Hi, all! This is kind of a bit of a filler chapter before the wedding (which will be next chapter). I planned initially to tag the wedding onto the end of this but I wasn't sure how long I wanted the wedding to be, how much I wanted going on during it all and whatnot, so I decided to make them separate and decided to just polish this up a little and get it posted while the words were flowing.
Thank you, as always, for coming back and for reading this. I adore writing, and knowing that anyone at all is reading and enjoying this truly is a gift, so thank you. I know my updates take a while but I swear that I won't abandon this story, so again, just thank you for sticking with me. Please enjoy!
The villa was spacious. More than that, it was freaking beautiful. Though, in spite of the view and the enormity, Greyson had found himself ever so slightly on edge. He was worried about... well, everything. Mostly about River, of course. Was she hiding something from him? What were her feelings for him? Was she really okay with his folks knowing about their arrangement?
River, it seemed, had no such qualms or concerns.
That first night, once they'd all met up with the rest of the family, Phoebe and Jen having yanked Greyson into a bathroom to plaster just the right amount of makeup onto his face to hide his bruise, she'd been the life of the freaking party.
She, Teddy and Elliot had been an oddly mischievous trio, the three of them cackling over beers like school kids.
It was a front. It had to be. She was acting as though everything was fine, faking it entirely so that she didn't have to admit how fucking uncomfortable the situation was. That was it, right?
See, for someone who hadn't wanted for it to get out that they were sleeping together, she just seemed to be doing incredibly well with it all. So, Grey had to wonder, what had been the problem in the first place? He tried not to think like that, tried not to wonder a million times over why things had stayed a secret for as long as they had if she seemed to not have a problem with it having gotten out, but it was hard. It was really fucking hard, especially when he saw her so very casually laughing and joking with Teddy about it once his uncle had stepped away to take a leak.
They weren't being crude or untoward, but Teddy had joked momentarily about how River could have at least chosen the hottest sibling, to which River had shoved him with a loud laugh, stating jokingly that Phoebe was already taken. She had then, not having seen Grey near by, stated firmly that she had chosen the hottest sibling. Teddy had acted grossed out and had then pulled her into a fond embrace, saying that he was happy that she and Greyson were getting along. She'd thanked him, calling him Theadosa, then she'd whooped his ass at some drinking game when Elliot had come back.
The whole evening, in all honesty, had felt like some kind of emotional whiplash for Grey.
He tried to enjoy it, he really did. It was just that, watching her like that, it kind of stung a little. It was stupid, he knew, but it stung that they could have been this all along.
So, later that night, when she came lightly knocking on his door with a smile, he told her just that. Granted, they fucked first, hands over one another's mouths to stay quiet.
As they'd been falling asleep, he'd opened up about his confusion. He told her how it all had made him feel, sparing no details as she lay and listened intently. To give her credit where it was due, she apologized profusely, admitting that it had indeed been something of an act. She'd assumed that things would have been easier on him if she was seen to be fun and brushing the whole thing off. In some effort to help things to feel normal for him, she's unknowingly done the exact opposite, something that she clearly truly did feel bad for.
He dreamt of her that night as they slept, naked and wrapped around one another.
As he dreamed, he heard those words come out of her a million different ways.
I love you, Greyson.
He heard them through smiles, through tears, even through harsh pants of breath as they fucked. He heard her say it in every possible way, so much so that he could have sworn that she'd been whispering it into the shell of his ear as he'd woken.
Alas, blinking his bliss away, he saw her. Fast asleep. Snoring. A single line of drool on her cheek, trailing down and onto his shoulder. She was beautiful, even like that.
She woke just as he wiped the tiny pool from his skin, sleepily swiping at her own face with the cutest tired grin. Planting a heavy kiss on his chest, she nuzzled into him, pulling an enormous smile onto his face.
She had to have meant that she loved him in the same way he loved her. He decided in that moment. She had to. Nothing else made sense, not when she acted how she did.
So, he had a new mission. The mission in question? Well, that was simple. To make River see over the coming days just how great they could be together. What better place was there to woo someone than at a location wedding where they were staying in the same freaking villa? Come on now, it didn't get better than that.
It wasn't the big day, not yet, but it was the day before the wedding. Both Callum and Jacob had insisted on a full day of spa treatments and relaxation for everyone staying within the gated community of villas, so that meant both Grey and River along with the rest of the Grey family, Jacob's family and both of their groups of close friends.
