It was the night before the wedding, and we were all out at Indian Pond Country Club for the weekend. David and Mary Margaret were getting married on a bridge on the golf course. They'd had their first kiss on a bridge somewhere, and they'd decided to tie the proverbial knot on one. I was just trying to keep it together in the midst of all their happiness. Dave and Mary Margaret were chatting with the minister and the wedding coordinator while everyone else was just sort of milling around.
The ladies all looked lovely in summer dresses, but Emma, of course, stood out with those long, blonde tresses of hers pulled up in a wild pony tail, curls cascading around her face and neck. She was stunning. Given that she was the maid of honor and I the best man, the next two days would probably prove to be my undoing. I was leaned up against the end of the bridge, hard stone jabbing into my back. The discomfort was… helpful. I stopped watching the ladies and looked out over the golf course. The sun was setting and with the light cloud cover, the sky was turning pink, orange, and purple. Fingers of the lingering sunlight stabbed through the trees onto the immaculate lawns.
The setting was beautiful, and I hoped, for Mary Margaret and David, that tomorrow's sky would be the same. I would have preferred a beach, but to each his own. There were white, wooden chairs set up on one side of the bridge, ready for the various guests. There was an aisle down the middle, which I was told would be covered in a carpet for everyone to walk down. Workers were busy setting up two large tents at the back when the wedding coordinator spoke.
"Ok, ladies and gentlemen, I think we're ready to run through this," she said from behind me on the bridge. "Tomorrow the two tents will be setup in the back there. The ladies will be in the one on the right; gentlemen, you're on the left."
"From which direction?" asked Ruby. Ruby was a friend of Mary Margaret's from childhood, in town for the wedding. She was quite the visual distraction, all gorgeous legs, sass, and long, dark, hair.
"The girls have port, and the guys have starboard. The bridge here is the bow. Does that help, Ruby?" asked Dave, teasing her.
Ruby stuck her tongue out at him. "Only if you're a sailor, Dave." She trounced down the aisle, wagging her ass at everyone and went to the wrong tent.
"Your other port, lass," I called out to her. She twirled around, giving me a flirtatious wink, and pranced to the other tent. The workers doing the setup were all staring at her flouncing form.
"Ruby, behave yourself!" Mary Margaret said as she chased after her errant friend, dragging Emma behind her, both giggling.
David rolled his eyes and strolled off down the aisle, another friend of his from work, Graham, and I followed behind. "This is going to be an interesting couple of days," David said.
"Aye, mate, that it is," I said under my breath. David must have heard me as he slowed down, letting Graham pass us by.
"You going to be ok, Killian?" His face showed his concern. I could not, however, let my sour mood spoil his day.
I put on my best Killian Jones smile, "Of course. My best mate's getting married to the woman of his dreams, and there's eye candy," I added lecherously as I glanced over at Ruby flirting with the workers.
"I don't know which one of you I'm more worried about," he said with a smirk. "Who's going to be the seducer and who the seduced?" His voice was playful, but his eyes knew better. She might give it a go, but she'd get nowhere. David knew I wouldn't even try.
I just laughed at him. I had no intention whatsoever of getting anywhere near Miss Ruby. She was a firecracker, easily set off, a fast explosion without the warmth of a real fire beneath. I preferred a slow burn, which was why I was currently smoldering in misery. I shook my head and wandered over to the starboard-side tent.
"Ready guys? Everybody know where they're supposed to be?" Mary Margaret asked, finger poised over a play button on a portable stereo. There was ascension all around, and she pushed the button. The sound of an instrumental version of Elton John's "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" blared from the speakers. Mary Margaret had a hardcore Disney fetish, and the music of the weekend would probably be full of Disney's greatest love songs. I groaned under my breath. She hadn't told anyone what the "bridal march" would be, and we wouldn't find out until tomorrow. The attendants were walking down to Elton, but her song was a big secret.
The wedding coordinator was starting to give orders. "Ok, David, you and the minster will walk down the aisle first." The two of them headed up the aisle. "More slowly, please," she called out to them over the stereo. "You should be in time with the music." David must've been feeling punchy, because he started walking too slowly, dragging his feet. Graham and I laughed. "Mr. Nolan, please," she said, clearly exasperated. David turned to wink at Mary Margaret over his shoulder and fell into the appropriate step.
"If he does that tomorrow, I'm gonna kill him," Mary Margaret said.
"Ruby, Graham, you're next," the coordinator said, stifling a groan.
Ruby and Graham walked towards each other, Graham offering her his arm. She took it gracefully, and they walked down the aisle. They made it about two thirds of the way down the aisle, and it was my turn with Emma.
"Killian, Emma…"
I walked to the center to meet her, offering her my arm. She wouldn't look me in the eye, choosing instead to watch over my shoulder. She took my arm with a slight hesitation, both of us turning to walk down the aisle.
When I took his arm, it felt like lightning had hit me right in the gut. It was obvious how uncomfortable we both were. I could feel the tension in his arm through the thin dress shirt he wore. He looked amazing, and, unfortunately, he smelled even better. My mind wandered to the fact that it should have been Neal walking me down the aisle, but I couldn't imagine that he would have been able to hold a candle to what Killian would look like the next day in a tuxedo. A flash of Killian in tuxedo pants and nothing else flashed before my eyes.
My wayward thought caused me to stumble in the grass. Killian tightened his grip on my arm, keeping me from falling on my face. "Stupid heels," I mumbled, trying to cover up my embarrassment. I stopped for a moment, kicking them off to the side. I could feel him holding in a chuckle where my bare arm was pressed into his side. I blushed as I looked into cerulean eyes filled with mischief.
"Will you be going barefoot again tomorrow, love?" he asked against my ear.
"There will be a carpet tomorrow. Our heels shouldn't catch in the grass." I dragged my eyes forward, not wanting to look at those damned eyes of his a moment longer.
He glanced back over my shoulder, and then back at me, that cocky eyebrow raised in obvious amusement. "Love, there are no heels on those shoes."
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Fortunately, we were at the end of the road, and he let me go to take my place at the edge of the bridge. As I turned to face down the aisle, I caught a glimpse of his face, still smirking at me, trying not to laugh out loud. The blush that had been fading on my cheeks hit all new highs. He waggled his eyebrows at me. I fought a smile, and failed.