CHAPTER 55

Leah POV:

"Seth! Seriously, come on! I can't be late, I'm a bridesmaid!" I yelled at him for the hundredth time. Mom was still in the kitchen making sure everything was ready for the reception. Emily had brought the cake over this morning and set it up and it looked beautiful. Everyone was ready to go except Seth who was freaking out over his hair.

I kicked off my shoes and stomped up the stairs and banged loudly on the bathroom door. "Seth if you don't come with me right now, we won't have time to pick up Abby on the way to the church. I am leaving RIGHT NOW!"

The bathroom door flung open and there was Seth. He really looked handsome in the new suit that Mom bought him. He whined at first, but when he found out that Sam and Embry had to wear one, he was OK with it. It was black, like theirs, and Mom had bought him a dark blue shirt and a black and blue striped tie to wear with it. We finally got past the tying the tie fiasco, and moved onto to the hair gel drama. "You look great! Let's go!" I tugged at his arm.

"I got too much gel in my hair and I can't get it out!" he whined.

"We'll fix it at the church," I threw at him as I dragged him down the stairs. "Mom! We're leaving!" I hollered out. I reached down and slid my heels back on.

"OK! See you there!" she hollered back.

I grabbed my purse and keys and flung open the door. Seth followed me to the Jeep. I threw him the keys and said, "You drive. I can't drive in these shoes." He grinned at me and jumped into the driver's seat. I knew that would get him to quit whining! I got in carefully to try and not wrinkle my dress and buckled my seat belt. Seth took off and we headed for Abby's house.

"You look really nice in that dress," he said quietly.

I looked at him and smiled and said, "What? I'm not sure I heard you?"

He looked over and said, "Yea, you did. You just want to hear it again. Vain!"

"At least I didn't have a meltdown over my hair!" I said as I smacked his arm. We laughed at each other and I asked him how the bachelor party went last night.

"OK, I guess. No one got drunk and there were no hookers or anything, so I thought it was pretty boring."

"Seth!" I yelled. "Where did you get the idea that there would be booze and hookers?"

"One of my friends at school told me that's what bachelor parties were, so that's what I thought."

I laughed. "Well, sorry you were disappointed." I looked over at him as he drove and said, "You look nice, too, by the way."

He laughed and said, "What? I'm not sure I heard you?"

I smacked his arm and said, "Vain!"

He pulled up to Abby's and parked the Jeep. As usual, she came running out the door as soon as we pulled up. Seth got out and she ran into his arms. She looked really pretty. She was wearing a coat, but I could see a light pink dress sticking out from under it, and she had her hair up and pretty dangling earrings on. Seth held the seat for her and she climbed into the back. "Hi Leah!" she said excitedly.

"Hi Abby. You look pretty!" I told her.

"Thanks! So do you. I knew you would look really nice in that color." I had showed her my dress when she was at the house last week for dinner. It was dark purple, and I loved the color, too. I knew it was Embry's favorite color on me.

"Seth looks pretty spiffy, don't you think?" I asked her.

She smiled really big and said, "Yes. He looks really handsome." I saw the shy smile spread on his face.

We chatted on the way to the church about the wedding. Seth pulled up to the door to let us off then he went to park the Jeep. We walked inside and I told Abby I better go and find Emily and Angie. I told her about Seth's meltdown over his hair and asked her if she would help him fix it. She giggled and assured me she would take care of it.

I walked through the church looking for where Angie and Emily might be. I heard footsteps behind me and before I could turn around I felt arms come around my waist and a voice in my ear said, "You look beautiful. You know that's my favorite color on you." I smiled and leaned back into Embry.

"Why do you think I picked it?" I asked as he kissed my neck.

"I like when you have your hair up, too. Makes this much easier," he said while kissing me. I turned to face him and he took my breath away!

He was wearing his new black suit, with a dark purple shirt and a black and purple tie. Emily had trimmed his hair and he had it swooped to the side like I liked it. "You look hot, mister," I said as I ran my hands up around his neck.

"Oh yea? You like this look, huh?" He put his hands on my back.

"Yes, I do," I said as I leaned in to kiss him. I was just getting to that melting point when I heard Emily say, "Hey! We've been looking all over for you! Little brother, get your lips off her! We have to get ready!"

