“Forever was just a word until I met you. Now it’s a promise. A dream. My cherished reality. I love you forever, Rebekah. My love. My wife.” He lifted her hands to his lips and kissed her wedding band, staring deep into her eyes. “Forever.”
“Forever,” she repeated, unable to take her eyes off his.
Her mother sniffed loudly behind her. There were several other sniffles from the front pew.
“Do you all have allergies or what?” Eric asked. His voice sounded extra loud in the quiet church.
Rebekah’s laugh was accompanied by several others.
Eric glanced at her dad. “Well?” he said, eyes wide with expectation.
“By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”
“Fucking finally,” Eric said and drew Rebekah against his body.
To a background of laughter, catcalls, her mother’s open weeping, and one incredibly sensual guitar solo, Rebekah Sticks kissed her husband for the first time. The press of Eric’s lips against hers was even more tender, emotional, and passionate than she’d anticipated. Her throat and eyes ached with unshed tears. Happy tears. The happiest.
Eric’s strong arms tightened around her, drawing her closer, enveloping her in love and tenderness and heat. She couldn’t ignore the heat between them.
“Get a room!” Trey yelled.
She felt Eric smile against her lips, and he drew back to gaze down into her eyes.
“Best advice I’ve gotten all day,” he said.
She had to agree.
Her dad cleared his throat and spoke in a loud, clear voice. “This day Rebekah and Eric entered as two and now leave as one soul united,” he said. “May I present Mr. and Mrs. Eric Sticks. May their love shine more brightly with each passing moment.”
She beamed at her daddy, who was blinking far more than necessary. Her mother squeezed her arm, and Rebekah turned to find her smiling through her tears. Eric shook her dad’s hand and then helped her down from the single step at the front of the church so they could exit.
They didn’t get far.
Chapter Seven
Eric jerked unexpectedly as he was hugged vigorously from behind. He turned his head to find Jace—all denim and leather and tough guy and maybe a few tears—with his face buried in Eric’s back. Eric grinned and patted the pair of hands clasped tightly together at his waist.
“Now, Tripod,” Eric said, “you had your chance with me and settled for Aggie.”
He caught the stunned look on Rebekah’s face and offered her a wink. The tension immediately drained from her body and she smiled, cocking her head to peek at the man behind him.
“Fuck you,” Jace said, his words muffled by Eric’s back. He attempted some strange variation of the Heimlich maneuver. “Just… Fuck you.”
After a moment, Jace took a deep breath, drew away, and settled for pounding on Eric’s back with enough force to fracture bones.
“Yes, you like me,” Eric said, chuckling. “I get it. Stop trying to break me. Aggie, control your sub.”
“You’re such an ass,” Jace said.
Well, what did Jace expect? If he didn’t turn Jace’s uncharacteristic emotional display into a joke, he’d have to put on an uncharacteristic emotional display of his own.
Jace circled Eric’s neck with both hands and pretended to choke him. Not one to be left out of a gag, Eric let his head loll loosely and stuck his tongue out as if he were in true distress.
Rebekah’s mother tried to step in—presumably to save his life—but Rebekah caught her arm and shook her head. That slight motion made Eric love her all the more. The woman understood him in a way that completely baffled him. He figured most women would be pissed to have her first moment as a newlywed standing beside her husband interrupted by a bunch of immature male-bonding bullshit, but not his Rebekah.
Since it didn’t seem like they would ever make it back down the aisle, the spectators rose from the pews to offer their hugs and congratulations.
Eric kept one eye on his bride, who kissed his hand and then released it so she could hug her family—now his family too, he thought with a smile. Aggie stepped up to help Jace get his out-of-control emotions back under his command. She pinched his ass, and he immediately dropped his hands from Eric’s throat. Eric grinned to himself. Nope, he obviously wasn’t her sub at all.
Sed took the opening to give Eric a customary slap on the back of the head before capturing his arms in a full-nelson so Trey could bless Eric’s nose with his sticky cherry sucker.
“Hold still,” Trey said, tracking Eric’s jerky head motions with his lollipop.
Brian emerged from the choir loft, where he’d been playing his guitar, and wrapped a protective arm around his pregnant wife’s shoulders before approaching Eric.
“Words of wisdom from one married man to another,” Brian said, turning his head side to side as he tried to track Eric’s gaze. After an exasperating moment, he released his wife and hugged Trey from behind, pinning his arms and his sucker to his sides. Trey immediately went still.
“Guys, really?” Brian said. “The man just got married. Show him some respect.”
