FG 3 - The Wedding Blitz Read online

  “Well isn’t that…sweet,” she finally said when I couldn’t find the rest of the words to explain.

  “It’s how we first met, mom. In an elevator,” Hawkins clarified and for a second I was embarrassed that I hadn’t thought to say it like that.

  “Well I for one purpose a toast,” Warren roared loudly causing Hawkins’ mom to cringe as he joined us around the table. I noticed that he was holding two glasses of Champaign in his hands. “To my best friend, I love you man,” Warren said a tad bit more emotional than his normal self. “And to his lovely bride to be,” he closed his mouth to burp. “To Joie and Hawkins!”

  Everyone around the room raised their glass of Champaign and cheered in unison, “To Joie and Hawkins!”

  “I know you wanted me to quote a Dave Matthews Band song in the toast.” Warren set down both of his drinks so he could pat down his pockets. “Where did I put it?”

  At the mention of this, I beamed up at Hawkins that he had thought to include DMB in our toasts.

  “Ah—here it is,” Warren pulled out a small crumpled piece of paper and announced,

  “Enjoy it while you can bro because life is short but sweet for certain,” he darkly quoted the band. “To Joie and Hawkins!”

  “To Joie and Hawkins!” the crowd bellowed again.

  “Enjoy life while you can bro?” I mouthed to Hawkins while thinking I don’t remember that from any of the band’s songs. Hawkins snickered at the absurdity of all before he nodded and mouthed, “Because life is sweet but short for certain.”

  “Here son,” Hawkins’ dad brought our focus back to the table. “It’s bad luck for you not to drink to your own toast,” Hawkins’ dad went to pass him his own glass of Champaign. “Joie, you too,” Jack reached for Hawkins’ mom’s filled flute glass which I noticed she had yet to touch.

  Hawkins and I exchanged a brief but troublesome look because I obviously couldn’t drink while I was carrying his baby. When Hawkins discreetly flagged down a nearby waiter so he could whisper something in his ear, I sincerely hoped that he had a plan. Turning back around to face his father again, Hawkins held up a hand to stop him from passing me a glass.

  “I appreciate the thought dad but those drinks are for you to celebrate.”

  “I only had a sip of it, I swear,” he misunderstood our intentions.

  “To Joie and Hawkins!” I heard Lizzie cry out as she joined Warren’s side and I thought really?! Knowing Lizzie, she was already drunk because Warren was drunk. It seemed to be a reoccurring theme these days.

  “To Joie and Hawkins!” the crowd cheered in unison again.

  “Just take my drink J.T.,” his father insisted with the demand of another toast.

  “Well if you’re not going to drink it, I’ll have it for you bro,” Warren placed down one of his two drinks to grab up Hawkins’ father glass of Champaign so he proceeded to down it like a shot. “Want not, waste not,” he gasped as he smacked his lips.

  “Why aren’t you drinking at your own engagement party Joshua?” his mother’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “You wouldn’t be covering for…” her eyes suddenly darted over in the general direction of my stomach and it took everything in me to not nervously straighten out my dress.

  I could almost see Hawkins’ cool exterior start to crack for a second but just as he went to open his mouth to argue, the waiter thankfully returned with our drinks. He passed me a glass filled with a bubbly liquid, probably sparkling cider I assumed, and I quickly took a sip of it to throw Hawkins’ mom off the scent.

  “Covering for whom, mom?” Hawkins raised a quizzical brow as he nonchalantly took a sip of his drink.

  “Now Jane, you’re just being ridiculous,” Hawkins’ dad muttered under his breath clearly embarrassed by what she was suggesting. “You kids go say hello to your friends and have fun. We’ve taken up enough of your time.”

  “Thanks dad,” Hawkins nodded as took my hand in his to lead me away from what could have been a really big train wreck.

  “Well that was quick thinking on your part.” I said a bit breathlessly as I held up the glass of sparkling cider.

  “Let’s just say, I’ve had a lot of years of practice,” he smiled and then asked, “Are you okay?”

  “Define okay,” I smiled, thinking about the irony of the situation because for once I could actually use a drink.