We broke apart and he held up his hands and said to her, "Hey, don't blame me! She's the one that said I looked hot and put her lips all over me."

I smacked him and Emily grabbed my hand and dragged me down the hall. I waved at Embry and he laughed and called, "Don't worry! I'll remember where we left off!"

Emily pulled me into a small room and closed the door and there was Angie. "Oh wow. Angie, you look so beautiful!" She was wearing an off-white long dress that was sleeveless and came to a V at her waist and the skirt flowed from the waist in pleats. She had her hair up in a French twist with a beads worked into it. She was wearing pearl drop earrings that used to belong to her mother. She had waited so long for this day, and I was so happy for her.

"You don't think it's too fancy, do you?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No, it's perfect."

She reached out and hugged me and said, "I can't believe this is really happening. I am finally marrying the man I love. Thank you, Leah. Thank you for finding him and bringing him back to me."

I smiled and said, "You are very welcome."

Emily looked beautiful , too. Her dress was just like mine, only in lavender. It was a shorter dress, to the knees, with a princess waistline which was high and left room for the baby. Emily handed us our flowers and said, "Are you ready?"

"YES!" Angie shouted. "I am more than ready."

There was a knock on the door. I stepped over and opened it and Embry came in. "Hey, baby," he said as he kissed me. Then he spotted Angie. "Wow, Mom. You look amazing." She flashed him a radiant smile. He walked over and hugged her. "You ready to get hitched? Cause I gotta tell you, Dad is sweating bullets out there he's so nervous!"

Angie laughed. "I know. I promised I would keep this simple, and well, I guess I got a little carried away."

"It's OK. You only do this once, right? You are only doing this once?" he asked.

"Yes, most definitely. Let's go." Embry put out his arm and she took it.

I opened the door and we all walked down the short hallway to the doors of the sanctuary. We lined up and Emily looked back and said, "Here we go!"

I opened the door and Emily made her way down the aisle to the music. I focused on Sam's face as he watched her walk toward him. He smiled and winked at her when she got to the altar. Then it was my turn! I smiled at Angie and Embry. She blew me a kiss and Embry mouthed, "I love you." I mouthed "I love you," then I turned and walked down the aisle. I smiled at Josh and he smiled, but he looked like he might pass out! Then it was time for the bride to make her entrance.

All eyes turned to Angie and Embry. I watched them slowly make their way toward me. Embry looked so handsome in his suit, and he was so proud to be giving his mom away today to his dad. I knew this was a day that all of them would remember forever.

Embry POV:

I couldn't believe how beautiful Mom looked. And now, here I was, walking her down the aisle to marry my dad. How bizarre is that? Dad was a nervous wreck up there! But I knew this was a day that both of them had waited for, for way too long. We were almost there and I couldn't help but look over at Leah. She looked at me and I wished so much this was our wedding.

We arrived and the minister asked, "Who gives this woman to be married to this man?"

I spoke up and said, "I do." Then I turned to Mom and kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "I love you, Mom. Be happy, OK?" She nodded and touched my cheek. I took her hand and put it in my dad's and winked at him. He smiled at me and then I stepped up beside Sam.

Mom and Dad stood there hand-in-hand as the minister married them. They gazed at each other and smiled. I divided my time between watching them and looking over at Leah. I noticed her looking at me, too. First Sam and Emily, then Mom and Dad, and next it would be our turn. I couldn't wait. Sam expertly handled giving Dad the ring at the appropriate time, of course. Sometimes I wondered if anything really rattled him. He always seemed to handle things so well.

They were pronounced husband and wife and Dad was given permission to kiss his bride. Dad took Mom's face in his hands and kissed her. She had tears in her eyes, but I had never seen her that happy in my whole life. I knew this is what she wanted more than anything, and I was glad her dream was finally coming true. They turned and walked back down the aisle as Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Uley. Sam and Emily and Leah and I followed them.

When we walked through the door, everyone was hugging and laughing. Mom and Dad both turned to me. I just stood there for a second and looked at them. "Look at you two. My parents are married! To each other! " They reached out and I walked in between them for a family group hug. It was one of the most awesome feelings in the world. Something I had longed for as a little boy, and it was finally happening. They let me go and I looked at Dad and said, "I'm really glad you're here, and that we are a family."

