CHAPTER 7
A little after 6:00am Matt and CJ came out of the barn kissing and holding hands. Matt walked over to the bunkhouse and checked on Murray, then he and CJ headed back up to the house. When they were about halfway there, they looked up to see Vince and Michael sitting on the back deck grinning at the two of them. The couple both cracked up and went up on the deck. "Morning boys." CJ smiled and breezed right on past them and into the house. Matt stepped inside and grabbed a cup of coffee and went back out to sit on the deck with his friends.
"So Cowboy, did somebody get lucky last night?" Vince cracked up as he spoke and so did Michael.
"Nope, technically it was this morning. Get your facts straight." He grinned behind his coffee cup.
"Don't you two know you're not still newlyweds?" Vince leaned forward and looked at Matt, who didn't seem embarrassed in the least.
"Oh no, Vince, didn't you hear? They think they're gonna be newlyweds until they've been married seventy five years. At least that's what they told me." He grinned over at Matt who was still smiling.
"Seventy five years? Are you kiddin' me?!" All three cracked up.
"How's Murray?" Hoyt took another sip of coffee.
"He's still crashed. I figure to let him sleep until about ten or so – maybe he'll be sober by then. You know he had four beers last night. " He cracked up as did the other two men. Matt finished his coffee and stood up stretching. "Think you boys can keep an eye out for Murray and make sure he doesn't get into the house? I'm going to go grab a shower."
"Sure, Ace. We can do that. Don't forget to scrub your back." He snickered.
"I don't have to – CJ will do that for me." He wiggled his eyebrows and smiled as he walked past the two of them.
"You know, I bet the two of them are going to have about ten kids before it's over with." Hoyt shook his head as he sipped on his coffee.
"I believe he said something about enough for a baseball team." Vince cracked up again. "I'm glad they finally woke up and got together."
"Yep." Hoyt hit the bottom of his coffee cup. "I need a refill. How about you?"
"Yep." Vince drained his cup and Hoyt headed into the kitchen to fill them up. "I'll keep an eye out for the groom."
As Matt started through the house and headed for the stairs, he heard Catey Rose laughing. He tracked the sound down to the den and stuck his head in the door to find Mama and Catey sitting on the couch playing peek-a-boo. Mama looked up and gave him a knowing smile. "Catey spent the night with me last night."
Matt grinned as he walked over to her and leaned down giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Mama." He then picked up his daughter and blew a raspberry on her belly causing her to break out in a fresh round of laughter before he handed her back to Mama and headed upstairs for a shower.
About 10:00, Matt along with Myron went down to check on Murray. The CEO was still sleeping on the couch. "Hey bud, rise and shine, it's doomsday, oh 'scuse me, your wedding day." He shook his friend who woke up with a start.
"Oh my God! What time is it?" He flew off of the couch and wildly looked at his surroundings. "Where am I?!"
"Well bud, we kinda took a wrong turn last night – you're in Amarillo." Matt winked at Myron and both did their best to keep a straight face.
"WHAT?!" He turned to look at Matt who completely lost it and almost fell over laughing.
"Relax, Murray. You're in the bunkhouse – so you won't see Chris before the wedding." Myron walked over to his brother who slowly sank onto the couch breathing a sigh of relief.
"What time is it?" Murray pulled his glasses off and cleaned them on his shirt tail.
"About ten. You've got another four hours of freedom." Myron winked at Matt.
"So did you have a good time last night?" Matt sat down on the end of the couch.
"Yes I did, thanks for all you've done, Houston. You've been such a good friend to both of us."
"Well we'll see if you still think so when Chris sees the picture of you with the stripper." Matt managed to keep a straight face.
"Oh no! Please don't show her those!" Murray got his usual panicked look.
"I'm just teasing, Murray." Matt patted the man on the back as he blew out a breath of relief. "Besides, she already saw them this morning while you were asleep."
"WHAT?!" Murray was back on his feet.
"Man, I'm just kidding! Will you relax already? Look, are you hungry?"
