All right, my chickies (or dudes), Wedding Bells!

Which means, yes, another emotional chapter…but also one in which Lacey and Adam both take big steps to put the past behind them for good. So buckle up!

/

The morning of the wedding, Lacey awoke feeling like she could throw up. Her hands were shaking, she had pulled hair during the night, and she couldn't breathe.

"Mom!" Ariel flung open the hotel room door that joined the room Lacey had spent the night in with her sisters with the one her mother and Stuart shared. "Come quick!"

In an instant, her mother was at her side. "Oh, Lacey, jeez. Here, take these." Her mom disappeared for a moment before returning with two tablets and a glass of water. "Wedding jitters, right?"

Lacey nodded, taking the pills and breaking them in half so they would absorb more quickly–a trick she'd learned long ago. She drank almost a full glass of water before taking a deep, slow breath. "S-Sorry, I just…wow." She surveyed the floor where nearly translucent locks of blonde hair lay. "Oh no. Will it show?"

"I don't think so," Halen had awoken in the commotion and came over to comb gently through Lacey's hair. "At least, no one will be able to tell by the time you get it styled."

Everyone was kind enough to try to stay quiet for a little while, even though Lacey could hear them bustling around as she lay back and closed her eyes, waiting for her nerve pills to take effect. When they finally did, she was on her feet. "Okay, makeup and hair in an hour. We can do this. First, shower."

She and her family had opted to stay at a small hotel in Slayton. It would provide more space for all of them, and not staying at Jeff's house would keep her away from him before the ceremony.

Not that it really matters, Lacey thought. All that was going to change between her and Jeff after today was that they would hold a piece of paper. However, she felt good about being married. It was a step her mom had never been brave enough to take with Stuart, and even though Lacey appreciated how the two of them had gone on to build a home and family together, she also liked the principles of an actual marriage and what going through the trouble symbolized about love.

This was also the hotel Lacey had given out the address of for any friend and family that wanted to attend. That was to mean Aunt Rachel as well as Kristy, Davy, Pastor Pete who would in fact be officiating, and a handful of friends from work and her college days. She had also tentatively invited Julie and Connie, afraid they would decline on account of her and Adam's messy breakup. But they had RSVP'ed after all, and it meant the world to Lacey to know that two of her very first true friends were going to celebrate this occasion with her.

It had been difficult to talk to Yvette about the wedding back in the spring, but she was glad she did. It seemed in poor taste to send her and Phil a wedding invitation, but she didn't balk a bit at sending Grandpa Greg one. It was a mere formality as she knew the old man wouldn't come. But she wanted him to know she had continued to think about him all these years, and that he still meant enough to her to share some of her life's greatest milestones with. After all, she had kept every one of his Christmas cards.

She enclosed a note with the invitation:

Dear Grandpa Greg,

Thank you for your steady support. I'm so sorry things never worked out between Adam and me, but please know that despite that, you've been a true grandpa. I just wanted to share this news with you and hope you don't mind my sending you a formal invitation. I understand why you likely will not be coming.

Love,

Lacey

As ready as she felt she was to be married, planning the entire affair had been quite stressful. Carrie, Jeff's oldest sister, had volunteered to be her official wedding director, and as uncomfortable as Lacey was about that at first, she was surprised to learn the woman was actually quite accommodating. The rehearsal dinner occurred the night before the ceremony, as was custom, and Carrie had done an excellent job communicating expectations regarding who would stand where and would precede Lacey in what order. The groom's cake was in the shape of a baseball, Jeff's sport of choice, and was divine. Of course, Lacey wasn't necessarily thrilled that the food choice was a clambake, but Jeff's parents had the right to choose at least some things.

Despite the wedding taking place later in the evening, she prepared herself for an entire day of activities–and the hours flew by in a whirlwind. Lacey felt the makeup applied by the perky woman at the Clinique counter was a bit overblown, but perhaps that was the standard for a bride. At the hair stylist's, her veil was attached to the back of her head as part of a simple, elegant twist. Her fingernails were French manicured, her garter put into place, her dress carefully donned with the help of the women in the wedding party, and the final touch was marked by the pearl earring and necklace set gifted to her by Jeff's's sisters. She was ready to go.

Jeff's family church proved to be a beautiful venue, and Lacey felt proud of the flowers and decor she had fought Barbara for. She did, however, give in to the harp that was being thrumbed on as the attendants walked down the aisle before the wedding march would begin. Hearing it from the back of the church while standing with Stuart made her feel like she was in the midst of someone else's ethereal, heavenly dream. Stuart was apparently thinking the same thing as he whispered, "D'ye think anyone will notice we aren't wearin' wings an' floatin'?"

But it all felt pretty worth it when she saw the big grin that broke across Jeff's face as she, at last, appeared at the threshold, the organ taking over to begin the wedding march.

In what felt like a surreal, strange turn of events, Lacey found herself married in less than twenty minutes. Pastor Pete delivered stirring words as he went about the business of joining them together as man and wife, but, feeling the nerve pills finally wearing off, Lacey had to focus hard to keep her knees from buckling as she nearly dropped the unity candle, placed the gold band on Jeff's hand, and repeated the vows in a shaky voice. At last, after all the formalities were over, she was Mrs. Lacey Breckenridge.

Jeff's grin returned as they made their way up the aisle, him holding two victorious thumbs up. Lacey had to laugh, pink-cheeked, as he made a spectacle of himself.

Pictures went by not nearly fast enough, as she soon found her cheeks hurting from smiling too hard. She was reminded only briefly of the evening she won Homecoming Queen and how difficult it had proven to be to keep up appearances for so long. But the photographer was congenial and patient, and Lacey only hoped her pictures would turn out as well at the hand of this guy as her engagement and bridal portraits had with the photographer she'd used back home.

Ariel and Kristy helped to bustle her and change her shoes before the reception, which Lacey was particularly looking forward to for being able to go around and greet the people who had so graciously driven all this way to attend. She and Jeff had requested an eclectic selection from the DJ that would encapsulate all different types of music for all different types of people. Barbara, however scandalized she might be, had remained mum on the subject, but seemed positively disgusted when Jeff and Lacey–who had kept their first dance song a surprise–broke out into fast-tempo moves to "Crazy Little Thing Called Love." Jeff had been adamant that they dance to something lively, not "some sappy love song everybody will expect." Unfortunately, they hadn't practiced nearly enough, and Lacey knew right from the get-go that the "East Coast Swing" they were attempting to carry off was ill-timed and probably would have been an embarrassment to their dance instructor. But she had to admit it was fun, and Jeff gave a bow with a flourish when it was all done.