He gripped my shoulder and said, "You have no idea how much I have wanted this. And to find out I have a son, with the woman I have loved so long . . . well, that's just icing on the cake. Today, I can truly say, I am a happy man." He pulled me to him and held me. I closed my eyes and thought how incredible this year had turned out to be. I have my dad! He's right here, and he's a part of my life. I couldn't imagine a happier day . . . except for the day I made Leah my wife.

He let me go and I said, "OK, enough of this! Let's go party!" Sam held up his hand for a high five and said, "That's what I'm talking about." I slapped his hand and Dad laughed.

Sue and the others left to get the food out while we stayed behind for some pictures. The photographer finally finished up and Sam said, "Good! Now I can get some of these clothes off so I can breathe." He whipped his jacket off and untied his tie and took it off. He unbuttoned the top few buttons on his shirt then took a deep breath and looked at me and said with a grin. "Come on, bro. You know you want to."

I laughed and said, "Damn right I do. I'm baking in this thing!"

Just as I started to take my jacket off, Emily walked up. "Sam! Couldn't you have waited at least until we left the church?

"I'm sorry, baby, but I couldn't breathe wearing all that stuff," Sam told her.

"Look at Embry! He's still wearing 'all that stuff.' " She turned to me and patted me on the cheek and said, "And you look really handsome, little brother."

I grinned and said, "Thanks, sis." Sam just rolled his eyes at me. She walked away and he said to me, "Kiss ass!"

I laughed and took off my jacket. Leah came over and said, "Ready to go?" I nodded and said, "You bet."

She looked over at Sam and smiled. "You looked very handsome today, Sam, all dressed up. But somehow, it's just not you. You look more comfortable now."

He looked over at me and grinned. "Thank you, Leah." Then he walked away to find Emily.

"Why don't you take your tie off and unbutton your shirt? You have to be dying with all of that on."

I smiled and said, "Great idea." I did just that, and took a deep breath. "I know it was important to Mom today that I look good, and come on, I look really good, but I don't think she understands the body temp of 108!" Leah laughed and shook her head at me.

She put her arms around me. "You do look really good. I'm having a hard time keeping my hands off of you!"

"Well, then don't," I said as I bent to put my lips on hers. I ran my hands down her back and over her ass. She felt so good.

"Hey! We have a party to get to. Get your hands off of her ass, and let's go!" Sam called.

I turned my head toward him and yelled, "Come on, bro! Give me a minute, will ya?"

"Yea, right. You're my brother. I know you. This is a church, Embry. You might at least want to take that outside?"

I laughed. He did know me. I had forgotten where I was. I was just thinking about finding someplace and having a little fun with Leah.

Leah turned red, and I laughed. "OK, let's go." I took her hand and led her outside toward the truck. Leah had let Seth take the Jeep, even though he wasn't technically supposed to drive without an adult. He was a really good driver, and we hoped he wouldn't get caught.

We all left the church and headed to Sue's for the reception. Everyone cheered when Mom and Dad walked in. They looked so happy. I had a hard time believing all of this was happening. My life had changed in such big ways in such a short time. Sometimes, I just had to stop and take it all in.

I looked around at all of the people. Everyone here meant so much to me. I was a really lucky guy. I hoped that I was about to get luckier.

Leah POV:

I was helping Mom with the food when Josh came up to me and said, "Leah? Can I talk to you for a minute?" I turned and said, "Sure."

He led me out of the kitchen into the living room to Angie. Embry was talking to her and they turned to us as we walked up. I gave Embry a curious look and he smiled at me nervously. What's going on here? I looked around and everyone had gotten quiet. Josh took my hand and said, "Leah, Angie and I just wanted to take a moment to thank you. None of this would have happened if it weren't for you coming to find me. We owe you so much. I owe you so much." He stopped for a second and cleared his throat. "I have my family back because of you. I am so thankful to have Sam back in my life." He looked over at Sam who nodded at him. "And I am getting to know the son I never knew I had." He looked over at Embry and smiled then turned back to me. "Leah, thank you, from the bottom of my heart." Then he drew me into a hug.

He let me go then it was Angie's turn to hug me. She whispered to me, "Thank you, Leah. This is the happiest day of my life." She let me go and I looked at the two of them. They were beaming.

