An Innocent Thanksgiving (Holiday Heat Book 2) Page 19

I nodded. “I’m sure. I love Cal. Always have. This is the wedding I’ve dreamed about.”

  “Well, in that case.” Dad squeezed my hand and smiled at me, looking a little misty-eyed, and then we began to walk down the aisle.

  I had been scared to imagine my father walking me down the aisle when I’d dreamed about this all those years ago, head in the clouds and full of Cal, Cal, Cal. I hadn’t wanted to hope that my father, or my mother, would accept how I felt and who I wanted to be with. But they had, the both of them. I could see Mom at the front, tears standing in her eyes, a large smile lighting up her face.

  And there, standing at the end of the aisle waiting for me, was Cal. My man, my husband, the love of my life.

  He was looking exceptionally handsome today in his crisp, well-fitting suit. I feared that I looked like a walrus next to him, but Cal was staring at me like I was the most amazing thing he’d ever seen in his life, this half smile of awe on his face and a shocked light in his eyes.

  I found myself ducking my head a little, blushing, feeling overwhelmed by his gaze. My dad passed me off to him and we locked eyes, both of us grinning like idiots for a moment before the officiant began her speech.

  We had practiced our vows time and again—we were writing our own but keeping them very short. Cal was an artist but with the paintbrush, not with words, and I’d barely scraped by in my mandatory writing classes in high school and college. Numbers were my game. When it had come to writing a few words about my devotion to Cal, however, I found that it was so much easier and flowed so much more smoothly than I had thought.

  “Cal,” I said, when it was my turn. I was glad I was going fist because I would be an absolute mess if I had to go after Cal’s vows had knocked me sideways. “You are my dream man, and it feels like every day is a dream with you. I keep pinching myself, wondering if I’m going to wake up. Luckily for me, I haven’t yet, and I’m starting to finally trust that I won’t. You were so many things that I admired growing up. You were successful, funny, charming, charismatic. And it helped that you’re hot as fuck.” That got some laughter, mostly from Jenn. “But once we started dating, I realized you were all these other things that I hadn’t even thought to look for. You’re also soft, and thoughtful. You’re sweet, you care so much, and you take care of me. You’re an amazing father to our daughter, and I know you’ll be an amazing father to our next child, too. You’re a dream come true.”

  Cal looked like he was struggling to hold in all of his emotions, and he squeezed my hands so tightly that my hands trembled. That was all right—I was squeezing him back just as hard.

  “You blew into my life like a hurricane,” Cal admitted. “It was like one moment you were just there, in my mind, and I couldn’t get enough of you. You really challenged me, from the first. You expected the best from me and you had no problem telling me when I had messed up. I needed that. You’re so mature and lively. I love it, and I love you. You fulfill me. I thought, once, that I only needed my art, but you and Fern have shown me all that I was missing—what I’ll never be missing again, because I have no intention of letting either of you out of my life. You, my family, are my greatest masterpiece.”

  I definitely teared up, and Cal laughed a little as we kissed and exchanged rings. I must’ve looked a mess—thank God I’d worn waterproof mascara—but Cal leaned in and whispered, “you’re beautiful,” in an awed voice right in my ear, and I suddenly didn’t care at all about how I looked, so long as Cal liked it.

  Afterwards we walked back down the aisle together as man and wife, and we went to the dinner set up in the main dining room area. We were all served delicious Thanksgiving food—including, yes, my pumpkin pie instead of a wedding cake—and then Jenn commanded the room to make her toast.

  She looked radiant, wearing a dark red dress, and her smile at me was warm and sunny. I couldn’t help but smile back.

  “I think the first thing that you all should know about Maggie, if you haven’t figured it out already, is that she’s stubborn. And independent. And when I say stubborn, I mean it. Once she gets an idea in her head, she won’t let go of it. That includes singing drunken karaoke.”

  Oh no. I buried my face in my hands as Jenn launched into an unfortunately accurate imitation of me singing Shania Twain songs while absolutely plastered on the first night I’d gotten drunk once I’d stopped nursing Fern.

  Everyone laughed, especially Cal, who demanded that Jenn send him the video footage once she got the chance. Jenn winked at him. “So you can imagine how shocked I was when this handsome fucker swooped in and for the first time since I’d known her, I saw Maggie at a loss about what she wanted.

  “At first I thought she was crazy. How could she not be sure about this guy? Cal was sweet, thoughtful, he worships Fern, and he’s nothing but supportive of Maggie. And did I mention he was handsome as fuck? But eventually I realized… it was that Maggie did want him, and she was scared of how much she wanted him.”

  “Because the other thing about Maggie is that she’s very selfless. She puts the people she loves ahead of herself, always. And when I learned the circumstances—the history between her and Cal, I understood her concern. Maggie is so concerned with how others will feel, and about what was the right decision for her family, for her little girl.”

  Jenn looked at me, and now her face was still loving, but completely serious.

  “And I told her, I’ve been telling her for years—she needs to take care of herself too. She needs to look out for herself and do what makes her happy, too. And thank God, she finally listened to me. Because I don’t know anyone—besides Fern, of course—” Jenn winked at Fern, who grinned and waved. “—who makes Maggie as happy as Cal does. And she deserves to be happy, wouldn’t you all agree?”

