Could he adore her more? The sound of a fork hitting a wine glass rang out, accompanied by Detective Fox’s feisty cry, “Kiss!” He grinned at his Bonnie, released her hand, cradled her head, and met her soft, sweet lips. He felt her hands grasp his hips as she leaned into the kiss. The applause swelled, but his heart swelled more.
When he finally broke away, he smoothed his hand down her hair. “Thank you for your wedding gift, Mrs. Madsen.” He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. “My bonny wife.”
She opened her mouth to answer, but Roger interrupted, speaking over the microphone. “Welcome to Eaton Tours, everyone. The cruise will now begin. As you take in the stunning Chicago architecture, please enjoy cocktails and appetizers on deck, and the buffet down below.”
Classical music started up. Grant scanned the familiar environs of Ogden Slip and remembered the first day he’d worked on Roger’s ship. He’d been so lonely then…until Sophie had joined him on board.
“Congratulations, you two,” Mr. Taylor said as he approached. Grant felt his shoulders stiffen, and noticed his former hotel boss, Mr. Remington, trailing Sophie’s father. Mr. Taylor kissed Sophie on the cheek as he hugged her, then reached out to shake his hand. “What a handsome couple.”
“Thank you, sir.” He searched Mr. Taylor’s eyes for signs of disapproval. “Thank you for the amazing reception on this ship.”
“It’s a bit informal, but that’s how you two wanted it. My pleasure, Grant.” He stepped aside so Mr. Remington could shake Grant’s hand after hugging Sophie.
“I thought we might hear a song from you during the ceremony.”
“Yes!” Sophie added. “I asked him to sing, but he didn’t want to.”
His throat tightened. “I…I just wanted to enjoy the experience.” He squeezed her shoulder and kept his arm wrapped around her waist. “You know, keep the focus where it belongs: on this beautiful woman here.”
She dipped her chin, and Mr. Taylor laughed. “You got it bad, Grant.” He looked behind him to see more guests waiting to speak to the couple. “I’ll let you go.” Reaching out to stroke Sophie’s cheek, he said, “My beautiful daughter, all grown up.” Then he pumped Grant’s hand again. “I’m glad to have a son now too.”
As he walked away, Grant turned to Sophie for a wide-eyed exchange. “Wow,” she breathed.
He straightened when he saw two men in uniform next in line. But first Kirsten zoomed in from the side to slip champagne flutes into their hands. “Nobody ever gives the bride and groom any time to eat or drink at these things,” she murmured.
“Thanks, Kir,” Sophie said as her friend darted away. She clinked her glass with his and knocked back a swig, but he didn’t dare drink in the presence of the two decorated officers standing before them.
He held his glass to the side as Joe hugged him. When his uncle thumped him on the back, he heard the clang of gold buttons colliding on their uniforms. “Excellent job, Grant.” Those Danish blue eyes beamed at him. “Your new wife is truly a treasure. You’ve chosen well, son.” Grant closed his eyes, overwhelmed by emotion. His biological father would die one day in prison, but Joe would be there for him on the outside, as always. As Joe drew Sophie into a hug, Grant opened his eyes to face his current boss.
Captain Archie Lockhart also shook his hand. “Never seen you in your dress whites before, Lieutenant.”
“No, sir. But I’ll be wearing them at the charity benefit in a couple of weeks.”
“Right.” Captain Lockhart nodded. “I’ll get to hear you sing for the first time.”
“Yes, sir.”
His boss smirked. “Your entertaining duties at Navy events
have
to be more fun than working as my assistant.”
How am I supposed to answer that?
“Well…”
“Grant just loves working for you, Captain,” Sophie interjected. “And I’m thrilled you took him on at Great Lakes, because
I
love…” Her voice drifted off, and he thought he noticed her blush. “Well, I love a man in uniform.” Her hand rested on his chest. “It’s a dream come true.”
His face flushed as well, recalling her pawing at his uniform in the limo.
Joe laughed. “How’s it going with your practice up in Lake County, Sophie?”
