Part 38

The next morning, Rosita was the first one up, putting on a fresh pot of coffee. Her husband was deep in sleep after showing her how proud he was of her performance. Just six more days of this nonsense and she wouldn't have to do it again until June.

A knock came at the door and she let Johnny and Ryan in. "Morning you guys. I'm sorry, in all of the chaos last night, I didn't get to say how happy I am for both of you."

Johnny hugged her. "Thanks Rosita." He held out his hand so she could see the ring.

"That is gorgeous. Good choice, Ryan," she poured them each a cup of coffee. "Have you two talked about what kind of wedding you want?"

Ryan nodded. "Well, we were actually thinking… Klaus is going to be against this. He's going to try and stop us. He's been trying to split us up since he found out about us."

"Why? I would think, of all people, he'd be supportive…" Rosita said. "What's the problem?"

Johnny sighed. "That's beside the point. We don't want any interference. So we were thinking… Everyone we care about is already here. The hotel has a beautiful chapel and we don't need anything really fancy or anything. We just need a couple of tuxes and they supply the flowers and the cake. And we can just have dinner at the buffet."

She nodded. "That sounds lovely. How can I help?"

Johnny bit his lip. "Well, you've always been like a mother to all of us. I was wondering if… if you'd consider standing in for my mom?"

The sow gasped and hugged him. "Johnny, I would be honored." She felt tears in her eyes, her happiness for them overflowing.

Ryan smiled. "Great. I need to go talk to Alphonso."

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It was the first of Lance's three shifts for the week so he had to take the twins to the daycare. Tyler was once more having the same argument with Alphonso.

"Alphonso! You're here on vacation with your wife! We are okay here," the orangutan insisted while Alphonso served the customers.

"She's still in bed and she understands," Alphonso reasoned. "It's just too busy for me not to help a little. Good morning, Lance."

"She's still in bed because she has morning sickness! You should be up there taking care of her!" Tyler argued. "Don't you think so, Lance?"

Lance shook his head. "Don't involve me in this. This is between you but if Meena is really okay with it, I get it. A man is what he does."

Alphonso jabbed a finger at Lance. "See, he gets it. I won't stay long. Just an hour or two at most."

Tyler groaned. "I'm kicking you out of the truck at the two-hour mark." He looked at his watch and set the alarm. "Good morning, Ryan? Congrats by the way."

The tiger nodded. "Thank you. Can I borrow Alphonso?"

Tyler smiled. "Of course, Alphonso, it looks like you're busy all of a sudden. Don't worry, the three of us have things under control." He chuckled at how things worked out. "Seriously, Bud, take a vacay!"

The bull elephant glared playfully as Ryan pulled him aside. "What's up?"

"Well, we've decided to just have the wedding here this week. Would you be my best man?" He asked.

The other male smiled. "I'd love to. That's great. You two are perfect together."

"Thanks. Come with me. You gotta help me pick out my tux!" Ryan grabbed him by the arm and pulled him towards the shops.

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When Suki woke up, she found the churning in her stomach had in fact not gone away as she expected it would. It churned so bad that she had to hurry to the bathroom. Why was she still so anxious? She loved Marcus. He made her feel safe. She was sure that saying yes would make the butterflies go away. Maybe just saying yes wasn't enough. Maybe they just needed to get it over with. She didn't see him wanting anything big, as it would be his second marriage and she wasn't interested in anything flashy.

When she came out of the bathroom, he looked at her with worry from his place on the sofa. "Are you alright?"

She nodded. "I'm fine. Just an upset tummy." She went to the medicine drawer and found a small packet. She poured a glass of water and dropped the tablet into the water. It popped, bubbled and fizzed as it dissolved. "Think I had too much wine last night."

He nodded. "Me too. I woke up with a nice headache." He admitted. He looked up when the doorbell rang. He got up and opened it. "Ahh, my son." They shared a hug.

"Hey Dad. Morning Suki." His eyes caught the tiny diamond glittering in the dim light of the kitchen but said nothing. "Glad I caught you both. Ryan and I…" He took a few minutes to explain the plan. He only had to say the words 'hotel chapel' for Suki to open her computer. "What do you think, Dad?"

Marcus laughed. "I think it's a great idea. What do you think, Suki?"

Suki nodded. "There's an opening in the chapel tomorrow at noon. I can book it for you now if you want."

Johnny nodded. "Let me check with Ryan. You'll walk me down the aisle won't you, Dad? Rosita's gonna be there too for Mom." He asked while typing the message to his fiancé. No doubt that opening would not stay open for long.

Marcus hugged his son. "Of course. I am so proud of you, my son. I have never been more proud than I am right now. You chose well." He beamed. "And… we have some good news too…" He sat at the kitchen table beside Suki, taking her hand.

"Yeah, that's great. I'm happy for you, Dad. You too, Suki," he said. "Oh, Ryan says that's great and he found his tux. I need to go pick out mine." He hurried out.

