Throw Me to The Wolves & I Will Return Leading the Pack
Summary:Morgan, the newest member of SVU hasn't had much luck with men, but her new partner might just be the one for her, if only she could let Sonny Carisi know. Men come much easier to her friend Riley, who's maybe not prepared for the challenge that Peter Stone provides.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Law and Order SVU, Morgan and Riley however are all mine.
Chapter 30:
The shower at Sonny's mom's house was Morgan's baby shower this time, though it was set up a lot like the one for her wedding, hell, even Barba was attending yet again. Morgan was excited to be able to show off baby Michael to her friends and family, with everyone, including Gina and Theresa, cooing about how simply adorable he was.
And boy was he ever adorable, managing to capture the hearts of everyone at the party, including Sonny's soulless sisters who apparently couldn't get enough of Michael.
So far he was a pretty decent baby. After just a couple of weeks with him at home, Morgan was enjoying her time with him. She didn't really miss work at all and found herself settling into the role of mother rather smoothly. He wasn't a difficult baby, he cried infrequently but the one thing that he didn't do was sleep right through the night. Sonny was a great help when that happened though.
She spent most of the day at home with him, napping when he napped, and Sonny took over the night duties while he was home. It was hard, sure, what new baby wasn't tough to get used to, but the two of them were making it work and there wasn't anything in the world that would change how much she truly loved her new little boy.
Michael was currently residing in Audrey's hold, who was sitting near Sonny's mother, the two of them cooing and playing with his itty-bitty hands, grabbing them and gingerly holding them just to feel his super soft skin. Morgan caught sight of them and felt her heart swell before finding herself wondering if she should've asked Audrey to be a godmother or something.
Her own mother wasn't the greatest to Morgan when she was little, but did that mean she forfeited her right to take care of Michael if something bad did happen to her and Sonny? Would her mother treat Michael the same way she treated Morgan, or would she be a decent mother figure?
Did it really matter? Ugh, this whole thing was so hard to figure out. She didn't even want to think about it anymore because she was so unsure. The odds of something happening to both her and Sonny seemed slim in her mind, and hell, even if something did happen, Sonny's mother had first dibs.
It would be fine, yes, Morgan would just have to convince herself of that. She loved her baby too much to worry about the 'what ifs' of something happening to her or Sonny. She would be around to lead Michael through life, she didn't need to concern herself over whether her own mother could handle taking care of him.
"My mom seems pretty smitten." Riley broke in to Morgan's thoughts as she came to stand beside Morgan, offering her up a glass of blue Kool-Aid, which was part of the 'boy' theme to the baby shower. "I'm glad she gets one grandkid…well sort of…you know what I mean, right?"
"Ry, you can't just give up already. Yeah it's not coming easy to you but that doesn't mean you just throw in the towel." Morgan countered, knowing how much her friend wanted what she had but seeing how hard it was for Riley to acquire. "You and Peter will have a baby."
Riley raised an eyebrow but didn't respond, she wasn't going to let it get to her, not today of all days. She was just so ecstatic that Morgan had a baby of her own and boy howdy was the kid ever adorable. His bright blue eyes clearly came from his father but his cute button nose was all Morgan- thank the heavens above for that.
The kid would be a heartbreaker for sure.
"Did Barba really buy him a three-piece suit?" Riley asked and Morgan's lips curled into a grin at the thought of her son donning the vey suit in question in the coming weeks.
"A navy one." Morgan nodded. "Which he will be sporting at your wedding by the way."
Riley snorted and tried to picture the tiny newborn in a mini version of the groomsmen suits. It was too cute to think of and she hoped that Michael would cooperate on the day of her wedding because she needed that picture real bad, captured on camera to look at for years to come.
"Stylish motherfucker, that Barba." Riley remarked with a shake of her head, glad that Morgan's fancy lawyer friend was smart enough to know what clothes would be way too cute on a baby; a suit being one of the cutest options.
Morgan nodded her head and watched in awe as her mother wandered over and took a seat next to Audrey. Audrey was quick to offer up the baby for Charlotte to hold and when her mother took over cradling her son, she felt her heart swell again. Michael was definitely a charmer, and he was barely a few weeks old.
It was such an odd sight to see, her own mother beaming down at the bundle of joy in her arms, but it was also such a nice sight to see. Morgan hadn't seen her mother smile like that since…well it had been an awfully long time, so long that she couldn't even really remember a time when she had seen her mother so happy. Maybe her mom wasn't completely heartless after all.
At one time, she had been a mother to a baby of her own, and Morgan had turned out okay, even if most of that was credited to Audrey. Then again, she hadn't even met Audrey until she had reached third grade and there weren't a lot of terrible memories before that, not that Morgan could remember. Surely if there were moments bad enough, she would've remembered something. Maybe her mother would be a decent godparent after all, maybe she deserved a chance.
"She'll have his college tuition to Harvard saved up for him." Riley said and Morgan shot her a look of confusion. "You think your kids aren't going to an Ivy League school? Your mom will definitely make sure they do Mo, they've got to live up to her expectations, be the best they can be in a career that she approves of, obviously."
