Marrying Caroline (SEAL of Protection) (6 page)

Caroline waited nervously in the waiting room for Fiona. They were giving Fiona some time alone with Hunter before they all bustled into his room and sprung a surprise wedding on him. Caroline couldn’t wait to see Hunter. After Fiona finished her visit, she and Matthew were going to go in and see him and explain how they were going to get married today after all…in Hunter’s hospital room. Caroline hoped he’d be happy, but first, she couldn’t wait to see him with her own eyes to make sure he was okay.

Finally Fiona came into the waiting room. It looked like she’d been crying, but her lips were also swollen as if she’d had the stuffing kissed out of her.

“He’s ready to see you guys now,” Fiona said softly. Dude came forward and put his arm around Fiona’s shoulders, giving her some non-verbal support.

Caroline stood up and grabbed Matthew’s hand as he held it out to her. “Ready?” he asked.

“Yeah.” And Caroline
was
ready. She was more than ready. Caroline looked at the pastor who was sitting in the middle of the men and smiling. In fact, Caroline realized the woman had been smiling all afternoon, once she’d learned Hunter was going to be fine. She seemed happy as a clam to have been bribed…er…asked, to perform a wedding in a hospital room.

Caroline knocked once at Hunter’s door and at his terse, “Yeah!” she pushed the door open.

Hunter was lying on the bed, wearing a scrubs shirt, the sheet pulled up to the middle of his chest. At seeing it was Caroline, he sat all the way up in bed, gingerly, and held out his hand. “Ice! Get over here.”

Caroline smiled and let go of Matthew’s hand and made her way over to Hunter’s side.

“You look beautiful.”

Caroline snorted. “Whatever, Hunter.”

“Seriously. Okay, you have what looks like blood on your gorgeous dress, and your pretty hairdo is leaning a bit to the side, but for a man who saw a car coming straight for his head, you look perfect.”

Caroline frowned a bit at that. But Hunter continued, “I’m pissed at the wedding thing, but don’t worry, we had insurance on the reception venue, so we aren’t losing all the money on that. We’ll have to reassess about the flowers and some of the other stuff, but we’ll figure it out. Give me a week after I get out of here and we’ll have you two married in a jiffy.”

Caroline sniffed and held back her tears by sheer force of will. Hunter didn’t even care about himself, at the moment all he cared about was her wedding. She put her hand over Hunter’s mouth. “Listen to me for a second.” When Hunter nodded, Caroling took her hand away from his face and held it out to Matthew, who had been standing just behind her.

Caroline smiled at Matthew when he grabbed her hand and held it up to his lips for a quick kiss. Then she turned back to Hunter. “Okay, here’s the deal. You did a shit ton of work for this wedding, and I’m not willing to give all that up. If it’s okay with you, the pastor is here, I’m here, Matthew is here, you’re here, all our friends are here…I want to get married now. Here. With you.” When Hunter didn’t say anything, but instead just lay on his bed and stared at her, Caroline stuttered, “If that’s okay.”

“If that’s okay?” Cookie asked incredulously.

“Careful, Cookie,” Wolf warned his friend, not understanding the tone of his voice.

Cookie spared a quick look at Wolf and briefly flashed their SEAL sign for “okay” to him. Wolf relaxed and put his hand on the small of Caroline’s back in support.

“Caroline, come here,” Cookie ordered. Caroline took a small step closer to the bed, and Cookie took hold of her hand in a death grip.

“I can’t believe you’d do that. You should wait until you can do it right, until it’s perfect.”

Caroline sat gingerly on the side of Hunter’s bed. “It’s perfect today. I’m sorry the day didn’t turn out like you planned it, but the bottom line is that I want to do this today. I’ve been looking forward to this day for the last two months. I don’t want to wait. But I want
you
to be okay with it. For all intents and purposes, this is your wedding too.”

Cookie reached up with both hands and brought Caroline’s head down close to his. “I’m more than okay with it. I’m fucking honored you’d do this today here with me.”

