Authors: Theresa Ragan
“Could you two move it along?” Zoey shouted from one of many fold-out seats facing the trellis where they would say their vows.
“Let them do their thing,” Jake said, trying to quiet his sister.
“Are you kidding me? We could be here all day.”
“Just ignore them,” Derrick told her. “I think we should take our time.”
“Just to bother your siblings?”
“No. I think we should take our time so that I can savor every moment of this day. When you look around, what do you see, Jill?”
She looked toward the pasture where ponies grazed, to Hank who was not happy about being tied up for the day, and then to all the guests before her gaze settled on his. “I see love.”
“What do you smell?”
She closed her eyes and breathed in. “I smell fresh hay and warm skies.”
He took a whiff. “I smell ponies and I think Mom snuck some of her ham rolls onto the food tables.”
Jill laughed, and he squeezed her hands, maybe because he was nervous, but she didn’t think that was it. Derrick Baylor seemed to be truly relishing the moment.
“We can’t hear you two!” Zoey said right before somebody muffled her.
Derrick’s gaze never left hers and Jill had to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. Her husband-to-be looked dashing in his fitted suit, although she knew he couldn’t wait to get changed into something more comfortable. She was marrying the father of her son, the man she loved. It couldn’t get any better than this. They would have the rest of their lives to live, love, and learn together while watching Ryan grow.
“Every day is going to be an adventure,” he said. “Every night, too,” he added with a wink.
She laughed again.
“I’m ready to do this,” he said. “Are you?”
“I am.”
They turned toward the trellis where Sandy, the maid of honor, stood on one side and Aaron, the best man, stood on the other. Ten minutes later, it was a done deal. The ceremony was short and sweet. Stepping away from tradition, they had written their own vows, both pledging to confide, trust, and love one another until the end of time.
They were officially married.
Derrick and Jill stood hand in hand on the grassy knoll at the Baylor Pony Farm and turned toward the crowd, which had grown to include most of Arcadia.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” the priest said, “I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Baylor.”
Everyone stood and cheered while the newlyweds made their way down the aisle.
Jill let her gaze sweep across all of the familiar faces. She looked from Aaron and Maggie. They had married six months ago. They looked happy. Her gaze went from Helen and Phil Baylor, to each of Derrick’s brothers and sisters. She felt blessed to be a part of the Baylor family.
Standing side by side, Jill and Derrick talked to the guests as everyone made their way to the area set up for refreshments. A dozen long tables were covered with an assortment of food. Helen Baylor was under strict orders to leave the cooking to everyone else. She was not allowed to set foot in the kitchen, mostly due to the fact that not one Baylor kid wanted to see ham rolls served on such a special day.
Outdoor games such as horseshoes and a bean bag toss had been set up for the kids. Music drifted from inside the barn as the band set up. The pond had been fully stocked and poles and bait were available for anyone interested in doing a little fishing.
A five-tiered cake that included all of Jill and Derrick’s favorite flavors sat alone on a special table shaded from the sun. There was also a separate dessert table that would soon be covered with mini chocolate soufflés, carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and homemade vanilla ice cream.
Garrett and his wife, Kris, had kept a close eye on Bailey and Ryan during the ceremony. Bailey was standing in the playpen while Ryan was sitting up, mesmerized by Lexi, who was entertaining them both with a dancing Ken and Barbie.
After everyone congratulated them, Derrick was pulled away by a few of his brothers, leaving Sandy and Jill to themselves.
“I guess congratulations are in order since you can’t back out now,” Sandy teased.
They hugged and when Jill pulled away she asked, “Where’s Connor?”
“I have no idea,” Sandy said, her voice tinged with regret. “The last time I saw him was three days ago and I’m pretty sure I scared him off for good.”
“He’s not coming to his own brother’s wedding?”
“Looks that way,” Sandy said with a shrug of her shoulders, although Jill could tell she was hiding a mountain of pain behind the gesture.
“What did you do?”
“I made the mistake of telling him how I felt about him. I told him I loved him.”
“Oh.”
“It’s better this way, you know, sooner rather than later,” Sandy said, “especially since Lexi was growing attached.”