"I never went to an Ivy League school."
"Yeah and how'd that work out for you?" Riley offered her a shrug. "She's going to try her hardest though, so be ready. You might be a lost cause to her but Michael's not."
"Ugh, no Ry, don't say that. I have like eighteen years to get ready for that battle." Morgan huffed. "That's so far away, let's just deal with that if it comes down to it."
"When it comes down to it."
Riley gave her a pat on the arm and wandered off, moving in to take a seat near her mother, leaning against her side while watching Michael wriggling in Charlotte's hold. So far at the shower he hadn't broken out into a wail but Morgan knew the chances were good that at some point Michael would start to cry.
Honestly, she wasn't worried about it, that's what babies did, but she was nervous for how her mother would react to a crying baby. Morgan rolled her shoulders back and headed over to the table of food, which had already been picked over pretty good. She grabbed a handful of crackers and wandered around the yard, thanking her guests for coming and thanking them for the lovely gifts that she had opened earlier.
There was a lot of clothing for Michael but also a lot of other things too. She was simply amazed at how much stuff she had received for her baby, but also incredibly thankful. She even got a tiny pair of Converse All Stars from Riley with a matching tracksuit. The people at her shower were all so generous, a police themed baby toy set had come from Liv and Amanda had given her some cute denim overalls complete with the smallest t-shirts Morgan had ever seen.
Sonny's mother had been generous enough to make Michael a crib quilt, which had been sewn by hand and was utterly gorgeous with its zoo animal theme. In addition to Riley's tracksuit, she had also handed over a stack of books, which wasn't surprising seeing as her friend practically had a library in her house.
Her mother had doled out some cash but also a jolly jumper, incredibly thoughtful on Charlotte's part and the money was nice to have too. Gina and Theresa had gone with a ton of diapers, plus some receiving blankets, bottles and some pacifiers, much nicer than her last shower gift (then again these gifts were for baby Michael and not her).
Bella managed to find some high-quality bibs, a baby blender for baby food and a plush blue rabbit. Audrey had added to the diaper count but had also gone all out and purchased Morgan a very nice looking rocking chair that she would definitely be putting in Michael's room, just as soon as she got it home and put together (Riley had already volunteered to do just that).
Overall it was a successful baby shower and now Morgan was just letting her son be passed around from person to person so that everyone could get a decent look at him.
When she locked her eyes on Barba, who was standing awkwardly near Charlotte, she fought off the urge to laugh as her mother handed the man the baby. Morgan rushed over to join them and fought off the urge to break out into a fit of snickers as Barba held her baby very abnormally yet somehow managing to support the baby's head like he was supposed to.
"Oh my god Rafi, it's a baby." Morgan teased and ran her hand over Michael's baby soft head. "He's not a bomb."
"Well he's sort of a poop bomb." Audrey threw out. "Riley used to poop out the sides of her diapers when she was a baby, god it went everywhere sometimes."
"Seriously mom." Riley glared at her mother, who simply smirked at her in response. "People don't need to know that."
"It's not like you still do it." Audrey shrugged eliciting a bark of laughter from Morgan's mother.
"Morgan used to get it up her back all the time. I had to change her onesie every time I changed her diaper, without fail." Charlotte added with a smile. "It's pretty much how we knew when it was time for a clean one."
"Nope." Barba shook his head and tried desperately to hand the kid off to someone else, but no one was making any movements to take him. "This suit is expensive; I don't want to take any chances."
Morgan snorted at the only man at the party but still refused to take Michael out of his awkward hold. It was too entertaining, Barba was way too amusing, especially when he was holding her baby like he was about to just start spewing poop all over the place. That wasn't how it worked, and plus, diapers had come a long way since Riley and Morgan were babies, surely they held in the shit better than thirty years ago.
"If you cradle him against your chest…" Charlotte offered up but Barba didn't move a muscle, choosing to blatantly ignore the woman's advice.
"He's part Sonny, I certainly don't want that rubbing off on me, or my suit." Barba shook his head.
"Hold him normal for god's sake, he's not going to bite you." Riley rolled her eyes at the man but he leveled her with a glare.
"No way, one second I'm holding this…this tiny human and the next thing I know his DNA will seep into my perfect pores. Then I'm stuffing my face with cannolis while talking with that horrible accent."
"Cannolis are delicious, what do you have against them." Sonny's mom joked. "But the accent is questionable, so I'll give you that."
Riley stepped towards Barba and finally took the kid out of the man's hold, cradling the darling newborn in a more comfortable position. Michael settled in against her chest/shoulder and wiggled ever so slightly before letting out a teeny grunt before his body melted against her, clearly feeling rather cozy in Riley's hold.
"That looks good on you." Charlotte beamed and Riley tensed, not totally sure where this conversation was going. She was just holding a baby, Morgan's baby, so why did it feel like her heart was starting to hammer against her chest? Or that her stomach was starting to knot something awful?
