Emilia is walking to the altar. The song she walks out to is an orchestral version of Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran. It’s playing loud and I have the biggest smile on my face while I watch Emilia walk. We’re all standing on a podium that sits on the sand. Emilia is dressed in a long white gown that trails behind her feet. Her hair is curled and her makeup is professionally done.
My short hair was cut into layers all over. Sadie managed to salvage my side bangs and turn the chaos of a mess into something stylish. For Emilia’s wedding, we decided to go with beach waves. I haven’t told anyone about the latest encounter with Shane. I didn’t want anyone to be worked up or worried about me when it was Emilia’s day. The cops didn’t find him and I’m not surprised.
Emilia looks completely enchanted with her future husband. She was becoming his wife. Entering a new chapter in her life. Her gaze kept switching from Harry and the bottom of her dress as she walked.
Emilia and Harry got their fall wedding on the beach as they planned. The air was fresh, the weather sitting around seventy degrees for a late October wedding. Pumpkins and orange lights were decorated everywhere. Emilia steps on artificial autumn leaves as she walks up to the altar.
A fall wedding beach isn’t the most common thing to see but that’s exactly what Emilia wanted.
Harry’s watching Emilia and he brings his palm to his mouth, mesmerized by his love for her. He starts to tear up as she gets closer to him. His best man stands next to him and grips his shoulder, comforting him.
Her father holds her hand the entire time as he escorts her. Something I would never experience. My father was permanently absent from my life. I didn’t need my father for my wedding day. I had my mother.
I thought to myself,
If my man doesn’t cry for me when on our wedding day, I’m running away.
The love Harry has for Emilia was evident.
Emilia grabs a hold of Harry’s hands and everyone claps as the music dies down. The waves of the ocean crashing against the shore are music to my ears. I glance towards the water and the beautiful blue shade reminds me of Danny’s eyes.
My chest tightens at the thought of him.
It’s been a while since I’ve heard his voice. Touched his lips.
Danny was starting to feel like a ghost. Like a figment of my imagination, I conjured up. His absence was starting to affect me. Whenever he started to feel unreal, I just looked at my lower abdomen and that was my only verification of his existence in this world.
I was so nervous waiting for his calls or texts. I kept busy between work, friends, family, reading, and the gym. It made the time go by faster. Right after the latest incident of Shane’s threats, I would get regular alerts to my phone from the front and backyard cameras.
“You may now kiss the bride!” The minister exclaims into the mic. His voice disrupts my thoughts. Meredith nudges me gently on my arm, making sure I’m okay. It’s obvious I was lost in thought. I nod with a smile.
Harry grabs Emilia’s face with both of his hands, kissing her so deeply, everyone in the venue feels it. The crowd of families and friends erupts in cheers and claps. I whistle, putting my fingers to my mouth, jumping up and down with Meredith. Too bad I couldn’t pop a champagne bottle and drown my sorrows tonight.
Everyone heads towards the built-in tents in the secluded area on the beach. I sit down next to Meredith brushing my long blue dress down. We were at our assigned seating in the venue. It was very crowded inside the tent. Music was blasting loud, I could feel it in my chest.
Our bridesmaid dresses were one-shoulder dresses that were loose around my waist. They had a long v-cut across the chest that revealed a good amount of cleavage. I didn’t mind. My pregnancy gave me more to work. One perk of growing a tiny human.
Meredith is on her fourth glass of wine. The alcohol percentage was higher than usual and it showed. She was already slurring her words and the after-party was just beginning.
“I just love wine. Alcohol is the best.” Meredith sighs twirling her wine in the glass. She leans her chin on the palm of her hand, placing her elbow on the table supporting her head. The wine swirls fast and it look like it’s about to pour out of the glass.
“Woah there Meredith, slow down.” I cringe, backing away from her. I’m trying my best to avoid getting wine spilled on my dress.
“Why? I’m not the one that’s pregnant. I don’t have to slow down if I don’t want to.” Meredith’s tone is sharp and I’m taken aback by her candor. She burps and rolls her eyes.
