8 Months Ago…
Bull Run Country Club
Manassas, VA
The wedding celebration of David Sheppard and Paul Coleman was somewhat low key, befitting his brother's personality. While a bit better at public speaking and schmoozing the clients than John, Dave was as intensely private a man as his brother. John could only assume that Paul was the same way.
The festivities were brightened by the seasonal decorations—a 20ft tall Christmas tree, twinkling lights, and holly wreaths—festooning the country club's main hall. The hall was named after General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, C.S.A., the Confederate hero of the First Battle of Bull Run where he won his nickname for his unruffled demeanor in his defense of Henry Hill.
Sitting at Dave's right side as his Best Man, John was anything but "unruffled" in his demeanor. Instead, he was tensely aware of Nancy's nearness, sitting to Paul's left—as Paul's Best Girl. His hands itched as if reaching for his P-90, the same way they always did when a mission was about to go sideways. He missed McKay and Ronon, wishing they had stayed through Christmas so they could cover his six.
No sooner had the thought entered his head, than he dismissed the notion. He was happy that McKay would be spending the holidays with his sister and her family, and that Jeannie had graciously extended the invitation to Ronon for his first real Christmas celebration on Earth.
But John couldn't get rid of the feeling that he was walking into a Genii ambush. It had started the minute he first spotted Nancy. She was standing on the other side of the main hall, waiting with Paul and the justice of the peace for Dave's arrival. As soon as he caught sight of her, John thought he had suffered a brain seizure.
He'd stood frozen in place, unable to take his eyes off her. She was wearing her hair up in an elegant sweep, held in place with the diamond comb Patrick Sheppard had given her as a wedding gift. He was surprised by the warmth that spread through him at the knowledge that she hadn't gotten rid of it along with everything else that reminded her of him. But what really caught his eye was the stunning red dress she was wearing. It came to just above her knee and accented her figure in all right places.
Dave elbowed him playfully in the ribs. "Hey…you'll catch flies that way." He nodded at John's open mouth. John snapped it shut and glared at his brother.
"I—" John couldn't quite work his suddenly dry mouth to form words. He swallowed a couple of times then tried again. "I don't have any idea what you mean."
"Riiiight…" Dave said dryly. "Come on. Let's go meet my groom."
When Dave had given him his bridegroom's name, John thought it sounded familiar….
"Paul Coleman…Coleman…" John looked at Dave quizzically. "I knew a Paul Coleman…went to law school with Nancy."
Dave gave him a smug smile.
Sheppard's jaw dropped. "You're kidding me! 'Tall Paul' Coleman? The guy who played tight end for Boston College and single-handedly destroyed The Falcons' defense my senior year at the Academy? Not to mention knocking me down more times than I care to count? That Paul Coleman?"
Dave nodded, grinning wickedly. "The one and the same…and little brother, about that 'tight end' position he played? Well, truer words were never spoken."
Instant realization of what his brother meant hit Sheppard, and his face went beet red. Covering his ears, he shook his head violently. "TMI, Dave!" He glared at his brother, who eyed him innocently.
"I don't know what you mean, Johnny."
Shaking his head, Sheppard eventually grinned back ruefully. "Wow…David Sheppard cracking jokes. You have changed. So…tell me how you met Paul. I remember me and Nancy having him over for dinner a few times when he was in D.C. on business. One time, I got us tickets to a Navy/Air Force game in Annapolis. We met a few my Academy buddies there and had a great time."
Dave smiled in fond remembrance. "We met a couple months after you were shipped overseas. There were some minor details in the divorce settlement that our lawyers needed to have clarified."
"Like what?" John asked. "I told Nancy I wouldn't contest anything, except whatever assets belonged to the family or were tied up with my trust funds. Those I couldn't control."
"I know…I asked her to meet me for lunch, and she agreed. She mentioned that you'd signed over the Phenom to her. She knew how much I admired it and asked me if I wanted it."
The Phenom 100 was John's personal private jet, a gift from Grandma Tricia, their paternal grandmother, upon his graduation from the Air Force Academy.
"After all," she'd said, blithely dismissing his father's protests, "if the boy is dead set on being a pilot, then he obviously needs a plane…And it's high time you accepted that, Patrick."
John smiled fondly in remembrance. Now she had been a force of nature. McKay had nothing on her. For Dave's graduation from Harvard, she'd given him shares in Apple, Inc.—an eye-popping number of shares, mind you—but, still…She'd given him his own plane…
"What'd you tell her?"