It wasn't like Charlotte knew of her issues, so it wasn't like Riley had any right to be upset. She clearly didn't say it just to bother Riley, to get under her skin, but now she had to figure out a way to respond without having to explain herself, or confess to the woman that she wasn't exactly successful at her attempts at getting pregnant. She didn't want everyone at the party knowing she couldn't have kids, but she also didn't want Charlotte to keep prying.
"Riley's busy planning her wedding." Audrey piped up. "And after that, she plans on spending some time getting used to the idea of marriage before bringing a baby into it."
"Yes, exactly. I want to get to know Peter as my husband first." Riley tossed out, hoping that her statement sounded believable. She didn't think it did but Charlotte didn't really know Riley.
Charlotte opened her mouth to respond but promptly snapped her jaw shut, not wanting to do battle with Audrey, not at her daughter's baby shower. For whatever reason, Morgan figured it was because she was too smitten with Michael, her mother was behaving pretty decently so far and she didn't want that to change. It was like a whole new Charlotte had turned up for the baby shower, and hell, Morgan wasn't about to complain, no, she was going to enjoy it while it lasted because it couldn't last forever, could it?
"Right, well." Morgan trailed off, looking at her baby in Riley's hold. She agreed with her mother though, the baby really did look good on Riley, she just hoped that her friend would get to feel the way Morgan felt now that she was a mother, even if it took her a little longer than she wanted, and involved a lot more effort than she had to put in. "I'm glad you guys could all make it, thank you for all the wonderful gifts."
"Of course." Charlotte beamed. "Anything for my grandson."
"Wow!" Morgan's eyes widened. "You're right, he's your grandson…you're a grandma, is it weird that that's the first time I'm hearing that? It didn't really click until now…my lord mom, you're a grandma."
"That makes me feel old." Audrey threw in with a smile of her own. "Charlotte, can you really believe that you're a grandma?"
Charlotte shook her head no but never once did her smile falter. She apparently liked being a grandma and so far Morgan found that she was doing a pretty decent job at it. She could spoil Michael rotten if she wanted, that's what grandmas did, and honestly, that sounded good to Morgan, so long as Charlotte didn't pull the same shit she pulled with Morgan when she was a child.
"Nonna." Sonny's mother piped up. "I'll be nonna so there's no confusion."
That sounded great to Morgan, it sounded really great. What sounded better was the fact that she was someone's mom.
Michael was going to be so loved, Morgan swore he would. She would look after him, protect him and make sure he knew that she was proud of him, no matter what. Her own mother had shown her what not to do but Audrey had led her in the right direction.
She was going to do right by Michael, whatever it took.
XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX
Stretching out under the covers, Riley felt the body next to her and quickly curled into Peter's chest, letting out a soft sigh when his arms came around her, holding her tight. She didn't dare open her eyes, instead, she remained in her bed, basking in the warmth that he provided.
"You staying here all day?" He teased and she groaned before burying herself deeper into his hold. "Come on Ry, aren't you excited?"
She leaned her head back and slowly moved into a sitting position next to him, staring down at him as he remained laying on the bed, his head in the pillows. Running her hands through her hair, she let them fall to her knees, eyes never leaving his.
"Yes, I'm excited, but also terrified."
"Of getting married?" He pressed, suddenly concerned about what she was saying. Over the past few weeks he hadn't heard her mention being scared, but then again, getting cold feet was a common enough occurrence to have a name. Maybe this was normal?
"Oh." Her eyes widened and she quickly shook her head no. "Not of getting married, I can't wait for that part. I just don't like the not knowing, you know? No you probably have no idea…god how do I explain this?"
"You're anxious because you don't know the protocol?" Peter quipped. "I know you Riley."
"You do." She gave him a small smile. "I just wish I wasn't so scared about stupid things, like what happens if I miss my cue or I walk down the aisle too fast- I don't want to embarrass myself-"
"You won't." Peter cut her off and joined her in a sitting position. She scooted closer to him and let him wrap his arm around her middle. "You'll be fine, plus no one will even notice any of that, they'll be too busy looking at how pretty you look."
"Too bad we aren't getting married in a church, I could walk down the aisle while bursting into flames." She tried to tease but he could hear it in her voice still. She was nervous, and he figured no matter what he said, or did, she'd be nervous until it was happening.
When it was happening, she'd just go with the flow and do whatever she needed to do and once it was over, she'd look back on it and wonder why she had worried so much in the first place. It's just what she did. It was the type of person she was.
"I, for one, can't wait to see you in your dress." Peter stated with a smirk of his own.
"And my newest 'fuck me' heels." She countered, moving her legs so they were stretched out in front of her. She flexed her feet and found him watching her wiggle her toes, most likely trying to picture the sexy new heels she had purchased for this specific occasion. "They might end up being your new favourites."
Peter tore his eyes away from her feet and met her gaze, staring at her, wondering what he had done to deserve such a great girl like Riley. She was his perfect match, she knew what buttons to press to get to him (in a good way) and he swore that if he didn't have to be at Sonny's house in an hour, he'd take her back under the covers and have his wicked way with her.
