The Mitchell Healy Compilation: Volume 1, page 77
I tore the envelope and pulled it out, unfolding the paper.
Shalan:
I wanted to give you something as beautiful as you are to me. I know we’ve had to wait for our perfect wedding, and it seems like everything keeps going wrong. I decided to take matters into my own hands, so that I could be able to give you the beautiful wedding that you deserve.
I made the carriage that you’re riding on, and when the ride is over, we’ll keep it around in the yard, or wherever you want to put it. I don’t care if you doll it up with your crazy glitter décor, just as long as when you look at it you think of our special day.
I love you, and if I could I’d give you the world.
I’ll be seeing you soon.
All my love,
Noah
P.S.
I was wondering if you’d join me and my family in the big red barn, because on this very Christmas Eve we’re going to tie the knot, in front of everyone we know and love. I’ll be waiting.
When his father saw me tucking the note back in the envelope he snickered. “We’re almost there, darlin’. You okay?”
“Am I dreaming?”
“Well, it does take a lot for me to put on a suit, but no, you’re not dreamin’. My son’s in that barn waitin’ on you. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d love to be able to walk you to him.”
I reached over and hugged Noah’s father. “Thank you for this, for everything.”
He patted me on the back. “Don’t you even worry about it. You’re already a part of this family.”
I don’t know what made me do it, or why I couldn’t wait to tell Noah. It just came right out of my mouth. “You’re going to be a grandfather.”
The man who I was about to call my father-in-law backed away. I watched his eyes gloss over as a smile as big as the horizon filled his face. “Does Noah know?”
I shook my head. “I was going to tell him tonight. I just…I just wanted you to know.”
He leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. “We’ll just keep this between us until you tell Noah. I’ve got to say, it’s the best Christmas gift I think I’ve ever received. I’m sure my wife’s goin’ to say the same thing, after she hugs you to death.”
We stood in front of the large red barn doors and that’s when it all hit me. “This is where you were married, isn’t it?”
He held out his arm for me take. “Yep, it sure is. Now I get to watch my son do it. I couldn’t ask for a more perfect location if I didn’t pick it out myself.”
I faced forward as we opened the doors together, getting our first glimpse of everyone inside waiting.
I couldn’t contain my emotions as we walked through the threshold. Seated all around the room was the entire family. They stood up to welcome us inside. Straight ahead, standing in a tuxedo, looking more handsome than I’d ever seen, was my beautiful future husband. I almost let go of his father’s arm and ran full-force toward him. This gift, this beautiful surprise was more than I could have ever dreamed. It wasn’t just perfect, it was magical.
From the lighting, to the music, from the tables to the linens, he’d gotten everything right. The flowers were the ones I’d picked out, and in the far corner was the cake that we’d driven a whole day in order to sample it in person.
His sisters, so beautiful in their matching dresses, stood next to their brother. He’d gotten every detail right.
As I continued walking it all hit me. I was about to marry the man of my dreams, the father of my unborn child. With shaking hands I reached out and found his. In his eyes were happy tears, as I continued to fight my own.
“Hey, darlin’. I’m glad you could make it. I was sweatin’ bullets for a while.”
“I can’t believe you did this for me.”
“I did this for us. I knew you wanted everyone to be here, and so with a little help I made it happen.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Everyone got quiet as soon as the music stopped playing. The pastor from our church came out of the audience and stood before us. In the next fifteen minutes we recited our vows to each other, promising love, faithfulness, and a lifetime of being together. I never took my eyes off of Noah, and neither did he with mine.
We exchanged rings that we’d bought a year before, but never been able to use.
Then we kissed, and it wasn’t like those kisses that you see in the movies. It was long, messy, and probably way too erotic for the poor pastor’s eyes, not that we paid any attention. This was the happiest moment of my life.
I’d had a number one hit single, and not felt this kind of euphoria. There was only one thing missing that could make it even better.
After pronouncing us man and wife, and everyone watching our seductive kiss unfold I took the microphone with one hand, and held on tight to my husband with the other. “Thank you all for this. I’ll never be able to say how grateful I am to all of you. I love you, and I’m happy to be a Mitchell. Now, before we get this party started, I have something I want to give to Noah and all of you for Christmas. You see, I’ve had a secret for a while now,” I heard his mother gasp, because she must have already guessed it. “Noah,” I looked him right in those gorgeous green eyes. “You’re going to be a daddy.”
The pastor leaned forward. “It must have been from all that kissing.”
Noah laughed, but I felt embarrassed, only for a second, until the whole family came up to congratulate us.
It was surreal. Every intimate detail of our perfect wedding was absolutely remarkable. He’d even convinced my agent and managers to come out on Christmas Eve to celebrate. They’d all kept it a secret from me.
It took us a long time before we could be alone. The sun had set, and the night sky full of stars shined down over us. The music was loud inside of the barn, but all I could hear was my own beating heart. “I don’t know what to say to this.”
“Were you pregnant this whole time? Since Thanksgiving?”