Marcus chuckled. "Can't believe my son is getting married." He smiled at his fiancée. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, the medicine helped," she looked through the chapel schedule. "You know, we should talk about us… our wedding… What were you thinking?"

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Ryan held his garment bag triumphantly. "Thanks Alph, this is perfect." He said as they walked out of the store. They were about to go back to the food truck when he saw the porcupine-sow from the night before. He gestured to Alphonso and they followed her quietly and discreetly to the daycare center. They heard her talking to the caregiver in charge.

"Yes, I'm here to pick up my kids, the Beaumont kids. I promised my ex that I'd take them to the amusement park," she gave a big smile.

The caregiver nodded. "Lance, Raquelle, it's time to go!"

Ryan frowned. "Alphonso, get Lance here now." He sent Johnny a text, telling him to get Ash and Suki.

Alphonso pulled out his phone and dialed. "Tyler, tell Lance he needs to get to the daycare now! There's no time to explain."

Raquelle and her brother came to the sign out desk. "Hey, you're the lady from last night."

She nodded. "I'm Becky. Your dad asked me to take you to the theme park."

The twins cheered with excitement. "Yay!"

Becky took their hands and was about to leave if not for the large elephant in her way. "Excuse me. We have a big day."

"I don't think so! You're not taking those kids anywhere!" Ryan growled. "You're really going to let a stranger take two kids without verifying she's authorized to pick them up? Kiss your job goodbye." He told the caregiver. "Come here, kids."

Becky gripped their hands tight so they couldn't get free. "They're my kids! I have every right to spend time with them!" They looked at her in shock.

Alphonso shook his head. "You're not taking them anywhere until you get permission from their father. And I'm sure that won't be happening. Let them go!"

"Raquelle! Lil Lance!" Lance pushed past them. "Becky, what are you doing?" He grabbed Raquelle and Lil Lance and pulled them away forcefully. "I told you, you were not to have anything to do with them. They're my kids! You abandoned them!" He turned to the caregiver. "What were you thinking? What kind of Cracker Jack operation are you running here? You almost got my kids abducted!"

The alligator shook her head. "She said you wanted her to take them to the amusement park."

"Lance! What's going on?" Ash asked as she arrived followed by the saluki and Johnny. "Becky? What the?"

Lance jabbed a finger. "This incompetent handbag was about to let Becky sign them out. Sorry Becky, but you missed your chance. Alphonso, I'm going to let them watch me work. Don't worry, they'll be good."

Alphonso nodded. "That's fine with me. Unless you want to just be done for the day. I'll understand after this."

Lance shook his head. "No, I'd prefer to work the shift." He hugged his children to him.

Becky didn't appreciate being ignored. "Look, they're my kids too! I know I screwed up but they're my kids too!"

Raquelle looked at her father. "What does she mean, Daddy?"

Lance growled but shook his head in defeat. "Raquelle, Lil Lance, this is Becky. This is the woman who left us in the middle of the night without even saying goodbye." He sighed. "She's your mother."

Lil Lance looked Becky over. "You're our mommy?" He stuck out his tongue in distaste. "No. Ash is our mommy."

Ash smirked at her. "Can't get clearer than that. Sorry, Becky, but you made your choice five years ago. Don't worry, Lance, they can hang out with me."

"Only if you really want to," he told her. She had yet to take care of them without him there.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. Come on, kids. How about I take you to the amusement park?"

The twins cheered, glad that they were still getting their special treat. Lance sighed. "Alright. But you two better listen to Ash. You stay close and do as she says, promise?"

Raquelle smiled. "We promise, Daddy."

Lance handed Ash his credit card. "Thank you. I'm not going to be able to let them stay at the daycare. Not if I can't trust them not to let strangers pick them up." He looked at Suki harshly. This hotel was in her control right now, meaning she was responsible too."

The waitress watched helplessly, angrily, as they left. Only Suki remained. "I'm afraid I have no choice but to fire you." She told the caregiver. "You know very well that we do not send kids with anyone but the authorized persons on their forms. What if she had been a child trafficker?" She glared at Becky. "The question is are you going to leave them alone or will I be firing you too? You're not on schedule today so go home before I take you off permanently!"

Becky hurried away. But she wasn't about to give up. Those kids were her ticket out of waitressing.

Lance looked at Ryan and Alphonso. "Thank you for looking out for them. I don't know what I'd do if I lost them."

Ryan nodded. "We had a feeling she was up to no good." He looked at Johnny who was eying the garment bag. "You'll see it tomorrow." He kissed him.

Johnny returned his kiss and chuckled. "I can't wait. I should go pick out mine." He didn't seem in a hurry to leave though, content to hold his lover's hand. "Alphonso, do you think Meena's awake? I wanted to ask her something."

AN: Need to go to bed, I have an early day, tomorrow. What is Becky planning? How could the twins improve her situation? Please comment.