When Justin returned from visiting his parents grave that day, I could tell it had rejuvenated him, helped him to sort out some things in his head that he had never been able to deal with before. We kissed and hugged for a while, and I was...I was so happy for him. I was so happy that he finally found peace in his life. When he mentioned that Kimberly had been there too though, my attitude completely changed. I was angry at her for invading his private time there, and was ready to go back to her house and tell her off again. Justin was quick to try and calm me down though. He told me that...they’d talked, and reconciled a bit.
I couldn’t understand how. Not after the terrible things she’d said about him and his parents.
“She just needs a chance.” He held my hands tightly in his and gave me a pleading look. “Hell, Ab...I know you’re gonna think I’m crazy too, but I want to give her one. I want...I want her to come to our wedding.”
“Why the hell would you want her there! Weren’t you listening to the things she said? She’s crazy! She’ll spoil everything.”
It was the first time I’d been angry, or yelled at him, since we’d gotten back together. It made me feel rotten, but I couldn’t help myself. There I was, nearly six months pregnant, and enraged at that woman because of her arrogance. At that point, all I reallly wanted to do was go back to New York. I knew Justin could get his lawyer to get the boys adoption sorted out after the wedding. Of course it sucked, because I wanted to have that finalized beforehand, but I was willing to sacrifice it, if it meant we could get far away from his aunt. But, all Justin seemed to want to do was make peace with her...give her yet, another chance. I just...didn’t know why.
Then he pulled some papers out of his pocket, and threw them down on the bed. “Look.”
I did. My eyes widened a bit. He’d gotten the birth certificates. “How?”
“She gave them to me.”
I sighed and pressed my lips together. I knew he understood his aunt more than I ever would in that moment, but I still...didn’t want to deal with her. I just didn’t trust her enough. “Justin...”
“Please do this for me.” He closed his eyes and pressed his lips to my forehead. “It’s...I know it sounds lame but...this is what my mom would have wanted. I know it.”
How the hell I was supposed to say no to him after that, I had no idea. It was a very personal thing with him. One that I mostly understood, but I was still so afraid that she was going to screw things up for us. I made him promise to keep her in line, and he assured me that he would.
The real test came when he went off to give a speech at a couple of schools the next day, and brought the boys with him. Guess who I got to spend the day with?
Yep, you guessed it.
“It’ll be fine.” Justin gave me a small kiss before I got out of the limousine. “Just, try Ab. Please?”
I groaned, but when I felt his hand rubbing my baby bump, I couldn’t help but smile a little. Little one was kicking at that moment, and everything I was aggravated about seemed to melt away. “You’re so lucky that you fathered this baby.”
He laughed lightly. “I know. I’ll see you later for dinner. If there’s a big issue, you know you can call me.”
I rolled my eyes.
The boys both kissed me goodbye, and then I was out of the limo, walking up to the small diner that I was meeting Kimberly at. Justin said she wanted to go shopping with me, and I was completely dreading spending the day with her. I was doing it for him though, because I loved him, and because I knew if the situation were reversed, he would be doing it for me without a question.
As it was, he was determined to get my family on our side once we went home.
I had no choice.
“Hey there.” Kimberly smiled at me when I found her seated in a booth towards the back of the place. “You’re just in time. I ordered us some chicken and waffles.”
I barley smiled. “Thanks.”
We ate in silence. From time to time Kimberly would try to spark a conversation, but I wouldn’t get into it. I was going through the motions, simply so I could tell Justin I did as he asked of me. He never said I had to be nice.
“Abbey if you don’t want to do this I understand,” she eventually said once our plates were cleared and the check was brought to us. “If...if you want, I’ll bring you back to your hotel.”
I sighed. I knew I was being pigheaded, but I was just so angry then that I could barely focus on anything else. “What made you have a sudden change of heart?”
She stared at me for a good long time, before she spoke again. “I’m...I’m trying to do the right thing for my sister’s sake.”
“I thought your sister was a sinner? I mean, that’s what you said, right?”
She nodded slowly. “I may have, but...I guess Justin woke me up somewhat.”
“How so?”