Was it a bad omen that Lacey felt slightly irritated that her new husband seemed bent on hijacking attention?

No. Couples were bound to find things about each other that weren't easy to swallow. Jeff had been a picture perfect fiancee who had let her have everything her way right up until the first dance. This was going to be a fun and fascinating ride.

The gifts on the corner table began to mount up quickly following the cutting of the cake, and Lacey was in awe of what more she and Jeff could receive from people after she had already been thrown two bridal showers. But, still one for surprises, she was ready to open them all, despite knowing they would have to wait until after the honeymoon to get to that.

"I'm so, so glad you guys came," Lacey beamed, hugging Julie and Connie in turn, hoping she didn't smell sweaty from all the dancing. It appeared they had been just then on their way to the gift table with a couple of large boxes with pretty white bows. Lacey briefly noticed that Julie carried another small one in her hand. "Connie, you and Guy are engaged?!"

"We are," Connie beamed, holding up her left hand to show off her diamond. "Everybody figured it would happen that way, huh?"

"Yup. Didn't surprise even one of us," Julie rolled her eyes good-naturedly.

Lacey laughed. "I concur. Thank both of you guys for coming, and for bringing gifts. I hope you know it wasn't necessary."

"Of course it was!" Julie replied, winking. "I happen to have some very good connections to people who know their cookware."

"Way to spoil it!" Connie chuckled. "Well I hope mine is just as useful."

Just as Lacey was wondering discreetly what cookware item could possibly be wrapped in such a tiny box, Julie followed her eyes and began to fidget with it. "And this one…is from somebody else." She smiled, though Lacey could swear she saw a hint of unease flash in the woman's eyes.

"Wow, that was kind of them." Lacey raised an eyebrow.

"We put them over there on the table, right?" Connie interrupted.

"Oh! Yeah, just right there." Lacey pointed to the gift table, and with smiles, her two friends were off.

Just as she turned around, she caught sight of the back of a man standing just a few feet away, listening as another man within his cluster of people talked animatedly with his hands.

It was Adam.

It had to be. Despite only seeing the man from behind, she would know that stance, that hair color, anywhere. He was turned only enough to the side so that she could see he held a drink the very same way Adam did, and stood, bearing Adam's tall and slender build, listening quietly to the man talk. If only he'd turn a little more to the left so she could examine his profile…

But he didn't have to. Lacey was sure it was him. Before she could stop herself, she began walking, feeling, as she kept her eyes trained on the man, a sense of home. It was a comfort she hadn't felt in a long time. What she was going to do or say she didn't know yet, but the fact that he came was…

The man slowly turned around, taking another sip of his drink as he smiled at the woman beside him.

And the peace that had so filled Lacey's chest not ten seconds ago suddenly snapped in half, shooting shards of glass throughout her body. For a long time she stared at the man, his face obviously very different from Adam's. How had she thought…? Why would she even have entertained the notion that…?

Finally, the man must have felt her eyes upon him, because he turned to her and gave a friendly smile, making his way, along with his date, toward her.

Oh, but she didn't want him to. Lacey wanted to turn and run from this imposter, this man who had dashed her hopes by simply being himself and not another. But she couldn't do that, could she? She was, after all, the bride.

Plastering on her millionth automatic smile of the night, Lacey graciously accepted his congratulations. It turned out he was the date of an old friend from high school who she almost didn't recognize due to the woman's drastic weight loss.

"I've been doing the green bean diet. I mean, I know it sounds disgusting, but trust me. There are so many ways you can cook them. They say you tend to gain weight when you get married, you know, so if you ever want me to email you the instructions–" but the girl's brow furrowed. "Are…you okay? You're crying."

"O-Oh," Lacey's brow furrowed as she snapped out of her daze, reaching up to feel that, sure enough, her face was wet. "I'm sorry," she finally replied. "I have to excuse myself. It's good to see you, Shelley."

Moving on from Shelley and her dates' surprised expressions, Lacey's eyes searched frantically for the tent's most discreet point of exit so she could make her way across the grass to the country club restrooms before anyone might notice. She felt like her heart was going to completely fail her when suddenly, she was taken into a pair of arms.

"Honey, what is it?" Jeff caught her just as she'd managed to stumble toward the edge of the tent. "Panicking again?"

"Yeah, I…" Lacey barely managed to look up into his good-humored green eyes, but once she did, she reminded herself that she was okay. Everything was okay. That's what he was going to tell her, right? If only he knew what had just happened inside of her. "I think it's all the people." It was a lie, as each and every person she had talked to tonight, with the exception of perhaps Shelley's date, was someone she genuinely wanted to see.

"I figured. But hey, it'll all be over soon, and you know what's next." He leaned in and whispered, "Belize."

Jeff had been in charge of planning their honeymoon, and he hadn't revealed their destination to her until a week ago. She had been absolutely thrilled to learn where they would be going, and she still was. But the excitement had considerably drained off just in the last few minutes.

You've got this. It was just a moment.

Smiling up at Jeff, she wrapped her arms around him. She still felt she needed a moment alone, but before she could open her mouth to say anything, the DJ called out:

"This is for all your lovebirds out there, young and old. Come on out to the floor! Do we have the bride and groom?"

The pair of them turned around, and Lacey caught sight of all the smiling faces looking at them expectantly from all corners of the tent. But instead of letting it overwhelm her, Lacey smiled back, reminding herself of how grateful she was for all of them. Her eyes caught sight of Hilda and Alice, both of them waving at her exuberantly from where they sat at a table not far from her parents. Aunt Rachel winked at her from where she sat, holding a sleeping child–her and Bryce's little adopted daughter, Emmaline.

Lacey beamed and waved at everyone, making a mental note to go speak to Alice and Hilda as soon as the dance was over, while she and Jeff made their way to the center of the dance floor. The soft, sensual sounds of a piano began, and she instantly recognized the popular Alicia Keys song.