“So great.” Her proud smile made Grant happy he’d encouraged her to plead her license reinstatement to the state psychology board. “I saw my first client a couple of weeks ago. I’m also teaching a summer class at DePaul since it’ll take a while to build my caseload.”
“That’s wonderful.” Joe nodded. “I’m happy for you both. C’mon, Archie, let’s go teach Rog how to drive this ship.”
Archie shook his head as he followed him. “Good luck with that, Joe.”
After snapping a few photos of Ben and his friends, the photographer got some shots of Grant and Sophie with her hair flowing behind them in the cool breeze. They couldn’t have chosen a more beautiful backdrop. “Are you warm enough?” he asked after taking a sip of bubbly.
“I’m just glad it’s not super humid today,” she answered.
“Me too. Hungry?”
“Starved.” She grinned.
“Quick, let’s get you some food before more guests hound us.” He led her to the appetizer table.
She giggled. “The guests are the point of having this wedding.”
He fed her an olive. “I thought the whole point was the wedding
night
.”
“You’re incorrigible.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He scooped some hummus onto a pita and wolfed it down. Delicious. He was reaching for a carrot stick when he heard a male voice say, “Your nose looks perfect.” Grant straightened to find Dr. Bradley Washington studying him. Hunter came up behind Bradley.
“I told you not to bother them,” Hunter scolded.
Sophie clapped her hands together. “You came to the reception!”
“Yes, we did,” Hunter said with a sigh. “Bradley wanted to see the surgical results up close. I must say, I can’t even tell you’ve had a rhinoplasty, Grant.”
Bradley circled him like a predator. “I agree. I did a fantastic job.”
Sophie smirked. “Grant’s whole face is gorgeous now, but I liked his old nose too. It was a little crooked, but it fit his face.”
Grant wished he could crawl under the deck.
“You must’ve been in some hell of a car accident,” Bradley said. “There was a lot of old scar tissue in there—the surgery took me longer than expected.”
“I’ve never been in a car accident,” Grant said. He swallowed. “I, uh, I broke my nose when I was a kid.”
“Really?” Bradley tilted his head. “How? Sports injury?”
Grant exchanged a knowing look with Sophie before his gaze flitted over to Dr. Hayes, who shifted his weight from one foot to another.
Sophie took the hint and changed the subject. “So, Bradley, how’d you decide to specialize in plastics?”
When the surgeon launched into an explanation, Grant reached out to shake Hunter’s hand. “Your reading at the church was excellent, Dr. Hayes.”
“Oh…thanks.” Hunter nodded.
“We’ll try to do our best, sir.” He swallowed. “We’ll try to communicate like you taught us, and to…accept the things we can’t change.”
“I know you will. I know how strong you both are.”
Sophie broke in, “It’s so great you and Bradley made it.”
“I wasn’t sure if it would be ethical to attend your wedding, but I figured, what the hell?” His eyes crinkled. “It’s been one ethical challenge after another with you two anyway.”
She tilted her head. “What do you mean?”
“Well…You know, uh, agreeing to take you on as a couple after I’d done individual work with you.”
“
And?”
Bradley prompted, grinning like a fool.
Hunter’s face turned a delightful shade of red. “Shut up, Bradley,” he said through clenched teeth.
“Oh, come on, Dr. Hayes,” Bradley cooed. “You’re always touting the importance of being open and honest.”
When Hunter remained tight-lipped, Grant just had to know what made his psychologist so uncomfortable. “Turnabout is fair play, Dr. Hayes. Answer the question.”
A look of betrayal swam in Hunter’s eyes, then his mouth turned down. “Fine.” He cleared his throat. “I…I, um…used to have a crush on you, Grant.”
He felt all eyes on him, gauging his reaction. Again he was flummoxed, without a clue of how to respond, and this time it looked like Sophie wouldn’t swoop in and rescue him. Finally he smirked. “
Used
to have a crush on me? Why the hell don’t you
still
have a crush on me?”