  Hawkins let me collect myself by doing most of the talking to the rest of our family and friends except of course when it came to Lizzie and Riley.

  “Let me see the ring,” Lizzie sang like a few others before her but I doubt Hawkins thought he’d have to explain to her that we were still ‘designing the ring together’ when she already knew the truth but then again she was drunk. When Lizzie looked down at my bare hand, she groaned, “Oh that’s right, I forgot Hawkins is cheap. He probably wants to recycle all of his grandmother’s kitchen appliances for your bridal shower too.”

  “Okay, you’ve had one too many,” Riley plucked the glass out of her hand.

  “I’m not cheap, Lizzie,” Hawkins took offense. “My grandmother meant a lot to me, I want Joie to have her ring.”

  “Couldn’t you just go buy a replica? You are a millionaire.”

  Before Hawkins could open his mouth to argue, his mother suddenly interrupted us from behind, “We’re leaving, your father’s tired.”

  I couldn’t help but wonder though how much of the conversation Hawkins’ mom had overheard because she took a second to glare at Lizzie before they left. It didn’t surprise me that Hawkins’ parents were some of the first guests to leave but when Rob Harlow quickly followed after them, I watched Riley’s face fall.

  “Well since you’re cut off,” Riley sighed to Lizzie before downing the rest of her drink.

  Chapter Four

  Riley wasn’t one to air his business but I noticed whatever was happening between Harlow and him, it was taking a toll on him physically. He had circles under his eyes from a lack of restful sleep I assumed. His infamous white V-neck t-shirt was so wrinkled it looked like a balled up mess. He must have been too depressed to change his clothes which I knew was saying something for Riley.

  “Morning,” I stopped to fix myself a bowl of cereal because I actually woke up hungry but he continued to stare up at the flat screen without really watching it.

  “Hey,” he finally droned as he continued to silently sulk.

  “You want to talk about it?” I snuggled in next to him on the lounge booth.

  “Joie, do you remember when I helped you on your SATs because you were afraid your mother would flip if they weren’t good enough to get you into Carnegie Mellon or whatever school she imagined you attending?”

  “Umm…yeah?” I felt my brow knit together with the question since I didn’t know how this was connected to Rob Harlow and what happened last night.

  “Do you also remember when Jake kicked you out of that party while filming it for YouTube and I pretended to be your boyfriend for a week?”

  I felt my face pinch because I still didn’t know where this was going. I was just about to say I think I would remember that Riley since it was the reason I had come up with my rules in the first place at the beginning of the tour; no backstage visits, no hotels, no tour buses. Something I think Hawkins personally enjoyed making a mess of. In retrospect I now knew that I was just trying to protect myself from making the same mistakes with Hawkins that I had made in the past with Jake.

  “And you gave me that awkward kiss?” he added when I didn’t respond.

  “That I remember,” I felt my face suddenly burn as my eyes dropped down to my cereal bowl. Hell, in my defense, I’d like to see any other girl pass up that opportunity.

  “So when are you going to ask me to help you plan your wedding?” he turned to look at me expectantly.

  “Ohh—is that what’s bothering you?”

  “That’s not an answer, Joie,” he insisted though I couldn’t help but notice that he wouldn’t let me change the subject eit
her.

  “Umm…I don’t know. I haven’t really thought about it. He did just propose to me yesterday, Riley.”

  “That stomach’s not getting any smaller,” Lizzie, who must have overheard us from her bunk bed, interjected as she stumbled forward bracing her temple like she had one hell of a hangover. “That damn Champaign,” she shook her head as she poured herself a glass of water from the sink.

  “Someone’s not feeling as good as they were last night, huh?” I smiled in her direction.

  “I don’t know, did I? I sure as hell can’t remember,” she put the cool glass up to the side of her face.

  “Focus,” Riley snapped his fingers to get my attention again. “Do you really want to walk down the aisle ready to pop at any given moment? Because I’m telling you now, that’s not going to go over very well with Grandma Hawkins,” he smiled with fake sincerity.

  “Well when you say it like that…”

  “Yes!” he pushed off the couch to get up. “I have so many people to call,” he pulled out his smart phone from his back pocket.