Davy took Kristy's hand as they took their place on the dance floor amid all the couples, as did her mom and Stuart, and Guy and Connie. She even saw, out of the corner of her eye, a young guy she didn't know escorting Ariel onto the floor.

Some people live for the fortune
Some people live just for the fame
Some people live for the power
Some people live just to play the game…

"Mmm. Show me those dance moves, Baby," Jeff whispered in her ear as they came together under the spotlight.

She chuckled. "I don't think you can show off your dance moves to this song, Jeff."

"Ah, man," he feigned disappointment as she rested her head on his shoulder. It was the good thing about Jeff being on the shorter side–she could rest her head on his shoulder with much more ease than if he'd been taller. And that was especially good right now when she wanted nothing better than to hide her face–even if it was into the neck of a man she felt guilty for betraying with her sad tears.

Some people want it all,

But I don't want nothing at all,

If it ain't you, Baby.

If I ain't got you, Baby.

Some people want diamond rings…

Lacey closed her wet eyes, wishing she'd had just one last dance before her world had collapsed around her a few short years ago.

Some just want everything.

But everything means nothing,

If I ain't got you.

Letting herself cry through the song while swaying gently with Jeff, Lacey felt nothing but shame. She loved Jeff. He was good to her, and all of these people were here celebrating her marriage to him. The least she could do was not think of Adam at her wedding reception. But what was she supposed to do when suddenly she could not get those piercing blue eyes out of her mind?

Her heart started racing.

Easy, easy.

Lacey began her sensory exercises to fend off the threatening panic. She felt herself move to the music, felt the ground beneath her dance flats, the soft feel of Jeff's suit…heard the music, which filled her ears, alongside Jeff's breathing…and smelled his cologne. By the time the song ended, she had brought herself back to reality and pulled to face her new husband, smiling.

"Thank you."

"For what?" Jeff asked, taken aback.

"For…just being who you are."

He stared at her a moment before chuckling. "You're an oddbird, Lacey. But I think I'll keep you." He topped his jest off with a sweet kiss to her forehead.

It was a very "Jeff" response, and even if it wasn't necessarily a thoughtful one, she appreciated how he just accepted things for what they were–including her.

With that gratitude in mind, she took a deep breath and threw herself into enjoying her reception and greeting all the people who had made these moments beautiful.

/

Adam sat, Sharpie pen in hand, as he peered over the notes he'd been making while watching the opposing team videos Coach Stillwell had sent them to study in the off-season. It was Saturday at eight o'clock, and as much as Adam tried to organize his time in order to be free on the weekends, this was a special circumstance. He needed to remain busy tonight. He'd already been reviewing them for three hours, though, and it was becoming a little harder to focus. Especially as he continued to glance over at the neon-numbered clock .

Every minute past four was another minute longer that Lacey had been Mrs. Breckinridge. He imagined that by now she was probably dancing with her new husband at the reception, all eyes on her. She would be wearing a beautiful dress he would never see, wearing a ring he hadn't given her, riding off in a car that wasn't his.

It all could have been different, but that had been her choice.

He furiously scribbled some notes down about the practiced pattern the Colorado Avalanche's defense moved in, pausing to rub his eyes as he plowed through another video.

"Adam?"

"Wha–" he jumped so hard he dropped his pen and knocked his legal pad plus three other pens off his desk. "Travis, what the hell!"

His brother stood in the doorway of his office, giving one of his standard looks of disapproval. "Well I used the code to let myself in and thought you'd hear me, but you apparently have your head stuck too far up your–"

"I just need a little while to work, okay?" Adam snapped, not meaning to.

"Oh, what happened to 'I only do team stuff on weekdays'?"

Adam sighed. Travis had come to stay with him at the penthouse a few nights ago, citing his reason to be "Just looking out for you, Little Bro." He hadn't needed to say it–Travis was here because Lacey's wedding would be this weekend.

The two of them had had a pretty good low-key time watching old NHL videos and Will Farrell movies, hitting up all the best restaurants in town and spending afternoons golfing. It had been good of Travis to take the time off to come, especially with Candace being pregnant. But by Saturday Adam honestly just wanted space.

Space to work, he'd reasoned. Not to mope.

He rubbed his forehead, feeling a little guilty for snapping at his big brother. "I get sucked into these videos, so I didn't hear you. And no, I normally don't do team stuff on weekends. But I'm trying to keep from being overloaded on Monday since I have to fly down for that soup kitchen service thing in Savannah."

"Well, you've been at it for hours. Long enough for me to get sick of playing Kingdom Hearts over at Morrigan's. So come on."

Adam stared at Travis for a moment.

"Come on," Travis repeated, gesturing for Adam to stand up. "I'm taking you out. I can see your red eyes from here. Have you even taken a break since like five?"

"No, bu–"

"Get up and come on. You can come right back, man, just leave long enough to grab a drink with me, okay?" Travis insisted.

Travis knew how to be just persistent enough to get what he wanted, so Adam practically slammed down his pen, pushing his chair away from the desk and looking over at the clock again.

It was almost nine o'clock. How long did wedding receptions usually last?

"Fine. One drink and that's it, Travis. I've got work to do, I can't babysit you all night." He pulled his keys from his brand new Bentley out of his pocket. "And I'm driving. I know how wasted you get."

"Fine, fine." Travis threw his arms up in surrender, following Adam to the car.

They opted tonight to go to J's White Elephant, a great place to get a beer and good pub chips, not that he was hungry. But Travis insisted, so Adam ordered some to half with him. The two of them watched a baseball game on one of the bar's many TVs in silence for the first half hour, Adam eating far more of the chips than he'd intended to until Travis commented on it.

"See, you were obviously hungry," his brother raised his beer bottle to him before sitting back in the booth. "You've been thinking about the wedding, haven't you?"

"What? No." Adam popped another chip in his mouth, then took a swig of beer. He could only imagine what his nutritionist would say to him right now. "Okay, I have been thinking about it some, but I'm fine." He made brief eye contact with Travis. "Really."

"Oh yeah?" Travis took a look at his watch. "It's close to ten. Think the party's still going?"

