“Sounds good. Mind if I take a shower, too?”
“Would you like some company?” I watched his eyes darken as I leaned over and encompassed his lips once more.
“Of course,” I said.
Chapter 21
Colin
I woke up the next morning to a million phone calls and emails. There were pictures of us from the cruise ship plastered all over the news. Announcements of our wedding, and even Abby’s speech had been videotaped and posted online.
And everyone was wanting to congratulate us.
Abby and I spent the better part of our morning answering phone calls and sending back emails. Everyone was ecstatic for us, including her parents. I told her not to worry about her phone bill which was undoubtedly incurring all sorts of international charges, because now she didn’t have to worry about that kind of stuff. I was going to take care of everything she needed from here on out. Her. Her parents. Her debt and her bills. The last thing I ever wanted my wife to worry about was money. That was my responsibility, and I wasn’t going to have her panicking over it.
“Hey, Mom,” Abby said.
I urged her to put it on speakerphone so I could talk with them as well.
“Hey there, sweetheart. Your father’s here, too.”
“Hey, pumpkin.”
“Colin’s here, too, you guys,” Abby said.
“Before we get to talking, I just want you guys to know that getting married on the island was my idea. I was so inspired and caught up in the moment, I could help myself. But we plan on doing a vow renewal and reception soon after we get back.”
“You make it sound like we’re upset with you, son,” Miriam said
I smiled at Abby’s mother addressing me that way.
“We’re not upset. We’re happy for the two of you. To be honest, with some of the phone calls we’d gotten from Abby over the past couple of days, we weren’t sure what to think about the two of you,” Jack said.
Looking over at Abby, I could see the shame and guilt written on her face, and could feel her scooting away from me, like I was going to somehow cast her out. She still had that innate tendency to run. To distance herself from anything she thought was going to hurt her. It would take time for her to move beyond that reaction. To build her trust and watch her learn that not everything or everybody was out to get her. But I knew I could start now. I could start by alleviating her fear that I was upset.
So, I wrapped my arm around her hip and pulled her back into me.
“We had a few hiccups along the way, but that’s to be expected between couples,” I said.
“Don’t I know it,” Jack said. “Abby, how are you feeling?”
“I feel—wonderful,” she said, giggling.
“Oh, there are so many pictures online! I can’t stop flipping through them,” Miriam said.
“Well, we’ll get more at the vow renewal and the reception,” I said. “We’ll have them professionally done and get one framed for you guys, if you’d like.”
“Oh, I’d love that. It could go next to our own wedding picture,” Miriam said.
“That sounds like a wonderful plan,” I said.
“When’s the big vow renewal?” Jack asked.
“Well—we’ll still got a bit of planning to—”
“We’ll let you know this afternoon.”
I looked over at Abby and saw the sparkle in her eye as she leaned over and kissed me.
“Yes, I guess we’ll have a date and time for you this afternoon,” I said.
Kissing Abby on the cheek, I then set out to work. I called up the hotels in Los Angeles and tried to figure out which one could get us in the quickest. I ended up booking The Alexandria Ballrooms for the following weekend, and I was lucky to get that at all. They had a last-minute cancellation and offered it to me for a great price, and even threw in the photographer they had already booked for the event. I told them we needed a reception as well and they told me they could put one together with no problem.
“Abby,” I said. “Do you have any food preferences for the reception?”
“No shellfish,” she said. “My father’s allergic. Other than that, we’re good.”
“Okay. What about drinks? And do you want a cake?”
“Are you on the phone with someone now?” she asked.
“I am. They’re asking questions and I want your input before I answer,” I said.
“Um—I’m really not picky. Is it possible to do adult beverages as well as regular drinks?”
“You just want an open bar? There’s a nice hotel two blocks from the venue that I could put everyone up in.”
“That actually sounds really nice. Are we gonna go back there, too? Or are we gonna head back home?”
I grinned at Abby calling my place home. It felt right. It felt final. Like my life had finally fallen into place.
“Oh, I’m booking us a honeymoon suite,” I said.
“Sounds good to me. Oh! Have you called your mother?”
“Hold on a second, sweetheart. Yes, did you catch all that? Open bar, no shellfish, lots of dancing. If you can’t put a live band together that quickly, a D.J. is just fine. Uh huh. Yes, for next Saturday.”
I finalized all the details before I hung up, then I proceeded to call the hotel a couple of blocks down from the venue. I booked out the bottom three floors, then reserved a decadent honeymoon suite just for the two of us. I gave the front desk explicit instructions on what I wanted for that suite, then I gave them my card before I hung up.
“Okay, ready for our plans?” I asked.
“Hit me,” Abby said. “I’m ready to send out a mass email.”
“A mass email?” I asked.
“Yeah. My parents had to go, so I figured I could send everyone an email with the information on the vow renewal and the reception,” she said.
“Are you okay with that?” I asked.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I just want