With a soft smile, Grey leaned and pressed his lips to the side of River's head, glad to hear her hum softly back at him.
Seemingly in luck, she responded eagerly when his lips became heavier, even more so when they were dancing across her neck. She practically pushed him south after a few minutes, breathy and very much awake. Naturally, he was eager as ever, all but diving between her legs.
He couldn't think of a better way for them both to start off a day or relaxation that this.
Neither of them lasted long at all, going at it like freaking rabbits until the sun had long since been calling them out of Grey's room.
They parted ways at his door with a kiss, one that hadn't been seen by anyone else. Granted, River did run directly into Phoebe a few steps away from Grey's door as the other woman had been beelining to make sure he was awake, something that had the two siblings chuckling while River blushed and sped away.
It wasn't all that much later though that they were together again. Only, this time, they were with everyone else. Seriously, everyone. As in, the entire guest list for the wedding.
"The... whole thing?" One of Callum's friends asked. He was a tall, young man with a wispy beard and, currently, a cocked brow full of concern.
Standing side by side at the front of the room, the young couple nodded. "The whole thing." Callum stated in confirmation.
The question at hand? Well, that would be whether or not they were serious about the fact that they'd just announced that the entire day of the wedding was going to be filmed. The event itself was going to be live streamed, while the rest of the day was going to be cut together and uploaded later on to the site that the pair ran together.
"We are our brand," Jacob offered up to the few uncertain murmurs. He sounded sweet and confident, calm and understanding. "I know that it sounds like a lot, but please trust us. There will be taped off areas for anyone who doesn't want to appear on camera, or for anyone who wants a break. This includes the reception, the ceremony itself, the meal, everything."
Sitting beside River, looking around the room, Grey had to admit that he was a little confused. Sure, the family was famous and Callum and Jacob had mentioned their documentary/show thing at the family barbecue a few weeks or months ago, but this? Would people really be so interested in seeing them get married? Or, more specifically, in seeing the entire day? Maybe he underestimated the social following that the pair had, or simply the loyalty of their following.
Whatever the case, he still found it a little peculiar. Whatever though. Not his monkeys, not his circus. Whatever the hell that saying was.
There were more questions from the concerned crowd of guests, many of whom seemed barely awake and out of their beds.
His only issue, really, was that he had no idea what this meant as far as his plan to woo River went. After all, she hadn't wanted to risk anyone seeing them kiss on the ship, so he doubted she wanted anyone to see him so much as winking at her if the whole damn wedding was being recorded. What was he going to do while cameras were shoved in all of their faces? He figured he'd be lucky if she even held his arm and laughed at a single joke, let alone so much as danced with him or had a good time. Maybe they could just spend all of their time in the taped off zones.
The meeting with everyone didn't take all that long, not really. A few guests had questions, all of which were answered by the soon-to-be-married couple. Then, once everything was over, the guests were released once more and directed off toward their luxury spa treatments for the day.
In spite of the fact that the gated community of villas wasn't even one hundred buildings strong, it still managed to boast a whopping five spas, something that wowed Greyson. Seriously, over five percent of the infrastructure of the places was spas? That was insane! Not to mention that the rest of the numbers still needed to include buildings other than just the villas, such as shops and places to get food, there was even a small library and two gyms. It was a paradise, no doubt about it.
So, quickly, the entire guest list found out which of the five spas they were being sent to for the day.
Manicures, pedicures, mud baths, massages, waxing and a whole host of other treatments were on offer for the guests all day long. Even teeth whitening and botox were available upon request, not that Grey was planning on opting for either of those.
Admittedly, as he thought about it, the whole thing being streamed live was beginning to make a little more sense. The Greys had money, sure, but this? This wedding and everything leading up to it was looking like it would cost as much as his freaking yacht, almost definitely too much for the young couple in spite of their financial advantages in life. So, the way Grey saw it, there was clearly something more going on here. Some sponsorship or deal with some kind of company. Hell, maybe the costs of a lot of this were going to be written off as part of the cost of their docu-series, not that he actually cared all that much about how the two young men paid for things, he was just a little curious given the grandeur of it all.
With the rest of his family, Callum included, Grey was lead off to one of the spas. It was only a short walk or an even shorter drive from the villa that they'd been staying in.