“He’s just...a changed person. I can tell. He’s caring, and sentimental, just like she was, and I know that...he needs family to support him. I can’t be so closed minded anymore. I have to learn to be a more understanding person.”
It was like she wasn't even the same person I’d met just days before. I sat there and tried to figure out how somebody like her could have changed her tune so quickly, but I figured she and Justin must have come to an understanding. One that jolted her out of the arrogant mindset she’d lived in for so long. I found part of myself wanting to give her a chance...the other part...just told me I was fucking insane.
But I’d been through worse.
Much worse.
Kimberly’s issues were nothing compared to Braeden’s and I suddenly realized I could handle her.
I think Justin knew that too, from the very moment he decided to forgive her.
“I know...it would me a lot to Justin, having you at our wedding,” I finally said, managing to look her in the eyes. “I don’t really know how I feel about it yet, but I won’t deny him what he wants. I love him too much.”
She smiled then. “I’ll try hard to make this up you, honey.”
“Don’t make it up to me,” I whispered. “Make it up to Justin, and the boys too. They’re the ones that need you.”
She nodded in understanding.
And then I sort of just...let go. I knew it was the right thing to do and the only thing I could do, if I wanted to let Kimberly into my life.
We got into her SUV, and drove around the area for awhile. She pointed out a few things to me, like the soccer field that Justin used to play on when he was young, the school the boys had attended, and the church where his parents eventually got married. I asked her if she had gotten married there as well.
Then she got a little sad, and very quiet.
“Kim...”
“It’s...it’s fine,” she chuckled softly. “I never married. We were going to get married but...he passed before we could.”
It shocked me. Justin had never told me that, and all I could think was that she and I had more in common than I thought. “Can...can I ask you how he passed?”
“Byron had a stroke. They said it was a brain aneurism. It was strange because he was completely fine, and then the next day...he was dead. It just hit him suddenly while he was at the office one day. They said he never had a chance. I...I don’t think I’ve ever gotten over it completely. I try but you know men...most of them are only out for one thing.”
She laughed then, but I knew she was trying to brush the subject under the rug quickly. I wanted to tell her about Braeden, but the more I thought about it, the more I knew it wasn’t the right time. It seemed to pain her deeply...talking about that time in her life, and our relationship was so rocky, that I wanted to get onto a lighter subject. Just knowing that we’d been through a similar situation in our lives gave me some peace of mind though. I knew I would be able to relate to her better, eventually.
She talked me into going to Babies R Us with her, after she found out I hadn’t started planning for my baby shower. I told her things had been too crazy with the wedding coming up and the boys to take care of. Justin and I had decided to hold a Jack and Jill baby shower at the Plaza a couple of weeks before the wedding, rather than have a bridal shower for me. We had everything we needed when it came to appliances and home goods, and since Justin was still in the process of getting his business off the ground, we didn’t even know where we would be in six months time. If we moved, we would have more than enough stuff to take with us, so our wedding planner has made it known that we only want baby items and savings bonds for gifts.
I hadn’t even thought about registering until we stepped inside the store. It made me think of my mother, and how much I needed her. She would have wanted to be there with me, I was sure...but she had no idea about the baby. It made me cringe. I knew she would go ballistic, but I didn’t want to focus on her then. Kimberly was making an effort, seemed to know the things I needed most on my baby registry and was more than willing to give me her opinion. We spent the afternoon there, and when the list was printed at the end, I realized how much she’d helped me. Everything I knew I would need was on there. I could picture Justin’s reaction. I knew he would be more than relieved that I’d gotten that part out of the way.
“So you just call me if you think of anything else you might need.” Kimberly nodded and smiled as we walked out to the car. “I’ll let you know if you can do without it. You don’t want too much baby stuff sitting in your house. It takes up space.”
I knew Justin and I would always have more than enough space, but I didn’t want to seem arrogant then, so I simply smiled. “Kim...thank you.” I felt the tears on my cheeks and I hadn’t realized I became so emotional. “I couldn’t have done this without you and...my mom and I have been having issues, so she hasn’t been involved so far with this baby business.”
“It was my pleasure, honey.”