By the look on her face, he figured she wouldn't have been opposed to that either.
"I should get going." He announced, gave her knee a rough, friendly pat, and leapt out of the bed, standing next to it. "I need a shower before I leave."
"Don't say things like that." She chuckled, swinging her own legs over to her side of the bed and planting them on the carpet. "Maybe we could shower one last time as an unmarried couple?"
By the time the two of them were out of the shower and Peter was ready to go, he was pretty close to running late. He had kissed her goodbye in the front hallway, leaving Riley standing there in a pair of sweatpants and his Cubs t-shirt, her hair still wet from their shower.
It wasn't that much longer that Morgan showed up, Bella trailing behind her. Morgan had their dresses with her and Bella was carrying a large bag with Riley's new shoes, which she had insisted on keeping at Morgan's so that she wasn't tempted to show Peter.
A few minutes after Morgan arrived, Audrey pulled into the driveway along with the hair and make-up girl, this time it was just one person, seeing as Riley's bridal party was half the size of Morgan's. Audrey was half ready to go, her make-up was complete and hair was done rather nicely, half pulled back and held in place with a rhinestone barrette, but she wasn't dressed. She carried her dress inside with her, heading in to the living room where the rest of them were settled in on the couch.
The stylist was already working away on Bella's hairstyle, braiding it into a fancy braid crown, a style that Riley adored.
"My baby's getting married!" Audrey exclaimed and rushed over towards Riley, who was lounging on one end of the couch, a grin plastered on her face. When her mother got close enough, she sat up and hugged her tight, feeling so much love from the older woman's embrace. "Ry, have you decided if you're walking yourself down the aisle for sure?"
"You can do it." Riley countered. "I think you should do it."
Audrey broke out into a grin and nodded her head, scared of how her voice would sound if she tried to reply with words. It would be an honour to walk her daughter down the aisle, and she'd love to do it.
"Did you ever hear from your dad?" Morgan piped up, looking over at Riley. "You didn't invite him, right?"
"He's not going to be there." Riley answered. "Much to his dismay."
"You're okay with that?" Morgan turned her attention to Audrey, who merely offered Morgan up a shrug in response. It wasn't really up to Audrey and if Riley didn't want her dad at her wedding, she certainly wasn't going to force her to have him there. "Well I appreciate you inviting my parents."
"At least this way Michael has someone to hang out with while you're busy being my maid of honour." Riley chuckled. "Plus, it's not like Barba would be able to handle him for the length of the ceremony."
"No, he certainly would not." Morgan agreed easily.
Sooner than expected, Bella was done being made up and styled, she vacated her chair, which had been pulled in from the dining room table, and Riley was quick to take her place. She wanted to be made up, she wanted her hair done, she wanted to get dressed and get married because she was that excited to do so.
She hated the idea of waiting but she knew she had to. It didn't matter if she was ready to go beforehand, she was scheduled to get married at a certain time, but it didn't stop her from wanting to be ready to go at any moment. She wanted to spend as much time in her amazing dress as she possibly could.
Audrey excused herself and disappeared from the living room, Morgan starting a conversation with Bella, who had grown decently close to Morgan and Riley in recent weeks. Riley stayed silent as the girl braided her hair into a crown similar to Bella's, only hers was a little more elaborate, a little fancier.
"I want you both at my wedding." Bella said proudly. "In fact, I want you both to be part of my wedding because my sisters have shit taste in everything."
"Evidenced by the chandelier dress they wanted me to try on." Morgan laughed.
"That dress was awful." Bella nodded. "Your dress was way prettier, and so perfect for you."
"You should wait until you see Riley's." Morgan remarked. "It's so gorgeous and it fits her so well."
Riley felt her cheeks blushing at Morgan's praise. She did love her dress and she did look gorgeous in it, but it felt nice to have someone else agree with her. She couldn't wait for Peter to see her in it, she just hoped that he gave her the reaction she dreamed of.
"Riley would look good in a potato sack." Bella joked.
Audrey made her way back into the room carrying a smaller, flat-ish box on top of a larger, shoebox sized box, setting them both on the coffee table in front of Morgan. She was quick to move the littler box away and open the one underneath it, producing a teddy bear that was very, very familiar to Riley, who's eyes lit up at the sight.
"Something old." Audrey said softly, handing the brown teddy bear over towards her daughter, it's worn t-shirt very clearly holding the Yankees emblem. "I kept him, I know you left him behind when you went to M.I.T. but I couldn't part with him."
"Mom." Riley murmured, taking hold of the bear and staring down at it. "Thank you."
"That was from her very first Yankees game, her dad and I took her." Audrey explained to Bella, Morgan having heard all about it when her and Riley were little. "She slept with that bear every night until she left for Boston."
"I figured he was given away." Riley snorted. "I'm so glad he wasn't."