Relieved laughter flowed out of Hunter. “It’s Sophie’s fault,” he said. “Every time I saw you two make out on the therapy sofa, it knocked the attraction down a notch.”
“
Breeders
,” Bradley added with disgust. They all laughed.
“I’ll be heading downstairs now,” Hunter sighed as he backed away. “I couldn’t be
more
mortified.”
After they left, Sophie tucked herself into Grant’s chest, clasping his collar. “That was hilarious. Poor Hunter.”
He plucked a carrot stick off the tray and held it up. “Sexy vegetable?”
“Ha! Where’s Rog? We have to terrorize him.”
He looked up to the bridge but saw only the DJ and one of Roger’s new employees driving the ship. “Let’s head downstairs—maybe he’ll be there. I want to make sure Ben’s okay too.”
“But Ashley’s here to keep an eye on him,” Sophie said as she followed him down the metal steps.
“Thank goodness.” He stopped by the table near the bottom of the stairs. Colorful gifts stacked on top of each other, and a donut-shaped life raft rested next to the gifts. He picked up a permanent maker and noticed some writing on the white raft. “What’s this?”
“It’s your guest book,” Cheri explained as she appeared next to him. “Guests sign the raft, and you can hang it in your home after the wedding.”
“Aw.” Sophie leaned into read a few best wishes. “What a great idea for McSailor.”
He chuckled. “Thanks, Cheri. Is everything going as planned?”
“Yes, as long as Roger stays out of my hair.” Grant followed her scowl to a table where Roger sat with Jerry, Marilyn, and another woman. “If he threatens me one more time about a wedding guest causing damage to his ship…”
“He’s harmless,” Sophie said. “Just ignore him.”
Cheri breathed out. “I’ll try. How about you two grab a bite, and then we’ll have you cut the cake?”
“Sure.” Grant followed Sophie to the buffet, but she stopped short when Tanya reached up from her chair and tapped her on the elbow. Grant smiled at Kirsten, Anita, and Tanya sitting in their matching bridesmaid dresses. “Hello, ladies. Having a good time?”
Kirsten and Anita nodded, but Tanya whispered in Sophie’s ear. Kirsten said, “Try the Thai noodles, Grant. They’re yum!”
Sophie straightened and subtly gestured to a table near the bow where Agent Bounter sat with Agent Thompson. “Grant? Is Bounter single?”
He glanced down to find Tanya squirming in her chair. “Maybe.” He gave Sophie an innocent look. “Who wants to know?”
“Grant!” Tanya cried. “Stop torturing me.”
“Okay. I’m pretty sure he
is
single,” he told her. “You know he works for the FBI, right? I don’t think he has much time for a relationship.”
“Who wants a relationship?” Tanya retorted. “I’m a college professor.
I
don’t have time for one either.”
Sophie and Kirsten cracked up.
“We’ll leave you to it, then,” Sophie said. She grabbed a plate off the buffet and beckoned for Grant. “What can I get for you, my husband?”
“A little of everything, please.” He nudged her hair to the side and smooched the back of her neck. “You smell so good.”
“Thank you.”
Once she loaded the plate, he took it. “Want to meet Rog’s girlfriend?”
“Absolutely.
And
save Jerry and Marilyn too.”
Grant carried the plate over to their table, and the two couples stood when he and Sophie arrived. He studied the fit, older woman at Roger’s side. Her black hair was up in a high ponytail, and her fuchsia dress dipped low at the bust. “You must be Ana,” he said as he reached out his hand.
“
Ay yi yi
,” she fussed as she shook his hand, then smacked Roger on the shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me how fucking cute this boy is?”
“Ew.” Roger shuddered. “As if I’d look at him that way. So he’s tall. Big fucking deal.”
Grant could tell Sophie was trying not to laugh as they sat. Was it possible Roger’s girlfriend had an even worse potty mouth than Roger himself?
Marilyn patted Sophie’s hand. “Are you having a good night?”
“The best.” Sophie bit into a shrimp.
“Listen to this joke I just told your PO, Madsen,” Roger said.
Grant glanced at Jerry, who did not appear amused.