Naturally, the building was freaking stunning. It was almost in the dead center of the gated community's space, building bathed in sunlight with a view of both the ocean and the mountain that lay few miles inland. The building itself was made from wood, finished with incredibly cleanly cut bamboo. It had an authenticity to it that was both welcoming and exciting.
The staff were friendly and the air cooler was on, so the waiting room was immediately a green flag as far as Grey was concerned.
When a short woman with a kind, round face came out and told them their itineraries, he almost couldn't believe his ears.
First on the list of treatments for them all, it seemed, was... refreshments? Had he heard that right?
He had heard right, it seemed, though as they were lead over to a small host of tables and were sat according to which part of the family they were with.
Apparently, as they all listened, the first steps to helping the body to relax were all about settling things from within. They couldn't all be expected to do any amount of beautifying on an empty stomach, but they also shouldn't have been willing to beautify anything at all if it was full of garbage. That wasn't quite how Grey saw it, if fact he actually thought that was such a gross and classist take. After all, he and River, as kids, couldn't have afforded any of this, but did that mean that they weren't worth anything? Hell no, of course not. He knew she felt the same, namely because of how she snorted lightly in disbelief, though only he seemed to hear.
Still, sat side by side, they snickered softly together as they and the others were served tiny amounts of exquisite but extortionate and ludicrously lavish dishes. Each one was barely a mouthful, some of them being sensory dishes that didn't even have any food on them.
Now, they weren't being disruptive or rude at all, just giggling together as friends did, so Grey wasn't worried at all about the optics or anything like that, least of all when he caught Callum simply smiling their way, seemingly amused.
"So..." Teddy started speaking, clearing his throat a little awkwardly. "This... dish... this- I mean, this isn't a dish, right?"
Glancing beside himself, Greyson hid a smile. River, taking a moment to wipe her mouth with a napkin, it seemed was doing exactly the same thing. She was hiding how badly she wanted to laugh.
"The course is a refresher." Amelia told her eldest brother, repeating what the waitress had told them all. "A plate cleaner."
"A palate cleanser." River giggled softly, correcting the young girl.
At that, the other Grey siblings each laughed, this time at their sister's expense.
"Does your palate not feel cleansed, cousin?" Callum asked with a light smirk from a table away. He also seemed to be finding the humor in the situation.
Teddy glanced down animatedly at his plate, looking at it for a second before looking back up and nodding. "Well, dude," He laughed back with his cousin. "My plate's never been so clean, I'll tell you that much."
"Oh, you must have liked it, then." Callum retorted, the two of them laughing together.
Perhaps this had all been Jacob's idea. Or, just maybe, Callum wanted this simply because he found it all amusing. Maybe he wouldn't have been laughing if they'd been filming all of this.
Speaking of filming, it wasn't long before a small camera crew knocked on the door, came in and announced that they would be following "Groom Grey" for the day.
They made it clear that they'd announce when they were filming, that they were only really looking to get footage of Callum during the day, but that anyone else was welcome to stick their heads into frame as and when they wanted to in order to keep things feeling more natural. Grey sure didn't plan to stick his head anywhere near that lens and he figured the rest of his immediate family felt the same, River included.
With all jokes about the empty plate, aka the palate cleanser, over with, the group was soon split again and lead off for actual treatments. Next, it seemed, was guided yoga with mindfulness gurus and a guided meditation.
Internally, Greyson rolled his eyes. He couldn't help but think about his own hypothetical wedding some day, knowing already that he wouldn't have wanted even an ounce of this.
That really got the mental train chugging though. What exactly would he have wanted on the day before something so monumental as a wedding?
If he was being honest with himself, he had no idea. His plan up until about a half a year ago was simply to let Heather have her way about everything, from his bachelor party all the way to the wedding night. Sure, he knew how he'd previously hoped that night was going to go, but he had no such hopes anymore. River had rid him of any and all such thoughts of losing his virginity on his wedding night. That hadn't ever been his dream though, not really, that had just been the best he thought he was going to get after what would have been over a half a decade together by the time he proposed.
So, what the hell did he want?
He couldn't help but glance at River at that thought. They'd all changed into matching workout outfits for their yoga and meditation. Even in that, in something so simple as leggings and a long-sleeved tee, she looked fucking beautiful, even more so with her hair tied up.