"Well," Audrey straightened up and turned right back to the coffee table, lifting the smaller box up and handing it to Riley, taking the bear from her hands and handing it to Morgan, who set it on her lap, "something new."
"Mom." Riley growled but flipped the lid off the box, her eyes widening and her mouth dropping at the sight of the very sparky, very fancy looking tiara tucked away on a pillow of creamy silk. It contained clear and blue crystals that glittered immensely under the light.
Riley had given up on finding herself a decent tiara ages ago, settling on one that she didn't love but could tolerate, but this one was so much prettier.
"Something new and something blue." Morgan remarked with a smile, motioning towards the faux sapphires adorning the tiny points that alternated between the clear crystals. "You just need something borrowed now."
Audrey held up her finger, requesting just one more minute. She dug into the pocket on her pants and produce a dainty silver bracelet, a single heart charm dangling from the middle of it. When she offered it to Riley, she couldn't help but smile.
It was the very bracelet that Riley had been eyeing up since she was a kid, the very bracelet that Audrey's mother had given her on her own wedding day.
"I've got the bases covered." Audrey stated proudly.
"I have blue heels." Riley tossed out. "So I probably could've pulled it all together."
"But now you don't have to worry." Morgan laughed and gave the bear a shake, making it look like it was dancing. Riley rolled her eyes at her friend and Audrey took the tiara from her hands, offering it to the stylist, who was finishing up with her braid crown. After another minute or so of finagling her hair, the tiara was firmly placed on her head and the stylist began working away on her make-up.
When the time came for Riley to put on her dress, she took it upstairs along with Morgan, where she changed into it. When she came back down the stairs and stepped into the living room, her mother and Bella gasped at the sight.
Even though Audrey had seen her in the dress before, this was a whole other level of gorgeousness. Riley looked like a regal queen, the tiara completing her look perfectly and the dainty silver bracelet just enough to add to the look without being too noticeable.
"You look so amazing Riley." Bella commented and Audrey could only nod along in agreement.
The four of them giggled, chatted and had a grand old time as they loaded up into Audrey's car, Riley in the front with her dress stuffed inside while Bella and Morgan sat rather comfortably in the back. The drive over to The Foundry wasn't long at all and once they were there, Riley climbed out of the car and was immediately led inside to a room off to the side by Morgan and Bella.
Audrey soon joined them and that's when Morgan headed out to see if she could find her mother, and ultimately her son. Riley paced the room, pulling up on the skirt of her dress to get a good look at the deep navy-blue strappy stilettos that she had bought for her wedding. They had an ankle strap and strap across the tops of her toes, but other than that, they were plain, stunning because of the colour more so than anything.
Dropping her dress back down to the floor, she let out a giggle as her feet disappeared, but nothing could quell the knot in her stomach at the sheer desire to get out there and marry Peter Stone.
"You're taking his last name, right?" Bella asked from a small padded bench along the wall of the room.
"Yes." Riley paused in her pacing movements and nodded her head. "Was I not supposed to?
"No, I just didn't know because in this day and age a lot of women are keeping their last names." Bella offered up with a shrug. "Riley Stone sounds hot."
"Mrs. Stone." Audrey added with a smile. "Good lord I'm going to have a son-in-law."
"Yeah mom, that's how marriage works." Riley huffed.
"This is a big moment for me." Her mother countered with a wide smile. "You're my little girl, this is huge as a mother. I'm going to walk you down that aisle and hand you over to some guy who's going to be the one you go to for everything, leaving your poor old mother in your dust."
Riley snorted loudly and shook her head, "no way. You'll always be my mom."
Morgan wandered back into the room at that moment and gave a wave in Riley's direction. Riley straightened up, ran her hands down the front of her dress and sucked in a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds before blowing it out. Bella stood up from the bench and headed for the door that would lead them to the aisle, immediately finding Sonny standing there holding three bouquets in his hands, Bella's boyfriend was next to him, grinning from ear to ear at the sight of Bella.
When Riley stepped out into the hallway, Sonny let out a low whistle and she snorted at him, giving him a shake of her head. Morgan lightly smacked him in the shoulder, took hold of one of the bouquets and handed another to Riley. Bella grabbed the last one and took her place at the head of the group with her boyfriend by her side.
"You look great Ry." Sonny remarked, sincerity in his tone.
"Doesn't she?" Morgan threw out, looping her arm with Sonny's. "Peter's going to pee his pants you look that great."
"He's not going to- nope, it's fine. If he pees his pants, I will give you a hundred dollars." Riley countered, but there was nothing that would be able to wipe the permanent smile off of her face.
When the music started to sound out in the hallway, Riley threw one last smile in Morgan's direction and watched as Bella wandered down the aisle next to her boyfriend. When Morgan began to walk, Riley gripped her bouquet harder but instantly relaxed as her mother came up beside her, offering her hand to Riley.
Riley took it and gave it a squeeze before letting her mother lead her into the centre of the aisle. Peter's eyes were immediately on her and she couldn't help but smile wider at his reaction. His eyes were nearly bugged out of his head, his mouth was ajar and he was blinking quickly, trying to take in the sight of her as she slowly walked down the aisle closer to him.
