Three and a half hours later I was dressed in a suit and standing beside Link, Havoc, and Wasp at the front of theJoni Earl Great Hall. We were waiting for Jake to signal that Emily was ready, so we could get the ceremony over with and get on to the celebration. I’d never worn a suit before, and it had to be the most uncomfortable thing I’d ever put on. I’d rather wear my combat uniform in the stinking desert than this. I couldn’t wait to get back into my jeans and T-shirt.
“You got the rings?” Link asked Havoc.
A vein throbbed in Havoc’s forehead. This had to be the fifth time I’d heard the president ask that question in the past five minutes. Havoc handled Link’s anxiety better than I would have, patting his suit pocket and patiently replying, “Got ’em.”
Link wore a hole in the floor, pacing back and forth as he stared at the back of the room. If Emily wasn’t ready soon, we might have to liquor him up so he didn’t drive us all to drink.
“I’m sure he hasn’t lost the damn rings since the last time you asked, Prez,” Wasp replied, adding his unnecessary two cents. Two years in the club and he still hadn’t learned not to poke the bear. “What’s wrong? You having second thoughts? Ready tohock the rings and head to Vegas? You’re not turning into a yellowbelly on us, are you?”
“Fuck off, Wasp,” Link growled. Then he apologized to the preacher standing behind us.
“That’s quite all right,” the preacher said, gesturing toward the back of the room where Link’s father, Jake, was waving like a mad man. “Looks like the ladies are ready for you, though.”
Link stopped pacing and clasped his hands behind his back. Havoc, Wasp, and I walked under the barrel-vaulted ceilings with inset lights, past the rows of padded chairs full of family and friends, toward the black and white mosaic dance floor.
As we reached the back of the building, Jayson hurried out of the dressing room. Wearing an emerald green suit, he looked like some comic book villain rather than the man of honor at a biker wedding. He took Havoc’s arm, and the two of them headed up the aisle.
Naomi emerged next and my jaw dropped at the sight of her. Some complicated hairdo exposed the slender lines of her neck, begging for my lips. She wore makeup and jewelry and her sleeveless, floor-length dress hugged every inch of her curves, softening her up.
It was hard to believe that two days ago she’d taken a wrench to Zombie. She looked far too classy for that.
“Eagle,” she said by way of greeting, giving me a tight smile. Her high heels put her just under my height, and her clean, slightly sweet scent enveloped me as she walked past.
Wasp grinned at me and offered her his arm. “Damn, Naomi, you clean up nice,” he said, ogling her.
I wanted to poke his eyeballs out.
“Um. Yes,” Naomi replied, looking a little stiff.
Chuckling, he took her up the aisle while I fought the urge to march right up after them.
“Hi, Eagle,” Julia said, startling me.
Havoc’s woman was a gorgeous redhead who came from money and you could tell by the way she held herself and dressed, but she sure as hell didn’t act like some rich snob. Julia was down-to-earth, and from what I’d heard, she knew her way around a shotgun and wasn’t someone you wanted to piss off. It had taken her two tries, but she’d finally planted her ex-husband’s cheating ass in the ground.
“Hi Julia. You look beautiful,” I said. She did, too. Havoc was a lucky man.
“Thank you.” Smiling, she slid her arm in mine, and I escorted her up the aisle.
Naomi released Wasp’s arm, and then stood beside Jayson, turning to watch me and Julia, but she wouldn’t meet my gaze.
“She’s stunning,” Julia whispered.
Knowing I’d been caught staring, I looked over the crowd and played dumb. “Who?”
Julia just shook her head and smiled. Havoc was glaring at me. Not wanting to get on the Sergeant at Arms’ bad side, I picked up the pace and deposited Julia next to Naomi, who still wasn’t looking at me, nodded to Link, and took my spot beside Wasp.
Emily’s parents had died when she was young, and her grandfather had passed a few years ago, so she had Jake, Link’s dad, walk her up the aisle. Jake was grinning like a fool as he kissed her cheek and gave her away to his son.
The preacher talked about marriage and vows were exchanged, but I had a hard time paying attention to any of it with Naomi standing across the aisle looking like a fucking siren. I knew I was openly gawking at her, but I couldn’t force myself to look away. My entire body homed in on her, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
Everyone cheered as Link dipped Emily and kissed her thoroughly. By the time he let her up for air, her cheeks were rosy and her lips were swollen. The whole place erupted as he picked her up and carried her down the aisle.
We all followed the happy couple, going straight to the bar. I needed a glass of whiskey like I needed my next breath. Loosening my tie, I leaned against the bar and placed my order.
“Make that two,” Naomi said, crowding in beside me.
“Hey,” I said.