She was only standing a few feet away, laughing at something that Jen or maybe his mom had said as they were all lead into a large studio style room.
Her. He wanted her. He already knew that though, but a wedding? Well, that was a long way away from platonic fucking, that was for sure.
So, instead of spiraling and thinking about the future that he was beginning to wish would unfold before him, he participated in guided freaking meditation and yoga. Of course, River didn't make that even slightly easy, not with how damn amazing she looked each time he caught a glimpse of her across the room. Seriously, how the hell could she get her leg up there so effortlessly? He had no idea, but it left him wanting to see more later on. Luckily, keeping him from getting hard, Teddy was one side of him and his Uncle Elliot was the other side, so watching those two morons falling over themselves every time it was time to change poses was all he needed to keep himself in check.
Yoga and meditation wasn't really his thing, but it was nice enough. He wasn't really one for the whole calming relaxation thing, you know? The whole thing of sitting still and just being alone with his thoughts, it had always made him nervous. Maybe because it hadn't been something that he could safely do until he was a Grey, maybe because sitting still when he was still an Anderson had been a dangerous task, or maybe because he simply knew so little about who he truly was that sitting with his thoughts lead to inner questioning that he simply didn't feel ready for.
Whatever his issues with meditation were though, he actually kind of enjoyed this time. He figured it was easier since he was occasionally snapped out of it to laugh at Teddy's incurable lack of balance, but that was okay.
By the time they were all done and were being sent to their next activity/treatment, Grey actually felt a little lighter for it.
Next on the agenda, following showers and being sent through steam rooms and saunas, came massages.
Grey's parents both opted out of that one, something that no one protested. Grey knew why. His dad had come a long way with getting used to being touched, even by family, but he wasn't willing to lie on a table and let a stranger massage him. Equally, his mom probably didn't want to go into her own and leave him out there. For such powerful and independent people, they did a hell of a lot together. It was cute, Grey thought.
Part of Greyson wanted to ask River if she was definitely okay with all of this, that she didn't feel any kind of pressured into anything. A single glance at her though cured him of those worries. She actually looked kind of excited as they were all being lead to different rooms.
Whether it was the will of a merciful god or a vengeful one that they were lead to beds barely five feet apart with nothing but beaded curtains between them, he wasn't yet sure.
For as long as River didn't make any kinds of noises during this, he'd be fine.
He'd be fine, right?
When the attendants left the room, instructing them both to undress, get into their robes and climb atop the table, he knew that it was a vengeful god. River didn't say anything through the curtain, not at first, probably wanting to be sure that they were really alone, but she sure sealed his fate when she spoke.
"Just a pre-game warning, Grey," She spoke clearly through the hanging beads between them. He could already hear the note of mischief in her voice as he shucked his clothes. "I moan like a motherfucker during massages."
Fuck.
"Jesus, Riv." He grumbled, feeling a hot blush take up residence in his cheeks, threatening to travel quickly south.
On the other side of the flimsy barrier, she simply snorted out a laugh. He could hear her getting changed, removing her clothes, folding them up and then donning the robe with a soft, warm mewl. It send a jab of arousal straight to his groin.
"Hey, it's just a friendly warning." She told him, smirk audible.
It took everything in him to not burst through the curtain, to kiss her and do whatever the hell else they could get away with before the masseurs returned.
"Thanks, friend." He grumbled back, glad to hear her laughter immediately follow.
Needless to say, he was fighting for his damn life to get his dick to stay soft as River stayed true to her word. The noises were nothing lewd or anything even remotely inappropriate during a massage, but fuck if he didn't think they were the hottest things he'd ever heard. He just wanted for her to never stop making those noises, but he was also ridiculously aware that they were going to flipped onto their backs at some point.
He'd heard before that it wasn't entirely uncommon for guys to get hard during massages, but he didn't want to be that guy, not now.
The end of the massage couldn't come fast enough. He was lucky that he managed to keep an erection at bay, but it was no easy task.
Still, by the time the masseurs left the room, he felt utterly wound up.
"Still alive through there, Grey?" River called out softly, her table creaking lightly as she sat up on it. "I don't think I heard you so much as breathe."
He couldn't help but smile at that. She knew exactly what she'd been doing, there was no doubt about that.
