“Your NCOs might be retired, but they’re still bloody frightening. Now, straighten up. I’m going to redo the last two you pinned. It’s like you were pissed while trying, but I don’t see a bottle anywhere.”
“There’s plenty downstairs,” Jamie muttered, remembering at the last minute not to nervously rub his hands on his pants. “Someone will bring us one if we ask.”
“Getting married with whiskey on your breath is not a good idea. I’m quite certain there are laws against that in your country.”
“We’re metahumans. We can’t get drunk.”
“Shut it. Quit reminding me of what I’m missing out on.”
Jamie rolled his eyes but held himself still as Liam confidently undid a few medals before repinning them in place, finishing the second line off with the Silver Star Medal. Jamie would have preferred to leave that one in its box, simply because he hated how he had earned it, but regulations required him to wear all medals when in dress blues, even for a wedding.
He didn’t really care for the reminder of shooting Kyle that the medal represented. Granted, the award had been bestowed for his actions during the attack on the capital, but taking out the threat had meant hurting Kyle in a way Jamie never, ever wanted to repeat.
“Thank you,” Jamie said, reaching up to palm the double line of medals now hanging heavy on his chest.
Liam stepped back and gave him a critical once-over. “You’ll do.”
Jamie eyed himself in the mirror once more, making sure his uniform was put together correctly, with all seams, stripes, medals, and braids where they should be. His white cap sat on the dresser nearby, though he’d foregone the white cotton gloves. He and Kyle would both wear their uniforms for the wedding ceremony, but they would change into bespoke suits before leaving for the reception. The one Liam had fetched for him when he realized he’d forgotten it was currently hanging in the closet of the borrowed bedroom.
Jamie’s parents had suggested using the White House as the ceremony venue over one in Manhattan or Boston. For security reasons, and a way to keep the guest list on the small side, Jamie and Kyle had agreed. The Rose Garden in late spring was beautiful, and it wasn’t every day that someone got married in the White House. It also meant privacy, with no media allowed, and Washington, D.C. had a wide swath of restricted airspace to ensure no one could disrupt the ceremony from the air.
To be honest, neither of them cared where they got married, just that theydid. They would have put up with the media if they had to, but they didn’t, and Jamie was glad for that.
As for the reception, Jamie had put his foot down when his mother had seemed hellbent on throwing a party for high society rather than her son. He and Kyle had held firm in the face of her insistence, and they ultimately retained sole control over the reception when Charlotte had capitulated.
Katie had ended up scouting venues for them, coming up with a luxury, members-only club in D.C. decorated in an ancient Art Deco style situated on top of a high-rise. The club’s management had been more than willing to open up their establishment for a private event put on by a non-member.
Their wedding day was tightly scheduled, courtesy of Katie and his mother, but Jamie wouldn’t have it any other way. He’d left Kyle with a kiss earlier that morning before heading to the White House to get ready. The next time they saw each other, it would be at the doors leading to the Rose Garden, where they would walk down the aisle together.
Since Jamie’s father couldn’t easily leave without an entourage of security, it had been easier for Jamie to come to his family rather than for them to come to him. Kyle’s family had gone to their home and would ride with him to the White House, escorted by the Secret Service.
The rest of their old team was already on the premises, having arrived for the pre-ceremony refreshment hour at 1400 on the dot. That had been Katie’s idea, leaning in hard to the garden theme. While they had a wedding planner, the woman in question reported to Jamie’s mother and Katie, needing final approval from his former second-in-command for anything. Jamie loved his mother, but it was easier to handle wedding questions if Katie was the one offering him choices.
Speaking of his mother, Jamie glanced over at the old-style door as it swung open on oiled hinges. His mother entered the bedroom in a cloud of designer silk and a subtle hint of expensive perfume. Jamie stepped forward to greet her with a gentle hug. Charlotte looked stunning in a fitted tea-length gown marked by exquisite tailoring. The fascinator she wore sported pearls and diamonds amongst the lace rather than feathers. Her clear blue eyes were full of joy as she looked at him, holding him at arm’s length to take him in as only a mother could.
“Oh, Jamie. Look at you,” Charlotte said, a soft smile on her face. “I honestly never thought I’d see the day you would get married.”
Jamie smiled, refusing to feel anything but joy in the face of a long family history of arguments over him refusing to play things safe. Charlotte had never wanted him to keep fighting even after he had been turned into a metahuman, but Jamie didn’t have it in him to stand down. If he had stayed on the sidelines, he never would have met Kyle, and Kyle was his future, one Jamie refused to ever let go of.
“Leah isn’t ready to get married, so it had to be me this decade,” Jamie said.
Charlotte laughed and took a step back. “She has a boyfriend. We like him, remember?”
“Youlike him and his family. I’m still on the fence.”
“Be nice to him.”
Personally, Jamie didn’t think anybody would be good enough for his little sister. Anthony Schumer treated her like a princess, according to Leah. Her opinion was nice, but that hadn’t stopped Jamie from having Katie hack Anthony’s background so Jamie could be certain the other man was worth his sister’s time.
“I think she’s a little jealous that I’m getting married in the White House and she isn’t.”
Charlotte smiled, the sheen of her lipstick staying put. “She’ll cope.”
Liam chuckled, stepping closer to greet Charlotte with a brief hug and air kisses on each of her cheeks. “You look stunning, as always, Charlotte.”
“As do you, Liam. It’s a shame your parents couldn’t make it, but we are glad you’re here.”
Liam gripped Jamie on the shoulder, giving him a wide grin. “I couldn’t miss Jamie getting married. Barring a national disaster back home, I was going to be here.”
