AN: Thank you for the support, here is the next chapter, enjoy!
Chapter 2: I Do
While father and son were pulling back from one another, there was a knock on the door, so C.J. cleared his throat and said. "Come in."
When the door opened, C.J. smiled as Chris ran to the visitor. "Grandpa!"
As he ran to his grandpa, C.J. stood up from the chair and said. "Hi Mr. Marshall."
Brandon Marshall was a little broad at 5'10, he had short brown hair and brown eyes, he also had the signature glasses that C.J. admired very much on Brenda.
After greeting his grandson, he stood up and asked. "Hi C.J., can I talk to you for a minute?"
C.J. nodded before looking at his son. "Buddy, can you give your grandpa and I a few minutes, how about making sure everybody's here?"
Chris smiled with a nod. "You got it dad." Before walking out of the room.
When it was just the two of them, Mr. Marshall shuts the door to the bedroom that belonged to Calleigh and Horatio before looking at C.J. "You have a wonderful son."
C.J. nodded with a smile. "Thank you, but most of the credit should go to your daughter, she did a wonderful job long before I got involved."
Mr. Marshall nodded. "Yeah, about that, I'm sor..."
C.J. raised his hand up to stop him. "It's ok, I think we both understand that it is hard to convince her to do one thing when she has her mind set on another, besides it's water under the bridge by now, we are just trying to concentrate on the future."
Mr. Marshall nodded, then said. "Good to hear."
C.J. nodded in return. "I'm sure as great as you think your grandson is, I don't think you came in here to talk about him, did you?"
He shook his head and replied. "Not directly, but it does concern his family." C.J. waited while his soon to be father in-law continued. "Marriage is a sacred thing, a huge commitment and it should be honored, which not a lot of people stick by those vows, especially people your..."
C.J. wasn't known for interrupting when an elder talks, but he felt he had to. "Mr. Marshall, I know." he continued before Mr. Marshall could interrupt him. "I know what happened between you and your wife and I just want to say that I'm sorry you had to go through that, not only for yourself, but for your daughter. She loves you so much and for you get hurt like that, it hurt her too."
Mr. Marshall could really tell that C.J. meant those words, so he cleared his throat and said. "Thank you C.J."
C.J. nodded as he walked up to him. "I love your daughter, Mr. Marshall, I always have, and I know what marriage means and what you have to do to make it work, and I'm willing to put everything that I have to do it. I'm committed to her and Chris 100%, no second thoughts whatsoever." Mr. Marshall nodded as C.J. continued. "I would tell you not to worry about her, but I know you will no matter what I say because she's your daughter and she means everything to you. The thing is, she means everything to me too and I'll take very good care of her, of them, you can count on that, on me." C.J. then held out his hand.
Mr. Marshall looked at the young man as he closed the gap between them, then he took his hand and said with a smile, but a serious face. "I had always liked you, C.J."
C.J. smiled as they finished their shake, then as they released hands, he speaks again. "Thank you, sir."
"I guess now that you'll be marrying my daughter, you should start calling me dad, if you want, of course."
"I would be honored sir...I mean dad."
Mr. Marshall chuckled a little, then spoke after clearing his throat. "I should let you finish getting ready."
C.J. nodded as Mr. Marshall started walking toward the door, and when he got there, C.J. speaks again. "Dad." Mr. Marshall turns to him as he continued. "I know I'm a little late to be asking you this, but, do I have your permission on marrying your daughter?" He felt bad that he didn't ask Brenda's father before asking her.
Mr. Marshall smiled and said. "You do, son."
C.J. smiled with a nod before Mr. Marshall walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
He had barely gotten to the dresser mirror when there was another knock on the door, so he turns around and said. "Come in." When the door opened again, he smiled again before saying. "Hi mom."
Calleigh smiled in return and said. "Hi honey, just seeing how you are doing."
He took a breath before replying. "Like my heart is going to beat out of my chest and thousands of butterflies zooming around in my stomach, all of that is normal right?"