We hugged. It was a huge connection, and I knew things between us had changed very fast. I didn’t understand, but I didn’t want to. I just...needed her. We all did. Justin needed that link to his past, to his family, and the boys did as well. I was thankful, and wanted to kick myself for being so angry. It was a messed up situation all around...Kimberly and Justin’s history, and he was right, she did deserve a second chance.
So I gave it to her, with my whole heart.
“Oof.” I put my hands over my baby bump as we pulled away from each other. “It’s kicking me,” I laughed.
Kim smiled and put her hand over my bump, laughing gently when she felt the sensation too. “Very rambunctious.”
I nodded. “Exactly like Justin.”
Things seemed to melt magically into place after that. Kim cooked dinner for us that night, and for the first time since in Justin’s life, he and his aunt actually had an enjoyable conversation. The boys were happy, had a great day out with their brother, and I was completely happy watching them in their glory. It was a different mood for us. I felt like we were a real, complete family then. The only thing left to do was get some paperwork signed off on.
And the next day, we did just that.
The judge was nice. He loved the boys, and he thought Justin and I were very good role models for them. The boys jumped in the air when Justin and I were officially deemed adoptive parents. I hugged the both of them tight to me, and soon enough, Justin joined in. Afterward, we paid a final visit to the Timberlake’s grave, so the boys could get some more closure. Davey sort of clung to us while Austin kneeled by the graves. I could hear him whispering and I knew he was talking to them. Justin and I let him take all the time he needed, and after, we encouraged Davey to walk up to the grave and lay the flowers be brought down in front of it.
I think it helped them. I think it allowed them to heal more than they’d been able to originally.
It was the one of the happiest times we’d shared as a family.
We still have the wedding though, and of course, the birth. Life will change again once all that happens, but I can’t wait. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us. To call Justin my husband, and raise our...well...I’ll get to that in a minute. To watch the boys grow into strong, independent young men. It scares me how fast they’re growing up. Austin is going into high school. No longer is he my little man, dressed up as Peter Pan, begging me to play games with him or read him a story before he goes to sleep. It’s a change for us, a hard one. I have to get used to the fact that he’s not a little boy anymore. Soon there will be girls, things he wants to do that I won’t want him to. It scares me, but I know...I know I’m ready for it, and I know I’ll have Justin to get me through the rocky parts, no matter what.
At least Davey still has some little boy time left.
We were back in the city all too soon. Kimberly promised to fly out when I was ready to pick out my wedding dress, so she could give me some “moral support.” That was a good thing, because at that point, I still had no idea if my family was going to be attending my wedding. Justin wanted me to make the call a few days after we got home, but I managed to stall him further as we laid in bed together one night.
“I’d rather get the ultrasound first.”
r32;“Baby.” He slid himself closer to me, and caressed my face. “What’s the point in stalling?”r32;
“I just...I’d rather know what’s going on first.”
“You can tell me that you’re afraid. Hell, I don’t blame you.”
“I’m just...I don’t want to be stressed out for this doctors appointment,” I whispered. “I don’t want to put strain on the baby.”
He was quiet for a moment, and I knew I’d hit the nail on the head. “Okay, fine,” he sighed. “But the day after...you’re calling them. Deal?”
I kissed him. “Deal.”
I knew I had to uphold my end of the bargain. There would be no more excuses once the ultrasound was done and we knew what we were having. Justin meant well, and I knew that, even though I was dreading talking to my parents. He didn’t want me to have the baby and have regrets about shutting my family out. After all, he knew better than anybody what it was like to shut your family out, and not be able to a second chance with them. Deep down, I knew I didn’t want to go down that road, and he loved me enough not to let me.
“What’d I miss?”
Justin panted harshly as he raced through the door that day. He’d been late for our ultrasound, but I wasn’t angry. He told me that morning he had a lengthy meeting scheduled with some clients, but that he was going to do his best to either end it, or sneak out for a little while. I prayed he could. It was the most important ultrasound of them all, and I knew how upset he would be if he missed it. When he entered the room, my smile flew on, and I kissed him passionately when he leaned down and smiled at me. “The show didn’t start yet,” I laughed.
“Great.”
