Savior

Eighteen: Wes

The wedding was beautiful. Not sure I'd ever thought that about a wedding before, but suddenly the thought of pledging myself to someone for the rest of eternity didn't sound so silly, or unattainable. I could not keep my eyes off Mia. She was practically glowing, standing at the altar, beside her sister, wrapped in a slinky blush pink gown that clung to every curve like it had been painted on. She looked exquisite. And happy. Really, really happy. She kept looking toward me and winking, which only made me wink back and her giggle. I'm sure the rest of the wedding goers thought we were obnoxious. And I'm certain that I didn't care what they thought.

I sat in the front row next to Roger, Maureen on the other side of him. She hadn't said a word to me, nor I to her. In fact, I hadn't really seen her say a word to anyone. She basically just stood at her husband's side and smiled and greeted people with a nod. It was like she'd been replaced with a mute robot. Whatever Roger had said had apparently stunned her into silence, and everyone seemed to be okay with that. I sure as hell was.

The ceremony was rather short. Dave and Gianna exchanged vows that damn near made me cry. They genuinely seemed to be in love, which shocked the shit out of me. I'd gotten more of a "business arrangement" vibe from their relationship at first, but now, listening to them, that wasn't the case. Hell, Dave damn near cried when Gianna and Roger headed toward him down the aisle. It was genuinely a really good day, and I could only hope the party would be the same.

Mia practically leapt at me when I approached her after the wedding party had made their exits. I just laughed and caught her. "I missed you," she said with a dreamy sigh as she pressed her face into the curve of my neck.

"I missed you, too, baby," I responded, placing a soft kiss behind her ear. "You look incredible."

"I'm done with these shoes," Mia stated as I set her back on the sand. Instantly she plucked the glittery pumps from her feet and wiggled her toes into the sand. "Much better." I just chuckled and slung an arm over her shoulders. "Was my mom nice to you?" she asked as we headed in the direction of the reception.

An entire tiki bar had essentially been built for this wedding. There were torches and decorations, and tables and a dancefloor as far as the eye could see. It was a pretty impressive setup, even I had to admit.

"She didn't say a word to me," I answered. "Didn't see her talk to anyone honestly. Lots of smiles and nods."

"Yeah, apparently both my dad and Gia ripped her a new one so she's sulking. Maureen Bowman does NOT like being reprimanded," Mia answered with a chuckle. "She's an overgrown toddler."

"Did she talk to you?"

Mia gave her head a single wave. "Nope. But it's alright. If she wants to pout in the corner, that's on her. I'm not letting her get in the way of my relationship with my dad or my sister anymore."

My arm around her tightened as I squeezed her to my side. "Good for you, baby."

Mia's cheeks flushed a bit as she nuzzled against me. "What'd you do today?"

"Uh, set up a bunch of meetings for when we head back. I'll be in LA for a couple days and then I got to Miami, then to Buffalo right after that, then I'll be in LA for a couple days and then Seattle. I've gotta have a decision made by the time training camp starts so it's... gonna be a fucking whirlwind."

"Why don't you sound excited?" she asked, looking up at me with those dark eyes that I regularly lost myself in.

I shrugged a bit. "It's not that I'm NOT excited... I'm just... apprehensive to get my hopes up." Apprehensive to get my hopes up and apprehensive to be away from her... but I didn't say that part.  At this moment, it was the quieter worry.