Calleigh chuckled and nodded while she stepped in the room, shutting the door behind her. "It is sweetheart, no matter how right you feel about the person you are marrying, those premartial jitters will always get to you."
"I do feel this is right from the bottom of my heart."
Calleigh nodded again with a smile. "I know honey."
He took another breath and asked. "How is she doing?"
"She's nervous too, but ready to become yours."
"That's good to hear." As he walked up to his mother, he asked. "What about you, you ready to let me go?"
Calleigh looked at him with tears in her eyes as she shook her head, then she cupped his cheek. "I'll never be ready for that, but I see and know how much you love her, so I'm willing to share, if that's ok with you."
His eyes were misting as he cleared his throat. "That's more than ok, I love you mom."
She sniffled as she brings him in her arms. "I love you too, honey."
After a few minutes of holding on to each other, they pull back, then she cups his cheek again and smiled. "I better let you finish getting ready, I'll see you downstairs."
C.J. smiled one of his big smiles while he nodded. "Yes, you will."
Once she removed her hand, she walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.
As the door clicked shut, he took a breath as he walked to the wall that was close to the door and looked at the picture that was hanging up, it was the same picture, which was of Christy and Calleigh when they were younger, he had with him for years and looked at it often.
He looks at the woman who gave him life and a resemblance that just about matched his, then said. "I miss you mom, I've missed you for the last 22 years, but I've been doing alright, which if you have been looking down at us, you'd see that. I've read the words you have written in your journal, and with me having a son of my own now, I can feel it what your words meant, so thank you for everything that you shared with me, I'll carry it with me always." He took a breath before finishing. "Now it's time that I get married to the most beautiful woman in the world, outside of the my family, of course, I love you mom, take care, ok?"
With one more smile and goodbye, he stood in front of the bedroom door, tied his tie, then walked out of the room and headed down the hall, which he was thinking about knocking on Christy's room since that's where Brenda was getting ready, but he knew knocking wouldn't be enough and he didn't want to break tradition, so he continued on his journey, and once he stepped on the living room floor, he said hi to the multiple guests while he walked to the back door.
After he stepped out on the deck, he walked to the railing to his left and looked out in the yard with a smile.
Of all the venues she could have picked for the wedding, there was no question in her mind that getting married at his parents house was the place she wanted. Not only because it was close to the beach, which was a dream spot for her, but this place meant a lot to her and she didn't want to get married in a random location, so basically if he could have gotten the spot, and there was no question that he couldn't have, what she wanted was what she got, anything to make her dream wedding come true.
His thoughts get interrupted when an arm landed on his shoulder, he looked to his right and smiled at Kyle. "Hey bro."
"Hi, so you ready to become a married man?"
"Yeah, and about time if you ask me."
Kyle chuckled before asking. "Listen I want to run something by you, and if it isn't ok, then I can wait to say something."
C.J. raised an eyebrow. "Ok, you have me interested, what is it?"
Kyle leaned toward his ear and whispered something, then when he was done, he asked. "So, is it ok?"
C.J. smiled with a nod. "Of course, yeah, the family will love it."
Kyle smiled in return, but before he could say something, Horatio and Calleigh walked up to their boys and Calleigh asked. "The family will love what?"
The boys looked at their parents, then Kyle cleared his throat and said. "I'll tell you guys during the reception, ok?"
They looked at him suspiciously as C.J. speaks. "It is something good, guys, I promise."
They looked at C.J. before looking at Kyle again, then Horatio said. "Ok, we can wait then."
Kyle smiled with a nod, then Calleigh looked at C.J. and asked. "You ready, sweetheart?"
C.J. nodded with a smile and replied. "Yeah, let's do this."
"Alright, I'm going to tell the bride, why don't you guys gather the guests and have them sit down."
The boys nodded before listening to their mother as Calleigh looked at her husband, and he smiled while cupping her cheek. "Are you ready?"
He knew that it had to be kind of hard for her to let him go, because it was hard for him too, regardless of how happy they were for him.
Calleigh took a breath and nodded. "Yeah, I talked to C.J. and we agreed I'm sharing him, so I'm not fully letting him go."