I felt tears well up in my eyes as I said, "When I got the idea to look for you, I really never dreamed things would turn out like this. I was terrified that everyone would hate me!" They all laughed. "And for a while, it was rough." I glanced over at Sam and Embry reached out and took my hand. "But, I am really happy that everything worked out like it did. You two have each other, and Embry has a complete family."

Embry looked at me and said, "Well, almost complete." I smiled at him and wiped the tears from my eyes. Then I saw him pull a little velvet box out of his pocket and he got down on one knee and took my hand. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! My eyes grew wide and my heart started racing. He looked up at me and smiled. "Leah, I can't believe how much you have changed my life. You helped me find my brother, and my dad, but the best thing you helped me find was love. I know the kind of guy I was before I found you, and you changed that. It took 42 times to find the right girl -number 43 turned out to be my lucky number!" He stopped and grinned and everyone laughed, including me. "You make me a better person. You make me happy. I love you so much, Leah, and I never want to live one day without you. Will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?"

I felt the tears run down my face as I nodded and said, "Yes. Hell yes!" He laughed and slipped the ring on my finger then picked me up and twirled me around while everyone clapped and cheered. He put me down and kissed me and whispered, "Thank you, baby."

I glanced over at Sam while Embry was holding me. I saw a bit of sadness pass over his face then he gave me a smile and put his arm around Emily. Embry let me go and I looked at the ring. It was old, I could tell, but very beautiful. Angie stepped up and said, "It was my mother's. I hope you don't mind. I saved it and wanted Embry to have it someday for the girl he wanted to marry."

I looked up at her and said, "It's beautiful, Angie. Thank you so much." She smiled and hugged me. It was a solitary square cut diamond on a wide silver band. It sparkled in the light and made my heart skip a beat. I couldn't believe this was really happening!

Josh came over and hugged me and said, "Welcome to the family, sweetheart."

"Thank you," I said softly.

Then I was bombarded with all of the girls in the room crushing forward to see the ring. Abby was all giggly, as usual, and Kim and Rachel oohed and aahed over it. Emily hugged me and said, "Now we can really be sisters!" When we were little, we always pretended we were sisters. I was really glad that we could put all of the bad stuff behind us and be just that.

Bella looked at the ring and got a far away look in her eye for a second then said, "It's really beautiful, Leah. Be happy, OK?" I nodded and said, "I already am." She smiled sadly and turned to Jake. I wondered what that was all about. He kissed her then he came over and picked me up into a bear hug.

"Congratulations!" he said as he set me down. "Man, Embry getting married. I can't believe it. Mr. Ladies' Man is settling down. But he found a good woman. I hope you guys are really happy. I love you both, and I hope you'll name your first born after me." He grinned his Jake grin.

I laughed. "Yea, OK. We'll name her Jakarina? Maybe Jakie Sue?"

He just laughed and hugged me. "I'm just so glad to see you happy, Leah. You really deserve it," he said into my ear.

"Thanks, Jake. I hope someday, you can be this happy."

He pulled back and I could see the twinkle in his eye. "I'm working on it."

Finally my mom came up and held out her hand. I put my left hand on her palm and she looked at the ring. "It's beautiful, honey. I'm so happy for you." She had a few tears in her eyes as she pulled me to her for a hug. "Are you OK with this, Mom?" I whispered.

She pulled away and said, "Yes, I really am. Embry is a good man. He'll be a good husband. And, he asked Seth for your hand in marriage. Ask him about it." I laughed and said, "I will."

While Embry was being congratulated and teased by all of the guys and Sam stepped up and pulled me in for a hug. "I am really happy for you, baby. You deserve this and so does my little brother," he said into my ear. "Be happy, Leah."

He let me go and touched me on the cheek and I said softly, "Thank you, Sam. I am." He smiled and walked away.

Embry came over and put his arm around my shoulders. "Do you really like it?"

I looked up at him. "Yes, it's gorgeous! But I like more what it represents. We are 'officially engaged' now! Oh Embry, that makes me really happy."

"Me, too, baby." He kissed me and Josh said, "OK, enough sentimental stuff. Let's cut that cake!" We all agreed and Angie got the photographer to follow her to the cake table we had set up. They cut the cake and posed for more pictures then I helped Emily cut the rest of the cake so everyone could have some.

