The Hollow Hills - 15. Chapter 15

Galen

“Oh my God, do you know that there’s a Ferrari parked in front of your house?” James, Caroline’s fiancé, walked into the kitchen with an incredulous look on his face.

Josh looked at him amusedly. “Yeah, that’s Betsey. She belongs to Galen.”

He looked at me, Liam, and Ethan in turn. I raised my hand with a slight wave.

“You named a Ferrari ‘Betsey’?”

“Yup.”

“Well, she’s gorgeous! I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in person before.”

“Thanks. I can take you for a short drive if you have time.”

His face lit up like a kid in a candy store. “Hun?”

Caroline shook her head. “Sorry, but we’re late as it is.”

“We can do it another time,” I said.

The look of disappointment on his face was almost comical. “Man, would I love a car like that for the wedding.”

“I’d be happy to drive you to the wedding in her, if you want.”

He grinned. “Really? How much do you want?”

I scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’d never charge you for something like that.”

“Wow! What do you think, Caroline?”

“I think we need to go before they give our appointment away.”

“Ok, we’ll talk later, Galen. Thanks!” he yelled, as Caroline ushered him out the door.

The wedding was in two weeks and I was really looking forward to it. I loved weddings. I nudged Ethan with my shoulder. “I can’t wait to get you onto the dance floor.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Dance floor? Galen, I’m a horrible dancer.”

“That’s ok. You don’t have to be good. It’s still fun.”

He looked at me skeptically. Josh laughed. “I’m with you, Ethan. I’m not much of a dancer either. Neither is Roger.”

I smiled. It was nice to see them getting along, even if it was only for my sake. It took a lot of coaxing on my part, but Ethan came with me to dinner at the farm every once in a while. There was still tension between Josh and my boyfriend, but they were both making an effort.

Alannah grabbed Liam’s hand and squeezed. “Well, I plan on dragging this one onto the dance floor as much as possible.”

Liam looked chagrined. “Great.”

I laughed, and Liam shot me a look. I knew he’d be secretly elated to get the pretty blonde into his arms as much as possible. I hoped this would be the impetus he needed to finally figure out that the two of them belonged together.

The timing of the wedding couldn’t have been more perfect for me. I had a major court case at the end of the month and would be spending all my time preparing for it. I wasn’t kidding when I said I loved weddings. I had big plans for that night. I wanted to get both Josh and Ethan out on the dance floor, and I wanted that night to be the night I finally let Ethan make love to me. I smiled as I thought about it, and Ethan looked at me strangely.

“What?”

“Nothing. Just thinking about the wedding.”

“You really are a sap, aren’t you?”

I nodded. “Totally.”

Liam laughed. “Are you kidding? Galen’s had his wedding planned since he was eight. He even has his dress picked out.”

I reached over and smacked my snickering cousin on his arm. “Jerk. I do know exactly what kind of tux I want if I ever get married.”

“What? No more dress?” Liam feigned shock.

I scowled. “Knock it off. You know I don’t like that stuff anymore.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “Anymore?”

I turned bright red. “It’s not unusual for boys to like to dress up.” I mumbled.

“Yeah, but most of them stop before they’re ten.” Liam laughed.

I shot him the dirtiest look I could muster. Ethan, Josh, and Alannah all stared at me.

“Please tell me you don’t still do that,” Ethan said.

“No! Oh my God, Liam, I am so kicking your ass! I liked to dress up when I was kid. There’s nothing wrong with that. I don’t do it anymore, so can we just drop it?”

Josh smirked as he went to check the oven, and Liam and Alannah tried unsuccessfully to stifle their snickers. I started to make the salads as I plotted my revenge against my Judas of a cousin.

*****

“Oh my God, is she ok?” I sat up in my kitchen chair at Ethan’s words. I was working on pre-trial paperwork for my big case at the end of the month.

“I don’t know. All I’ve been told is that she was in a car accident, and I needed to get to the hospital.”

“Do you want me to come up there and be with you?”

Ethan paused so long that I checked my phone to make sure we were still connected. “It means a lot to me that you’d ask, but I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything. I’m afraid that I may have to miss the wedding.”

“This is more important. I’ll miss you terribly, though.”

“Yeah. I was really looking forward to it. I’m at the hospital now, so I’ll call you later.”

“Ok. I’ll be thinking of you, E. Bye.”

“Bye, Galen.”

I stood up and headed into the kitchen to make lunch. I needed a break from paperwork and to digest Ethan’s news. I had been excited about the wedding ever since Caroline invited me. I was crushed at the thought of going without Ethan. I’d have to postpone our special night, too.

The news about Ethan’s sister wasn’t good. She would survive; she had a broken leg, but she also suffered internal injuries that required surgery. Ethan confirmed the following morning that he needed to stay with his family and wouldn’t be able to come to the wedding. I reassured him that I understood, and tried not to let my disappointment show in my voice.

I didn’t relish the thought of going by myself. I’d have to watch Liam and Alannah and Josh and Roger together. I picked up my phone and scrolled through my contacts.