Adam shrugged. "Who knows?" Then, trying to send Travis the message that he didn't want to talk about it anymore, he turned back to the TV.

"Did you send her a gift?"

He paused, peering over. How would Travis know that?

"I heard you on the phone yesterday, asking somebody if they remembered to take 'the ring to her.' I also happened to hear enough details to figure out that said person was going to the wedding. What was that all about?"

"...Nothing. I just needed to…give her something back. It wasn't anything big."

"Knock off the horse shit, my man," Travis leaned his elbows on the bar. "Did you give her back that promise ring?"

Adam sighed. "Okay, Travis, yes. I sent the ring with Julie to give back to her. It's her ring, all right? Not mine. And there's no reason I should torture myself by keeping it."

"And you think it was a good idea to give it back to her on her wedding day? Adam, come on. This isn't you. You're bound to know it'll probably upset her," Travis lectured. "Or was that what you were trying to do?"

"No!" Adam could feel his ears getting hot. "It just seemed like a good time to do it. With her getting married, the tie between us is officially cut, and I don't want any reminders of her any more. But I couldn't seem to figure out a good thing to do with it, so I just…gave it back. I even wrote her a note explaining that I wasn't trying to get revenge on her in any way, and I wished her well. Okay, maybe it was poor timing, but…"

"But you're not thinking straight right now. I know," Travis supplied sympathetically. "I get that. I just hope she does, too. You guys might be officially over, but I know you don't want to hurt each other. Keep things on good terms so she remembers the good stuff, okay? Not things like that."

"She can throw it in the garbage with the mountains of wrapping paper she'll probably have, all right?" Adam raised his voice slightly, not caring who heard. The guy on the other side of him swiveled around, curious. He wanted to tell him to mind his business, but he stopped himself. "I don't really care what she does with it. I just know I'm done. I don't want it anymore, all right? I have goals I want to reach and a future I need to invest in, so…"

"Only, you do care what she does with it," Travis broke in again. "I know you do. You care about this whole thing a lot more than you're trying to make out right now. So let's just cut through the old shit cake."

"Yeah, sure Travis," he responded sarcastically. "I care. Is that what you want me to say? Are you satisfied?" Adam was talking faster and faster, holding his hand out for the next beer that the bartender passed down to him. "Let's just drink. And watch the game."

"Okay, Boss." Travis turned his attention back to the Rangers vs. the Sox, losing himself in the action which relieved Adam, as he was having trouble suddenly getting the nuptials off his mind. This called for a third beer.

He hoped Travis hadn't noticed. If he had, he didn't let on about it until Adam hit beer number five.

"Slow down, cowboy."

"What? It's beer. I burn it off fast."

Travis shook his head.

Adam took a big gulp of the amber liquid and looked back at the TV, but stopped dead.

The intro chords of "Island in the Sun" began playing as the camera panned over a scene of a couple sitting on a tropical beach, relaxing as their children splashed in a pool nearby. The tagline read,

"Your Dreams

Their Dreams

Your Adventures

Their Adventures

Your Rhythm

Their Rhythm

The yours, mine and our family vacation."

But Adam wasn't paying attention to the words, nor who the ad was even for. It was those chords, that song. The song he and Lacey had both admitted loving at The Daily Grind that Fall day during senior year. They'd sung it together, discussed the irony of a hockey player devoted to ice and all things cold longing for an island in the sun somewhere.

He had never sung with anyone before he'd met her, and she had always finished each song they belted out with an obnoxious flourish that made him laugh. He'd done so much laughing with her, and now it felt like he hadn't laughed–really, truly laughed from the bottom of his soul–in years.

Did she make this guy, Jeff, laugh like she had him? Were they going to an island somewhere on their honeymoon?

Honeymoon. Oh, God.

"One more," he numbly requested.

Travis looked over and started to say something, but then shook his head. "You gotta let it out. If getting snockered tonight is what it takes, so be it."

It was probably the most helpful instruction Travis had given him all night, and Adam absolutely took it to heart. He swigged the beer in his hand faster than he'd intended to, and by the time he was done, he felt it all.

Including the tears.

Him and damn tears. Why did this always happen to him, and right now, drinking with his brother in front of a whole room of other guys?

"It's okay, let it all go, Brother." The old dude beside him looked on sympathetically.

But he wouldn't do this, not here. He set down his empty bottle, laid down a generous amount of money for the bartender, and walked toward the door.

"Whoa whoa whoa," Travis scrambled to get up and follow. "You're too drunk to even walk right now and definitely too drunk to drive. Gimme these." He grabbed the keys out of Adam's pocket.

"I wasn't gonna drive, y-you idiot!" Adam stammered, swooning momentarily. "I just want to go back home to watch hockey. Take me home."

But Travis stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, calling after him, "You miss her, Adam, and it's okay. She was your first love."

That's when the dam broke. Adam turned around and charged toward an unfazed Travis, making to sock him in the gut as hard as he could. He was so angry. Angrier than he had been in the longest time.

But his brother deftly blocked the sloppy punch, grabbing his arm and twisting it, landing him hard on the ground.

"Ow!" Adam complained, his pride hurt even in his inebriated state.

"Get up," Travis nudged him with his foot. "You wanna take it out on me, that's fine. But do it the right way. No sucker punching."

He didn't get up, though. In that moment, he wanted his brother to just whip his ass. Anything so he wouldn't feel this far worse pain.

The tears kept coming as Travis leaned down and helped him up.

"Travis…I can't. I can't think about her, it's just too much," he quietly sobbed, not caring about the many people who passed the two of them on the sidewalk, peering curiously at the scene.

Travis managed to walk him to the car, putting him in the passenger side before going around to get behind the wheel. "I know, Adam. I know," he spoke in a gentler voice.

"It was supposed to be me and her. It was always supposed to be us. I was the first one to give her a ring, I should be the one leaving that wedding with her tonight," Adam continued in a guttural voice that sounded far away in his drunken state and not at all like his. "Why did she do this? She told me she'd wait, and I told her I was almost finished training so hard. I just needed a little bit more time. Then she comes to Albany, and…and I thought she was back for good, you know? Why would she do that to me?"

"Did she tell you she wanted to get back together?"