“Thank you Meredith that’s so kind of you to point out.” I bite the inside of my cheek gently, taking a sip of my water. Sometimes Meredith has a stick up her ass for no reason and she rambles with no filter.
We sit in an awkward silence as the music changes to a slow song. Our food comes to our table. Salmon, baked potatoes with broccoli. My mouth waters and I start nibbling on my food.
Meredith and I both look up from our food to see a short, red-haired man approaching. He stops in front of me, holding out his hand.
“Hello there beautiful. I was wondering if you’d like to dance with me. My name’s Larry I’m a friend of the groom.” He asks, his tone overconfident and flirtatious. I grow uncomfortable.
“Oh, that’s very kind of you, really. But I’m fine, I’m eating right now.” I point toward my plate with my fork, hoping I’m letting him down easily. I give him a comforting smile trying to hide my unease. Larry frowns and pulls back his hand.
“Really, Ari? Come on, go with the nice guy, your baby daddy isn’t here to dance with you anyways.” Meredith cuts in, taking another swallow of her wine. Her tone is emotionless and I’m hurt. Her words pierce through me like a knife. She’s clearly unaware of her actions and I freeze with embarrassment. She doesn’t realize she’s outed my pregnancy to a complete stranger and I’m exasperated with her ruthless character.
Larry puckers his lips awkwardly, chewing on the side of his mouth, reading the room.
I glare at her and stand up from my seat.
“Excuse me. I’m just going to get some fresh air. I’ve lost my appetite.” I mumble, throwing my napkin down on my seat.
Meredith freezes and she stops herself from drinking more of her wine. She fidgets in her seat and comes to self-realization.
“Ari, I’m sorry.” Meredith groans putting down her wine glass. She stands up walking behind me. I’m boiling over on the inside with fury.
“Don’t.” I whip my head towards her, ordering her away from me.
Meredith stops following me, frowning, leaning on one side of her body. Larry has walked away from the table, disappearing into the dancing crowd.
I continue walking out of the tent and head towards the ocean. I take off my heels as I jog slowly, one by one. The sun has completely gone down leaving only a full moon to light up the sky. Carrying my heels in one hand together, the waves call out for me.
There’s something about a beach that soothes my soul. It’s so peaceful and it stops me from balling into a complete mess. I stare at the waves crashing, listening to them, doing my best to drown out the music from the tent. The moonlight reflecting off the dark blue water calms my nerves.
I reach the shore and my feet touch the damp sand. The waves reach my feet and I’m enjoying the sensation of cold water.
Meredith’s words hurt me and I make a mental note to stay away from her for the rest of the night. It felt like she was throwing my pregnancy in my face as if it was such an inconvenience to her life.
I hadn’t announced my pregnancy yet and I can already picture all of the harsh judgments and opinions when friends and family find out I’m pregnant. I’m not even sure I have a boyfriend. Never mind, a husband. My best friend revealed her true attitude towards my unplanned pregnancy and it hurt. I can’t imagine what others will say.
A strong wind brushes against my skin, and the cold air makes me grab onto my biceps to keep warm. I crave my warm bed and thick blankets. I rub my arms fast trying to get myself warm from the friction.
My mind drifts and I palm my lower belly. I’m trying to picture a boy or girl but I can’t. I don’t have a preference. I just want a healthy baby.
I wonder if Paul’s happy for me. If he was here, he’d probably be upset. Especially if the baby was Shane’s. Thank God, I never fully gave myself to him. But knowing it’s Danny’s, I have a feeling he would be embracing his role of a new uncle with open arms. Maybe he’d be hesitant at first but I’m sure he would have come around.
I could already picture him teaching his nephew or niece how to play the guitar before they can walk. I laugh softly to myself at the thought of him trying to change poop diapers. I wonder what kind of parent he could’ve been if he was still here.
Someone clears their throat behind me, sending me into shock.
“You’re gonna catch a cold out here, little Angel.”
I turn around so fast and my heart flutters into fire. My whole body is electrocuted with euphoria. This is a dream. It has to be.
