Edge of the Heat 4 Read online

  He stood tall and strong and slightly smiling, gazing at her like she was a precious flower or a beautiful butterfly. Immediately the invisible hand squeezing her throat lightened its grip, and she smiled back. The minister said something to Craig, then his best man stepped forward and gave him a notecard. Craig looked at it, then began talking, staring into Emma’s eyes.

  “Emma, I wanted to get up here and say something special. Something that would convince you of exactly how I feel about you. I love you seems so inadequate. I do love you of course, but more than that, I adore you. I am in awe of you. I thirst to be near you. When I wake up, you are the first thought my mind flies to, and before I go to sleep all I care about is if you are happy. So I sat down and tried to write you a poem. But I’m not a poet. So then I tried to find a poem that said all of that. But nothing I found seemed true to me. So finally, I just decided I had to try my best to get you to understand how I feel about you. I know that with your sweet strength and your loving energy by my side, nothing will be insurmountable. I thank the stars every day for your love and I promise to do my best to be everything you need from today until the day I die.”

  Craig’s words washed over Emma like a warm ocean wave. The intensity of them seared into her brain. Craig was a solid, strong rock who said I love you easily and freely, but he was not prone to sharing feelings like this. Her heart filled to bursting with love for this man. She’d been so worried about what she was going to say to him that she hadn’t given any thought to what he was going to say to her. And then he said something so … sweet, and lovely that she was blown away. Emma felt herself tear in two little pieces inside. One balled up and cried at how wonderful her fiance - her almost-husband - was, and at how lucky she was to have him. The other piece stood taller and stronger and basked in his words and tried to be worthy of them.

  She took that second piece of herself and nurtured it, fed it, turned it to the light of his gaze. She could cry later. Right now she was going to be the woman he thought she was.

  He gently grasped her hand and slipped a ring on her finger. With it, she felt the weight of every promise they’d ever made to each other, but it was light and comforting.

  The minister inclined his head towards her, “Emma.”

  She nodded. Jerry stepped closer to her and handed over her notes. She held them in both hands but didn’t look at them. She knew what she wanted to say now.

  “Craig. A lot of people here today don’t know how we got together. They don’t know that you saved my life.” She turned toward her audience. Toward the rows and rows of people looking at them. She felt calm, serene.

  “While I was working one day, I fell off of a roof. Craig was there. He scaled a drainpipe to get down to me. I wasn’t breathing. He moved me gently onto my back and blew his own breath into me until I started breathing again. He was my hero that day, and he’s been a hero to me every day since then.” Emma turned back to Craig, handed her notes to Jerry, and took Craig’s hands in hers.

  “Craig, we are great together. I know exactly what you meant when you said nothing would be insurmountable. That’s how I feel about you too. I love how you take care of me. I love how you are always, always there for me. I love how our love has done nothing but grow since the day you swore to me you would never let me go. You are an amazing man, one who is equally open to the beauty and danger in life. One who sees the good in people more than he sees the bad. One who approaches every difficulty as a challenge, not as a detour or an excuse. You are the kind of man I dreamed I would find as a little girl. The true knight in shining armor who has saved me not once, but many times. Today, in front of all of our friends and our family members, I promise to love you, to listen to you, to remain faithful to you, to care about your feelings, to be your true partner in all things, and to always be your best friend, forever.”

  Noise of bugs and breeze and old women sobbing filled the spaces where her words had been a moment before. Craig squeezed her hands and smiled, his eyes shining. Jerry stepped forward and put the ring in her hand. She took Craig’s hand and slid his wedding ring onto the finger where it would sit for a lifetime.

  The minister spoke up. “Now, that these four people have pledged their lives to each other, there is only one more step to take. By the power granted to me by the State of California, I pronounce you, Emma and Craig, husband and wife. And you Vivian and Holden, husband and wife. Husbands, you may now kiss your brides.

  Emma saw Hawk gather Vivian in his arms only seconds before she was cradled in Craig’s arms. He lowered his mouth to hers and she met it eagerly. Dimly she was aware of their audience clapping madly, celebrating their union. Married, she thought. Married to Craig.