"That if you had wanted me to have the jet, you would have given it to me. Nonetheless…she insisted I take it and wouldn't take no for an answer. She knew what it meant to you—it was your graduation gift, dammit!—and felt it should stay in the family. It's still in your name, by the way."
John was shocked. This was the first he'd heard of this. "Where is it?"
"Same place…the family's private hangar at Dulles."
John swallowed, a little overwhelmed. "I-I didn't know…I just assumed she'd sold it."
Dave shook his head. "I knew how you felt about the divorce, John. I knew you didn't really want it. But, I agreed to act as executor in your absence, and I wasn't about to let anyone try to cheat you." He held up his hand before John could protest. "It wasn't anything Nancy was trying to do. It was her lawyer, who unsurprisingly turned out to be a guy named Grant—need I add a last name?" At John's head shake, Dave continued. "She assured me that she had no intention of taking anything that you hadn't agreed on, and immediately called him on her cell. After a little wrangling, she hung up."
No, Nancy would never try anything underhanded, John knew, but apparently Grant had some ideas of his own. He may not have gotten any of John's assets—to include the Phenom—but apparently he'd won Nancy as some kind of consolation prize. John suddenly felt like hitting something.
Dave shrugged. "Anyway, we ate lunch, and then, when we were about to order dessert, a very tall, very broad-shouldered…and might I add extremely handsome man came to our table and spoke to Nancy. She introduced us, and well…he called me at the office the next day…we did lunch, and…"
"Wait. Wait. Waitaminute! You mean, you two have been…together for, what...almost four—five—years? And this is the first time you've mentioned him?" Before Dave could answer, John waved him to stop. "Never mind…I guess by staying away from Dad—"
"Hey…none of that. Besides, we weren't together-together until right after Dad's first heart attack. Seeing his regret over what happened between you and him, I knew that I didn't want to live with that kind of 'what might have been' between me and Paul. So…we had a…you know, talk." He grimaced at the word, earning him an amused snort from John. Dave grinned self-deprecatingly. "Yeah…relationships aren't my strong suit, either. But, we sort of reached an understanding, and…well, you know the rest."
"I'm glad things worked out for you, Dave. For what it's worth, I'm sorry I wasn't here for you. Not that I would've been much help…with the whole 'talking' part, I mean."
"Well, you're here now, and that's what's important. And, you're gonna share in the happiest day of my life. Oh, and as Best Man, you get to make a speech—"
"What?"
"And as Paul's Best Girl, Nancy will be there, too—"
"Say what? Nancy's gonna be there? Hey, no…you never said—" John whined. A speech and his ex-wife with her shyster lawyer husband present? What had he gotten himself into…?
But now, looking at his brother's happy face and that of Paul's, he knew that he had made the right decision to be here even with his ex-wife only three seats over to his left. Surprisingly, Grant had not accompanied her.
Tapping his dinner knife gently on his champagne glass, Sheppard stood. He looked out at the audience of friends and family and cleared his throat. He turned to his brother and new husband, twirling his glass nervously by the stem.
"When I was five and Dave was nine, the most important person in our lives was taken from us. I didn't understand why my mother would never be there anymore to tuck me in, kiss me goodnight, or hug me every morning. Dad tried to explain, but well…he was grieving at the loss of his wife, the love of his life…and now at age thirty, he was a widower with two young sons to raise and a company that was just beginning to take off."
Sheppard looked down and nervously ran his hand along the back of his neck.
"I don't remember a lot from that time, besides the heartache at losing my mother…but one thing comes to mind very clearly." John looked at his brother Dave and smiled. "I remember Dave always being there for me—holding my hand on the first day of Kindergarten; teaching me how to ride a horse; helping me with my homework; and even lying next to me in bed until I fell asleep during a thunderstorm."
John cleared a lump in his throat while worrying his lower lip. "You were there for me when I needed you, Dave…when it counted the most. The reverse may not have always been true, I'm sorry to say, but…if I haven't said it before, then I'm saying it now: You're the best brother a guy could ever hope for, and certainly better than I could ever deserve. I know you and Paul love each other and that he makes you happy." He paused and raised his glass. "I'd like to propose a toast to Dave and Paul…"
He waited while the others in the room came to their feet and followed suit.
"Dave, Paul…May the happiness and love you feel today as you share your union with your friends and family sustain you in the coming years. You'll have your ups and downs like all couples, but I know your love will always lead you back home to each other. To Dave and Paul!"
"To Dave and Paul!"
Unable to help himself, John stole a brief glance at Nancy. He caught her studying him, her eyes glistening from unshed tears. She looked away quickly, so he couldn't be sure if he had seen correctly. He decided that she was probably happy for her friend Paul.
oOo