  Everyone cheered and raised their glasses.

  Jenn chuckled. “That’s the spirit. So, when I saw how happy Cal made Maggie, I knew it was meant to be. And I saw Maggie made Cal happy, too. He lights up when he sees her. It’s adorable, it’s like a puppy dog.” Jenn imitated a puppy barking and panting, wiggling her butt like it was a tail.

  Everyone laughed, including me.

  “I have seen a lot of couples in my business. Famous people are always finding someone new and breaking up and let me tell you, not one of the couples I’ve seen in my time can hold a candle to the way Cal and Maggie are together. They are the best, and I’m lucky to count them as my closest friends. I’m so glad that Maggie decided to be a little selfish and go after her own happiness, and I’m so glad that Cal is smart enough to realize what a catch she is and didn’t let her go.”

  Jenn blew kisses at Cal and me, and then sat down.

  Then Dad stood up.

  I had been nervous about this. When Dad first asked if he could give a speech. Cal and I wanted him to—or, well, Cal wanted him to. I was fine either way. It was my dad and I loved him, and as long as he walked me down the aisle, that was all that I needed. But Dad was Cal’s best friend. And I knew that Cal wanted his best friend to be able to give a toast at his wedding, just like my best friend was giving a toast for me.

  Cal had still been wondering whether he should ask or not, if it was okay to ask, and all of that, and then Dad had gone ahead and asked if he could give a speech without either Cal or me prompting him.

  “Of course,” Cal had said, lighting up. I’d been nervous but I’d said yes as well, because how could I not? It was what Cal wanted.

  Watching my dad now, I felt like all of my worrying was for nothing. Dad smiled at both of us without a trace of disapproval or hesitance.

  “Cal has been my best friend for decades,” Dad said. “I was hoping for years that he would find the right person to spend the rest of his life with. When you see someone that’s a great person and you care about, you want them to be as happy as they can possibly be, and I knew how happy being with Violet had made me—I wanted the same thing for my best friend.

  “Most of you don’t know this, but Cal was married once. It
didn’t work out. Nobody’s fault, really. I certainly told him not to blame himself, but I think he did a little. I think he felt like he just wasn’t cut out to love someone properly. Which was horseshit, if you asked me, since Cal was, and still is, one of the most loving people that I know.”

  “But he’s an artist, and he loves what he does, and I don’t think he realized how much more there could be in his life besides that art. Until Maggie came along. As her friend Jenn told you all, my daughter is a very, very stubborn person. I can’t recall the last time I won an argument with her while she was growing up. I tried, Lord knows, because I was her father, but I remember quite a few times looking at her mother and asking her, being the parent means we’re supposed to be in charge, right? Isn’t that how it works?” Dad shook his head, a fond smile on his face. “Not with Maggie. A brick wall gives way more easily than my girl.

  “She saw all the great things in Cal that the rest of us saw and she decided that she was going to make him the one for her. I admit… I didn’t agree with it at first. I felt that it was a bad idea. Their age difference, and, well, I’m sure you can understand why it was awkward for me to have my best friend and my daughter in a relationship together.

  “But I should’ve thought about it differently, because if I had, I would’ve realized immediately how good they are together. If Cal was anyone other than my best friend and I’d met him, if my daughter had introduced him to me as her boyfriend, I would have been ecstatic. Cal adores Maggie the way that she deserves to be adored. He acts around her the way that I always hoped my daughter’s partner would act with her. I want only the best for my child—what parent doesn’t—and Cal is the best.

  “And on the other side of it… Maggie is all that I had wanted someone to be for Cal, as well. She grounds him and helps him to be responsible. She makes him happy. She appreciates and understands his art. They balance each other out perfectly. More than anything, they love each other, so very deeply.” My dad took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and continued. “As a parent, all you really want is for your child to be loved and happy. As a best friend, all you want is for your best friend to be loved and happy. And these two really, really do make each other happy. And they even spread that love by giving Violet and me the best granddaughter anyone could ask for. Fern brings such love into our lives and she has from the moment of her birth. Cal was already family before, but now he is officially, and it feels like that’s how it should be.”

  I could feel my eyes watering, and underneath the table I grabbed Cal’s hand. He squeezed my hand tightly, interlacing our fingers, and I didn’t dare look at him or I knew I’d lose my composure completely, but I was certain that his eyes were watery, too.

  We knew that my dad approved, of course. But to officially have his blessing and to have his love and approval… it meant more than I could even begin to say.

  I stood up and hugged my dad, without even stopping to think about it. It was a good thing that my dad’s speech was over, because I didn’t care if I was interrupting him or not. I just wanted to hold him tight and to feel my dad hug me and let him feel how happy and grateful I was.

  Cal and Dad hugged next, clapping each other on the back. I couldn’t hear what they said to each other as they were pulling away, but I didn’t need to. That was just between the two of them.