  “Riley,” I emphasized before he could disappear on me. “When are we going to talk about Harlow?” I pressed.

  “Yes, Seattle Washington,” he said to an operator on the other line. “Sorry Joie, but I don’t have time to talk,” he braced his cell against his chest. “Someone’s got a wedding to plan. Yes,” Riley talked into the phone again. “The Chihuly Museum.”

  “Chihuly Museum?” I mumbled to myself as my eyes widened. Holy crap, he wasn’t kidding about this planning stuff.

  I watched the back of him disappear down the aisle as Lizzie tossed back several Advil like they were Tic-tac’s. “I’d never thought I’d say this but there’s only so much drinking I can do in Gwyneth’s memory,” she groaned. “I’m going to have to tell Warren enough is enough.”

  “The grieving or the drinking part?” I smirked knowingly since the two girls had never hit it off, mainly because Lizzie could see right through Gwyneth’s antics and conniving behavior especially when it came to me.

  “The grieving part, hello,” she winced after gulping down another glass of water. “You’ll never hear me admit to the other part,” she fixed me with a look before turning around to place the glass into the sink.

  Hawkins’ bedroom door opened in the back, grabbing my undivided attention. There was a mischievous glint in his blue eyes when they locked with mine halfway down the aisle like we were both thinking dirty thoughts about the other as his tall solid frame sat down beside me. There was a piece of me that couldn’t believe this was my future husband. I wrapped my legs and arms around his waist as I rested my head against his shoulder.

  “Did you get much sleep?” I murmured.

  “You know I didn’t,” he flashed a wicked grin causing me to instantly turn up the wattage of my smile. I leant in to Eskimo kiss the nape of his neck with the tip of my nose.

  “And to think I was nauseous before,” Lizzie made her presence known.

  “You’re just jealous,” I threw her a fake dirty look.

  “Jealous that I don’t have my own room on the bus but then again you guys could always just use yours.”

  “Ha, ha,” I smirked as I pulled Hawkins closer to me.

  “What’s this Joie?” he pulled back his button down shirt to show me a pink patch of blistered skin along the side of my leg.

  “Oh no, it’s poison ivy,” I moaned.

  “How did you manage to catch it?” Hawkins asked as he continued to examine it.

  “I accidently stood in it on the side of the highway the other day.”

  “Wow, Joie, you have some of the worst luck ever.”

  “Trust me, I know,” I rolled my eyes.

  “You two might want to unlatch yourselves from each other,” Lizzie sounded hopeful, “Unless you want to catch it too, Hawkins?”

  “Unfortunately for you Lizzie,” Hawkins could barely contain the grin on his face. “I’m immune to it.”

  “Godddd, why?” she looked up in the general direction of our heavenly father.

  “J.T. Hawkins is a huge fan of Dale!” Riley announced to whoever he managed to get on the phone causing all of us to look over at him as he paced back and forth down the aisle. “And he’d love to have his art work displayed at his wedding. When’s the wedding date? Umm…is September too soon?”

  “Dale?” Hawkins mouthed to me.

  “Dale Chihuly,” I watched the realization take effect. “He wants to be our wedding planner. I can stop him if you want—

  “Nah—he looks happy.”

  “Yes, that sounds great,” Riley’s voice remained calm but he jerked his arm up toward the sky in a victory cry. “I can have the billing information faxed over to you right away.”

  “Happy spending your money, that is,” Lizzie added with a smirk.

  “It was nice doing business with you too, thank you—bye,” Riley made sure to end the call before exclaiming, “YES! Yes, yes, yes, yes! YES! This is going to be the best wedding ever! Oh—hello there Hawkins,” Riley suddenly reverted back to his ‘business’ voice. “I’m going to need to talk to you later about the budget.”

  “As long as you make Joie happy, I’m happy,” Hawkins insisted.

  “Joie, you won’t be disappointed,” Riley insisted and though I knew his heart was in the right place a piece of me thought I highly doubt that Riley. I wasn’t the kind of girl who spent her childhood imagining what my wedding would be like. I watched my mother struggle to raise me on a single income and felt the disappointment of emptiness when my father missed another birthday or Christmas. In fact if Hawkins wasn’t so hell bent on marrying me, I probably would have said no but we had a baby to think about now and I still prayed we were making the right decision.

