Unexpected Reality (39 page)

I hear her pull in, so I quickly zip up Knox’s hoodie and hand him the red rose, hoping like hell he doesn’t try to eat it.

As soon as she opens the door, we’re standing there, both of us holding a single red rose. I offer her mine and Knox mimics me. “Thank you, handsome.” She leans in and kisses his cheek. He giggles. “And you.” She stands on tiptoes and presses her lips to mine. Knox grunts and pulls on her arm. He’s a little jealous when it comes to Kendall, not that I mind. I love that they’ve formed that bond—makes tonight’s plans even sweeter. We’re already a family; this will just change her last name, make it official.

“How was your day?” I ask.

“Good. It’s been a long week. I was definitely ready for my weekend with my two favorite people,” she says. Knox reaches for her and she beams as she takes him and settles him on her hip.

“We missed you.” I kiss her temple. She stopped spending the night through the week, but from Friday after work until Sunday, she stays here. She still stops by every night, but she said during the week it was just easier with work to stay at her place. She seemed to always forget something—no scrub top, her stethoscope, something. I tried to convince her to move in, and this was her compromise. Hopefully that all changes tonight.

“So, dinner is in the Crock-Pot, and I thought we could take a walk out to the gazebo.”

“That sounds like fun, huh, bud? You want to feed the fish?” She looks up at me. “It’s actually fairly warm out still. We better enjoy it while we can.”

I nod my agreement, grab the blanket, and hold the door open for them. I trail behind as Kendall points out birds and the leaves on the trees. Knox mimics her and points too. Once we reach the gazebo, I set the blanket on the bench and open the bucket of fish food we started keeping out here a few weeks ago. Knox loves to feed the fish. He gets more food on us than he does in the water, but his giggle is worth it.

“Hey, I have to show you the shirt I found for him,” I tell her.

She smiles.

“He’s actually wearing it,” I tell her.

“Did Daddy buy you a new shirt?” she asks him. “He did? Can I see?” She sits on the bench and adjusts him on her lap. I kneel before her and grab his little hand so she can pull down the zipper. “Let’s see the new duds,” she says, pushing the jacket open.

I watch her face closely as she reads it. I see her confusion. Her eyes flash to me and that’s when she sees the ring. “What’s it say?” I ask her.

Tears well in her eyes as she places her hand over her mouth. Knox pats her cheek, seeing she’s upset. “Will you marry us,” she whispers.

I reach for Knox and he jumps into my arms. “We love you, Kendall. We want you to have our last name. We want Knox to be a big brother.” She laughs through her tears. “Make our little family complete and marry us?”

Her smile is blinding. “Yes!”

Knox claps and squeals with delight, seeing Kendall smile. She launches herself at me. I wrap my arms around her, catching her in my embrace.

I will always catch her.

Did you know that in the fine state of Illinois a retired judge can marry you, as long as they weren’t discharged for any disciplinary actions? Did you also know that my grandfather is a retired judge?

Today is my wedding day.

The night Ridge and Knox proposed, I immediately called my family, who of course already knew. I asked Grandad to marry us and he agreed. Ridge and I talked about when we wanted to get married. His only stipulation was as soon as possible.

So here we are, four weeks later, the week before Thanksgiving, and we’re getting married. I’ve never been one for flare, so I wanted something small and intimate. We’re actually at the lodge up at the lake that Ridge and I went to back in July. Our parents and grandparents, his sister, Dawn, and of course Kent, Mark, Seth and Tyler are here. That’s it. Small and intimate, just the way I wanted it.

We decided that we wanted our parents to stand up with us. Odd, yes, but how do you choose from your friends? Not to mention that our parents have been married for years and are still just as in love. It’s inspiring. Dad gets to pull double duty, as he’s also walking me down the aisle.

“You ready, Kendall?” he asks.

“Yes!”

He chuckles. “Let’s get you married.” I link my arm through his and we head down the small walkway that leads me to Ridge and Knox. We decided that Ridge would hold Knox, because he’s an important part of today as well. When we reach them, Knox reaches out for me and I feel the tears start to burn the back of my eyes. I hug my dad and he holds on tight. “I’m so damn proud to call you my daughter.”

That does it, the tears starting to fall in earnest. “Love you, Daddy.” I may be adopted, but it’s never felt that way to me. I understand why my birth mother gave me up, and I respect her for that hard decision she had to make. I’ve never had the desire to seek her out, because I have my parents,’ the man and woman who raised me. I hope I can be that person for Knox.