“Yeah,” Eric said. “What he said.”
Sed released Eric’s aching arms.
“You can harass him after I’m through with him,” Brian added.
“And I thought you were on my side.”
“I am. I’m going to help you out here. So listen carefully.”
Eric nodded, having rarely dealt with any of his band members speaking to him with such earnestness.
“You only need to remember three words to keep your wife happy,” Brian said, releasing Trey so he could draw Myrna against his side.
“I love you?” Eric said.
“No. Any idiot can try that route. The three words are: she’s always right. If you remember that, your life will run smoothly.”
“But what if she’s wrong?”
Brian stuck a finger in Eric’s face. “No, dude. Listen to me and remember. She’s always right.”
“She’s always right,” Eric repeated obediently.
Myrna laughed. “But if you need to spice things up a little, falsely accuse her of being wrong.”
Brian patted Eric’s chest with the flat of his hand. “Just make sure you admit she’s always right after the hot, angry make-up sex.”
“Got it,” Eric said.
“Brian?” Jessica said, laying a hand on Brian’s arm.
Brian turned his head to look at her. “Yeah?”
“Will you please have this little talk with Sed?” she asked.
“Sure. When’s your wedding again?”
“Don’t wait until we’re married. He needs to learn this now!”
Everyone laughed, even the Blakes, who were huddled in a perma-hug around Dave and his wheelchair. Eric noticed the only one still sitting in the pews was Rebekah’s friend Isaac. It was probably hard for him to see Rebekah marry someone besides himself and even harder to be completely ignored by Trey, who he was obviously still mooning over. Poor guy. Eric separated from his group of admirers and joined Isaac on the gleaming wood bench. Isaac glanced up, his hazel eyes wide with surprise.
“Why are you sitting over here by yourself?” Eric asked.
“I just wanted to be here for Rebekah. I don’t want to intrude on her happiness.”
“She’d probably like that though,” Eric said. “Personally, I don’t know why she likes you so much. You’re sort of a douche.”
Isaac blinked at him in shock.
Eric grinned. “I’m joking,” he said. “I do that sometimes.” And sometimes he hid behind jokes so he could speak his mind freely, but Isaac didn’t need to know that.
“Oh.”
“But even though you’re a douche and really hurt her feelings, she’s forgiven you. I don’t get it. I’d have cut you from my life and buried you in the backyard.”
&nb
sp; He did sort of get it, actually. He had a friend who had hurt him repeatedly and still he couldn’t remove that man from his life. But unlike Isaac, Jon hadn’t had the decency to show up for the wedding. At least Isaac cared enough about Rebekah to show the fuck up. Jon didn’t even have that going for him.
“Her forgiveness is far better than I deserve,” Isaac said.
“So don’t you think you should go tell her that you’re happy for her, even if it’s a lie? I know she’d like to hear that from you.”
Eric glanced over at Rebekah and caught her watching them. He smiled at her and her answering smile was a bit hesitant. She probably thought he was being mean to Isaac. And yep, that had been his first instinct. The man had ripped Rebekah’s heart out, and Eric didn’t take kindly to anyone who hurt her. He also didn’t appreciate Isaac’s attempts to drive him and Rebekah apart. But in the end, Eric had won the girl and Isaac had lost her. Eric figured that was punishment enough for the pretty guy. He did seem to have a good heart under all his confusion.
“I don’t know what to say to her,” Isaac said. “This past week has been hell for me.”
“You can start by not focusing on yourself,” Eric said and rose to his feet. “Maybe ask her how her cancer screening went this morning.”
“That was today?” All the blood drained out of Isaac’s face. “Is she okay?”
“Does she look okay?” Eric asked.
They both stared at the woman in question, who was showing off her enormous, expensive engagement ring and her cheap, meaningful wedding ring to the ladies surrounding her.
“She looks radiant,” Isaac said. “She never looked like that when she was with me.”
As if she could feel Eric’s gaze on her, Rebekah lifted her head and met his eyes over the small crowd of admirers. She smiled brightly, and Eric’s chest swelled with a strong sense of pride. No one made her as happy as he did. Not even Dr. Perfect. Now that was something to crow about. Before he could swoop down on her and carry her out of the church to celebrate, Isaac strode purposefully to her side, took her hand, and pulled her behind the pulpit for a more private word. Eric hardly struggled with his spike of jealousy at all. He trusted Rebekah. It was the impossibly-good-looking physician that he didn’t quite trust.