  “I’m sure it will be beautiful,” I finally smiled at Riley, noticing that at least he looked happy again. He went to open his mouth to say something but before he could someone shouted from outside, “J.T. Hawkins I love you!” Hawkins jerked his head in the direction of the sound and looked down at a group of girls outside of the tour bus.

  “How’d they find us?” I asked feeling suddenly exposed by the lack of privacy but at the same time feeling grateful for the dark tinted windows of the bus.

  “Welcome to the Gorge,” Hawkins sighed. “Minimal security outside of the venue…it’s basically a KOA camp ground. Excuse me for a second,” he got up. “I need to talk to security.”

  “Look how many people arrived since last night,” Lizzie pointed at a hill in the distance that was filled with Winnebagos and other RVs. The sight of the parked motorhomes brought back terrifying memories for me. I could still remember Cyrus, a stalker of the band, chasing Lizzie and I around in a deathly game of hide and seek.

  “How many tour dates do we have here again?” I asked feeling hopeful that it was two or less. Though even I couldn’t imagine what I was going to do with my free time once the tour was officially over by the end of the weekend.

  “Three nights of concerts and four days of partying!” Lizzie announced gleefully next to me on the lounge couch; looking happy that we were going to finally fall back into our usual routine of going to concert after concert, night after night.

  “I thought your partying days were over?” I reminded her.

  “No, Warren’s partying days are over. I don’t have a drinking problem. Once this hangover passes, I plan on having a drink later.”

  “Isn’t that the first sign of a drinking problem, denial?”

  “Then by your definition, we’re all alcoholics,” Lizzie twirled her finger around the room at us.

  “How are we all in denial?” I asked imitating the same hand gesture.

  “By acting happy about something when you’re really not,” she emphasized.

  I knew she was referring to my trepidation about getting married even though I loved Hawkins and Riley’s determination to avoid Harlow even though he loved him.

  “Have a drink then if it m
akes you happy. In fact start now,” I smirked over at her before looking out at the cramped hill that was packed like a can of sardines with motorhomes.

  “It’s going to be okay, Joie,” Riley squeezed my shoulder from behind as if he sensing my fears.

  “It’s just the last time we were at a campground…,” I drifted off.

  “It was at the Bonnaroo Festival, I know,” Riley finished my thought.

  “Hey, at least this time we know Cyrus isn’t out there waiting for us,” Lizzie added clearly trying to be helpful but I got a piss willy from just thinking about the night, even if I had seen Cyrus die with my own eyes. Riley, who must have found the comment just as unsettling as I did, knocked on the nearby wooden cabinet and muttered under his breath, “Let’s not jinx ourselves.”

  Now that I got a better look at my surroundings, I noticed we were fenced in by a tall steel gate that looked like something you’d normally see on a cattle farm and appeared to be easy enough for anyone to climb over like the group of girls still stationed outside our bus.

  “Where are the barbed wire fences?” I asked nostalgically.

  “Like Hawkins said,” Lizzie sighed as she pushed off the couch to get ready. “Welcome to the Gorge.”

  After Hawkins indulged a few of the girls by giving them his signature, security whisked them away; back to the other side of the fence from where they came. To make sure we didn’t get any more unexpected visitors two members of Hawkins’ staff remained standing by the gate across from the tour bus.

  Whenever it was time for the concert, Hawkins, leading by example generously signed t-shirts and album covers on our way to the pavilion. He nodded encouragingly when someone stopped me for my signature and I found myself smiling as I signed my John Hancock here and there. Hell even Riley got asked for his signature before a golf cart pulled up from security to personally escort us the rest of the way.

  The view was breathtaking as we steadily approached the backstage area. In the middle of nowhere was this narrow valley made of steep rocky walls with a long winding blue river running between them, which was displayed as the stages back scenery. The back of the stage was also open to the rest of the Gorge, with the exception of a tall wooden fence separating the band and staff from the rest of the concert goers.