Devotion

17

Friday

"Penny!" Bee yelled as she jumped off a chair and tossed Mason the streamers. She ran over and threw her arms around me. "Why didn't you call me? I was so worried about you. I left you like a hundred texts."

It was so good to see her. I had convinced myself I had lost her friendship. I immediately hugged her back. "I just...I thought if James broke up with me..."

"What? That I wouldn't be your friend anymore? Are you crazy?" She held me at arm's length. "Penny, you're one of my best friends. No matter what."

"Thanks, Bee."

"I can't believe you didn't think you could talk to me." She hugged me again. "I'm always here for you. Always."

I couldn't help it. I had felt so alone last night and this morning. To know that the friends I thought I lost were still my friends made the tears flow again. My chosen family was still choosing me back. I was so full I couldn't help but burst.

"Welcome back, Penny." I felt Mason's hand on my back.

Bee released me from her hug so I could look up at Mason. "Thanks, Mason. I'm sorry I hung up on you this morning. I didn't want to walk away. I didn't..."

He laughed. "I know that. I was trying to guilt trip you."

I wiped underneath my eyes. "Well it worked. You know me so well."

"Don't cry, Penny." He leaned down and hugged me hard. "Just for the record though, I'll always have your back."

"I know. And thanks for being with James last night when I couldn't be."

"I would never let anything happen to him either. Family, Penny." He patted my back and released me from his hug. He gave me a warm smile that just made me cry even more.

How did I get this lucky?

"Don't make her cry again," James said. "I'm pretty sure she's already dehydrated."

"Yeah, because of you, asshole," Mason said and tossed the roll of streamers at him. He winked at me.

"Why was no one on my side last night?" James said.

"Because you're an i***t," Rob said. He patted James' shoulder as he walked over to me. "Told ya you'd be back in time," he said to me with a smile.

"Thanks for everything, Rob." I stood on my tiptoes as I threw my arms around his neck.

"That's what family is for."

"You know what I mean," I whispered in his ear. "For being there when you didn't have to be."

"That's what family is for," he said again and kissed my cheek. "And you're super hot when you've been walking around in the rain."

"Rob!" I laughed as I released his neck and lightly punched his shoulder. "I heard you're dating someone."

He smiled. "I'm assuming James told you that?"

"Mhm. Why didn't you?"

"Because you were upset last night. I didn't think it was the right time to brag about my new relationship. Especially when you were convinced that you weren't part of the family anymore. Which was ridiculous."

"You look happy."

He smiled. "I am. She's...really something."

"Is she coming tonight?"

"Yeah. I mean, if that's okay. James said..."

"Of course it's okay. I can't wait to meet her."

"I think you're going to like her."

"Does this mean you aren't going to say super inappropriate things about me anymore?" I made a pouty face.

Rob laughed. "No one can stop me from doing that. It's our thing."

"Our thing?"

"Yeah, our thing. I say hilarious stuff and you pretend to be upset about it."

I laughed. "Right." I laughed again as James wrapped his arms around me from behind.

"We have an hour before we have to be at the rehearsal, so we need to finish this in forty minutes," Bee said and clapped her hands.

"Where's Matt?" I asked.

"He went to go buy more streamers," Bee said. "Can you try to get a hold of Melissa? We could really use her help. She's not returning any of my texts. And Jen should be here any minute. Ian left like an hour and a half ago to go pick her up. I'm not sure what's taking them so long."

"Okay, I'll give Melissa a call. What else do you want us to do?"

Bee smiled. "Go get ready. Relax. We got this." She picked up a roll of streamers off the ground.

"Come with me," James whispered in my ear. He grabbed my hand and led me toward the stairs. As I walked up the stairs, I glanced over my shoulder at my friends decorating our apartment. Yes, I was lucky. And I was so happy to be home.

James lead me into our bedroom and then the bathroom. He dropped my hand and pulled his shirt off.

"I should call Melissa. She'll want to know what's going on."

"Not right now." He turned on the shower.

"James, we should really be helping them decorate. And making sure everything's set for tonight."

"We can do all that. But first, we both need a shower. We need to relax. We need to unwind from earlier." He grabbed the bottom of my dress and pushed it up my thighs.

I lifted my arms in the air as he pulled it the rest of the way off.

"Besides," he said and kissed the side of my neck. "Our friends have got it covered." He unhooked my bra and pushed my thong down my hips.

"What about Officer Kemp? And your investigator? And..."

He put his finger to my lips. "We're getting married tomorrow. Let's just take this one moment to focus on that." He pushed his shorts and boxers to the floor and stepped into the shower.

I bit my lip. I did need to shower. And get ready. And about a million other things in forty minutes. I laughed as he grabbed my arm and pulled me in after him. I looked up at his handsome features, covered in the cascading water. A smile was planted on his face.

"I can't wait to marry you."

"I can't wait either." I placed my hands on the scruff on his cheeks. "Thank you for coming after me. Thank you for fighting for us."

"Wherever you are, I am. I'll always fight for us. Close your eyes, baby."