"No, she didn't. But she kissed me when we met up, she acted toward me so much like wh-when we were dating, and then she…and then we…" but Adam's modesty, still intact, wouldn't allow him to finish the sentence.

He didn't have to. "I get it," Travis spoke in a low voice. "It teased you. And I don't know why she'd do it. Maybe she did, at one point during that time, want to work it out. Or maybe she just wanted sex, and you were there. I don't know that the Lacey I know would be that cold, but Adam, it just doesn't matter. She's gone to you. And you've got to face that, got to feel the pain so you can let it go. Because you haven't. I hate to break it to you, but you haven't let Lacey go a bit. I don't care how mad you say you are at her."

But all Adam could do was cry like a little girl as Travis drove him home. The existential questions continued to flood in one after another, but Adam refused to think about them for long.

You're just drunk.

Maybe Travis was right. Maybe he did still love Lacey. If he needed to face it, then so be it if it meant letting her go for good. It was going to take more than giving back a ring to achieve that.

He found himself, after the last of his tears dried, staring up out Travis's car window at the moon that hung brightly above him.

"I see the moon and the moon sees me," he murmured.

"What?" Travis inquired. "What about the moon? You're getting sappy again, Dude. You take too much after Mom."

But Adam ignored him, resting his forehead against the window so he could just watch the bright, ivory orb all the way back home.

/

"Want to join the mile high club?" Jeff grinned, nudging Lacey.

She chuckled, taking her eye mask out of her carry-on for the red-eye flight. She was incredibly tired from a day of wedding festivities, and now she wanted nothing more than to sleep.

Jeff paused though. "I'm actually serious."

Lacey stared. "Jeff, no. I don't exactly want everybody on this flight to know what we're doing when we go in there, and there's not enough room anyway. Plus, I'm just really tired."

"Awww, come on, Lacey. You know, you've always been pretty adventurous," he whispered, eyes sparkling. "It's our wedding night. Be adventurous for me now, of all times."

Lacey hesitated, thinking for a moment she should do what Jeff wanted.

But no. She just couldn't. Not tonight. And she knew it wasn't fair, but it was the way things were.

"Jeff…tomorrow night. Okay? I promise I'll make it good for you. I have some lingerie," she attempted, in order to make it up to him.

But he was already pouting, turning away from her. "Yeah, okay, well I guess we'll wait til tomorrow night, then."

"Jeff, come on." Lacey felt irritated. "You couldn't have been serious thinking we were going to do it on a plane."

"You're right," he mumbled. "I should have done what I originally thought and gotten us a hotel before we left. I was just in a hurry to get you to Belize. I knew you always wanted to go there."

"I do," she looped her arm around his. "Baby, thank you. I really do appreciate this, and everything you do for me. I just can't do that right now, I…I don't think I could have done anything tonight, hotel or not. I am so tired. All you had to do was get dressed and show up for the wedding. But I was busy all the way from morning til now."

It was all true. She was tired. But she also had Adam on her mind, and couldn't manage to get him off completely. How could she make love to her new husband when her heart was somewhere else tonight?

Surely after they arrived in Belize and officially began their honeymoon, their chance to revel together in their love, this would all change. But tonight, she held other secrets and experiences close to her heart.

Jeff never replied, instead huffing as he tried to get settled in to sleep. Lacey was just about to put on her eye mask and close the window beside her when she caught sight of the moon, so beautiful, hovering above the clouds. It felt like a sign. And even though it should have made her feel sad and desolate, it warmed her heart and lent her comfort.

"So God bless the moon and God bless me.

And God bless the one that I want to see."

Lacey softly sang the last couple bars of the song. If Jeff heard, he didn't react.

Smiling wistfully, Lacey slipped her eye mask over her head, and settled into what she hoped was a restful sleep on the plane.

But she kept the window open, because being near the heavens washed her in a comfort she couldn't explain.

/

"I know, it sucks." Jeff kissed Lacey on the nose just before leaving out on a plane for Spokane not two full days after they returned from Belize. "But you know I gotta keep climbing that ladder. For us."

The two of them had had a wonderful honeymoon week in what had to be one of the most magical places on earth. But now they were home, and real life was moving on despite how Lacey felt about it. Jeff's reputation as an excellent accountant had profited his company greatly, and now it seemed they were sending him all over the country to consult with businesses on their finances. It didn't so much bother her for her husband to travel, but she had definitely hoped he could at least wait to leave until they'd finished opening all their presents. It just felt like something the two of them should do together.

"You open them," he had winked at her when she mentioned the fact. "Then tell me what we got."

And so, she and her sisters sat out on the back deck on a warm, sunny day, and opened gifts. Halen kept a running list of who gave what for thank-you cards later, and Ariel was useful for making entertaining commentary.

"You put that on your register?!" Her outspoken sister exclaimed when Lacey pulled a food ninja out of a box. "You barely cook!"

"Hey, I cook!" Lacey contested. "I just need things that make it a little easier on me. And this might do the trick. No chopping, at least. You know how slow I am at that."

In between writing down gifts and the people associated, they managed to have good, sisterly conversation.

"Hey, who was that guy you danced with at the wedding, Ariel? I'd been meaning to ask you," Lacey inquired as she placed a set of soft, jumbo bath towels on the bench beside her.

Ariel flushed. "I don't know, some guy. I mean, I think it was somebody Jeff's family knows. He was really nice, but," she shrugged.

"She gave him her number," Halen giggled.

"Ariel! You didn't say anything!" Lacey grinned. "So I guess you're not going back to Peydon, huh?"

Ariel wrinkled her nose. "Peydon's a nice guy, but I want someone a little more adventurous. Anyway, this guy's name is Tad, and trust me, there's nothing there romantically. We just enjoyed talking, so I told him he could call anytime." She shrugged.

Lacey smirked suspiciously and reached for another box. She realized it was the tiny box given to her by Julie which she'd almost forgotten about. Still stymied by who could have sent this and what it was, she pulled the mini bow off of it and unwrapped it.

"That looks like jewelry," Ariel observed, leaning over. "A box like that? Definitely."

But who would give her jewelry for her new marriage?

Casting off the paper, Lacey opened the box and, sure enough, saw a satin jewelry case inside of it. Something about it looked very familiar.

