Perfectly Ever After (Pieces) (7 page)

             
Katie was just about to say something when Eva came rushing over with . . . wait. Was that fucking Cage?

"Dad, um, Cage is here," she muttered, her eyes cast down at the floor.

Yeah, no shit.
"I see that
he's
here
. The better question is
why
is he here?"
My eyes bore into that little dickhead. Though "little" was perhaps an understatement. The kid was nearly as big as I was. My mind again flashed to images of Cage lifting weights in a prison yard while guards with automatic rifles circled him.

"I wanted to make sure I was on time for the wedding. And I was bored without Eva around, so I decided to come up early." Cage shrugged his shoulders like what he'd just said made perfect sense.

Why are smart girls always attracted to morons?
I tried not to draw a parallel to myself, but couldn't help it. Carly was a smart girl. I had been acting like a moron, though I quickly reminded myself that Cage wasn't acting. He really
was
a fucking moron.

"You do realize there's nowhere for you to stay up here though, right?"
I spoke slowly, trying to give his feeble mind time to process what I was saying. After a few moments of waiting, it became clear that he still didn't get it. "We only got a room for you for tomorrow night. There's nowhere for you to sleep tonight."

"Can't we see if they have any more rooms
?" Eva whined.

I sighed.
"They're completely booked, Eva. Not even all of our guests were able to get rooms."

"It's cool. I can just sleep in my car."

I was just about to say what a great idea that was, until Eva gasped as though the idea of her thug boyfriend having to sleep in his piece of shit car was the most horrifying thing she'd ever heard.
I wanted to explain that there were much more serious things to be horrified by: like her coming to me and saying that this Vanilla Ice wannabe had gotten her pregnant, for example.

"Can't he have the room he's staying in tomorrow?"
Eva cast a sideways glance at Carly, knowing she was asking Carly to give up her room.

Carly and I looked quickly at one another before I responded. "No, Eva. Carly needs that room tonight."

"Why? Can't she stay with Katie?" Eva's eyes were hard, challenging. It was like she was testing Carly to see if she'd come through for her. It was selfish, teenage girl bullshit, and I'd had enough of it.

"No, Eva. Everyone is getting ready in that room tomorrow. It's not an option. And quite frankly, it's offensive that you'd even ask that of Carly. Tomorrow is a big day for us. We don't need to be dealing with this crap."

"It's always all about
her
," Eva muttered. "Come on, Cage.
We'll
figure something out."

I grabbed Eva's bicep lightly as she started to turn away. Cage eyed my hand, and I swear the little fucker growled. I was suddenly overcome with the desire for him to make an aggressive move toward me so I could acquaint his face with the lobby floor.
"First of all, fix your tone, Eva. Now. You two are the ones creating the issue here. No one else. So suck it up. Second,
you're
not figuring out anything. You're going up to the room with your grandparents."

"But what about Cage?" Tears were brimming in Eva's eyes, but I was so over all of the drama, I couldn't bring myself to care.

"Grab your stuff," I told Cage gruffly. "You can stay on the couch in my room tonight."

Eva's eyes widened, and she looked questioningly at Cage. He gave her a single nod, and she visibly relaxed.

So glad they're amenable to inconveniencing the rest of us.
"Go to bed, Eva," I said curtly.

She looked at me sadly, my shortness obviously hurting her feelings. But that was tough shit. She didn't get that
the weekend wasn't about her. Any other time, my whole world revolved around Eva, which was how it should be. But not the weekend of my wedding. And I was pissed at her for not recognizing that.

I leaned toward Carly and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow. And
. . . sorry about all of that."

She'd been virtually silent throughout the entire exchange, and I realized that it was probably because that's what I'd basically asked her to be
: a silent, third-party in her own family. I didn't want that, but I didn't know how to make it better. Eva's behavior clearly showed that she already felt like she was being pushed aside for Carly. How much worse would that become if Carly started taking on a more active mothering role? I was too scared to find out.

"
It's fine," Carly replied. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow." She offered me a small smile, one that let me know we’d be okay. Maybe not in the best place we'd ever been, but okay.

"You sure will."
I flashed her a full smile, which she returned. I was going to marry this woman tomorrow. I couldn't wait. "Let's go," I muttered to Cage.

He followed me silently as we headed up to our room. Once inside, I told him to make himself comfortable, that I was going to bed.

But before I got to my bedroom door, I heard him. "Uh, Mr. Carter?"

I turned around wearily, having no desire to talk to this juvenile delinquent anymore.

"Thanks," he said simply. "And, I'm sorry. For messing things up."

I released a breath. "It's all right."
It wasn't, but I didn't know what else to say to him, so I shot him a quick nod and went to bed.

***

I'd tossed and turned most of the night, not feeling particularly good with where Carly and I were. I didn't want us to look back on our wedding day with anything but great memories.
And I didn't want our wedding to be marred by strain or tension because that didn't represent who Carly and I were as a couple. Our marriage shouldn't start out that way.

The
sun rose the next morning over the mountains. I knew this because I watched it. And while I sat looking at the dawn through the large window in my room, I thought about how much Carly would have loved that sunrise. Because it was beautiful . . . just like her. And that beauty wasn’t only skin-deep. It was part of who she was. As the sun’s rays hit my face, I finally said out loud what I'd been thinking all night: "I can be a real dick sometimes."