  Chapter 5

  Vivian sat at the head table, her heart overflowing. Hawk was sitting next to her, talking to her dad. With one hand he gesticulated heartily, while his other hand found hers and held it, caressing her palm with his thumb. Everywhere she looked, people smiled and laughed and celebrated. This wedding had overcome her wildest fantasies about how good an event could be. She couldn’t wait to get the videos so she could see everything she missed, like Emma walking up the aisle behind her, and Emma kissing Craig. In fact, she could remember little of Emma and Craig’s vows, because she’d been too wrapped up in her own happiness while they were reciting them.

  Emma leaned over and whispered “Do you see Jerry?”

  “I don’t see him now but I saw him when we were dancing. She came.”

  Emma clapped her hands, “Ooh good! What did she look like?”

  “Gorgeous. I can see why he’s taken with her.”

  Emma scanned the room. “Where’s he sitting?”

  “Right there.” Vivian indicated the table closest to them, which was empty.

  “It’s almost time for the speeches, he better get in here soon.”

  Vivian looked at her watch, it was time for the speeches actually. In fact, Vivian could see Grandma Maisie rounding up all the toast-givers and having them sit in their seats. She was a blessing for sure.

  Grandma Maisie, seemingly satisfied she had found everyone but Jerry, headed out the door. She came back a moment later with Jerry and a woman in tow. The woman was tall, as tall as Jerry in her heels, which probably put her at almost 6 feet without them. Her hair was a deep, chestnut brown, thick as Vivian had ever seen, and straight with a bit of wave, falling past her shoulders. Her skin was olive tone, and her eyes deep and beautiful. Vivian could not tell her ethnicity. She could have been Italian or Spanish or Egyptian. She wore a simple black dress and very little makeup, plus no jewelry at all. Jerry held her hand, pulling her in the room, but to Vivian, she looked uncomfortable with this. She kept looking around the room and down at Jerry’s hand holding hers.

  Vivian glanced over at Emma, who’s eyes followed Jerry and the woman’s every move. Vivian hoped Emma noticed that Jerry was not limping at all.

  Emma leaned over again. “Wow, you weren’t kidding, she is gorgeous.”

  Grandma Maisie sat Jerry and his date down, and then stood at the front of the room, calling for everyone’s attention.

  The crowd quieted little by little. When she had complete quiet, Grandma Maisie spoke, her commanding voice ringing across the room. “Time for toasts and speeches, then dinner. I would kindly appreciate it if you all would sit in your seats. After the toasts you can do what you want.”

  Vivian’s dad and mom both wanted to say a few words. They shared a microphone and stood by the sweetheart table with their arms around each other’s waists, looking like the proudest parents on the planet, and welcoming both Craig and Hawk into their hearts. Vivian watched them with tears in her eyes, wondering how much more she could take.

  Craig’s dad stood and talked about Craig as a child, and about how they always knew he’d end up with someone special. Emma blushed and dipped her head as they talked about her.

  Hawk’s mom got the microphone next and went a bit over time going on and on about her hero son an
d his new, genius wife. Vivian had to laugh a few times at the picture she was painting.

  The microphone passed its way from the parents to the best men and maid of honor. Jerry’s toast was last. Vivian leaned forward, eager to hear what he had to say. She loved Jerry’s sense of humor.

  As the microphone was passed to him, he squeezed the hand of his date and stood. Vivian thought he looked amazing in his tuxedo. He’d grown a bit of a goatee and Vivian thought it suited him wonderfully, making him look sophisticated and handsome.

  He looked around at the audience, waving at a few people, with a wide grin on his face.

  “So yes, I’m Emma’s maid of honor. I know you were hoping for someone better looking, and a little more feminine, but you got me. Sorry folks. For those of you who don’t know me, I am Jerry, Emma’s friend. We’ve been partners at work for 8 years now.

  I know that a lot of you have come a long way today in order to celebrate this wedding of two sisters and two best friends. Wow, what a journey it’s been, am I right? A lot of you only just discovered that Emma and Vivian existed and were a part of your family a year ago. What a strange and non-traditional turn all of your lives took.