She almost overlooked the fact that, in the lid of the outer box was tucked a note. She unfolded it and let the satin box drop to the ground as her heart almost stopped.

It was Adam's handwriting.

Lacey was only minutely aware that her hands were shaking and her throat was completely dry as she read:

Lacey,

Please know I don't intend to rain on your happy day by choosing now to give this back to you. I found it recently, and upon trying to decide what to do with it, realized that it was, and has always been, your ring. That decision is better left to you. I wish you all the best for the future.

Adam

She stared at the slip of paper for so long she barely heard her sisters come on either side of her and read the note over her shoulder.

"Wow," Ariel was the first to speak. "Oh, wow."

Halen bent down and picked up the velvet box, opening it up. There inside, nestled in the box's white satin, was her promise ring.

Her ring.

How she'd missed it. How many times had she thought of it over the years, and its bright aquamarine stone that Adam had picked out for her himself.

Lacey reached up to wipe a tear away as she took it out, examining it. She very nearly placed it back on her right ring finger until she stopped herself.

Another emotion gave rise to itself within her–one that wasn't pleasant. It was anger.

"How could he do this?" She turned to Halen, her eyes pleading for an answer. "What was he thinking? Did he just want to insert himself into my life right as I was finally moving on from him?" Still shaking, Lacey stood up and began walking inside with purpose.

"Lacey, what are you doing?" Ariel stood up and followed her into the house. "Lacey?"

But she wouldn't be stopped. She marched over to her purse, took out her cellphone, and went to the bathroom, locking the door.

"Lacey, don't do something you're going to regret, okay?" Halen knocked. "Think about it."

"Put the phone down," Ariel all but commanded. "Don't do this. It won't make anything better."

Barely thinking of what she was going to say, Lacey scrolled through her contacts. When she had upgraded her phone recently, she had paid the fee to have all of her contacts moved over. And she'd never had the gall to remove Adam's yet.

So she found his number now, and pressed send. He was going to hear what she had to say, even if he'd turned a deaf ear to her at the end of the Albany trip.

The phone rang three times before the call picked up. There was hesitation on the other end before he spoke.

"Lacey?"

She swallowed hard against the dryness of her throat. Hearing his voice say her name again nearly caused her to let out a sob into the phone. But then she reminded herself why she was calling.

"Yup, it's Lacey. And I have something to say to you." She straightened her back and plunged ahead. "I had no idea you could be so cruel. I know you might still hate me for what I did to you, but it takes the damn cake for you to send me my promise ring back for my wedding gift. Who would do that? Only someone who has no heart. And you apparently don't anymore." She reached up and angrily wiped even more tears from her cheeks. "I went years thinking every time my phone rang that it could be you. Every time mail came, I searched for something from you. And now the first thing I hear after radio silence is a note telling me 'Here's your promise ring back, have a nice life'?"

She paused, loading more ammo, when he cleared his throat and finally spoke.

"Lacey, I didn't–"

"You didn't what? Mean to upset me? All it would have taken was to think one time about the occasion you picked to send me back that ring to tell you exactly what it would do to me. And I'm sorry if you felt like I just shitcanned our relationship. I know it wasn't exactly like that, but I couldn't possibly make you understand. Why can't you just forgive me?"

"And why couldn't you just wait for me?" Adam suddenly shot back.

Stunned, Lacey stopped her tirade, unable to speak. For a few seconds they were both quiet. All Lacey could hear was heavy breathing on the other end of the line. Presumably, he was hearing the same thing.

But before another word could be spoken, Lacey hit the End button, holding the phone to her chest for several minutes, taking deep breaths.

Both her sisters had gone quiet on the other side of the door. "Give me just a minute," she called out to them, voice still shaking.

She shouldn't have done that. She should have listened to their pleas not to make it worse. But her emotions had gotten ahead of her. She was so, so angry that he did what he did, giving her yet another reason to think about no one but him when she was the newlywed of someone else. It wasn't fair. To her or to Jeff.

But it was his last statement that hurt Lacey the very worst.

And why couldn't you just wait for me?

It continued to echo like the resounding clang of a bell she couldn't unring.

Standing back up from where she sat on the edge of the bathtub, Lacey's knees felt like rubber as she slowly went over and opened the door. She was met by two sets of fretful eyes.

"Lacey, why would you do that?" Halen spoke first.

"I…I don't want to talk about this again, okay?"

But both girls stood there as though waiting for Lacey to change her mind.

"I mean it, I can't." She pressed her lips together so tightly she was sure they were white as she pushed past her sisters. Putting her phone back into her purse as though nothing had happened, she turned back to Ariel, speaking calmly. "Can you please go get that ring and take it upstairs? In the trunk at the bottom of my bed is a box. Under the linen. You'll see it, it's wooden with a gold lock. In my jewelry box is the key. If you can, um…," she felt herself growing hoarse with emotion, "just open it up and put it in there, anywhere. Okay?"

Ariel nodded, obediently walking out.

"Halen," Lacey turned to her other sister. "I mean it. I'm not talking about it anymore, all right?"

Halen nodded absently. "Yeah…I know. Okay."

It wasn't easy to act as though nothing had transpired and to render the stormy scene all but erased, but Lacey managed to do it. She went back out onto the porch after Ariel was finished stowing the ring away, and they continued to open gifts until every last one had been accounted for. Halen continued to make her list, and Ariel busied herself trying to find a place for everything. But the light-hearted atmosphere was gone, leaving only nervous tension. Her sisters seemed to be waiting on her to say something, anything, about the incident.

But she wouldn't. That had been Adam's way all these years, hadn't it? Just stay silent about something, write it off and not give it another thought until you have the opportunity to whip it out and throw it in someone's face. Well, she was at least too good of a person to do that part.

A couple hours later, Lacey stood on her front lawn watching her sisters drive away. Taking a deep breath, she went back inside and changed into her pajamas, grabbing a pint of ice cream out of the freezer and settling in to watch a Lifetime movie. That was surely all she would need.

Only it wasn't.

She couldn't get plugged into the plot, so she changed the channel. The next hour found her cycling through the same shows over and over again. Tears continued to leak out the corners of her eyes, and no amount of wiping them away could stop them.

But one thing might.