Lexi wasn’t the only one, Jill thought.
Jake’s date dragged him over to where they stood and offered her hand to Jill. “Hi, my name is Candy. I’m with Jake.” She glanced at Sandy and lifted her nose to the air, letting Sandy know that Jake was off limits.
“Nice to meet you,” Jill said.
“The ceremony was cute,” Candy went on. “I was just telling, Jakey-pooh, that I, personally, would rather have my wedding indoors.” She used a hand to fan herself. “I tend to sweat when I get nervous and that could be a disaster, if you know what I mean.”
Jill smiled politely while Jake’s face turned crimson.
“If it gets any hotter, I’m going to have to strip down to my panties and bra.”
“Please don’t,” Rachel said as she approached, saving them all from an awkward moment. “I have a bathing suit you can borrow.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Candy said as her eyes roamed over Rachel. “I’m not even a size two. I usually have to shop in the junior’s department just to find something that will fit me.”
They all looked at Candy’s humongous breasts at the same time.
Candy laughed. “I know what you’re thinking, but believe you me, these babies are the real deal.”
They weren’t thinking that at all. They were all wondering how a size two bathing suit would cover it all.
“Would you look at that,” Rachel said, saving them all for the second time in less than a minute.
Everyone looked in the direction Rachel was pointing.
Connor had come after all. He looked dead set and determined to get something off of his chest as he looked about until his eyes fell on Sandy. It only took a few long strides to make his way to where they all stood.
“Hi Connor,” Candy said, stepping in front of Sandy.
“Hi,” he said without looking at her. He only had eyes for one woman. He stepped around Jake’s date and handed Sandy the bouquet of red roses he was holding. “I was hoping we could talk.”
“It’s been three days. I left you two messages. You had your chance.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I messed up.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I’m an idiot.”
“Maybe we should give you guys some alone time,” Jill said.
“No,” Sandy said. “Nobody move.”
Rachel looked at Jill excitedly. Coming from such a large family, Derrick’s sister was used to drama, and she was obviously happy to have a front row seat to whatever was about to go down.
Jill didn’t like conflict, but she knew that if she took even one step away, her friendship with Sandy would be severely compromised.
Jake, on the other hand, couldn’t care less and he walked off, leaving Candy to fend for herself.
“If you want to say something to me,” Sandy told Connor, “you’re going to have to say it right here in front of everyone.”
“I guess I deserve this,” Connor said.
Rachel nodded her whole-hearted agreement, while Sandy looked around as if she was bored stiff.
“Can you at least look at me?”
Sandy dragged her eyes upward to meet his, and Jill had to commend her friend’s acting skills because she made it look like the worst kind of chore.
“I love you, too,” Connor said the moment her eyes met his, which happened to be the same time Cliff and Brad joined their group.
Silence ensued. Even Candy was quiet.
“That’s it?” Connor asked. “You have nothing to say?”
“Did he just say what I think he said?” Cliff asked nobody in particular.
“He just told her he loved her,” Candy confirmed. “Why haven’t you ever looked me in the eyes like that and said you love me?” Candy looked around for Jake and when she realized he was no longer standing nearby, she wandered off in search of him.
As Jill prayed that Sandy wouldn’t completely ruin the moment since the man was obviously trying, she felt a hand settle on her shoulder. Jill looked up at Derrick, and despite the tension in the air, she smiled at him.
“What’s going on?”
“Connor just told Sandy that he loved her.”
Connor took Sandy’s free hand in his. “Do you want me to leave?”
Sandy held his gaze, her eyes unblinking. “I want to know why you love me.”
His brothers all groaned in unison.
“It’s a perfectly reasonable question,” Rachel chided.
Connor shifted his weight from one foot to the other and said, “I love your hair and the way it glistens in the sun.”
His brothers all looked pleased by that answer.
Sandy frowned.
“What?” Connor asked. “Did I say something wrong?”
“It’s not about the hair,” Derrick said, hoping to save his brother a little time. “It’s about what you’re feeling in here.” He laid a hand on his chest, over his heart, making Jill love him a little more.