He loosened his tie a little and pulled a chair up to the bedside so he could hold my hand and watch the monitor. My doctor entered the room several minutes later, congratulating Justin for making it on time with a playful laugh. Then she put the gel on my belly and flipped on the monitor.
“So we should be able to tell today, kids,” she smiled. “But, if the baby is positioned the wrong way, we could have some issues. I just want you to be prepared. Today is more about making sure the baby is developing correctly. Determining sex is more of a bonus than anything else.”
We both sort of nodded. I knew Justin didn’t really care what the babies sex was, he just wanted it to be healthy. So did I. At the same time though, we were curious. Would we end up with another boy? Or would we get the chance to embark on the adventure of raising a little girl?
After a few moments we could both hear the babies heart beat, and I felt Justin squeezing my hand a little bit, as the doctor moved the camera slowly over my baby bump.
“Hmph.”
Justin gasped, and so did I. I wasn’t an expert or anything, but hearing a doctor say ‘hmph’ while examining a patient, probably wasn’t a good thing. “What...what’s the matter?”
“It’s just...” She leaned in closer to the screen and continued to move the device over my bump. “I think I see something.”
“What? What is it?”
I looked over at Justin. His face was pale, and I could see the beads of sweat forming on his brow. He was concerned, and of course, I couldn’t blame him. I was scared shitless myself.
“Well...” She laughed a little. “I’m hearing what sounds like two heartbeats today, and right now I can see...that’s an arm, and that’s an arm,” she pointed out on the screen. “But that there,” she pointed to another spot on the screen. “That’s an arm too, and...yep...there’s a third leg.”
“Are you saying our kid has three arms and three legs?” Justin whimpered.
She laughed at him. “Not quite, no.”
I leaned back into the pillows, swallowing hard, afraid, but glad that my child wasn’t a mutant. “So...what...”
“I’m just very surprised because it’s so late in your pregnancy, but...now, I see a head...there,” she laughed, sounding more amazed than she had been before. “I think you two have a stowaway on your hands. It’s no wonder you’ve felt so much activity in the womb, Abbey. You’ve had two in there the whole time.”
My mouth dropped open for a moment. “Are you saying...”
She nodded and smiled wide. “Twins.”
“Twins,” Justin gasped. “Are...are you sure?”
“Here, come look.” She motioned for Justin to get up and peer at the screen more closely. “Right there, that’s the baby we’ve been seeing...which...I’m positive is a girl, now.”
My heart skipped a beat. “A girl.”r32;
Justin looked back at me and kissed me gently, before paying attention to the screen again. “But wouldn’t you have known about this earlier?”
“Not necessarily. In most cases it’s apparent early on, but in rare cases this does happen. I had a patient who once gave birth to twins and didn’t find out until the birth date.”
“You’re sure they’re both in there?” I asked
She nodded. “You’re having twins, guys. Congratulations.”
“Whoa...” Justin laughed and turned back to me.
He was smiling, so was I, but I knew how nervous we both were. We’d just adopted the boys, and were excited about taking on one more child. Caring for two babies at once was an insane thought, but...I knew we could do it, because Justin and I were a team. The more I sat there and thought about what the future held in store, the happier I started to become about it too. The smile grew wider on my face as the tears rolled down my cheeks. “Babe...”
He kissed me powerfully. “This is incredible, Ab. I mean...holy crap...” He turned back to the doctor then. “Do you know...do you know if it’s a girl or a boy?”
“Let’s see if it will come out of it’s hiding place,” she smiled and maneuvered her device around for several minutes more, as we sat together in intense anticipation. “This one’s a little stickler...” She shook her head a little as she laughed. “Oh, he’s turning. I think I might see it.” She peered closer still. “Yes. It’s a boy.”
“Oh my god.” I laughed and covered my mouth with my hand.
“A boy,” Justin smiled. “Man, Davey is gonna be mad. You know he likes being the baby boy!”
“I can’t...I can’t believe this.” I shook my head and sniffled. “Twins.”