Kristy pounded on the door Sunday afternoon following church. Ariel had found her immediately after the service, pulling her to the side and whispering frantically, "I can't get ahold of Lacey, and she's not in a good place."

"What?" Kristy had been surprised. Ever since her best friend had returned from Belize, she seemed settled and content. What could have changed?

But Ariel answered that question, quickly summarizing the events that had taken place Friday evening. "And it's been two whole days," she concluded. "She won't answer the phone for either one of us. We're obviously not telling Mom or Dad about any of this, but somebody has got to get through to her. Can you try?"

So Kristy was going to. Good thing she had a pretty good idea what she was going to be facing from the funky smell that lingered outside Lacey's front door.

Finally, the door opened, and there stood Lacey wearing a hot pink tank top and black Soffe shorts, squinting through a mess of greasy blonde hair.

"Kristy, hey," she grinned. "Come in out of the sun."

Kristy groaned. As she stepped inside the house she realized it was worse than she thought, and she fanned the pot fumes away as best she could. "Lacey, this is ridiculous. How much have you smoked? Do you realize your windows should be fogged up by now?"

"But they're not," Lacey collapsed back onto the sofa where she'd apparently lived for two days. "I know because I've been looking out them. Do you know the only cars that have gone past here all day have been red and white? It's funny. There's a red one…then there's a white one. Then there's a red one…and a white–"

"Lacey," Kristy practically growled. She'd never been as frustrated with her friend as she was right now. Didn't she already know smoking weed could interfere with her mental health medication? As far as that went, had Lacey even taken her meds the past couple days? "Go get in the shower, if you can walk straight. I'll straighten up here. You can't live like this." She got to work right away collecting dirty dishes, blinking to see Lacey's new bathroom towels wadded up on the couch like they'd been slept under. And was that old gelatinous mac and cheese sitting there in one of her friend's new jewel-toned pots?

"I couldn't find an old one," Lacey rubbed her hand over her face. "You should smoke sometime, Kristy."

"No thank you. I've seen how it affects you," Kristy remarked back, hoping she didn't sound too harsh. The best friend in her wished she could reach her arms all the way to New York and strangle Adam. But the normal human being in her was able to see the situation objectively, a perspective she hoped to be able to offer Lacey now. After her shower.

"Shower," Kristy pointed upstairs. "Now. I've got to air this place out. Your pupils are huge."

"Mmm hmm…" Lacey absently strolled over to the staircase. At least she was a relatively submissive pothead.

Kristy opened up all the doors and windows, as it was a beautiful day outside. Next, she finished cleaning up the living room, taking out the trashful of wrapping paper she found in the kitchen, and made Lacey a grilled cheese with vegetable soup. It took that long for her friend to finally emerge, wandering into the kitchen wearing clean pj's. Her hair, newly washed, lay limply over her shoulders.

"Here," Kristy handed her water. "Drink. Lots of it."

"Then I'll have to pee."

"Good."

Kristy spent the entire afternoon and evening with Lacey, prompting her to drink a lot of water to flush out the THC, serving food when possible, and taking her out on walks. Lacey was obedient to all of her instructions, not once arguing. She didn't talk much, which was alright by Kristy because when she did, it was usually childish prattle.

"The Blair Witch Project was on TV this morning! If it wasn't trippy enough the first time, try watching it high. Whoa…" Lacey giggled.

Kristy rolled her eyes, not finding any of this funny, and she was sure Lacey wouldn't either when she managed to come down off her high.

Finally, by evening, Lacey was mostly back to normal, and sat soberly on her couch which had been vacuumed and Febreezed by Kristy. Kristy sat across from her and listened to the story Lacey was finally in her right mind enough to tell.

Praying she would say the right words for the situation, Kristy began her response. "Lacey, I think maybe Adam might have done this to help him move on, get closure. The news that you were getting married probably hit him really hard. And so, to deal with it, he wanted to give away every last thing he owned that reminded him of you, or at least the important stuff. He probably thought giving you back the ring would be a relief for him–cutting a tie, kind of–without him having to get rid of it some other way. So he gave it back to you not to be unkind, but to give you the chance to have it back since he couldn't handle having it anymore. Was it a bit short-sighted? Most definitely. But what if we look at it this way and give him the benefit of the doubt? Because he did love you. We both know it. I don't think he turned into some monstrous jerk within a few years. Let's try to be open-minded here."

"Open-minded?" Lacey snorted.

"Okay, I know, that's probably not realistic for you right now. So let me be open-minded for you. Can you forgive Adam and believe he didn't consciously mean to hurt you?"

Lacey hesitated, studying the ground. "I didn't mean for the conversation to end that way, I mean…well obviously I should have known that making that kind of call to him wouldn't have ended well. It was impulsive, and dumb. I was just so mad I didn't know what to do with myself. Like, it broke something in me to see that ring again." Kristy just listened as her friend described the way she'd felt at her reception, the flight to Belize and how thoughts of Adam had never left her–not then, and not even after she arrived, despite her having managed to still have a good time with Jeff. "And who does that? How could I be in love with one man yet still love another one at the same time? I mean I guess it's like Halen says, two different types of love…but Kristy, if I had to go back and pick, you know I'd p…"

Kristy tried not to take her eyes from Lacey's. She fervently hoped her friend wouldn't finish that sentence.

But Lacey just shook her head. "It doesn't matter now, though."

"No, it doesn't." Kristy took a deep breath, knowing her words would be tough, but they were words Lacey needed to hear. "Lacey, I want you to listen to me, okay? I know you loved Adam, maybe in a way you'll never love another man. But you're married. You made a commitment to Jeff. So there's no room for Adam anymore. Okay?"

Lacey watched her, giving an imperceptible nod, eyes still pooling with tears. "I know."

"That means, do not pick up that phone and call him. It's not going to lead to anything good. What do you hope would happen if you did? You and Adam could make up, and become friends again? Or you two could tear each other down. Either outcome isn't a good one. The first one isn't, because you're a married woman now, and the second isn't because that would only cause more pain. Therefore, you have to let it go. You have to let him go."

Lacey swallowed.

"So let's take out your phone and do what we both know you need to do."