When Caroline sniffed with emotion, Wolf commented dryly, “If you two don’t stop sniffling over each other, the doctors will discharge Cookie and all your plans for an emotional bedside wedding will be for naught, Ice.”

Caroline laughed and looked up at Matthew. “Keep your pants on, Matthew.”

They all laughed and Caroline stood up. “Okay, I’ll send the rest of the group in. Matthew, you stay. I’ll see you in a bit.” She reached up and kissed her soon-to-be husband. She wasn’t quick about it, and Matthew took advantage of her emotional state to deepen the kiss. Finally Caroline pulled away, kissed her fingertips, held them to Matthew’s lips and backed out of the room.

“Is she wearing flip-flops?” Cookie joked to his friend.

“Yup.”

“That’s not what I bought for her.”

“Nope.”

“You okay with this, Wolf?” Cookie asked seriously.

“Fuck yeah.”

“All right then.”

The two men smiled at each other, both lost in their thoughts of the amazing woman that had come into their lives.

* * *

Caroline stood in the hallway of the hospital wringing her hands nervously. The men were all inside the small hospital room where Hunter was lying on the bed. The pastor was also inside the room. Everyone was waiting for her to get in there, but Caroline wanted to have a moment with Fiona and Alabama first.

“You guys are the best friends a girl could ever have. I never had a sister, or even a close friend, but I thank God every day you came into Christopher’s and Hunter’s lives.”

“Really? You’re going to do this now?” Fiona mock-complained, wiping away her tears.

Caroline laughed and nodded. “No time like the present.”

“Okay, then right back at ‘cha. When I was locked inside that hut in Mexico, I didn’t think I’ve ever get out of there. You don’t see me as broken, even when I literally descended into crazy-town right in front of your eyes.”

Alabama chimed in as well, her words all the more meaningful because of her history. “I learned never to trust anyone, but you guys have shown me that people can be unselfish and genuine and I don’t know what I’d have done without you, Caroline, when I was homeless.”

The three women surged together as if they’d planned it. They hugged each other and sniffled. Finally Caroline pulled away and wiped at her eyes. “Okay, I know I started it, but I want to get married. Can we please put this mushy stuff away until later?”

Alabama followed Caroline’s lead and wiped her face and Fiona did the same.

“Okay, Alabama, you go in first, then Fiona. It’ll be just like we planned for the procession into the church, but only a much smaller aisle.” They giggled, and Alabama got ready to open the door and walk in. She turned around at the last minute.

“Love you, girl. I’m so happy for you.” And she was gone.

Fiona turned to Caroline.

“Oh, God, no more, I can’t take any more.”

Fiona laughed at Caroline. “All I want to say is thank you for grounding me back at the church. For a second my world was over, but then you were there, hauling me back to the real world and helping me get through minute by minute. Just like you did that day in the mall when I had that flashback. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Fiona. I know you’d do the same for me.”

“Hell yeah I would.”

“Okay, I’m going in.” Fiona leaned over, kissed Caroline on the cheek, and she too was gone.

Caroline took a deep breath, she was ready. Without waiting for another moment, not even for dramatic effect, she opened the door to Hunter’s room and squeezed in. It was a tight fit. The room wasn’t big to begin with, but with all the SEALs, the pastor and her two friends, it was crazy crowded.

Matthew stood at side of Hunter’s bed. The pastor stood by the door, ready to move into place once Caroline got to Matthew’s side.

Caroline walked to Matthew and reached for his hands. Because she didn’t have a bouquet, it felt awkward to just stand there, but Matthew didn’t hesitate and engulfed her hands with his. The smile he bestowed down on her made her breath hitch. Matthew really was a handsome man, and in just a moment, he’d be all hers.

“We are gathered here today…” The pastor’s voice droned on, but all Caroline could see was Matthew’s eyes. They were locked on hers and she could see the passion lying within them. She figured Matthew could see the same in her own eyes. Caroline tried to stay in the present, but the promise in Matthew’s eyes was almost too much. All she could think of was the remembered feel of Matthew’s hard length sliding inside her and the feel of his hands roaming her body.