When her and Audrey arrived at the altar set up for them, Audrey handed Riley off to Peter before taking her seat in the front row, right next to Charlotte, who was holding baby Michael. Morgan took Riley's bouquet from her hands, letting her friend grip tightly onto both of Peter's hands with her own.
"Wow." He mouthed and she took her bottom lip in between her teeth, trying to keep her own composure. He looked quite dapper in his navy-blue suit, white shirt underneath and simple black tie. It was the perfect alternative to the usual black suit, which was something she saw him in quite regularly.
The officiant began speaking but Riley could barely comprehend what was going on around her, she was too focused on the man in front of her, Peter holding her hands tightly in his.
She made out the word vow from the man's speech and Peter took in a deep breath, readying himself to say his vows to her.
"Riley, you caught my attention from the very first second that I laid eyes on you, you were beautiful then like you're beautiful now. That moment you looked at me…your smile undid me but your laughter put me back together." Peter hesitated and looked across at her, taking in the sight of the very smile he was referring too.
He couldn't help but feel weak in the knees at the idea of actually standing in front of her, reciting his vows to her and letting her know that she was the one person that he truly loved.
She was his everything and there was no way he'd ever get tired of being with her. Riley was his perfect match, every minute he got to spend with her was a gift to him.
"You're the girl I wouldn't mind losing sleep for, the one who I will never get tired of talking to, and the only one who constantly crosses my mind throughout the day." He paused and she felt her lips curling upwards even more (if at all possible). "I fell in love with you; your laugh, your smile, your eyes, the way you curl up with me when the Yankees are playing, the way that you're not scared to tell me anything- I fell in love with you simply because you're you."
"Well…" Riley breathed out a soft sigh. "That's going to be tough to follow."
The small crowd in The Foundry laughed politely, filling the space with a lovely sound. Riley gave him another smile and tipped her head sideways, studying Peter's face for a few seconds before pulling herself together.
She wasn't scared to be standing here in front of him, she wasn't nervous to be getting married, no, she was excited. She loved Peter so much, she just wanted to be with him, to take his last name and make their relationship official in the eyes of the law.
"You once said to me that strong and powerful women can still have moments of weakness, before you said that to me I don't think I realized how true it was. I've had a lot of moments of weakness in my life, before and after I met you." She paused and sucked in a shaky breath, hoping that she was able to keep her composure. She didn't want to cry, but she figured it was pretty much inevitable at this point in time. "You don't judge me when I'm not strong, you're just there to support me and pick me up, you're the first guy that's ever been there for me like that. I love you so much and I know you love me too, and I think that's all I really wanted; to be loved, to have someone hold out a hand during each painful moment and tell me that it's all right; to have someone just be there- that's you Peter, it's always been you."
Everything else happened in a blur and before Riley knew it, she was practically jogging down the aisle alongside Peter, the two of them stopping in front of the room she had waited in. He tugged her against his chest and pressed a kiss to her forehead, his hand coming up to gingerly poke at the tiara on her head.
"Nice touch." He remarked with a smile.
"Veils are for virgins." She teased and grabbed a handful of the skirt part of her dress, lifting it up to show off her shoes. Peter's head tilted sideways as he studied her newest shoes before giving her an approving nod.
"When do I get to take your dress off?" Peter laughed and she dropped the hold she had on her dress, instead running her palms up his chest.
"If you're quick, you can do it now." She purred but let out a snicker of her own before backing away from him. Peter shook his head at her but couldn't help the smile that would be on his face for a long time to come.
She was right though, her dress was simply gorgeous, and the shoes were a perfect addition. What really got him was the tiara though, it was the perfect accessory without being over the top.
She really was his queen now, she even had the crown to prove it.
XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX
"Where are you going on your honeymoon?" Bella asked as she stood next to Riley and Morgan, who was carrying baby Michael around with her instead of letting her mother horde him.
"We have a Norwegian cruise booked." Riley answered with a grin.
"Fancy!" Bella grinned back at her. "Sounds so nice, bet you'll be glad to get away with just Peter for a couple weeks huh?"
"I'm pretty excited yeah, I've always wanted to sail through the Fjords, plus I don't like hot places."
"Yeah, you'd probably melt if you went to like Hawaii or Mexico." Morgan added with a laugh.
"Peter probably wouldn't mind seeing you in a sexy little bathing suit though." Bella jeered, even going as far as to nudge Riley with her elbow. Riley rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to counter but Morgan beat her to it.
"I think he prefers her in nothing."
"Heels." Riley corrected.
"What?" Morgan shot her a confused look, Bella's expression matching.
"Nothing but heels." Riley tried to elaborate but both girls were still looking at her like she was an alien. "Jesus Christ, he's got a thing for me in my 'fuck me' heels."
Morgan cocked her head sideways while Bella furrowed her eyebrows together.