"No, there's no way I can eat, are you kidding?" He got up and started pacing.
"Look, I'm going to go up to the house and bring down some grub. You go grab a shower." Matt stood up and headed for the door.
"How much sleep did you get, Houston? You seem very relaxed." Murray turned to his friend.
"I didn't." He grinned, wiggled his eyebrows, and laughed as he headed out the door. As he stepped into the kitchen, Matt ran into Madre Rosa who was working on getting things ready for the reception later on. He walked up behind her and gave her a big hug and kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for helping out with all of this."
She returned his kiss. "I'm having a great time, Matt. It's nice to have so many people around again. It reminds me of the old days."
Matt stepped over to the table and grabbed a plate, loading it up with muffins and pastries. "I'm going to take the groom some breakfast and see if we can get him to eat. He's just a tad nervous." Madre Rosa laughed as she watched him.
"And how nervous were you on your wedding day?"
"I wasn't. I was ready for it – finally." He grinned and gave her another peck on the cheek as he headed out the back door whistling and headed down to the bunkhouse to babysit Murray.
Matt headed back up to the house about noon, leaving Myron and Hoyt to keep the groom from hyperventilating and passing out. The minute he set foot in the house, he could hear his daughter's laughter. He ran into Madre Rosa's daughter, Rosita, who was going to be babysitting Catey Rose while the wedding was going on. She and Catey were already having a great time together. After talking to his daughter and Rosita for a few minutes he went upstairs and shaved again, then got dressed in his tuxedo. As he was leaving the room, CJ came in. "How's the groom?"
"Nervous as a sore-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs." He gave CJ a kiss. "I love you, Babe."
"Love you too, sweetie." They kissed again and Matt held her close. "I plan on dancing with my sexy wife this afternoon; be ready."
"Oh I will, don't you worry about that." She gave him a peck on the cheek and then swatted his rear. "Go on back down and take care of Murray or I'm never going to get ready." He laughed and took off through the house.
At 2:00, everything was ready. Matt and Murray were standing at the bottom of the staircase as the music started and CJ came down the stairs. Matt was grinning ear to ear as he saw his wife. Then Uncle Roy escorted Chris down the stairs and Murray was about to go into panic mode. Matt leaned over and whispered to him. "Calm down, Murray. You're going to be fine. I'm right here with you." The groom nodded nervously as Matt patted his shoulder.
As Roy and Chris reached the bottom, Roy put her hand in Murray's. "You're going to be very happy together." Murray nodded and he and Chris took the few steps over to stand before the minister.
In an effort to keep Murray from having any more stress, Chris had decided to go with a basic ceremony. After a short sermon, the minister smiled and stepped to the side as Matt picked up his guitar and had a seat on a stool that was brought up for him. Murray had a puzzled look on his face, but Chris had a big smile as she whispered to him, "You're going to love it!"
Matt began playing "The Wedding Song" as CJ stood there proudly beaming. There were several shocked faces as he began singing. When he finished, he winked at Chris and stepped back by Murray's side as the stool was removed.
The minister stepped back up and asked Murray to repeat after him. I, Murray, take you Chris, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.
Murray got through it without any problems and was absolutely beaming. Then the minister asked Chris to repeat after him.
I, Chris, take you Murray, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.
She also managed to get through without any problems. Matt and CJ had been looking into each other's eyes the whole time, smiling as they both thought back to their wedding day over a year ago. Then the minister spoke again.
"Father in heaven, You ordained marriage for your children, and You gave us love. We present to You Murray and Chris, who come this day to be married. May the covenant of love they make be blessed with true devotion and spiritual commitment. We ask that You, God, will give them the ability to keep the covenant they have made. When selfishness shows itself, grant generosity; when mistrust is a temptation, give moral strength; when there is misunderstanding, give patience and gentleness; if suffering becomes a part of their lives, give them a strong faith and an abiding love. Amen."
"May I have the rings please?" The minister was smiling broadly as Matt pulled the ring out of his pocket and handed it to Murray as CJ produced the other ring and handed it to Chris.
