Here's to Forever (18 page)
Authors: Teagan Hunter
“Gary, my man, thanks for officiating. We appreciate it.”
Gary shakes my hand and pats my back. “It’s no problem at all, kid. I’m honored you even asked me. I…” He looks off over my shoulder as something catches his eye. “I’ve gotta go to talk to someone. Thanks again, Hudson. Not that I think you’ll need it, but good luck with everything. You’ve got yourself a beautiful family.”
He shakes my hand once again and heads off in the direction of where he was looking. I watch as he walks toward Joanne, Tucker’s mom. Her face lights up as he nears her, and I wonder what’s going on there.
“Can I have everyone’s attention, please?”
I scan the crowd for my wife, finding her off to the side laughing with Dallas and Maura. Every time she smiles, I smile. Feeling my stare, she glances over at me and excuses herself from her friends, making her way to me. When she walks, it’s like she’s floating on air. It’s delicate, precise, and almost angelic. The way she carries herself has always been one of my favorite things about her. Today, I swear she’s walking a little taller, and I can’t help but want to puff my chest out at the thought.
When she reaches my side, she wraps an arm around my waist and stands on her tip-toes to kiss my cheek. We don’t speak because we don’t have to. We both feel this odd swell of pride in knowing we’re officially off the market and tied to one another now.
“It’s time for the first dance. Who’s ready?” Everyone cheers. “Good. Hudson, Rae, get your butts to the dance floor—er, dance sand! That was weird.” He says the last line quietly, but the mic still picks up on it and we all laugh.
I look down at Rae and she shrugs. We didn’t want to do the traditional wedding routine. Pictures, ceremony, first dance, cake, bouquet, yada yada…all that crap. We wanted simple and laidback. But I suppose Tucker had different ideas.
“We don’t have to,” I tell her.
“I know, but I kind of want to.”
“But I suck at dancing.”
“You do?! Shit, glad I didn’t marry you for your dancing skills.”
I laugh and pull her out onto the designated “dance sand” area.
“Right. So, this is a little not-so-traditional, and that’s okay because neither are Rae and Hudson.” Tucker brought the band he uses on stage as backup for our special occasion. He gathers them together and talks lowly with them while Rae and I awkwardly wait for them to begin. They all nod and go back to their places.
The familiar intro riff to AC/DC’s
Highway to Hell
blares through the speakers, and the band struggles to play through their laughter, fizzling out before they even get through the first two lines of lyrics.
All I can do is shake my head and laugh until tears spill down my face at his antics. Because really? Who else would play that shit on my wedding day? No one but Tuck.
The band high-fives Tuck and leaves the stage. Tucker takes his seat on a stool with his acoustic guitar in hand.
“Alright, alright,” he says into the mic. “Now this one is for real. And this too is a little untraditional. I heard this beauty a while back and immediately thought of you two. It’s called
Here’s to the Heartache.
I mean, it sounds tragic, right? But it’s not. It’s full of hope. And that’s what you two give me. That’s what you give to a lot of people. You two, man, you’ve been through some shit. But you’ve persevered. Now look at you. Married! With an amazing daughter and a great future ahead of you. So, yeah, here’s to the heartache and everything you’ve endured. It’s led you here, and I can’t think of a better place to be.”
With that, Tucker begins crooning the song. I know right away it’s going to be something I love. I wrap Rae up in my arms and we begin our dance, swaying back and forth, letting the music guide not just our movements, but our hearts.
“He’s right. This does sound tragic,” Rae whispers.
“It does. But I hear that hope.”
“Me too.”
We sway, moving together to the words and the melody. We’re married. It’s done. All the troubled times and hardships thrown our way, we made it through, came out victorious on the other side. We won. And we’ll continue to do so.
“I love you, wife.”
“I love you, husband.”
“Is this where I’m supposed to recreate our New Year’s moment and whisper ‘here’s to tomorrow’ to you?”
Lifting her head, she looks up at me smiling. “Nah. This is where you come up with something new.”
“Yeah, I think you’re right.” I press my lips to hers, lingering there for just a moment. Pulling away, I bend until we’re cheek to cheek, until my lips graze her ear, and whisper, “Here’s to forever.”
Four Years Later“HUDSONNNNNNN!”
A drawn out name-screech? Not a good sign.
I run up the stairs two at a time, mentally pumping myself up the entire time, preparing for whatever tongue-lashing—that I probably deserve—I’m about to get.