The party went on for quite awhile then Josh announced that it was time to start the honeymoon. "Dad! Please! Do you have to put it like that?" Embry whined. Everyone laughed. They were leaving first thing in the morning for their week-long honeymoon. They were driving down the coast to California and back. I had a feeling they might be looking to see if the hotel where they had stayed all those years ago was still there. That would probably be their first stop.

Embry was staying at Sam and Emily's tonight to give his parents their privacy then he had the house to himself for the rest of the week. I really wanted to spend the whole night with him. I hoped I could find a way to make that happen.

Josh and Angie left and everyone pitched in to help clean up. Everyone left and it was just Mom, Embry, Seth, Abby and me. "Man, I wish you could drive on your own. I'm beat," Embry said to Seth. Someone had to go with him to take Abby home. It was too far to take the risk of him getting caught.

"Me, too!" Sue said. "I'm heading up to bed while I can still walk. Goodnight, all."

"Mom? Wait," Seth said. He went running over to her and whispered something to her. She looked back at us and then said something to him. He smiled and hugged her then came back over to us. She went on up the stairs.

He looked at Abby and said, "I asked my mom if you could just stay here because it's so late and she said yes! But, you have to call your mom and ask if it's OK, and Mom offered to talk to her to tell her it was alright with her."

Abby smiled nervously and asked, "Where would I sleep?"

"You can have my room and I'll crash here on the couch," he said.

"OK, I'll go call Mom," she said hesitantly. She walked toward the kitchen to make her call. I gave Seth a look.

"What? We're all tired. This way, none of us have to drive her home, and it gives her a night out of that place."

Embry and I kept looking at him and not saying anything. He looked between us and sighed. "Geez, I'm not like you guys! I'm not going to sneak upstairs and try to have sex with her."

"What do you mean 'I'm not like you guys?' What's that supposed to mean?" I asked him.

"Please. You guys are worse than Paul and Rachel! You think you're sneaking around but everyone knows you do it ALL the time!"

Embry cracked up at that. I gave him an angry look that shut him up. "We are not worse than Paul and Rachel! And we don't 'do it' ALL the time. Just some of the time," I added quietly.

Embry laughed again. "Come on, baby. You can't hide it. I mean, look at me! What girl could keep their hands off of all of this?"

Seth stood up and said, "You guys make me gag!" He walked toward the kitchen to check on Abby.

I looked at Embry and started laughing. "All of that? You are pretty fine," I told him.

He slid over closer to me and said, "You are beautiful, and I think we are getting as bad as Paul and Rachel." I laughed and smacked him on the arm. He put his lips on my neck then whispered, "Come stay with me tomorrow night."

I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of him kissing my neck. "I want to, more than anything," I whispered back.

"See? I think you guys just proved my point," Seth yelled at us as he walked back into the room. Embry laughed and pulled away.

"Well, if you think this is 'doing it,' maybe we need to have another sex talk," Embry drawled.

Seth just glared at Embry and said to Abby, "Come on, I'll show you where you can sleep."

"Wait," I called to Seth. "Abby, I'll get you something to sleep in." I said as I started for the stairs.

"Thanks, Leah," she replied. She followed me up the stairs and into my room. I closed the door and said, "Are you OK with this? You seem kind of quiet."

She sat down on the bed as I pulled some pajama pants out of the drawer. "Yea, I'm OK. I guess I'm trying to figure out why Seth wanted me to stay. You don't think he wants to . . ."

I smiled and sat down beside her. "No, I don't. Embry and I were going to lecture him about that when he told us in no uncertain terms that was NOT what he was planning. Why? Has he been pushing you?"

"No," she said right away. "No, Seth is . . . really great," she added with a sweet smile. "I like him a lot. More than I have ever liked any other boy. He treats me, well, really good. I like making out with him. He's a really good kisser, but he doesn't push me to do more like other boys do."

I smiled. "Good. I'm glad to hear that. You know, Embry did give him a sex talk. It embarrassed him to death, but, I guess I want you to know that Embry is keeping an eye on him. He wants to make sure Seth treats you right."

"Embry is really sweet. Did he tell you about driving me to Seattle to see my big brother?" I nodded. He had told me that. "I couldn't believe it! All of you . . . you treat me . . . you're just so nice to me." She put her head down and I could hear her crying.