I felt Justin’s lips land on my forehead a moment later, and I pulled him down to me, embracing him in a long, warm hug. There was no question in my mind then about telling my family about it. It was too big to keep a secret, and I was so excited, I didn’t care if they wanted to accept us or not. I was having twins with Justin, and our lives were going to take a huge, huge turn. One for the better.
I couldn’t wait to start.
“I’d like to schedule you for a cesarian,” she told me next. “Considering our little stowaway here seems to like to change positions so often, I don’t want to risk something going wrong with a natural birth. Justin, your job is to monitor Abbey’s diet closely for the last part of the pregnancy. I’m concerned that she hasn’t had all the proper nutrients, so I’ll be writing you a special diet plan that needs to be administered daily.”
“I can do that,” he said softly as he squeezed my hand again. “We’ve been good at keeping up with the other one you gave us.”
“Good. Let’s expect the birthdate to be about a week before the original. You two weren’t planning on going away for a honeymoon were you? I know you have that big wedding in the works.”
“Why?”
I could tell by the look on his face that he’d had something up his sleeve for weeks, and I guess I had a feeling all along that Justin was going to try to plan some special getaway for us after the wedding. But the look on the doctors face was telling me that it wouldn’t happen. My pregnancy wasn’t normal anymore, and I doubted I would be able to fly.
“With twins there’s a lot more risk involved. I couldn’t recommend her getting on a plane anytime soon, Justin.”
“Oh...” He sighed heavily, and wouldn’t look at me. “Well I...I did book something. I guess we’ll have to cancel.”
I felt horrible. I knew when Justin planned a trip, he went all out, and it was our honeymoon...more special than any trip we would ever take. He was let down and I couldn’t blame him, but at the same time...there was nothing we could do about it.
“It’s okay,” I whispered to him.
He nodded. “We’ll figure it out, baby.”
“Trust me, you’ll want this time to plan,” she smiled. “It’s a big deal.”
She was right. She didn’t even know the half of it. The registry had to be completely redone, and I didn’t know how big I was going to get before the wedding. It terrified me that I wouldn’t be able to find a proper dress, that I would look like a blimp in my wedding pictures. Of course I loved my two babies growing inside me, but at the same time I didn’t want to look like a beast in my wedding pictures either. I was so confused.
I really needed my mother.
And when we got home that day, Justin picked up the phone and dialed the number without a question. The boys were still with Beth, as they’d been the whole day, so there was no excuse not to call then. I just had to suck it up and do it.
My father had been at work but my mother was home, since school was still out on summer break. At first, she didn’t want to know from me. She told me that she was done discussing my decisions with me, and I couldn’t even get a word in. I thought she was going to hang up on me. If she had, I don’t know what would have happened. I would have been too stubborn to call back. I know that, and life would be much different than it is right now.
“Andrea.”
I looked up and saw Justin standing there with the other landline phone held up to his ear. He had a determined look on his face, and I knew he was going to do whatever he had to, to make things right with me and my family. I loved him for that too, but I knew it wasn’t going to be easy.
“I’m not discussing this with you.”
“Well, you need to get over your issues with me. Abbey is pregnant...and...it’s twins. Nothing else matters.”
I didn’t think she was there for the longest time. Justin and I stared at each other, phones to our ears, waiting for the inevitable burring of the dial tone.
“That’s an outrageous lie.”
“Do you want me to send you an ultrasound picture, mom? I’ll email you right now,” I told her, growing more frustrated every moment I was on the phone. “We found out today that it’s twins. Can’t you please...just understand what’s going on? I...I need you, mom. I need you and dad, and Hannah to support us.”
I felt Justin’s hand on my shoulder next, squeezing it gently because I’d started to sob.
“I’ll fly you all out,” Justin offered, trying his best to make my stress level go down somewhat. “Whatever you need, it will be taken care of. We just want you to come out here. It’s important to Abbey and...it’s important to me.”
She was quiet for the longest time. I could picture her standing in our kitchen, leaning against the counter for support. I knew she believed me, but she had no idea how to handle it. It was a lot to take over the phone, but she hadn’t given me much of a choice.
“Twins?”r32;
It was the only thing she could seem to say.
I glanced at Justin, and he smiled a little. He knew she was starting to crack. “Yes. The doctor told us that I’m having a girl and a boy.”