It was almost sad how unadventurous Morgan's sex life was in Riley's eyes, but she wasn't going to judge her. If her and Sonny were happy then that was all that mattered. Frankly Riley didn't know much about Bella's sex life at all, but she certainly didn't want to hear about it at her wedding.
"So he's got like a foot fetish?" Bella spoke slowly, not entirely sure what she was asking, or if she wanted to know the answer.
"No." Riley groaned. "That's weird."
Morgan scoffed at her friend, "the shoes you have on right now are killer, you're telling me that you're going to leave them on while you're…you know…consummating the marriage?"
Pressing her lips together tightly, Riley rolled her eyes, wondering if she had rubbed off on Morgan at all in the years that they had lived together. It still amazed her how narrow-minded Morgan was when it came to sex.
"Moving on." Riley grumbled.
"Yeah okay, did you buy any sexy wedding night lingerie?" Morgan teased but Riley's fist shot out and swiped at the back of her shoulder, just barely grazing her skin.
"Did you?" She fired back at Morgan, who immediately nodded her head yes. "Let me guess, it was cute and white and probably had bows on it?"
"Yeah, isn't that…what does yours look like?"
"Nothing but my heels." Riley echoed her words from earlier.
"Right, you're such a slut sometimes."
Riley nodded her head and peered over at the half sleeping Michael, rather disturbed by the fact that they had been talking about such inappropriate stuff while a baby was present. She was still smitten with him though and hoped to have her own baby one day, maybe a cruise through Norway would help them out in that department, but she wasn't banking on it. The wedding had been nice and now she was officially married to Peter Stone, which was something she hadn't thought she wanted until she met him.
She felt great, nothing could get to her tonight, not even the fact that she wanted to be a mother so badly, no, that was a problem for a different day. Today was her wedding day and she was enjoying the company at her reception, which was in the same space as the ceremony only it had been rearranged to look totally different.
The sun had set and it was getting later in the night, the twinkle lights set up around the tops of each and every wall of windows, setting the mood perfectly. The food had been great and now they were all mingling, except Riley had pretty much stuck to Morgan's side since the plates had been cleared.
"Not going to lie here Ry, I figured you'd be a spinster well into your senior years." Morgan stated and when Riley locked her eyes on her, Morgan broke out into a grin. "Kidding! I would've gotten on your ass to find a good guy and settle down long before your hair turned grey."
Sticking her tongue out, Riley excused herself from Morgan and Bella and headed out into the small crowd of guests at her reception. She brushed past her mother, who merely smiled at her and carried on in search of the one person she desperately wanted to see.
When she found Peter, he was standing with some of his lawyer buddies, including the man she knew to be Jack McCoy, whom she had been introduced to for the first time at the gala so long ago. Peter reached out for her and took her by the hand, gently tugging her forward and setting his arm across her shoulders. Riley wrapped her arms around his abdomen and stayed by his side.
"Peter here was just telling me that you're a huge baseball fan." Jack stated, giving Riley a polite smile.
"Not baseball, Yankees. I'm a huge Yankees fan." She corrected with a teasing smile.
"It's a shame you never got the chance to see Peter here pitch for the Cubs, he was pretty good."
"I would've loved to have seen him pitch so I won't argue with you there." Riley teased. "But he still wouldn't have swayed me away from my beloved Yankees."
Jack let out a laugh at her proclamation and Peter turned sideways, pressing a kiss to the side of her head. He drummed his fingers against her bare shoulder but didn't let go of her, apparently not wanting her to get away from him again. He had lost her shortly after they had finished dinner but he wasn't overly concerned; she wasn't going to go too far away, not if this was a party for them.
"I've seen her in the Cubs colours, she's definitely better looking in the navy." Peter said softly and Riley snorted.
"You're the one in navy tonight, it's definitely your colour."
"You two are quite the couple." Jack offered. "Peter, I like this one."
"I like this one too." Peter threw in. "I think I'm going to keep her."
Beaming, Riley remained at Peter's side, watching as Jack McCoy excused himself, wandering away to find himself another drink. She loosened her grip on Peter but didn't stray, instead remaining by his side and peering into his eyes, wondering if he was feeling just as happy as she was at that very second.
"He probably wouldn't like me if he knew how we really met." Riley said with a mischievous look in her eye. "He might even think I'm a bad influence."
"Never." Peter murmured. "I was just as much a willing participant."
"So willing." She cooed. "Thank god for that."
Rolling his eyes, he moved his arm away from her shoulders and laced his fingers through hers. She shifted on her feet so she was standing in front of him and when he leaned in to kiss her, she relaxed, letting him do just that, leaving her with a simple little peck on her lips. Peter lifted his free hand up and gingerly rested his palm against the side of her face, ghosting his fingers over her cheek.
A shiver ran up her spine but she didn't pull away, instead she held his gaze and smiled.
"You look absolutely stunning." Peter complimented and she tipped her head sideways as she took his words to heart. She felt stunning, she felt like a princess who was getting her happy ending, and it was all because of the man in front of her. She was so thankful that she had given him a chance, she was appreciative of the fact that he had let her see him for a second time, then a third, and so on.
