“That we’re not chicken shit,” Evie said. They couldn’t be lying about the sex thing because Evie had lipstick on and her hair was brushed and Jay didn’t have a button out of place.
Ah. He ran his fingers over his jaw. “About that, I was wrong. You don’t need to be married to share each other’s lives. You don’t need to change anything. You’re good together. You love each other. You’re a tight unit. No one looking at you would doubt it. If you don’t want to change things, you don’t have to just because your friends and family out there expect a show. Just because I made it about me, because I was the one who was chicken shit.”
“Was?” Jay asked. “What’s the story?”
Grip sat on the bed. Two out of three dogs got off the bed and went to queue at the door. “I talked to Mena. Got my head screwed on straight again. Just because you guys got cold feet doesn’t mean she will.”
“She will what?” said Evie.
“Not want to marry me.”
Jay let the dogs out. “Did you just propose to Mena?”
“I was going to, but she got there first.”
The only sound was the lab licking his balls and then Evie threw herself at him. “Unbelievable.”
Jay was there when she let go. “Congratulations.”
He grinned at them. Yeah, that happened. The goth girl he’d fallen for seventeen years ago who became the cool blonde he was obsessed with now, asked him to marry her and it wasn’t a leap year and he felt a little overwhelmed. Happiness flowed inside him like a drumline, but it was overlaid by a guitar wail of concern for Evie and Jay.
“Don’t worry, she doesn’t want to do it today. We’ll leave that to Haydn and Teela. I can make an announcement, tell everyone about the switcheroo. A party is a party, no vampire teeth will have been wasted.”
“I’m not asking about the vampire teeth, but our feet are all warmed up now,” Jay said.
“Toasty warm,” said Evie. “
“Because you were right,” Jay said. “We are a tight unit and we don’t need to change anything, and marriage is more about legal stuff and the symbolism. A bit of paper doesn’t make couples stay together.”
Evie took Jay’s hand. “He’s big into the symbolism.”
Jay used it to pull Evie closer to his side. “She’s hot for legal stuff.”
Grip got to his feet. “Are you telling me I haven’t failed as your bridesman?”
“We want to be together, symbolically, legally and all the other ways there is,” Jay said.
Evie took his hand, joining the three of them, “And you’re the best bridesman a couple could ask for.”
They went out to the deck then, the Labrador on their six, and with Evie’s dad, Errol, Jay’s mum, Janina and his bandmates in their fangs at his back, Grip stood beside Evie and Jay as they said vows they’d written about being each other’s light and strength and truth.
He held Evie’s flowers. He passed over the rings. He had a drum solo playing in his chest, strong, steady, lift the roof off memorable.
And then he stood holding Mena’s hand when Haydn and Teela were married with repurposed flowers and Evie and Teela’s assistant Sophie as bridesmaids, and Haydn’s bodyguard, Rick and everyone’s favorite limo driver, Hassan as best men.
Haydn’s dad, Teela’s mum, and five well-behaved dogs were in attendance. Grip looked at Rick and Sophie and bells started ringing in his head and nearly everyone including the dogs howled because Haydn teared up when Teela said I do, and they could all see the guy wasn’t acting.
Over the popping of champagne corks, Grip pulled Mena into his arms and breathed her heady perfume in.
“Let’s have a wedding as lovely as this,” she said, her arms around him.
He couldn’t agree more. The wet stuff was back in his eyes and he felt no need to wipe his face. He’d just learned what tears of joy were.
Mena touched his cheek. “Oh, honey, you’re upset.”
He shook his head, no. “Just feeling it all.”
He got kissed for that. He got kissed often and well and it was always better than banging things.