  Cal turned to everyone else. “Thank you all for coming,” he said. “Our family might not be the most conventional, but it’s full of love, and that’s what matters. I feel like the most loved person on the planet, and I only hope that I make those I love, especially my darling wife and daughter, feel half as loved as all that.”

  Tears sprung into my eyes all over again. I was being such a sap, but this was what weddings were supposed to be about, wasn’t it? They were about feeling special—and Cal made me feel special every day, but especially right now.

  With the toasts finished, other than eating all the delicious food there was only one thing left to do: the dance.

  I was… still really nervous about this. I knew how to dance, or rather I knew the basics of things like the waltz and all so that I wouldn’t embarrass myself at any party I might end up attending. But I was pregnant, and one of the whole points of dancing was that you were close to your partner, arms around each other in one way or another. How could I possibly look good doing this while I was swollen up like a balloon?

  Cal and I had practiced throughout the past few months as we’d planned our wedding. My stomach kept getting bigger, and I’d gotten more and more nervous as time had gone on, but Cal always assured me it was fine. Even now as he took my hand to lead me up, he was smiling at me like he could read my mind and knew exactly how I was berating myself for looking like a whale. As if I had any control over how I looked right now.

  The music started up, and Cal pulled me close, or as close as he could given my, ah, situation. But Cal held me like I was the most delicate and luminous thing in the world.

  We moved around the dance floor, Cal supporting and guiding me, just as he did in our daily lives. “You look beautiful,” he murmured.

  “You mentioned that earlier,” I pointed out.

  “Doesn’t mean that it’s stopped being true.” Cal carefully dipped me—not as deeply as he did when I wasn’t pregnant—and then pulled me back up.

  “My feet are killing me,” I admitted. “And I’m swollen up like a beach ball. Thank God we’re only doing the one dance.”

  “I’m glad we’re only doing the one dance,” Cal agreed, “because it means I can whisk you away that much sooner.”

  I laughed. “You can’t seriously find me attractive when I look like this.”

  Cal caught one of my hands and kissed the knuckles. Behind us, I could hear Fern chattering away at my mom, asking when she got to do her dance.

  “You’ll always be beautiful to me,” Cal promised, swirling me around a final time as the music swelled and then ended. “No matter what.”

  Well, of course I just had to kiss him then.

  So I did.

  ***The End***

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  An Innocent Halloween (Excerpt)

  DESCRIPTION

  It’s just one Halloween night.

  Seriously, what could go wrong?

  Turns out, everything….

  Alex Connors, the most eligible bachelor in the town.

  And me?

  An inexperienced doctor who has no time for filthy, forbidden relationships.

  But Alex seems…well…let’s say…different.

  Com’on, this is not a good idea. Period.

  You wanna know why?

  1: You don’t fraternize with your patient’s dad.

  2: He’s hot, strong, dominant, older.

  3: Turns out he’s my dad’s best friend.

  Sh!t. This billionaire is going to be the end of me.

  His strong arms wrap around my waist and melt my insides.

  I can’t let that happen!

  God…help a girl. Pleeeease.

  Every reckless action has a consequence.

  And mine is growing in my belly, waiting to be exposed to the world.

  PROLOGUE: CLAIRE

  I was breaking just about every rule right now, and I didn’t care.

  My entire life I had been struggling to get people—well, men, to be honest—to take me seriously and to stop making naughty nurse jokes, and yet here I was, wearing a naughty nurse outfit I’d g
otten from a Halloween costume store (a very nice outfit from a very nice store, I was not settling for cheap synthetics) with the short skirt and too-tight top and everything. And I didn’t care.

  Because I was currently straddling the lap and in the arms of the man I’d been dreaming about, lusting after, touching myself while thinking about for the last month.

  I had dedicated an embarrassing amount of orgasms to that man. And the whole time I’d been wondering if he could possibly, really want me too. If I was just delusional and kidding myself.

  Of course there were so many reasons why I shouldn’t have wanted him in the first place. So many reasons why I should’ve walked away, even now. But oh, God, I couldn’t do it, not for anything. Not when he was kissing me, his tongue teasing me, darting in and out of my mouth, just past the seam of my lips and promising me so much more. His hands were sliding up my hips, my back, around my sides, his thumbs skimming the underside of my breasts. I was so wet I could feel myself dripping with it, and I couldn’t stop squirming on his lap, feeling his hard cock pressing firmly up against my soaked underwear, my aching clit.

  “Please,” I couldn’t stop whimpering. I wanted him to touch me so badly, to fuck me properly, I could hardly see straight. “Oh—oh, please, please…”

  Earlier tonight, he told me a secret. It was Halloween, and we were all wearing masks, all dressed up as someone else, and something about that was making everyone bold. It made him bold enough to share his truth with me.

  What he didn’t know was that I had a secret as well.

  I was a virgin.

  I hadn’t planned for it to be like that. I hadn’t sat around going, none of these men are good enough for me. I hadn’t thought that I was going to save myself for marriage or my one true love or anything. But I had been so focused on my career, I’d led such a solitary life, I hadn’t even gone on a proper date with someone since my undergrad. Medical school had been a nightmare of work, even more so as a woman.