Leftover high or not, Lacey seemed to know exactly what Kristy was saying. So she went over to her purse, got out her phone, and came to sit next to Kristy. Wordlessly, she pulled Adam's name up onto her phone, and next pressed "Delete Contact." The icon that popped up on Lacey's phone showed a file being discarded into a garbage can.

Lacey, energy spent on the action, lay her phone calmly on the coffee table, then sat back to rest in Kristy's arms.

Kristy sat holding her best friend for an hour or more. She lost track of time, but it was okay. Who knew when the time might come that Lacey would have to do these same things, or worse, for her?

It all comes out in the wash, Kristy thought when she realized Lacey was asleep and it was getting late. She gently maneuvered Lacey to rest her head on a couch pillow and covered her up with a soft, fluffy throw that had been on the back of the corner chair. After saying one more silent prayer over Lacey, she let herself out.

/

Adam was likewise an absolute wreck.

He had sat listening to Lacey's verbal phone attack, head in hand, taking every bit of it to heart and wishing with all his might that he could go back and fix this. Why on earth had he thought sending her back that ring on her wedding day was a good idea? Was he subconsciously trying to hurt her, like Travis said? And if so, what kind of jackass did that make him?

Then came the question that was his complete undoing:

"Why can't you just forgive me?!"

It was then that he sat up quickly and slammed his hand down on his desk, at his wits' end. "And why couldn't you just wait for me?!" he blurted out.

With that, the conversation came to a halt as the line went dead. He held his phone down for a moment, staring at the screen with a furrowed brow, searching for any sign that she was still there. But she wasn't.

And she probably never would be again.

"Man," Mendoza came over and sat on the balcony with him finally after a week of Adam drinking and dodging calls. He was exhausted. What had happened with Lacey had just taken it out of him. "You can't live this way."

"Shhh. My whole head hurts," Adam was lying back on one of his nice new deck chairs, the back of his hand across his face.

"Hey." Mendoza leaned toward him. "You can't mope about this forever, you know. I mean, I'm sorry your girl got married, but I think you need to turn your attention to what's happening now. For one, you've still actually got her number in your phone?"

Adam issued a murmured "Yes."

"Then come on." Morrigan got up to come over and nudge Adam with his foot. "Let's take it out."

But he didn't want to move. He closed his eyes again and didn't notice Morrigan leaning over him quietly, yelling straight into his ear, "HEY!"

Adam jumped up, ready to nail somebody, and Morrigan jumped back just in time.

"Now he's up!"

"Can't you both just leave me alone?!" He snapped. "I'll get over this when I feel like it, okay? Neither one of you has ever managed to keep a girl longer than three months! You don't know what this is like!"

He immediately regretted the outburst as he saw hurt on Morrigan's face–a rare sight–and anger etched on Mendoza's.

"You don't wanna get up? Fine. But we're still deleting her number out of your phone. She's a married woman, and you pretty much have no choice but to put her in the past." Mendoza headed back inside to Adam's room to presumably nick his phone.

But suddenly he didn't care. He knew his buddy was right, and it actually might be easier if someone else did it for him anyway. He looked up and regarded Morrigan, who still stood over him. "Sorry about what I said. I didn't mean it."

"Nah, it's true," Morrigan admitted, leaning back against the glass railing. "I usually never make it past the first date. You were being pretty generous to credit me for three months."

Morrigan. His goofy, but forgiving and loyal, friend. Adam knew he was lucky to have both of them.

"I mean, really though. We're just doing this because we don't want to see you flush all your good things down the toilet. And hey, what about that girl Paige that works with the team press? Didn't she text that she was gonna be in town this weekend? That's usually an invitation, you know. Why don't you hit her up?"

As a matter of fact, Adam had been considering it.

His first year with the Sentinels, the spunky doe-eyed beauty all but ignored him. Of course, who wanted to spend time interviewing the rookie when they could have a star?

Not that Adam had viewed her as a potential romantic partner anyway. While not expressly forbidden to date the press workers, it was generally frowned upon. And back then, he couldn't afford any missteps.

The next year, though, Paige began to put herself in his way. He had been discreet with his own blossoming affection for her, because it was in his nature to be, but willingly gave her his personal number after the last game of the season when she asked.

It might not be anything more than a hookup they would do well to conceal, but what was wrong with that?

Adam shrugged. "Maybe I will."

Morrigan grinned. "There's my guy! Back from the Island of the Dead."

Mendoza returned just then from his room. "Done. She's gone from your phone. So come on. Get up and live, won't you? Let bygones be bygones."

Pepped up by his friends, Adam smiled a little. His last conversation with Lacey had made him feel angry and sick all at once. Yet through all the venomous words she said, she was still Lacey. And her voice had evoked a longing in him he thought had been gone for awhile. But the guys were right–she was his past. He now had to focus on his present and his future.

With their help–and maybe even Paige's–he felt renewed confidence that he could.

/*/*/*/

Lacey took her glove off as she and Adam, fresh from skating, took a break and sat on a bench together at Weber Park, snuggled together to share their warmth. She stared at her ring, as she had so many times since he'd given it to her last week. She loved turning her hand so the aquamarine would catch various lights, giving it a gleam.

Looking up at Adam, she smiled. "When we get married…" Lacey began, but trailed off.

"What?" he rested his head gently on hers, looking down at her hand.

"...Sorry, I don't mean to jump ahead here. We're not officially engaged. But I still think of it as kind of that."

"It is meant to be 'kind of that'," he informed her. "We can talk about it."

"When we get married," Lacey continued, "I want to live in a house overlooking a lake. Then when it freezes in the winter, we can skate all we want. And in the summer, we can swim and boat…" she trailed off again.

Finally he asked, kissing her head, "What are you thinking about now?"

Lacey shrugged. "Just how good it's going to be. You and I in a world we can create around ourselves, you know?"

He smiled. "Yeah. It's gonna be great."

"Because we'll be together forever," Lacey added. "Even if we're homeless on the street, we'll still have each other."

Adam chuckled. "Okay, well yes, we'll have each other, but let's hope we don't find ourselves homeless."

Lacey giggled. "I just had to see what you'd say to that."

Adam put his other arm around her, pulling her into a tight embrace, not caring about the many people passing by on foot and on skates. "But yeah, you got it. Forever."

"Forever," Lacey murmured, nestling against Adam's chest as he held her.