Phil and Helen Baylor were approaching, with half the neighborhood following in their tracks.
“When you step out of the shower,” Connor tried again, “and your hair is a mess and you’re in a hurry to get somewhere, you make this cute little scowling face and—”
He stopped in mid-sentence when he saw Brad make a slicing motion through his throat.
“Scratch that,” Connor said. “When I’m late and you’ve been waiting for me, your brow puckers just so and—”
More slicing of the throat gestures from the ever-growing crowd.
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Connor said, clearly frustrated. “I just love you. I like every single one of those silly faces you make when I do something wrong, which I’m realizing is more often than I first realized. Clearly, I don’t deserve you. I’m moody and quiet more often than not and yet you never make me feel guilty or less than adequate. You show me nothing but love in everything you do. Go ahead and shoot me down for saying it, but I love your hair: the color, the shine, the way it feels sliding through my fingers. I don’t care if that’s not something I should tell you. I love the way your eyes light up when I walk into a room, except for today. Today your eyes didn’t light up and that makes me sad. When you’re annoyed with me and you tap your fingers and make galloping noises, yes, well, I think that’s cute. I also like your constant jabber.”
That particular statement caused all sorts of mutterings and grumbles, but Connor wasn’t paying attention to anyone but Sandy. “I love how you can ignore all of these people staring at us, listening to every word, not because they love me and care about how all of this turns out, but because they are the most meddlesome group of people in the world. Despite the fact that I’m related to many of these people, you still love me - at least you did three days ago - and I can only hope that you will continue to love me because over the past few days, I’ve been the loneliest, most cantankerous son-of-a-bitch and I can say with absolute sincerity that those three days without you were hell on earth. I want heaven, not hell. I want you, Sandy.” He pulled a ring from his pocket and dropped to one knee.
The mob roared with delight, causing Jill to sigh with relief. This was no longer a day about joining Derrick and herself in matrimony, but instead, a day of forgiveness, a day of joy and celebration, a day where everybody and anybody was welcomed to the Baylor farm with open arms.
“Will you marry me?” Connor asked Sandy.
Tears swept down Sandy’s cheeks and over her chin, making it impossible for her to find her voice.
“Yes!” Lexi shouted as she ran into Connor’s arms, making him drop the ring and causing at least a dozen people to fall to the ground to look for the diamond.
“I LOVE you!” Lexi shouted into Connor’s ear. “We will marry you.” Lexi looked up at Sandy. “We love him, right, Mom?”
“We do,” Sandy said, her voice squeaking with happiness.
“Did you hear that?” Jake asked excitedly from the back of the crowd. “Lexi said LOVE, not WUV!”
For the next few minutes half of the crowd hugged Lexi and made a big to-do over her newfound ability to pronounce the letter L, while the other half continued to scour the lawn for the lost ring.
“Here it is! I found it!” Phil Baylor said, handing the ring to his son.
As Connor slid the ring onto Sandy’s finger, one long ponderous sigh of content erupted from the Baylor farm.
“Oh, no!” Derrick cried out.
Everybody’s eyes were on the groom as he cut through the crowd and ran after Hank. He almost caught up to the dog, too.
Close but no cigar.
Hank had a sweet tooth and he was on a mission. In one perfect leap, he landed on the table holding the cake that Jill had spent weeks planning and preparing and all day yesterday baking. Derrick had been subjected to dozens of taste tests, and he had watched her closely as she made crystallized edible flowers for the top tier that he knew would be savored on their one-year anniversary, along with the memories of their special day.
Hank was fast and he was hungry, though, and he had a quarter of the bottom layer eaten by the time Derrick caught up to him. Instead of removing the dog, Derrick grabbed the top layer and held it over his head for protection, his eyes beaming with pride that he’d saved the best part.
That one small action might not have meant anything to anyone else, but it meant the world to Jill. His knee had been acting up all week, but Derrick had just run across the yard as if he was a gazelle, as if his life depended on saving the top layer of their wedding cake because he knew it had been made with love for just the two of them.
She loved Derrick Baylor. She loved him more than mere words could ever express.