“Oh my god.”
I laughed. “Mommy...”
“We’ll pack and be there by the weekend,” she sobbed. “I’ll have your father call you tonight, baby, okay? I love you.”
“I...I love you too.” I felt Justin squeezing my shoulder again as I cried into the phone and I latched onto his hand for support. “Mom...I’m...I’m sorry...”
“No,” she whispered. “I am.”
I could hear my sister in the background then, asking my mom why she was crying. A moment later the phone was handed off to her, and Justin proceeded to laugh his ass off when I told my sister the situation. She started to scream into my ear and we both had to pull the phones away from our heads.
“OH MY GOD I’M GONNA BE AN AUNTIEEEE!”
She was always crazy. I should have figured her reaction would have been that insane.
My dad called me later that evening. Justin the boys and I were sitting on the couch, watching TV. We’d told them what was going on over dinner. Davey was excited. He said: ‘oh boy, two babies! I’m gonna be a double big brother!’
But all Austin could seem to say was ‘wow.”
I knew there was more he was thinking, but he wasn’t going to come out and say it. I wanted to talk to him about it, but knew that conversation wouldn’t come easy, and I was so overwhelmed between the news, my family, and the upcoming wedding I guess I sort of...pushed the conversation off.
I feel horrible about it now.
The conversation with my father went really well. He was happy for me, and seemed to have a little more respect for my relationship with Justin. He even talked to Justin for a little while, and when they got off the phone, he was smiling. He told me that my father wanted to sit down with him again once he got into town, but that they’d seemed to reach an understanding in their short phone conversation.
Everything was working out.
Everything, for the most part, was going to be just fine.
Or so I thought.
But I forgot what happens when all of your friends and family come together at the same time. In laws and friends tend to clash, and that’s exactly what’s happened. No, nobody is ready to kill each other, not yet at least, but I can tell my mom and Kimberly’s opinions about how I should get married and handle the twins differ greatly. It’s weird. Kimberly has sort of turned into my mother in law ever since she’s been here. Justin set her up at his place, and she has the run of the house. She’s been keeping the boys in line for me so I can relax more and follow my doctors guidelines. It’s fine with me, having her there, because we’re getting along better than ever and the boys love having her around. My family is also in town, though. Justin got them a few luxury suites at the Plaza and my mother and Hannah visit me nearly everyday. My father has been popping in and out, since he’s been taking in the city with Mark.
I wasn’t expecting him, but Hannah insisted he come along. She’s in love, so in love with him. I can see it in her eyes, and I’ve been praying that nothing goes wrong. That they’ll always be together.
It was weird seeing him. Of course I was glad he made the trip but...there was something about him that had changed so much. His eyes were dull, dark and sad. I asked Hannah what was wrong with him. She just sort of looked the other way and told me he was tired.
I know she’s full of it.
And I know...that it might have something to do with Braeden.
I can’t lie. I worry about him from time to time, but I’m so in love with Justin and so busy with everything, that I can’t focus on him. Seeing Mark has sort of jolted me back in time a little bit, made me think about him, and what he might be going through, but I’m too afraid to ask him how his brother is doing. I feel like it would be wrong at this point. I’m getting married and starting a big family with Justin. That’s all that should matter.
My mother and Kimberly tend to bicker whenever they’re under the same roof and in the same room together. She’s very southern traditionalist and my mother is more of a modernist. I’m waiting for some kind of huge argument to break out. Justin has asked me to call him if it’s about to happen so he can get home in time to see it. He’s such an ass sometimes, and I’ve punched him in the arm too many times this month because of that. He laughs, though. I know he just loves pushing my buttons.
It turns him on.
Right now, he’ll take any kind of foreplay he can. We used to be able to touch and grope each other a lot more, but now with family here we can’t exactly do all that raunchy PDA. Sometimes he’ll wait until nobody is paying attention, and yank me into the bedroom. He’ll strip me down naked, grab my boobs, bite my neck, and touch me everywhere...but I never let it last long. It’s uncomfortable having him on top of me because I’ve gotten bigger, and I’m also deathly afraid that somebody will burst in on us and see the blimp I’ve become.
