

She held his eyes, dropped her hand and came to him.

“We’ll just give you two a minute,” Dusty muttered and she and Audrey slid by them and out the door.

Mike lifted both his hands and cupped his girl’s jaw.

Then his eyes moved over her face.

Then they locked on hers.

“Most beautiful girl in the world,” he whispered.

She dropped her shoes, her hands came up and wrapped around his wrists, tight.

“Dad,” she whispered back.

“Most beautiful girl in the world,” he repeated, his voice thick.

She pressed her lips together.

He brought her closer and bent in.

With lips to the top of her hair, he murmured, “Love you, my Reesee.”

“I love you too, Daddy.”

Daddy.

He closed his eyes and pressed his lips against her fragrant, soft hair.

Then he pulled back a bit and whispered into her hair, “Always.”

“Always, Daddy,” she whispered back.

He heard pandemonium downstairs which meant her bridesmaids were arriving.

So he straightened away but kept his hands on her jaws and again caught her eyes.

She held his gaze and his wrists and didn’t let go.

Then two of her bridesmaids entered the room.

“
Ohmigod!
Your hair is
divine,
” one of them announced.

Mike smiled at his daughter.

Then he let her go and moved away. The bridesmaids, already wearing their sophisticated, kelly green bridesmaids dresses, converged as he walked toward the door.

He looked back to see her huddled with one, the other one had hold of her wedding dress that had been hanging on the closet door.

Then he drew in a deep breath and left the room.

And he did this preparing to do what he’d have to do in an hour.

The impossible.

Let her go.

* * * * *

 
Mike sat in a chair at the front of the huge formation of them that were set out in the sun by the side of the Holliday farmhouse. His eyes were on the awning that was in front of him. It was strewn with yellow roses and kelly green ribbons and streamers, all of which were drifting in the lazy breeze that luckily swept away the humidity and took the burn off the day.

Dusty had just left the seat at his side to walk under the awning.

Jonas had left the groomsmen line and was seating himself at the piano.

Dusty grinned at Jonas. He grinned back. She nodded and No twisted his head to look at his bud who was sitting at a set of drums.

Jonas jerked up his chin, the drummer kicked in and Dusty started humming into the microphone she was standing in front of.

While Reesee and Fin stood in each other’s arms under the awning looking into each other’s eyes, Dusty’s eyes found Mike’s.

Then in her pure, sweet, beautiful voice, his wife started singing Sarah McLachlan’s “Ice Cream”.

For his daughter and her nephew.

But to her husband.

Mike held her eyes as she sang, his son accompanied her and he let her voice settle into his soul.

Two minutes later, the song was over.

Fifteen minutes later, his daughter was Mrs. Finley Declan Holliday.

* * * * *

Two seconds after that, Mandy Haines looked at her Daddy from her place standing in front of her sissy Reesee’s pretty best friend, she opened her mouth and yelled, “Daddy! I’m gonna marry a boy just like Finny!”

Everyone in the chairs in front of her burst out laughing.

Even her Mommy.

But Mandy was confused.

Because Daddy’s eyes closed slowly and he shook his head like he did when he told her no, she couldn’t do something, eat something, have something or go somewhere.

She wasn’t worried.

Daddy tended to give in.

Eventually.

* * * * *

His new wife in her father’s arms five feet away, Fin looked down at his mother in his.

She smiled up at him and she did a good job. It looked almost genuine.

He swayed with her and whispered, “I know what you’re thinkin’.”

“That I’m beside myself with happiness that my son married a good girl who loves him like crazy?” she asked through her smile.

“That you wish Dad was here,” Fin contradicted and watched the pain shade her eyes for a moment before she rallied and forced her fading smile to brighten. He gave her a squeeze with his arms and kept whispering, “Ma, I do too.”

“I know,” she whispered back.