I worried that he’d be mad, but nodded anyway. I didn’t want our marriage starting out with a lie before the reception ended. “Please don’t be mad. I needed to wait until I had everything in order.”
“In order?”
“Noah, I canceled the tour. I’m goin’ to still write and record, but I’m getting out of my contract. I love to sing, and perform, but not as much as I love being with you. This baby helped me see that. It’s time I learned how to be a wife, and how to cook, because clearly we can’t keep eating at your parents every night.”
He chuckled and leaned forward to kiss me. “I don’t think my mom would mind.”
“So you’re not mad?”
“Shalan, not only did you marry me, but you’ve just given me the best present a man could ask for. I ain’t mad.”
“Merry Christmas, Noah.”
“Merry Christmas, darlin.”
Chapter 10
Noah
Waking up on Christmas day next to my wife was a gift in itself. Placing my hand on her stomach and knowing that a part of me was growing inside of her was a blessing. I’d never in my life felt happier, and I knew we had so much to be thankful for.
It was a Mitchell family tradition to have pancakes at my Gram’s house. After cuddling half the morning away, we got up and dressed to see the family. For once I didn’t care about opening gifts or watching football with the guys. All I wanted to do was crawl back in bed with my wife and talk about everything that life had in store for us.
Breakfast was chaotic, although I think Shalan enjoyed that about our family. Her smile lit up the room, and everyone was so busy talking about the baby that I hardly got a word in edgewise.
I couldn’t stop looking at her, wondering if our child would have her features or mine. As long as he or she was healthy I’d be okay, and even if something was wrong, I knew we’d do whatever that child needed.
This was what my father wanted me to see about staying on the ranch. It was this kind of fulfillment that I couldn’t get anywhere else.
I looked around the room at my family.
My sister Christian was in love. It was hard to imagine what she’d been through not so long ago. Addison, our youngest sibling had enrolled in art classes, and had also been clean for almost three months. She had a long road ahead of her, but we’d help her.
Bells and Rusty were already talking about having another child. My only regret was that they lived so far away.
Even my aunts and uncles, and all of my cousins seemed to be enthralled with contentment, with the exception of Jake. He stood in the corner alone, with a plate in his hand. I couldn’t understand why he was so bitter, but knew he clearly needed to get something off of his chest.
I pulled him outside where no one else could hear us. “Dude, what’s up with you?”
“You promise you won’t say anything to my brother? I mean it, Noah. This stays between us. No pranks or jokes. This is for real.”
I held out my hand. “It’s Christmas. You have my word, Jake. Did you do something wrong? Are you in trouble.”
He looked down at the ground, and I could tell this was serious. “It’s about my brother, well indirectly. You know that girl he brought; the chick, Reese, that he says is the one?”
I nodded. “Does she have a kid? Is she married or somethin?” It was obvious he had a problem with her, and clearly it would have to be something Jax didn’t know.
“I’m in love with her.” He looked right into my eyes after he’d said it. “I’m tryin’ real hard to keep my distance, but it’s not helping. How am I supposed to watch them together when I want it to be me?”
I didn’t know how to answer. “Jesus, Jake. I don’t know. He’s your brother. You can’t…It’s not like you don’t have to see him. You two do everything together. You’ve got to figure this out. It can’t come between you. No matter what.”
Jake nodded. “I think I just needed to tell someone. I’ll be alright. I’ll keep being a dick so she hates me. It’s the only way. I’d never intentionally hurt Jax. You know that.”
“Yeah, I know, cuz. It’ll be okay. You’ll get past it.” I didn’t know if that was the truth, but I had to at least make him feel better. My cousin was in love with his twin brother’s girl. He clearly wasn’t having a good Christmas.
Once I went back inside I found my bride talking to my Gram, and my other grandmother. They were all smiles as they discussed me as a small boy. Shalan was glowing. I winked to let her know I was watching. She blew me a kiss, making me wish we were back in that bed.
Later on, when we were heading back to our house, I pulled her close to me. “We haven’t talked about honeymoons. Is there any place you’d like to go?”
She pointed to the woods in the direction of our house. “I’d like to be locked up in a large cabin for the next few weeks. Do you think we could arrange that, Mr. Mitchell?”
“Oh yeah, I think we can, Mrs. Mitchell.”
The End
Merry Christmas from the Mitchell-Healy’s and have a very Happy New Year.
Look For Jake’s Book In January 2015
Chapter 1
Jake
“Blue, sixty-two hut hut,” Jax yelled as he spun around and lofted the football in my direction. There were eight seconds left in the last quarter to the playoff game, and as the leather ball reached my grasp I clung to it with all I had, racing down the field the remaining sixteen yards. The linebacker gave me a shove when he pushed me, attempting to take me down. In the split second it took me to hit the cold-dirt ground, the crowd was already to their feet. We’d taken the lead and won the game, thanks to the team work of the Mitchell twins, myself included.
Most of our lives had been like this moment. We’d done everything together, spending our childhood growing and learning as if we were one. Jax was my best friend, and in some ways my exact duplicate. No matter what happened he’d have my back, and I would do the same for him. We were inseparable, for lack of a better term, tied at the hip, so our family always said.