  But, just like these two ladies and their new husbands, all of the friends and families here have accepted the events of the past year with true grace and finesse. You’ve closed a chapter of your lives with finality, and opened your hearts and your homes to Vivian and Emma.

  As long as I’ve known Emma, all she’s ever wanted was a big family, a stable home, and lots of relatives to love and share her life with.

  And here you are.

  And let me tell you a little bit about Emma, your cousin, niece, or grand-daughter that you’re only now getting to know. She’s strong. And she’s kind. And she’s thoughtful. She cares deeply and you can always tell what she’s thinking by looking at her face. She doesn’t hide things. She’s never fake. She can handle anything. She’s one of those kinds of strong women that lift up the people around her. You’re lucky to be related to her. I’m lucky to know her. And Craig is lucky to marry her.

  I was there when Craig saved Emma’s life, and Emma never knew this, but I went to thank him myself while she was still in the hospital. I contemplated what life would have been like if he wouldn’t have been as quick as he was, and maybe she wouldn’t have made it. And it scared me. So I found him and I thanked him. And when Emma started showing a romantic interest in him I was glad. Glad because she deserved a man like him. And he seemed like such a great guy I thought he deserved a woman like her. I did everything I could to get those two together, because when you see a great couple, you just know it. And they are a great couple. Perfect for each other. I’ve never seen Emma happier than when she is with Craig.

  Emma and Craig, I think I speak for everyone here when I say we are so happy you two have found each other, and we wish you a long life filled with magic, love, affection, and great joy.

  Please, everyone, raise your glasses with me and toast to these two wonderful marriages we have had the good luck to witness today. To Emma and Craig, and to Hawk and Vivian.”

  Every person in the hall raised their glasses. Cheers and congratulations rang throughout the room, and a few glasses clinked together.

  “Thank you,” Jerry said, and sat down. Grandma Maisie motioned to someone in the back, and waiters with delicious-smelling food swarmed the tables.

  Vivian watched Emma, interested in her reaction to Jerry’s words. Emma’s eyes were spilling tears openly down her cheeks. Absently, she wiped them, then gave Craig a hug then walked to Jerry’s table and hugged him too.

  “Who is that with Jerry?” Hawk asked.

  “That’s his date. I don’t know her name yet. I really want to meet her. Maybe there’s time before the food.” Vivian got up and went to the table, pulling an empty chair around next to Emma, squeezing in between Jerry and his date. She was one of the brides, she could do what she wanted.

  Jerry greeted her exuberantly. “Vivian! Did you come to meet Sara? Sara this is Vivian, Vivian this is Sara.”

  Sara and Vivian shook hands and smiled at each other.

  “Vivian, it’s so nice to meet you. Your dress is gorgeous. It flatters you.”

  Vivian liked her immediately. “Thank you so much! When I saw it I knew I had to have it. Some women can only think about the long flowing trains, but I always liked the mermaid dresses better.”

  “Mermaid dress? Oh, that’s so pretty.”

  “Thank you. So Sara, how did you meet Jerry?”

  Sara looked questioningly at Jerry and he nodded. “He was my patient, up until a few days ago.”

  “Oh? You’re a doctor?”

  “No, I’m a physical therapist.”

  “Oh, that’s right. I knew that.”

  “Yeah,” Emma chimed in. “I told you that.”

  Vivian laughed. “Oops I guess I just had other things on my mind.”

  “Oh you know, you were just getting married, nothing stressful or exciting about that,” Sara said with a grin.

  Vivian and Emma laughed and exchanged a look. Yep, this woman was perfect for Jerry.

  “So what does your husband do Vivian? I swear I’ve seen him before,” Sara asked, looking at Hawk at the head table. Vivian thrilled inside at the word husband. She looked at Hawk too and noticed their plates of food were at the table and Hawk was eating already.

  “Oh maybe you’ve seen him on TV, he’s an FBI agent.”

  Sara’s eyes narrowed and her eyebrows furrowed together. “FBI agent?”