“K. K.” Knox reaches his little arms out for me again, so Ridge laughs and hands him to me. This makes our little man happy, as he rests his head on my shoulder.

“You’re breathtaking,” Ridge says, his voice echoing throughout the room. He grins when the guys yell out about him being whipped, and the women “ooh” and “ahh.”

I love our family, our friends, and this life we’ve made with each other.

Ridge and I opted for traditional vows. I don’t need sweet words to know he loves me and is devoted to me. I feel it in my heart and in every touch. Every second, every minute, every hour, every day I feel his love for me.

“By the power vested in me by the state of Illinois, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride,” Gramps says.

Ridge grins and moves toward me. This catches Knox’s attention, which lifts his head and points at Ridge. “No, no,” he says.

The crowd laughs, as does Ridge. Reagan steps forward and holds up Knox’s favorite stuffed teddy bear, and he reaches for her with a smile. She winks at us and walks away with him. Before her back is even turned, Ridge pulls me to him for a soul-searing kiss. “I love you, Mrs. Beckett,” he says against my lips.

Mrs. Ridge Beckett.

Holy shit! We did it!

The reception was dinner with our loud boisterous group. Knox stole the show and of course ate up all the attention. He’s actually going back home with my parents’ tonight. Mom and Dad are both really excited about it. Ridge’s parents offered as well, but he thought it was important that Knox get to spend time with both grandparents. Since his mom keeps Knox during the week, this was a solution that everyone thought was a good compromise. Not to mention his parents rented the same cabin they had a few years ago for their anniversary. Sounds like Ridge and I won’t be the only Beckett partaking in extracurricular activities this evening.

“You ready to kick them out?” Ridge whispers in my ear.

“Yes,” I say as he trails his lips up my neck.

“Good. Let’s go say good-bye to our boy.” My heart soars. From the minute he proposed, Knox became ours and I couldn’t be happier. I couldn’t love that little man more if I had given birth to him myself. I still go through periods of guilt over Melissa, my sister, sometimes feeling like I’m living her life. I can only hope that she’s looking after us and knows I love both of them with everything I am.

We find our parents sitting in the sunroom. Knox is curled up on my mom’s lap and looks to be close to sleeping. That is until he sees me. “K,” he says, his little voice laced with sleep. He holds his arms out, and I don’t hesitate to take him from her and pull him into arms.

“Hey, buddy.” He lays his head on my shoulder, and I snuggle him close. “You’re going to spend the night with Grandma and Grandpa.” My parents’ insisted that’s what he calls them. Not that he can call them anything yet, but he will. They’ve accepted him as if he were mine, not that there was ever any question. Look what they did for me.

“Hey, bud, can Daddy get some love?” Ridge asks rubbing Knox’s back. Sleepily, he leans into Ridge, who pulls him into his arms. “We did it, little man,” he whispers to Knox. “We married Kendall. She’s ours now.”

My heart can’t take it. This man.

Ridge and I say good-bye to Knox and our parents, which just leaves our friends and his sister. I assumed we would drop subtle hints, but that’s not at all what happens.

We enter the cabin from walking Knox and our parents out and Ridge simply says, “Out.”

“Ridge!” I smack his chest.

He grabs my arm before I can pull it away and pulls me to him. “I want some time with my wife.”

“I don’t know, man. I thought we could hang out, maybe play some cards or something,” Kent teases him.

“Yeah, you know, celebrate your nuptials and whatnot,” Seth adds.

Mark and Dawn are curled up in a chair laughing. Reagan is in another and Tyler is sitting on the floor, leaned back against the chair leg. They haven’t come out and said there’s something going on, but any fool could see that there is. Not to mention Tyler’s calmed down a lot. He only has eyes for Reagan, although I’ll give him an A for effort in trying to hide that little detail from his best friend.

“Really? You fuckers wait until the day you get married. Payback’s a bitch,” Ridge pouts.

That has everyone laughing. Tyler and Mark stand, taking his words to heart I’m sure. They both seem to be ideal candidates for the next in line for holy matrimony. Seth and Kent stand to leave as well. Each of the guys gives me bear hugs and kisses on the cheek, which has Ridge growling at them. I also hug each of the girls, as does Ridge after the manly handshake/hug/pat on the back thing he does with the guys.

The door is barely shut when he bends and lifts me in his arms. “Now the real party begins, Mrs. Beckett.” He kisses my temple and carries me off to the bedroom.

It’s fitting to consummate our marriage in the same place we first made love. That’s how I knew getting married here was the right choice. It’s where we became one for the first time, and where we’ll continue with the next phase of our future.