That’s what made all of this so incredibly difficult.
While the stands emptied from the fans rushing the field, my teammates were lifting me and my brother up in the air. Our parents were somewhere in the crowd, and other family members, some of which had come from Kentucky to watch us play. We’d spent our whole life in love with the game of football, knowing that it was going to lead us somewhere. It was no surprise considering that our father, and uncle had gotten scholarships for the same thing. It was in our blood.
While watching the ice being dumped on our head-coach, I looked to my left and saw her standing there; the one person who was going to ruin my life. I quickly turned my attention to someone else in the crowd, afraid that Jax would follow my stare and figure it out. For months I’d kept it a secret, avoiding being around him and his girlfriend at all cost.
Her presence left me vulnerable, and as much as I wished I could shake off the feeling, I’d already been unsuccessful more times than I could count. It wasn’t only her beauty, or the way her forehead creases when she smiles. It wasn’t even the way she cared for others around her. It was all of that and then some.
People talk about twins having a connection. It was no secret that Jax and I were close. What was difficult was being his go-to when he wanted to discuss every detail about being with her. I knew more about her than she probably knew about herself, which made it impossible for me to ignore.
It didn’t help that my brother was so pussy whipped. Where we used to go out and party together on weekends, he now would spend alone in her dorm room. We hardly ever hung out, and when we did, she came along. It was easier when we were in public places, like out to dinner, because they weren’t all touchy-feely. As soon as they were behind closed doors all bets were off, and that’s when I had to vacate.
I couldn’t stand seeing them together, so happy, and in love. We’d said that no woman would tame us, at least until we were set with futures. That pact was made with no regrets. We had been keeping up with it for our first two years of college, with little effort. Both of us loved being single, sampling all the fine pieces of ass on the campus. Since we had different tastes, and there was plenty to go around, we’d never been interested in the same chicks. Even if one was questionable, we’d flip for her, or even play rock, paper, scissors. Everything was fine until she transferred to our school.
I’ll never forget the first time I saw her; the day when I knew life was about to change. It was a Tuesday, and even though we weren’t allowed, my brother and I were tossing a ball back and forth in the cafeteria. We did this so often that everyone avoided the trajectory.
In prances this chick wearing the tightest pants to ever exist. The way she walked was so graceful, and for a second I could have sworn I spotted a pretty smile on her face. She swayed her hips as she moved with her food tray across the room. Unknowing our usual tendencies, Reese Miller walked directly in the path of the ball that I’d thrown, only a second before catching a glimpse of her. I tried to call out to save her from the blow, but she wasn’t paying attention to us, on account of having headphones plugged in her ears. After smacking her somewhere on the face, it made contact with her plate of tossed-salad, not to be confused with her real tossed-salad, which my brother has now bragged is an epic adventure. Ranch dressing-covered lettuce attached itself to her hair while she lost her balance and tumbled on the floor, ass first. I watched her shielding her face, and knew she was either embarrassed or in pain.
Maybe things would have been different if Jax was the one to throw the ball. Instead, he’d been the one to help her up, brush her off, and get the bleeding coming from her nose to stop. He whispered in my ear that he had the situation under control, meaning he knew what this kind of treatment would warrant him.
“I’m so sorry.” Apologizing wasn’t going to get me in her good graces, not while a paper towel was keeping the blood from pouring out of her nose.
“Don’t mind him. My brother likes to take extremes when meeting sexy women.” While Jax joked, the crowd of people laughed. I honestly felt horrible about what had happened, but I was outnumbered. Angrily, I shoved out of the entourage and left the cafeteria.
My mind was on that snicker of a smile that I’d caught right before the ball clipped her in the face. Everything about this girl was perfection, and I didn’t even know her name. Since Jax always went for blondes, I felt like he’d dipped into my pot. She never noticed that we were twins, because the moment she saw him everyone in the room disappeared, including yours truly. It was as if he was hooking up with her to spite me, but I knew that couldn’t be possible. We didn’t fight like that, not about women.
At that point in time I didn’t understand why it was bothering me so much. She was just a hot looking piece of ass. There were plenty of those on campus. I shrugged it off as a loss and went on with my day. I didn’t have any inkling that this one chick would come between Jax and I. That was impossible for anyone to do.
Throughout the day, when he didn’t return, I got random texts, most of which were from inside of her dorm room. They even took selfies together, one of him without a shirt. The caption said he was closing in on the deal. I couldn’t explain why, but I felt bitter about it. Sure Jax and I had our own games we played with women. We’d always been popular with the ladies, probably because there were two of us to go around.
Later, he came back to our room bragging he’d gotten her into bed, though they didn’t go all the way. A hint of jealousy struck me when I imagined all the things he’d be able to do with her that I wouldn’t have the opportunity to. We didn’t do sloppy seconds. Jax never slept with chicks I’d hooked up with, and I certainly didn’t want anything to do with the ones he’d taken to bed.