“Danny?” My eyes narrow and I find his beautiful massive frame in front of me. He’s dressed in a black tuxedo and the sight of him sends my head spinning. He’s so magnetic it feels like he’s pulling me toward him just by the way he’s looking at me.
His dark sandy blonde hair’s gelled back and his beard is a little shorter than when I last saw him. I’m blinking fast, ensuring that he really is in front of me. I take off running towards him and he smirks, his sexy expression turning into a wide smile, flashing his perfect white teeth.
I drop my heels on the sand right before I crash my body into his, wrapping my legs around his waist, and straddling him. He instantly wraps me up in his big arms, carrying me, his monstrous calloused hands holding me tight. Sparks fly all around me, and a familiar storm of fire ignites, and the attraction I have for him, throbs in between my thighs. I’m panting fast and hard as I watch his blue eyes intimidate me as they always did before.
It feels like the world has stopped and I’m inside my bubble of passionate seclusion once again.
“It’s really you.” I breathe into his shoulder low and soft, tears falling down my eyes.
“I’m home, baby, I’m home.”
He kisses my cheek, gripping my short hair. His fingers snake through it. His other hand grips my ass and he squeezes it so hard, a moan slips out of my mouth.
He smells so delicious. Spice, wood, and a hint of cigarettes.
“I’ve missed you so much.” I back away from his shoulder, looking at him.
“You have no idea. I’ve been thinking of this moment every day since I left.” He cups my cheek, rubbing his thumb across my lips. A low growl rumbles through his chest and I can feel his hardened length against my thigh.
He crashes his lips against mine and I’m weak. The kiss is aggressive, hot, and desperate. Both of us moving in such a way, I don’t think I’ll ever recover from this moment. It sends me into another world of ecstasy, and I press my body closer to his. His beard softly prickles my skin and I love it. His tongue pries my mouth open and I let him. Our tongues dance in sync, tasting each other’s longing absence.
He bites my lip before he releases me and when he breaks away from me, I’m at a loss for words. I already miss the way his lips feel against mine and I’m devastated he pulled away.
“You are so beautiful.” He tells me as he stares at me so intensely.
I smile.
“How’d you know I was here?” I ask, dropping down back to my feet and he grabs my hand, pulling me towards him. I grab my heels still holding onto his fingers.
“I have my ways, Ari. There’s nowhere you could go where I couldn’t find you.” Blood rushes to my cheeks.
“Are you home for a while?” I ask, arching a brow, dreading the answer.
He looks at me clenching his jaw. His smile fades and in return, he looks like he’s hiding something.
“Yes, baby.”
There was something behind his changed expression though, that had my mind swirling with curiosity.
Questions about his missions swarmed me. The status of Damon and Violet gnawing at me. I had to tell him about the pregnancy, and the horrifying incidents involving Shane. But I didn’t want to ruin tonight. So I bit my tongue, locking the information somewhere in the back of my mind, saving it for another day. I would tell him soon, just not right now.
I refused to indulge in these heavy conversations. I wanted to be selfish just in this one moment and savor having Danny back home.
“When did you get back?” I ask.
“This morning. I wanted to surprise you.” Danny reaches into his pocket. ‘I think this belongs to you.’
My pink cross necklace shines in the moonlight as he pulls it out, slowly. I watch it glimmer and sway in the wind and I’m stunned. He ripped it off of my neck the first time we gave in to each other.
‘I kept you close even though you were half a world apart from me.’
He kept it this entire time… He fixed it somehow.
‘Turn around.’
I stare back out at the ocean as he hooks my necklace over my collarbones. I’m fighting so hard against the tears that are desperately trying to crack me open. He kept my necklace.
“Let’s go inside. I have friends that I’d like you to formally meet.” I chirp.
He sighs rubbing his hand through his beard, looking down at the sand.
“Come on, don’t be shy.” I pull him towards the tent, teasing him.
“Okay. I’ll play nice guy for a while and then,” Danny lowers his mouth to my ear. His cool breath sent shivers down my spine. “When we get to my place, you’ll be screaming my name all fucking night from all the ways I’ll break into you again.”
