There was excitement in the air when all the guests arrived and they moved into the venue. Sienna came over with Lucas and her children, Adrian and Alexia. A heavily pregnant Eva and Alexander enjoyed the walks on the beach, mornings and evenings. A pregnant Alyssa came over with Nicholas, who never left a chance to irk Alexander with his pranks. Those two would never change! Amidst all their friends, Skylar was the most reserved, and they had no idea about her relationship with Christian. When asked, she just winked and walked away.
“When are they marrying?” asked Sienna in a whisper. Although she was the first one to know about such things, she was clueless about where Skylar was concerned.
“Don’t know!” said Alyssa, watching Skylar interact with Christian on the beach. It didn’t look like a lovey-dovey situation between them!
“Let’s make this our mission, girls! We have to find out!” said Sienna, and they agreed immediately.
They tried on their bridesmaid dresses and admired Hayley’s wedding dress that Ashton’s mom bought for her. “This looks so beautiful on you, Hails! It reminds me of my wedding,” said Sienna, adjusting her look.
“What are we wearing for the bridal shower party tonight?” asked Eva. They sorted their dresses for the party in the evening, giggling and teasing one another. With something or the other happening every day, Hayley was always surrounded by her friends and family. Ashton, however, snatched her away whenever he could to catch moments with her. Hayley was glad that he took leave from work for a week and spent time with everyone.
Alexander looked much more relaxed after getting time off from his new venture to catch up with his friends. Whenever he could, he grabbed hold of poor Nicholas for a lecture. Nicholas didn’t mind and listened to him intently. Their relationship was so melodramatic that it entertained the girls all the time. Lucas, on the other hand, preferred Christian’s company, and they mostly stayed away from parties and get-togethers.
Ashton pampered their parents and other guests with sightseeing trips, exotic meals from their hotel, and spa treatments. It endeared him more to them, and they considered extending their stay.
“Are you selling this place, Ashton?” asked Aunt Carol.
“No, Aunt Carol. I’ll be developing this into a hotel after our New York Hotel is ready.”
“Wow! I’ll be your first guest when it’s built. I love the location,” said Aunt Carol.
“You don’t need to wait that long. You can stay here whenever you come over to Miami.”
“We will all stay here whenever we come over to Miami,” said a relative, and Ashton’s eyes widened with horror.
“I won’t be staying for free, Ashton. I’ll pay the Baylor Group for their hospitality,” said Aunt Carol, to remind everyone that it wasn’t up for charity.
“Yes. I was about to remind you that,” said Uncle Chris. It was enough to quieten everyone.
The pre-wedding bash was a pool party, and they all enjoyed it to the maximum. “We should do this every three months or our children will never know one another,” suggested Hayley.
“We can come over to this place. I love it here,” said Sienna.
“The Baylor Group has a mansion in Orlando. The kids will love the Disneyland experience there,” said Hayley.
“Wow! So our next get-together can be there in Orlando. Maybe I’ll pop out my baby by then,” said Alyssa.
“Oh, you have seven more months to go. Eva will be the next to pop out her baby,” said Skylar.
“When will you marry and get pregnant?” asked Sienna. Skylar rolled her eyes and winked, and went away, leaving them gaping after her.
“She winked again and escaped. Did you see?” whispered Sienna.
Ashton whisked Hayley away before she could discuss the interesting topic further.
“I have something for you, love.” He led her upstairs to their bedroom.
“What is it?” she asked, walking into the en-suite to unwrap the towel and shower. She wasn’t interested in returning to the pool and would head straight to the patio, where a sumptuous dinner would be served in an hour.
Ashton came up behind her and opened a pouch containing a beautiful chain, but it was the sparkling pendant that caught her attention. It contained the letters A and H entwined around a diamond-encrusted heart. A gasp of pure astonishment escaped her mouth.
“It’s so enchanting, Ashton!” He smiled, satisfied to see her reaction, and clasped it around her neck.
“It’s my wedding gift to you, babe! Will you wear it tomorrow?”