He began again. "The wedding ring is the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual bond which unites two loyal hearts in endless love. It is a seal of the vows Murray and Chris have made to one another."
"Let us pray. Our loving God, we ask your blessing upon these rings, that they may constant symbols of the unending love which binds Murray and Chris together. As a bond, and a pledge, let these rings encircle their fingers as their love does their hearts. With love we say, Amen."
"Murray, repeat after me…but speak to Chris: Chris, I give you this ring in celebration of our marriage, as a pledge of my love and faithfulness. I promise to you my love, friendship and support through our years together." Murray did as he was told flawlessly.
"Chris, repeat after me…but speak to Murray: Murray, I give you this ring in celebration of our marriage, as a pledge of my love and faithfulness. I promise to you my love, friendship and support through our years together." Chris was beaming as she spoke the words to Murray.
The minister spoke once again. "Let us pray. Our loving Father, we know that you are the witness of every marriage and the sealer of every spiritual union. We give thanks knowing that it is your love and light that fill the hearts and minds of Murray and Chris. They have pledged their love and vowed their commitment to one another, on this their wedding day. Grant that they may be true and loving to each other, living in such a way as to bring peace and joy into their lives and to family and friends, who support them with your love and concern throughout their life together. May you continually rejoice with them, just as you do this day. Bless this their wedding day and may they always be aware of your abiding love throughout their life together. We ask these things in Jesus Christ, Our Lord; Amen."
The minister then spoke to the bride and groom. "Murray, Chris, you have declared your commitment to each other before your family and God. It gives me the greatest of pleasure to pronounce you husband and wife. Murray, you may kiss your bride."
The couple kissed, a sweet gentle kiss and then turned to face the crowd gathered there to celebrate with them.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it is with the greatest of pleasure I get to introduce to you for the very first time in public as husband and wife Mr. And Mrs. Murray Chase." The minister was smiling as he made the presentation. Everyone stood, clapped, and cheered as the couple smiled.
Murray let loose of Chris' hand and turned to face Matt. "Houston, thank you so much. You've been there for me from the beginning of this whole relationship. I can never thank you enough." The two men hugged. Meanwhile, Chris was thanking CJ and they also hugged.
Later on, after the cake was cut and the bride and groom shared their first dance, Matt took CJ by the hand and led her out onto the dance floor for a slow dance. They were completely blocking out the rest of the world, as they danced with their bodies as close as possible. Before the song was halfway through they were kissing. Even Vince and Hoyt carrying on about them didn't distract the pair.
"You know, Vince, I don't believe they can even hear us. They are completely lost in their own little world." Hoyt smiled as he watched them.
"I think you're right. Bet you ten bucks she'll be pregnant again before the end of the year." Vince took another sip of beer.
"I won't argue with you there. He told me she wanted to wait until Catey was a year old before they tried again, but I don't think that's going to happen. Those two are absolutely head over heels. You would think it was them that just got married."
Later on, after celebrating with their family and friends, Murray and Chris got ready to leave for the honeymoon. Matt was helping Murray get his clothes together and the CEO was starting to get nervous again. Hoyt and Vince were in the bunkhouse as well, and Matt looked at the two of them. "Fellas, would you give us a minute, please?" Both men walked out and back up to join the rest of the guests.
"Murray, you've married a great lady; congratulations, bud." Matt shook his hand.
"Houston, I …" He gulped.
"Murray, do you love her as much as I think you do?" Matt put his hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Yes, probably more." He grinned.
"Does she love you as much as I think she does?"
"Yeah, she does."
"Then listen. Don't worry about trying to be a Casanova, okay? Just know how much you love each other and I guarantee you, you'll be fine. It will happen almost on its own. Don't think about it, okay? Let nature take its course and everything will be just fine."
"Okay, I…thanks again, Houston. For everything." They shook hands and Matt picked up his friend's suitcase and carried it to the waiting limousine. As the couple got in the car and waved goodbye, Matt gave Murray a thumbs up that was met with a huge smile and nod.