Until Peter Stone there wasn't anyone worth fighting for but he was it. Her life was great with him and she wouldn't trade him for anyone.
"I'm leaving the tiara on until tomorrow, just to let you know." Riley said smugly.
"And the shoes?" He pressed, all she could do was laugh in response.
"If I'm honest, I never want to take the dress off either."
"It's a beautiful dress."
With a quick motion, she lifted her one hand up and rested it on top of his, which remained on her cheek. She gingerly pulled it away and curled into his chest, forcing his hand to reside on the back of her shoulder in a sort of awkward embrace. Resting her head against the front of his shoulder, she let out a soft sigh of content and simply basked in the moment.
"We're married." She whispered. "Can you believe it?"
"I can."
"It's amazing." She said in wonder. "I'm a married woman."
"My wife." He nodded.
"Say that again."
"You're my wife."
She liked the sound of that, "Mrs. Stone."
Peter hugged her tighter for a quick second before letting go of her completely, putting a good foot of space between them. He stared at her and she scrunched her nose up at him, wondering what the hell he was doing, why had he let her go so easily?
"Say that again." He commanded softly but there was no menace to his tone. He simply wanted to hear her repeat herself.
"Mrs. Stone?" She cocked her head in confusion. That's what she was now, and frankly, she loved the sound of it too. She loved Peter, she wanted nothing more than to be with him for the rest of her life, and right now was just the beginning.
"Riley Stone." He corrected. "You're Riley Stone."
"Huh yeah, I get it. I really do like the sound of that."
He leaned in to kiss her but he didn't get the chance to because the soft, calm mingling music came to a stop and Morgan took her place at the space set up for the DJ. She was holding a microphone in her hand and she had a giant smile plastered on her face.
"Hey everyone." Morgan started and slowly but surely everyone in the place turned to look at her. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Riley's best friend. She and I met in third grade when I was pushed off the monkey bars by a kid in my class. He was making fun of me because I was on the ground crying and Riley, well she marched right over to him and shoved him down and called him a dick and I thought 'this girl is awesome, she's fearless' and honestly, to this day I still believe that about her. See, some people arrive and make such a beautiful impact on your life, you can barely remember what life was like without them and Riley's one of those people. She's impacted my life in ways that she doesn't even know, so to see her so happy makes me proud. Peter, you're the one person in the world that I trust with my best friend; I also know that if you ever hurt her, she'll probably shove you down and call you a dick."
Riley let out a loud bark of laughter and Morgan smiled right back at her.
Morgan's eyes met Peter's and he was fighting back a smile too.
"I wish you both many years of happiness." Morgan finished and immediately handed the microphone off to Sonny, who was waiting nearby with Michael in his hold. Morgan took over carrying their son while Sonny cleared his throat and lifted the microphone up, taking up a stance in front of the room full of people who were looking right at him.
"I'll keep this short and sweet." Sonny paused and took a deep breath. "It's not hard to see that Peter and Riley are very much in love, they're the perfect pair, they're both smart, she's an engineer and he's an attorney, they're both kind, but most importantly, they're both better people because they're together. It's a special honour for me to have been asked to be a part of this incredible day and I just want to propose a toast to the happy couple, wishing them years upon years of blissful happiness!"
Everyone in the room lifted their glasses and Riley leaned in to Peter, giving him a kiss on the jaw, listening as the people in the room broke out into a fit of cheers for them.
When she pulled away, she grabbed his hand tightly in hers and shot Sonny an appreciative smile, then she found Morgan standing near Sonny and threw her a wave, just to let her know she appreciated her too.
"Let's give it up for the happy couple as they take their first dance together as husband and wife!" Sonny cheered and the DJ made quick work of starting their song, which was none other than Bryan Adam's 'Heaven'.
Riley's heart started to pound in sheer excitement as Peter took her into his hold and began moving carefully with her around on the dancefloor.
She had loved Morgan's speech and Sonny's had been great too, but this moment was what she had been waiting for since dinner had ended, this was the part she had wanted to get to so bad.
He held her tight and gingerly pressed his forehead against hers, reveling in the fact that Riley was now his wife, she was going to take his last name- they were married!
This wasn't what Peter had expected to happen when he had first laid eyes on her in the bar, or when she had offered herself up to him minutes after finding out his name. She had been pretty bold that night, but it hadn't scared him away, if anything, it had drawn him to her.
She was a unique individual, a person he had been lucky to find and even luckier to hold on to. Yes she had her quirks but it didn't matter because the idea of spending his life with anyone else just felt wrong. Riley was it for him, and he was all she needed.
They would be great together, for a long time to come. He'd look after her, he'd keep her safe, he'd be there for her when she needed someone. He was excited for their future together and when he looked into her eyes and saw the sparkle there, he knew in his gut that she felt the same.
XxxxxxXxxxxxXxxxxxX
Thank you to MrsHappyAnarchy and Piffthemagicdragon21 for the lovely reviews!