             
I grabbed my room key off of the bedside table, and made my way into the living room where Cage was asleep on the pull-out sofa. Careful not to wake him, I slowly unbolted the door, opened it, and then slipped out, shutting it softly behind me.

             
I walked with purpose toward Carly’s room. When I got there, I put my ear to the door, trying to listen for signs that she was awake. I heard a menagerie of voices, all talking over one another.
She must be getting ready.

             
I knocked, softly at first, but then with more authority when no one answered.

             
“Coming,” a voice said from inside. Suddenly the door flew open, and Katie stood there, starting to talk before she saw me. “Thank God you’re here. We’re . . .” she looked stunned as she realized that it was me at the door. “Starving,” she finally finished.

             
“Afraid I’m not going to be much help with that one.” I offered her a small smile to let her know I had come in peace. “Is Carly here? I really need to speak with her.”

             
Katie looked over her shoulder and bit her lip. She looked back at me apprehensively. “She’s here, but . . . uh . . . I dunno, isn’t it bad luck for you to see her or something?”

             
“Carly and I don’t have to worry about that kind of thing. We make our own luck.” I smiled more broadly at my words, realizing just how true they really were.

             
“Okay, well, let me go tell her you’re here.” She started to shut the door, but stopped before it closed all the way. “I haven't gotten a chance to speak to you since earlier in the week. I just wanted to say I’m really sorry if I caused any problems between you guys. I have such a big mouth.” She looked down at the floor as she spoke the last sentence.

             
“It’s okay, Katie. We’re fine.”

             
She forced a small smile, letting me know that she didn’t quite believe me. She left the door slightly ajar—not enough for me to see inside, but I appreciated that she didn’t close it on me.

             
I stood in the hallway and waited for Carly. It seemed like forever, though it obviously wasn’t. I’m not even sure a full minute passed, but it felt like an eternity.

             
“Adam?”

             
I heard her voice, but she didn’t open the door. “Yeah, it’s me.”

             
“What are you doing here? It's bad luck to see me before the wedding." Her voice was worried, but there was a hopeful curiosity mixed in there as well.

             
“You can keep the door closed. I just needed to talk to you.”

             
“Everything okay?” she asked quietly.

             
“Absolutely. I just . . . I just wanted to clear up a few things."

She stayed silent, waiting patiently for me to continue.

"I don't want to do it alone anymore," I blurted out. "I want us to be a team. When it comes to everything. There shouldn't be things in our life that I handle or you handle.
We
should handle everything together. I get that now."

"What changed?"

I heard the smile in her voice, and knowing I had put it there was the best feeling in the world.

"Last night . . . the way Eva reacted . . . s
he was that way because I've allowed it. I've created an atmosphere where it's me and Eva and me and you. Like two separate factions. It can't be that way. I get that now. And if you marry me today, I promise that it won't stay that way."

She giggled softly. "I was always going to marry you today, Adam."

I laughed back. "I'm not sure why. I'm really such an asshole."

She laughed loudly in response. "Sometimes. But you're
my
asshole."

My voice grew serious. "Yes, always yours."

We stood there, basking in the silence, allowing our love for one another to fill the gap between us and speak louder than any words ever could. Finally, Carly spoke. "Well if that will be all, Mr. Carter, I have a wedding to get ready for."

"Oh trust me, soon-to-be
Mrs. Carter. That's far from all."

She giggled again. "I don't doubt it. I love you. See you soon."

"I love you, too," I replied before heading back to my room and waiting anxiously to marry the most wonderful woman I'd ever met.              

Chapter 6: “Amazing” (Lonestar)

“This is it. Your last chance to just say no.” Frank stared at me with mock seriousness as he adjusted his tie and waited for me to reply.

             
“I’m getting married, not turning down a hit of a joint in seventh grade.” My eyes widened as I slowed my words down so that even a dumbass like Frank could understand them. “Trust me, I’ve given this some thought.” All I had done since I’d talked to Carly three hours earlier was think. I thought of the first time we’d had sex after the reunion. I thought about how even then I should have known that she was the one for me. I’d chalked up our instant connection as a purely sexual one, not wanting to acknowledge it at the time
for what it was. And I thought of how happy I’d been when she’d come into my life again.

             
“Okay,” Frank said, pulling me out of my daydream. “Just want to make sure you fully realize what you’re getting into. You gotta wake up next to her for the rest of your life, man.”

 
 Doug laughed and rolled his eyes. Frank had given a similar speech at Doug’s
wedding too. I guess he thought that convincing Claire to stay married to his ass for the last ten years had made him an expert on the subject. 

             
“Yeah,” I said, knowing he’d hear the sarcasm in my tone. “You say that like it’s a
bad
thing. You
have
seen Carly, right?”

“Well, sure, she’s hot
now
. But give it a few years. One day you’ll roll over and that hot-ass redhead will be replaced with a Medusa look-alike. Not to mention the whole ‘no sex as a weapon’ thing. Women
love
that. Joke’s on them though,” Frank added with a laugh. “We can hold out longer than they can.”

“We can?”
Troy didn’t sound so certain.

“Sure,” Frank retorted quickly.
“Simple anatomy. We can get ourselves off any time we want. I’m pretty sure Vaseline’s spike in sales is directly related to the time I let Dylan stay home from school so we could go four-wheeling. I was on the couch for three weeks for that one.” He shook his head and cracked open a beer. “Eventually Claire caved like I knew she would. Just proves my point. I could’ve gone another three weeks.”