“I can’t wait to get you in bed in after the babies are out,” he’ll say. “That’s gonna be our honeymoon, you know? We’ll get the boys out of the house for a weekend or something, and just...fuck everywhere. On the kitchen island, on the coffee table, in the movie theater...”
“Justin!”
“Do you know how many times I’ve jerked off this week? You’re so damn...hot, all pregnant with my babies. I can’t handle it anymore, Ab. This is killing me.”
It always gets me to give in and let him touch me for a little while longer, and once in a while...if I’m up to it, I’ll give him a little something extra, even though it kills my back, getting on my knees like that for him.
I can’t help but feel bad for him, of course. It’s been a very long time since he’s had his way with me, and he’s been so damn patient too. I know I’ll have to reward him.
It’s going to exhaust me, I’m sure.
Lace and sparkles. I should have known better, but she just got so excited when she handed the dress to the consultant and I couldn’t say no.
But now I can. I think I knew that from the moment the consultant clipped the dress closed in the back.
“I really like that one.”
I look over my shoulder and narrow my eyes at her. “You’re kidding me, right?”
My sister shakes her head quickly, telling me how much she hates it.
Yeah, I knew that. I hate it too.
“But look how sparkly it is!” Shawna claps her hands together and grins. “It’s so pretty!”
I tried to get in touch with Charlene again. I asked my mother if she could talk to Charlene’s mother about all of this too. I guess she called, and I guess her mom said she would do her best to get her the message, but I still haven’t heard from Charlene. It hurts. While we may have fought, and she may have said ridiculous things to me, I know I still want her to be my best friend. I want her to be here to watch me get married, and have my babies. I want her to be my maid of honor.
But it’s not happening.
Out of desperation, and because Justin suggested I do it because there’s no time to find somebody else, I’ve deemed Shawna my maid of honor. It’s working out. She’s very organized and enthusiastic about our wedding. I love her a lot. She’s a great friend...
But it’s just not the same. I know Justin can tell how I feel too. He has Trace to be his best man, and even though I’ll never understand their friendship, I know that Justin is extremely happy that his friend will be there to support him on his wedding day.
“You look like a Barbie doll,” Kristy smiles. She’s fourteen now, the same as Austin, and I made her a bridesmaid as well. I know she’s really excited. It’s her first wedding, and since I know she’s had a crush on Austin for the past two years, I’m sure she’ll try her best to flirt with him all night long.
“I don’t want look like wedding day Barbie though,” I laugh. “I want to look like me.”
“I really liked the ball gown,” my mother sighs and gets a dreamy look in her eyes. “It was like Cinderella or something. You looked like a princess. You should put it on again.”
“I hate ball gowns, mom. Come on. I look like the stay puft marshmallow man enough as it is with this belly.”
She shrugs. “Well, you wore one the last time.”
I glare at her. Really, mom? Today? You’re going to talk about my old wedding dress? The one I only bought because it was the most decent looking for the price, and we had no money? She’s still a little bitter, but I knew that going in. Part of her, I know, still can’t believe I’m getting married for the second time. The smallest part of her still hangs on to my non existent relationship with Braeden too, but I won’t hold it against her. It’s amazing that she’s here at all, and I’m not going to push my luck.
We have a lot to work on, her and I. I guess we have all the time in the world to do it too.
But not today.
Kimberly gets up from the sofa and laughs a little as she studies me in the dress. “Who’s suggestion was this?”
I laugh. “Shawna’s.”
“Shawna isn’t allowed to pick anymore,” she giggles. “You look like you just got dipped in glitter.” She stands behind me and smoothes her hands over my figure. “You need something simple that will flow, and help conceal your belly.”
“A chiffon flowing dress,” the consultant speaks up.
“That’s what she said when we first walked in the dressing room,” I chuckle. “You all needed to see every other type of dress in the place, though.”
“Let’s put her in a couple,” the consultant, Miranda, suggests. “Then you can all see what it looks like on her. It doesn’t have to be plain. We have many lovely embellished looks that will suit her nicely.”
They all agree.
Thank God. That’s the first time it’s happened all day.