Caroline started when Matthew reached into his pocket and pulled out two rings. She’d forgotten all about their wedding bands. Thank God Matthew hadn’t.

When it was time, Wolf brought Caroline’s hand up to his mouth and kissed her engagement ring. He slid it off, then pressed his wedding band down her finger until it nestled against the base. He replaced his diamond and once again brought Caroline’s hand up to his mouth and kissed her finger again. Wolf lingered this time, savoring the feel and look of his mark on her hand.

Then it was Caroline’s turn. It wasn’t planned, but she couldn’t stop the words that came out of her mouth. As she pushed the wide platinum band down Matthew’s finger, she told him earnestly and honestly, “I know you probably can’t always wear this when you’re on your missions, and that’s okay. I know you belong to me, you know I belong to you.”

Caroline then followed Matthew’s example and brought his hand to her mouth and kissed the wedding band that lay against his skin.

Caroline watched as Matthew mouthed the words, “I love you.” She gazed into his eyes and once again tuned out the beautiful words being said by the pastor.

“I do.”

The strength and certainty behind Matthew’s words snapped Caroline back to reality. He bought her hand up to his mouth and kissed it.

Caroline listened to the pastor ask if she would take Matthew as her lawfully wedded husband. When it was her turn, she answered, “I do.”

Knowing it was coming, Caroline could only smile stupidly at Matthew and wait for the words they both longed for. Finally the pastor put them out of their misery.

“I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

Matthew put both hands on Caroline’s neck, a position Caroline loved. Feeling his hands surrounding her, holding her still for his kiss, never failed to make her body ready itself for her man.

“I love you, Ice.” Wolf’s words were spoken against her lips.

“I love you too, Matthew.” Each word out of her mouth brushed her lips against his. Before the last syllable was out of her mouth, Wolf completed the connection between them. He held her head still and tilted his mouth even more until he had Caroline right where he wanted her. Their tongues dueled with each other, tasting and teasing each other. It wasn’t their first kiss by any stretch of the imagination.

But it was their first kiss as husband and wife. Somehow that made it completely different from any other kiss they’d ever shared before. It took the pastor clearing her throat for the third time to make Wolf pull away from his wife. He smiled down at Caroline and ran his fingertip down her reddened cheek. “Mine.”

Caroline smiled up at him. “Yours,” she whispered back.

“Lean down here so I can kiss the bride,” Cookie demanded, interrupting their moment.

Caroline laughed and turned to the bed and leaned over. Instead of the chaste kiss on the cheek Caroline expected, Hunter kissed her hard on the lips.

“Hey!” Wolf snapped.

Caroline laughed and playfully smacked Hunter on the shoulder. “You shouldn’t mess with him like that.”

“But he makes it so easy,” was Cookie’s response.

“My turn,” Dude stated, and turned Caroline to him. He too kissed her on the lips. “Welcome to the family.”

And so it went. Each man on the team took his turn, and said how glad they were that Caroline was now officially a part of their family.

When Caroline got back around to Matthew, she could see he was holding on to his temper by his fingernails. She tried to soothe him. “Hey, husband.” Her words did the trick.

“Hey, wife.” Wolf gathered Caroline into his arms and relaxed when she melted into him.

“Smile!” Fiona ordered, snapping a picture with her cell phone before either Caroline or Wolf could move.

“That’s a good one!” she exclaimed after checking it out on her phone. “I’ve been taking pictures throughout the ceremony, but I think that’s my favorite.”

Alabama unexpectedly thrust her cell phone into Fiona’s line of vision without a word.

“Okay, I lied.
That
is my favorite.” Fiona took Alabama’s phone out of her hand and turned the screen to Caroline and Wolf.

Alabama had snapped the photo as Wolf was kissing his bride. The passion he had for Caroline was clear. Caroline’s head was bent backward at what should have been an awkward angle, but Wolf’s hands at her neck prevented it from bending too far back. Both Caroline and Wolf had their eyes shut and Caroline’s hand was cupped on the back of Wolf’s head.