No answering her, he simply stood with a light grunt, staring at the flimsy curtain of beads between them for just a moment before he walked right through it.
On the other side, she looked a little shocked, but not at all upset or annoyed. Entirely naked, sitting on the table, she was facing him with a smile and a barely raised brow. He didn't wait for whatever witty quip was about to come out of her mouth, instead just surging forward, claiming her lips with his own. He took her face in his hands, nudging her thighs aside.
Barely a second later, she was moaning into his mouth. Her hands grasped at his sides, fingers digging in as she held him close. Their tongues danced together, desperate, noises mixing in their mouths.
In the back of his mind, Grey was aware that the masseurs could come in, or that the attendants could wander in to lead them to their next places, but that though actually kind of egged him on a little. How much could they get away with before they had to part in order to not be caught like this? He wanted to find out. If the whimper that fell from River's lips was anything to go by, so did she.
Of course, it wasn't too long before they were scrambling away from one another in search of clothes, goofy grins and smirks between them.
"We should skip the rest of this." Grey stated once they were both dressed.
All that was left to do was step out of the room and head back to the waiting area to find out where they'd be taken to next, to find out what other activities awaited them today.
Stepping through the beads, River smiled as she approached him. He understood what that smile meant. No.
"Today's really important to them, Grey," She voiced, looking up at him with nothing short or adoration as she stayed about a foot or so away.
She was right, of course. He knew she was. It didn't make him want to skip all this any less though. Grumbling, he told her exactly that, glad to earn a laugh from her.
With a single kiss, she told him that all they had to do was get through the day.
Then, possibly to keep up appearances, she headed back over to her own side of the room, leaving through her own door instead of through the one he was already stood at. They couldn't even leave through the same door, not even now most of the family knew that they were sleeping together. He tried not to let that feel like a hot poker stuck in his gut.
In all honesty, the rest of the itinerary was much of a muchness. When it came down to mud baths, skin masks anc other such treatments, they were divided by sex, so he didn't get to see more of River. He had a good time with the others though, glad to see that his parents had come back for the rest of the day. The next time he saw her was when they broke again, this time for lunch. It was more of the same, more mindful eating, something that amused him, but he was honestly kind of glad when the whole thing was over.
Thankfully, the entire day was over pretty quickly. Apparently the two grooms had been given specific instructions to get a good night of rest tonight, so that left everyone else with similar suggestions.
The camera crews were apparently going to be in a couple of the communal areas, so Greyson and River were both among the folks who simply opted to head anywhere but those places.
While he and River decided to head back to the villa, the rest of his folks seemed to want to enjoy the rest of the day. Apparently the rest and relaxation had refreshed them all, so now they wanted to undo their hard work with alcoholic beverages and trashy snacks.
Grey was glad that no one else was headed back to the villa. Not just because it opened the doors for possible sex with River, but that sure didn't hurt. More than that, he was excited to simply get to spend some time together.
At that thought, he heard Boof's voice in the back of his mind. Pussy whipped.
It was a stupid thought and not one that hurt him at all, but it was something that huge idiot used to call people. Hell, he'd said it to Grey about him and Heather a few times even though he was well aware that they hadn't had sex yet.
Together, he and River walked back to the villa. They walked in relative silence, content to simply soak up the sun together as they moved.
Everything was pretty nearby, so it took barely five minutes at a slow pace before they were slipping through the front door together.
The second the door closed behind them, he felt it. The shift in the air. The hunger between them.
She didn't say anything, but her actions were loud enough. Almost immediately, the second that the door's handle clicked softly, announcing that no one could see in through the door, she began stripping.
Shoes. Pants. Shirt. Socks. Bra. Underwear. Even her hair tie didn't get to stay. The only thing that was allowed to stay, something that she definitely hadn't been wearing during the massage, was the necklace around her neck. The same one that she'd been wearing at that barbecue so very long ago. Okay, it was only a few months ago, but damn, that sure felt like forever.
Her father's wedding ring, a slim thing that had once looked gold but had long since rubbed away to show something that looked like it was probably just some blend of steel, hung on a nice enough chain. Something that he knew she'd saved up her wages for as soon as she'd started working at the gym.
There had been many a night that she'd shown up at the Grey house, bloody and bruised, having had to literally fight her mother off of her to keep that thing from being sold for drug money.