Horatio smiled with a nod before leaning down and kissing her on the cheek and whispering in her ear. "Well let's get the bride to be down here, so our son can get married."
She nodded as she pulled back before cupping his cheek. "I'll see you in a few minutes."
"Love you."
"Love you too."
After a quick peck on the lips, Calleigh walked inside while Horatio followed the other guests down to the yard where the chairs were set up.
As C.J. stood up on the priest's left side, waiting for his fiancée, he watched the remaining guests sit down in their places before looking at his family sitting in the front row, and they were all smiling, so he smiled back.
When his eyes reached the deck, he watched his mother walk across the deck before walking down the stairs, then after turning to the right, she walked down the aisle with a smile, he smiled back, and after getting to the first seat in the front row, she sat down next to her husband with a wink toward C.J.
Once the music started a few seconds later, he turned his attention back to the deck while the rest of the guests stood up and looked back. When C.J. saw Brenda, which her father was on one side and their son was on her other side, they smiled at each other as she got closer to the aisle, both knowing that everything they had been through had led them to this moment, a moment they've been waiting for, for what seemed like ages by now, and despite the jitters they both had, they were ready and couldn't wait to seal their commitment to one another.
When they stopped at the beginning of the aisle, Mr. Marshall looked at his daughter and whispered. "You ready, honey?"
Brenda finally tore her eyes from her fiancé to look at her father, then smiled. "I'm ready, daddy."
Mr. Marshall smiled and replied. "Well let's get to it, then."
She nodded, then after looking at her fiancé again, her father, her and Chris started walking toward her future.
When they reached the other end of the aisle, she released her son's hand, kneeled down, kissed his cheek and said. "Thank you, honey, now go sit next to your grandma." Chris smiled with a nod before walking over to the Caine's, which Calleigh picked him up and sets him on her lap.
After Brenda stood back up, Mr. Marshall took his daughter's hand and kissed it while daughter and father were looking at one another, then he looked at the groom as he handed her hand to him. "I'm giving you my daughter's hand, take care of her."
C.J. took her hand from his father's. "I promise dad, from this moment on."
Mr. Marshall nodded, then kissed her daughter's cheek before walking to the right and sitting down in the first seat in the first row next to his second wife.
When Brenda was standing in front of C.J., the priest cleared his throat and started speaking, then before C.J. and Brenda knew it, it was time for the vows.
C.J. cleared his throat and said. "Brenda, when I first saw you across the room in our 6th grade English class, I was gone. It may have taken me a few years to finally ask you out, but I was gone long before I did, and since then there has never been a girl or woman who captured my heart the way that you have. I don't know how you did it and I may never know, but I'm going to spend the rest of my life enjoying everything about you and what you give me, I love you and this day is the start of our lives together and I'm going to cherish every second I get with you."
C.J. cups her cheek to wipe her tears away as she started speaking. "C.J., you have also captured my heart like no other boy or man has ever done before. When you had asked me out, I felt inspired and alive and it's kept me going through these years, even when it got rough. I can only hope that I'll give you as much as I'll be receiving from you, because you deserve it all. You are a wonderful man and I feel like I've been the luckiest woman to have your continuing love all these years." She cupped his cheek as she sniffled, then finished. "And you're right, this is the start of our lives together and I'm too going to cherish every second I get with you, that's a promise."
They smiled at one another, and after they exchanged rings and the priest finished the speech, he cleared his throat, looked at C.J. and said. "C.J., you may now kiss your bride."
C.J. stepped closer to his new wife, cups her cheek and replied softly with love in his eyes. "Gladly." Before bringing her in for a kiss, which she never hesitated on kissing him back as the guests stood up and clapped.
When they finally pulled back, they put their foreheads together and he whispered. "I love you, Mrs. Caine.
She whispered back. "I love you too, Mr. Caine."
As they pulled their foreheads back to look into each other's eyes, they knew that whatever hardships they had to go through now, they'll be doing it together, forever.
AN: Hope you enjoyed the couple getting married. Next Chapter some speeches will be made, including an announcement from Kyle. Please review.