I put my arm around her shoulder and said, "Aw, Abby. We like you. You're a sweet girl."

She brought her head up to look at me. "You all treat me better than my own mom. You guys worry about me and care about me. I'm not used to that."

She laid her head on my shoulder and I rested my chin on her head. How could her own mom treat her like that? Abby was such a good girl. Fun to be around, and smart. It made me want to go and beat the crap out of her mom. She sat up and wiped her face.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I did that," she said with her usual cute smile.

I smiled and said, "It's OK. Do you have any sisters?" She shook her head. "Me either. Maybe we could adopt each other as a sister. What do you think?"

She beamed that pretty Abby smile and said, "Yes! I would love to have you as my big sister!" Then she hugged me. Tight. Too tight!

"OK, sweetie, can't breathe!" I said and she let go.

She jumped up and said, "Thanks for the pajamas," and opened the door to find Seth waiting for her in the hall.

"Are you OK?" he asked. She put her arms around him and hugged him. "Yes, really OK." He looked at me with a curious look on his face and I smiled and mouthed, "She's fine." He nodded and pulled away to show her his room.

Just then, Embry stuck his head in the door. "Hey, fiancé, I'm getting a little lonely down there all be myself."

I smiled at him and got up and walked to him. I put my arms around his neck. "I'm so sorry I neglected you. Can you ever forgive me, fiancé?"

He pouted and said, "Maybe." I kissed him on his pouty lips and he said, "That's more like it." We kissed a little then he said, "I'm going to head over to Sam's. I really am beat."

I nodded and said, "Me, too." I followed him down the stairs to the door.

He kissed me one more time then said, "See you tomorrow, OK?" I nodded and he added, "Love you, baby."

"I love you, too."

He opened the door and headed out to his truck. I waved and closed the door and was headeingup to bed just as Seth was coming downstairs. He changed into some sleep pants and he was carrying a sheet and pillow.

"Abby get settled in alright?" I asked him. I followed him into the living room.

He walked over to the couch and threw the pillow down and shook out the sheet. "Yea. I tried to pick up my room real quick. You know, make sure there was no dirty underwear on the floor or anything."

I laughed at that. "Yea, that would be a little embarrassing."

He sat down on the couch and I sat down beside him and said, "Mom tells me that Embry came to you and asked for my hand in marriage."

He looked over at me and laughed. "Yea, he did. One night while you were at work, he came over and told me he wanted to talk to me. We sat here on the couch and he started in telling me how business has picked up for him and Jake thanks to my great idea about the flyers. I thought maybe he was going to offer me a job or something."

"Aw, I'm sorry," I said.

He smiled. "That's OK. Anyway, he told me his plan about the shop and now since things were going so well how they might move in sooner and he said that was great because then you two could get married sooner. Then he got all official and said, 'Seth, as the man of this family, I would like to ask you permission to officially propose to your sister.'" He said it in a deep "official-sounding" voice. I couldn't imagine Embry ever sounding that way.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"I told him no."

"What? Seth! Why would you do that?" I yelled at him.

He laughed and said, "Yea, that's the same reaction Embry had. I told him he didn't need my permission. I told him I knew how much he loved you and he would take care of you and so of course he could marry you. Then he said, 'That's not cool, dude.' " I laughed. That I could hear him say.

Seth went on, "And anyway, I really like having Embry around, you know? I mean, since Dad's been gone . . . " He stopped and hung his head for a moment. "It's been kind of hard not having a guy to talk to or hang around with. Someone I can ask about stuff I don't want to ask you or Mom about. He's really cool, and I . . . I guess I love him, you know?"

I felt tears sting my eyes as I said, "Yea, I know. He loves you, too. And it makes me happy to see how he looks out for you." Seth nodded.

I reached out and pulled him in for a hug. "Thanks, little brother. I love Embry so much, and I think he'll help make our family complete."

I let him go and he said, "Yea, me, too. Now go away. I'm tired and I want to sleep."

I smiled and got up. "OK. But just so you know, I'm making chocolate chip pancakes for you for breakfast."

He grinned. "Yes! Fucking awesome!" That's one thing he learned from Embry that he probably shouldn't have.

"Goodnight, little brother."

"Goodnight, sis."