Part of him was curious, why was she wearing it now? Of course, he knew that she tended to wear it more often when she was thinking about her father. By her own admission, she tried not to do that too often. It hurt her to think about how her one good parent was gone. It hurt her that she'd lost the one person in the entire world who, when she was a kid, had just gotten her. It hurt that his passing, something that had shattered her family, was all that it had taken for her mother to relapse and to start taking out her anger on River even as a freaking kid.
Maybe the wedding had gotten her thinking. What exactly would she have wanted from a wedding?
She didn't give him time to wonder though, disappearing from his sight, throwing her armful of clothes off and into the depths of her room. It was one of the first to span off of the living area, so he saw the pile fly high across the hallway, then nothing as she walked away entirely naked.
Well, he didn't need telling twice. Or, well, once. Whatever.
All but falling over his own feet, he rushed away from the door, catching sight of her butt just as she rounded a corner at the far end of the corridor. She was headed for the bathroom.
It was amusing, actually. She was looking to wash off all of the holistic crap that had been smeared over them all day long.
Throwing his own clothes right in after hers, he hurried along to the bathroom.
Inside, she greeted him with a smile and an amused look in her eyes. "This was an invitation, right?" He asked after a moment, watching unashamedly, letting his eyes roam over her body as she kept a hand inside the shower, waiting for the water to warm.
Chuckling, she licked her lips and nodded, then brought her wet hand out and placed it on his chest. It was nice and warm, as was the water, though that quickly cooled as single drop were quick to trail down his chest, tickling his abs as they dared to fall lower. "That was an invitation, baby." She purred up at him, planting a kiss just beside her hand. "Come on in."
When she walked backward, it was like there was an invisible string tugging him along with her.
With anyone else, he figured he would have been embarrassed that all it took to get him hard was this, but with her? There was no room for that with her.
While he didn't necessarily know how them showering together was safer to her than them kissing on the ship, he didn't question it. Maybe he would later, but he didn't need to know the rules of the game right now, not when the water felt so fucking good and while River's naked body was so damn close.
So, instead of worrying about anything, he let her take care of him. They looked after one another, as they always had and always would, not exiting the bathroom until the two of them were fully sated and entirely jelly-legged.
When they stumbled from the bathroom, clean and rosy cheeked, that was where they went their separate ways, though not for long. They each headed back to their own rooms for long enough to dress, then they were back together again in the communal living room.
"You'll never guess what's on the TV." Grey had been sitting on the couch just a couple of minutes before River had come in, so he'd flicked the TV on in that time and had been pleasantly shocked by what he'd found.
River, braiding her almost dry hair over her shoulder as she entered in a pair of shorts and a tank top, slumped easily down beside him, making a curious noise in response. "No fucking way," She then muttered her disbelief, looking up at him. "I haven't seen this since-"
"Since we were, like, thirteen?" He guessed with a grin. If her face was anything to go by, he was right.
So, together, they curled up on the couch and watched some crappy old show that used to entertain them as kids and then as teens. Another thing that Heather had ruined when she'd been around more, openly mocking both the show and the fact that they enjoyed it. Greyson was ashamed that he'd so quickly allowed her to change the things that they watched, that he allowed her to basically walk all over him and all over River until she stopped wanting to hang out anymore.
Back then, as a teen, he had wondered why it had stung him a little when River and Matt had started dating. They didn't even really hang out together, not by that point, not alone at least, but he'd always put it down to feeling like he'd truly lost her. It had been his own stupid fault though. It wasn't that he thought she would have dated him instead, least of all back then when she still had so much going on at home and he was still coming to terms with what it meant to be a Grey, but when they'd started dating other people, it had only been natural that they hadn't had time for one another. Maybe, he figured, it had sucked so hard because she and Matt had actually seemed happy, far happier than he and Heather had ever been.
Still, sitting there, watching old shows with her, he stopped questioning things. He was right where he needed to be in that moment, so nothing else mattered.
He didn't notice specifically when River fell asleep. They'd been laying on the couch together, him at the back and her at the front, a bowl of popcorn up by their heads. He'd found it funny that this place had microwave popcorn in the kitchen, especially given the fact that they'd had a breakfast that had near enough consisted of thoughts and prayers. Laying behind her, only her light snores gave her away. He found it nothing short of adorable that her spa day had left her so tuckered out that she'd fallen asleep in his arms with such a nostalgia inducing show on in the background. He hoped that the atmosphere had left her feeling safe, safe enough to nap, safe enough to simply doze off.