“Rae?” I call out when I reach the hallway at the top of the stairs.
“Bathroom. Now.”
I follow her seething words, gulping because
fuck
this does not sound good. I slowly creep into the bedroom, taking my time inching my way to the adjoining bathroom. I pause briefly outside the door.
Whatever it is, just smile and say sorry. Give that smirk she always falls for. You can do this.
I push the door open and face my doom.
“Explain,” she demands immediately, darting her eyes to the sink that she’s standing in front of on the other side of the room.
I look toward it and see a white stick lying on the counter, not sure what it is from this distance.
“Umm…”
“Don’t ‘umm’ me. Explain this shit.” She huffs and picks up the object, thrusting it out toward me.
Slinking farther into the room, I start getting an inkling of an idea of what’s got her so upset because what she’s holding takes me back about twelve years, when I was sixteen and scared out of my mind. I have none of those feelings now.
I finally get within touching distance and grab hold of the stick she’s shoving in my face. Looking down at it, I see two pink lines. And my life changes right in front of my eyes.
I glance back up at her, seeing a huge grin gracing her face. We’ve been trying for over a year to make a baby and it’s been an uphill battle. But now, we’ve climbed it.
“We finally did it,” she whispers.
I throw the stick aside and rush her, folding her into my arms. “We did it. We fucking did it.”
“Literally,” she teases.
“Holy fuck. I’m gonna be a dad again.”
“And I’m gonna be a mom. Again.”
I can feel the tears start racing their way down my face. My heart’s making its own game, trying to beat harder and faster than it ever has before.
I kiss her head, her cheek, her lips. “We’re gonna be awesome parents again.”
She chuckles through her own tears. “Well, I am. Not so sure about you.”
“Hey, Joe’s a great kid.”
“Only because I was able to intercept her at a young age.”
Laughing, I rest my head against hers. I can’t stop smiling, or crying, for that matter. I’m ecstatic. Everything I’ve ever hoped for has come true. My life, no matter how stormy and turbulent things got, is exactly what I always pictured it would be. I have a career I enjoy, a kid—now two—to dote on, and a wife who makes coming home every night my favorite thing to do. Nothing could make it any better than it is in this moment.
“I love you,” I whisper before kissing her briefly.
I pull away and stare into the eyes of the girl who changed my life more than once, an equal amount of love filtering back through her gaze.
“I know.”
THE END
My husband, Henry, I love you. I am amazed by you every single day. The sacrifices you make for your country astound me. And this distance? This means nothing. It’s going to be a blip on our radar in a few years. We’re going to wade through the separations with ease. I know we will. Thank you. For being my partner, my constant encouragement, and for everything you do for us and our future. I love you. Always and forever. (P.S. You’re the sexiest Marine I’ve ever met. Notice I said met. :-p)
sMother, you’re my best friend. But don’t tell people. I love you.
B, I miss you. For reals.
Murphy, as always, you’re awesome. I could never thank you enough for everything but...thank you!
Jamie Walker, I love you. Okay? Okay.
All the Dawn’s in my life. Dawn B., Dawn R., Dawn C., and Dawn D. You’re all amazing friends and your support means so much.
Beth Thomason, I’m seriously out of words this time. I can’t. Topping myself seems impossible. You’re amazing. The best beta reader in this entire world. I love the way you push me, encourage me, and just tell me when I’m straight shit. You keep me going sometimes. Thank you.
NikkiWhoWishesGaigeWasHers, Laurie, Amélie, and #Murderface, you guys are awesome! Thank you for all your help, listening to my stupid ideas, and for not being afraid to tell me when I’m wrong.
I refuse to give Colleen Hoover any sort of acknowledgement.
My BS family, do I really have to say anything to you assholes? No? Good.
To my family, by blood or marriage, your support means everything.
I know I’m forgetting people and that’s because I suck. But…thank you all! For real!
Reader, thank you for all your support. It means more than you could ever know. I’ve loved writing Rae and Hudson like you wouldn’t believe. I’ve watched them grow so much behind the scenes and hope you’ve enjoyed their journey. You’ll see them again. I still have two books planned out!
With love and unwavering gratitude,
Teagan
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TEAGAN HUNTER is a romance cover artist by day and a writer by…well, every free moment she gets. She currently lives in MO with her Marine husband, two dogs, and lots of saltwater fish. Teagan enjoys reading, binge-watching TV shows (especially Supernatural!), cold weather, and never matching her socks. She’s weird. It’s kind of her “thing.”
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