Hayley turned around and pecked at his lips. “Yes, I will. I’ll wear it all the time.” Ashton grabbed her and deepened the kiss. Who needed a peck when he was dying to make love? Last night she had slept with her girl gang while he had to sleep with the men. Nicholas kept on bothering them with his dirty, filthy jokes and they had a tough time controlling their laughter. But tonight he wouldn’t let Hayley go anywhere. With the wedding happening the next evening, they didn’t need to wake up early at the crack of dawn.
“I have something for you too, Ashton.” She smiled secretively and went to her closet to get her gift. Ashton followed with a curious smile on his face. What would she give him? She took out a box while Ashton waited patiently.
“This is a good luck bracelet that will bring you money, success and protect you as well.” She clamped on a powerful Tigers Eye gold bracelet around his wrist.
“Wow! Do you really believe in this?” he asked, gazing at the expensive piece of jewelry.
“Yes, wear it and see the results to believe in it. I have another gift as well, but you need to close your eyes first.”
Ashton closed his eyes while his heart thumped with excitement. What else would she give him? She placed an envelope in his hands, much to his surprise.
“You can open your eyes now, Ashton,” she said softly. Ashton opened his eyes and stared at the white blank envelope. What could it contain?
“What’s this?”
“See for yourself.” He opened the flap and took out a folded sheet of paper. Unfolding it, he read the contents with surprise. It was her ultrasound report stating that she was expecting twin boys!
“Wow! I’m so happy, Hayley! This is the greatest gift of my life!” He picked her up in his arms and kissed her deeply.
“Let’s shower and get dressed for dinner. Do you want to keep our boys hungry?”
“We have to think of their names soon,” said Ashton, discarding his towel and swimming trunks.
“I have thought of Asher and Hayden. You can come up with yours.”
“No, I like Asher and Hayden. I’m bad at baby names.” They bathed one another and soon it turned so hot that they needed a quick release before heading off to the dinner table.
The next day, it was a roller-coaster ride for all of them. Although the wedding had been planned on the beach two hours before sunset, they didn’t get a moment of respite. “No first look! The sun will set if we allow you a first look,” scolded Sienna while they all chuckled.
Ashton stole a kiss before they bundled Hayley into the bridal suite to get her ready. The attendants fixed her hair and make-up while the girls fussed over her dress and veil. Finally, she was ready in a Swarovski studded wedding gown with a sweetheart illusion neckline with the skirt draping all around her in swirling folds. She looked like a princess straight from the movies! Amongst the expensive jewelry was Ashton’s beautiful pendant, which stood out as a symbol of love.
“Gosh! You’re looking so beautiful that I could have married you if I were a guy!” gasped Alyssa, who had become as melodramatic as her husband.
“Thank God you’re not. I’m happy marrying Ashton Pierce. After all, he pierced his way into my heart at first sight!” They all chuckled and then eyed the next target, Skylar. With everyone bursting with curiosity, they nudged one another to ask her directly.
“Now with all of us married, I can’t wait for the last wedding of our group,” said Eva, pushing the ball into the court. The others instantly took the hint.
“Yeah, only Skye’s wedding is left,” said Hayley.
“So when are you planning to marry Skye?” asked Sienna while they all waited impatiently for her answer. This time, they wouldn’t let her wink and escape. She flashed them a grin and a wink. Just then, Aunt Carol walked in to take Hayley to the altar, and Skylar managed to slip away. The girls eyed one another with frustration.
“You’re looking so grown up and beautiful, sweetie. Your dad’s waiting outside for you.” After a few minutes, they all followed her to the beach where Ashton was waiting impatiently for her, looking dashing, in a beige tuxedo. Time stood still for both of them as realization dawned on them. It was finally happening. They were about to unite as one! It was like a dream come true. Hayley smiled at the only man she had ever loved and he smiled back at her, his eyes holding promises of a beautiful life together.
While they gazed at one another, the girls again grabbed hold of Skylar.
“Are you marrying Christian or not, Skye?” asked Sienna while they watched the amusement in Skylar’s eyes.
“I’m already married to him, guys!” she said with a laugh, leaving them gaping after her!