  “Yeah, him and Craig both are. They work in the local office. You probably saw him on the news talking about the case they’ve been working on for several years right now. The local news interviews him every other day these days because of everything they’ve uncovered right here in town. Some big gun smuggling case.”

  “Oh,” Sara whipped around and looked towards Hawk and Craig again, her face worried.

  That’s weird, Vivian thought. I hope she’s not a criminal. Or a gun smuggler. She looked at Jerry. He was watching the waiter who was unloading plates at their table.

  “Emma, we should go eat.”

  “Yeah, Sara, it was so nice to meet you. We’ll come back and talk to you after dinner.”

  Sara nodded, but didn’t say anything, her face still showing concern of some kind.

  Emma and Vivian walked together back to the table. “What was that about?” Emma asked.

  “I don’t know, but I thought it was weird.”

  They sat down. “I liked her until she got all weirded out about the FBI.”

  Vivian nodded. “Me too.” She looked at her plate and decided to let it go, for now. She focused on her food, drinking in the laughter and talk she heard around her. She hadn’t eaten since breakfast and suddenly noticed her stomach demanding food. Her steak and rice and vegetables hit the spot wonderfully, filling her up again. Just as she was finishing the last of it, she saw Lionel winding his way through the tables to get to her.

  “Hawk, Lionel is coming over. You don’t have him doing hacker jobs for you right now, do you?”

  “No, he hasn’t worked for us for a while,” Hawk said.

  “Hi guys, beautiful wedding, thanks again for inviting me,” Lionel said when he reached the table.

  “Of course Lionel, I just wish that Irina could have come.”

  “Yeah, that’s why I’m here. She had her last round of T-cell therapy this morning and I promised I’d only be gone for a few hours. So I have to leave. I left you a small gift on the table but I wanted to give you this also.” He handed Vivian a card. “I just want you guys to know that we will appreciate you paying for Irina’s treatment forever, and buying you something from a store just didn’t seem like a good enough way to say thank you, so I did what I do best and I found something for you.” Lionel looked down, and pursed his lips together. “You never know how these things are going to work out, so I just hope it brings you joy.” His words rushed to
gether and he looked back up at Hawk and Vivian. “I have to go now, thanks again.” He turned and wound his way through the tables again, almost at a run.

  Vivian looked at Hawk, eyebrows raised. “That was weird.”

  She slid her finger under the envelopes flap, a sense of foreboding filling her. I hope it brings you joy? You never know how these things will work out? What did that mean?

  She put the envelope on the table. “Maybe we should open it tomorrow.”

  “Here, I’ll open it.” Hawk said. “If it’s something you don’t want to see, I’ll put it away and tell you when our honeymoon is over.”

  Vivian nodded, knowing her curiosity would probably get the better of her, but still glad Hawk was going to look at it first.

  He slid the card out and read it, then looked at Vivian, his eyes flat and unreadable.

  “Here.” He handed her the card.

  She read the words twice, not believing them, then spun around, looking for Emma. “Emma!”

  Emma had been talking to some family members nearby. She heard the urgency in Vivian’s voice and looked up, startled. “What?”

  “Come here, you have to read this. Lionel gave it to me.”

  Emma took the card, questions in her eyes, and read.

  Dear Vivian. Please don’t be mad at me, but once I found this out I knew I had to tell you. I’ve been digging around in your past, not to be a jerk, but because of how happy finding your mother made you. I wanted to make you happier. I wanted to find your real birth certificate. I wanted to find out if that guy really had been your father, or maybe it was a mistake. But I found something different. Something I think you would want to know. I hope you want to know it. There were three live births that day. You are not twins, you are triplets. You have a brother. They put him in the foster system for a day, like your sister, but then a nurse at the hospital took him. I don’t have the nurse’s name yet, but I will find it for you. All I know right now is the name he was given: John Phillip Taylor. It’s a very common name, and even though we have it he might not be easy to find. I haven’t started looking. I will if you want me to though. I know I can never repay you for what you’ve done for us, but I will try anything. Thank you, and congratulations. Love, Lionel and Irina.