We’re at Kleinfeld’s. Not my first choice of dress shops, because it’s the most expensive in the entire city, but Justin insisted I come here, and only here. I guess he came and talked to the owner when we got back to the city, and naturally, he was assured I would be treated with the ‘utmost care and patience.’ Usually they limit their appointments to two hours, but for me...they’ve given me the whole day to find something. When I do, they’ll have a week to alter it. That’s not much time at all, but because Justin has forked over a hefty ‘short notice fee,’ they’ll do whatever I want them to do.
“This has some beading, but it’s not too over the top,” Miranda smiles as she holds the dress up for me to see. “I know you don’t want to be the glitter girl.”
I chuckle slightly. “If you think it will make me look less like a blimp, I’ll try anything at this point.”
She helps me into the dress. We talk about Justin, how he’s handling all of this, and I tell her he’s been calmer than I would have ever expected. He’s at work today, handling business as usual. I know he has to. Because of the twins, he’s had to start putting things together much faster at the firm. He’s decided to step down a couple of months after they’re born, rather than wait the full year. He told me some investors have been in talks with him about putting half the money down to start his business venture, and he thinks it will be a good move for us. I asked him where the business will take us, and he said he’s not positive, but most likely someplace down south. He wants to deal with the oil and gas industries, I guess. That’s as much as I know, or want to know, because all that financial stuff bores me to tears.
“Texas is a possibility,” he told me last night. “I didn’t mind it there so much did you?”r32;
I narrowed my eyes at him.
“Well, it’s not going to be...like before. I mean, we’d be living in one of the metropolises, far from Killeen, like Dallas or Houston. I’ve been looking into neighborhoods and schools. They have this great place in Dallas for Davey. It comes highly recommended.”
The fact that he didn’t even consider pushing Davey into a regular school touched my heart. Justin had completely changed when it came to that. He knew Davey would do much better in a special school, and was determined to find the best one for him. No longer was his ego a deciding factor, and I’d never loved him more. “I trust you.”
He smiled and kissed me softly. “Once the babies are all set, we’ll go down and take a look around? Okay?”
I agreed. It was the right choice. Texas was a lot closer to my family than New York City, and if we moved there, it would be much easier for my parents to come out and see the babies. That was important to me, and I knew it was important to Justin as well.
“Oh Abbey.” Kimberly says, as Miranda helps me to walk out in the dress. “That’s lovely.”
I stare at myself in the mirror, for the first time in weeks, feeling slightly slimmer. The dress is absolutely perfect, hides everything I want it to, and still makes me look like a beautiful bride at the same time.
“I love that,” Shawna speaks up next. “The beading is nice. I’d make it more sparkly but...you know me.”
I laugh a little, and then, I glance back at my mom. She’s the one that I want to impress. I want her to love the way I look. I think that’s every daughters wish for her wedding day though. “Mom?”
She gets up and comes closer to me. “You...” She pauses and sighs. “You look beautiful, honey.” She holds my face in her hands, and caresses it gently. “I’m...I’m sorry.”
I hug her. “I’m not mad at you. I love you.”
“I love you too, baby.”
I can hear everybody clapping as we hold each other. This is my dress, I know it now. It feels right. It feels...magical. I can see Justin waiting at the end of the aisle, smiling proudly as I walk towards him, wearing this dress. It’s his taste for sure, which makes it that much better. “I’ll take it!”
Miranda claps along with everybody else.
That’s one major event down. Now we’re getting down to the nitty gritty. Our Jack and Jill is this weekend, and two weeks later we’ll be exchanging our vows. I feel the butterflies already, mixed with the kicking and moving of my babies.
My life is nothing like I ever expected it would be in a million years, but as I stand here, staring back at myself, I realize I would never have wanted it to be different. Certain things had to happen to bring me to this point, some bad, some good, but in the end, I know I’m going to be the happiest I can possibly be.
And that’s all I’ve ever asked for.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Hey everyone. It's been a couple of days, but this chapter needed to cover a lot so it took me longer to write it. Hope you enjoy...there's a little surprise too :)
Story Tags: triangles justinandtrace executivej