Adorably, she had one of her hands up near her face, but the other was firmly holding his, fingers interlocked tightly. Even in her sleep, she refused to let go. Not that he minded even one bit.
Another thing he didn't notice was that he wasn't far behind her.
Before too long, one arm under her head and the other over her waist, he fell asleep with his nose pressed into the side of her head, breathing her in.
.
.
.
.
.
"-eed you to breathe."
It was his father's voice that woke him. River too.
Panicked, she all but fell off the couch that they'd both fell asleep on, scrambling to her feet. She didn't seem to notice the slip of something, maybe paper, that followed her to the ground. What the hell was that?
"Breathe?" Teddy's voice barked out after a second, clearly bemused.
As Greyson climbed up to sit, then onto his feet, he placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on River's shoulder. He wasn't hurt when she immediately jumped, spinning to pin him with wide, panicked eyes.
It made sense, of course it did. Yelling in her home hadn't ever been safe. Yelling in her home had lead to beatings. "Why don't go find Meals?" He asked her, voice sleepy as he offered a comforting smile. He needed to give her a task, someone else to protect from any perceived threat.
Luckily, it worked a treat. After clearing her throat lightly, still blinking sleep from her eyes, River reached out and gave his hand a single squeeze before all but bolting from the room, intent on finding his little sister and making sure that she was okay.
Grey wasn't far behind her, though he was looking for his dad and Teddy as they continued to yell. Well, Teddy yelled and their father tried in vain to calm him.
As Grey went to leave, he remembered that slip of paper, that one that had fallen from the couch.
He grabbed that, allowing himself a second to look at it before he moved.
Immediately, his heart swelled in his chest. It was a photo, a polaroid. It was a little grainy thanks to the only source of light coming from the TV and the open doorway that whoever took the picture had been in, but it was perfect. It was him and River, both dead asleep, curled up together on the couch. They looked freaking adorable, he had to admit.
Sadly, there was no time to stand there and to moon over the photo. No, he had to check on his brother.
So, stuffing the picture into his pocket, he scurried off toward the kitchen.
It was dark out, clearly having been a few hours since he and River had fallen asleep. His folks, it seemed, were just back from having been out, most of them seeming tipsy.
In the kitchen, River was standing with his mom and Amelia. She looked like the minute or so since waking up had done wonders to calm her nerves. She'd clearly realized that there was no threat, no danger, just Teddy spinning out. The youngest among them, he noted silently, beamed at him when he entered the room, a polaroid camera around her neck. Well, that answered the mystery of where that had come from.
A few feet away from them, Phoebe and Jen were sitting at a long table, both with a pint of ice cream between them. They were watching the drama unfold through sleepy, clearly drunk eyes. Where the hell had they found a pint of freaking ice cream? Whatever, that didn't matter right now.
Taylor and a couple of the other security guys were inside too, though they'd clearly been waved off by Grey's parents.
"What's going on?" Grey eventually asked, having watched Teddy and their dad bicker nonsensically back and forth at one another for what must have been two or more minutes.
Teddy's drunken gaze turned to him, angry. Angry? No, hurt. "What- what's going on?" The older brother repeated, slurring his words a little.
Stuck in his brother's glare, Greyson stilled, barely even in the room.
When Teddy's hurt turned to tears though, he moved quickly. The older man tried to wrestle his loving arms away, but Grey won quickly, heaving Teddy into a hug.
"Why did no one tell me that my f..." His hiccupped, raking in a breath as more tears fell. "Fucking... my fucking ex-fiancée is here?"
Holy shit.
Holy shit.
Hi again! Hope the chapter was okay, I really enjoyed writing it. I'm aware that filler chapters can be a little tedious at times, but I'm hoping that this one was the right balance of fun and whatever else. I initially wasn't sure if I wanted for Teddy's ex to make any kind of appearance or if I was going to write a sideline romance for him a little later on, I guess we'll see what my fingers manage to type out for the next chapter.
Thank you again for being here and a HUGE thank you to those of you who reviewed last chapter, I just adore the sort of back and forth that reviewing allows. Can't wait to see you (hopefully) next time, please have an awesome day!