“Hey, Jo. What are you doing today?”

“Screwing the missus all day. Ow! Dammit Sally, that hurt! Why?”

“I just talked to E, and he needs to stay with his sister. Want to be my date for the wedding?”

“E’s ok with that?”

“Yeah, he understood.”

“Let me talk with my better half, and I’ll get back to you.”

“Ok.”

“Bye.”

He texted me a little while later saying that he’d love to be my date, but I wasn’t getting any wedding sex. I rolled my eyes and continued working.

*****

I pulled Betsey into James’ driveway, walked to the front door, and knocked. The door opened almost immediately.

“Thanks, cuz.”

“You look great, Galen,” Liam said.

“Thanks. So do you.” I nudged him with my elbow. “I can think of a certain Irish lass who won’t be able to resist your rugged charm.”

He rolled his eyes. “Thanks.” He led me to the kitchen, where a group of guys in tuxes were standing and chatting. A man with hair a little darker than Buck’s was attempting to tie James’ bowtie without much success. He stuck his tongue out and contorted his face in time with the awkward movements of his hands.

“This is ridiculous. You couldn’t have gotten ties that were pre-tied? Who the hell knows how to tie these damn things?”

“You’re just in time, Galen. We have a bit of a bowtie crisis going on,” Liam said.

“Allow me,” I said, stepping in front of James. I flipped his shirt collar up, then took the tie away from his neck and straightened it before putting it back around his neck and tying it properly. I shook my head and made disapproving noises as I took out the handkerchief from his front pocket, refolded it, and then straightened out his cummerbund. “Didn’t they show you guys how to do all this?”

James laughed. “Yeah, but who the hell was paying attention?”

The guys all laughed. I performed the same ritual on all of them. “I think it should be mandatory that weddings include a gay guy with fashion sense.”

Buckskin-hair laughed as I straightened his tie. “Well, I’m gay, but I guess I don’t count because apparently I don’t have fashion sense.”

I winked at him. “Well, I guess we’ll have to revoke your card, then.”

He snickered as I moved on to the final person. I smiled as his gaze travelled up and down my body. I flicked his collar up and tied the bowtie a little slower than I really needed to. The black tux complemented his gray hair perfectly. His brown eyes shone, and the corner of his mouth raised in a slight smile. “You look amazing, Josh.”

“So do you. Is that an Armani suit?”

I nodded. I finished re-folding his handkerchief and tucked it into his pocket before stepping away. “So where’s Roger? I’m looking forward to finally meeting him.”

“He’s going to meet me at the church.”

I nodded. “So is Jody.”

“Jody? Where’s Ethan?”

“He had a family emergency.”

“Oh. I hope everything’s ok.”

“His sister was in a car accident. She’ll be ok, but she was hurt pretty seriously. His whole family is at the hospital.”

“Wow, that’s awful.”

“Yeah.”

We all filed outside, and James and I got into Betsey as the rest of the wedding party piled into a large limousine. I told him all about the car’s operation and history, and he drank it all up like a sponge. I offered to let him drive her in the future, and he was so excited he could barely sit still.

When we arrived at the church, the wedding party filed into the back, and I walked up to Jody, who was waiting in the foyer. He was wearing a dark suit and tie with a white shirt. His black hair was combed neatly, and he was clean-shaven. I smiled. “Damn, Jo. You clean up nice.”

He opened his arms and I embraced him. “You look stunning, babe. You know, one of these days I’m going to leave Sally for you. Especially if you keep looking like that.”

I laughed and looked him in the eyes. “Liar. You know you’ll never give up women.”

“You know me too well. Seriously, babe. You really do look amazing, but I wish you’d worn a less expensive suit. I look like I just walked out of Walmart.”

“No you don’t. You’re a serious piece of arm candy, you know that? Why do you think I asked you?”

“Ha! Because your boyfriend ditched you.”

“Jerk.”

“You know you love me.”

“I know. C’mon, let’s find a good seat.”

Jody kept his arm around me as the usher showed us to our seat. One of the things I loved about Jody was how comfortable he was with his sexuality. He had no qualms about showing his affection for me in public and didn’t give a rat’s ass what people thought about it.

The wedding ceremony was beautiful. Caroline looked stunning. So did Alannah. I cried during the exchanging of vows, and Jody held my hand the entire time. Josh sat in the front row with the other wedding participants. The only difference was that he was alone and looked positively miserable. I wondered where Roger was. My heart ached for both Josh and Ethan.

Jody and I stayed after the ceremony so James could have his picture taken with Betsey. I drove him to the reception and met Jody there. The wedding party had their own tables, but Jo and I were seated near them. We sat through the usual reception rituals of introducing the wedding party and the speeches by the best man and maid of honor before settling down for dinner. The food was great, and I was really enjoying myself with Jo, but I could see that Josh was still alone, and that bothered me. He was putting on a good front, but I knew him well enough to see the disappointment and defeat in his demeanor. I would have given anything to change the look on his face.

After we finished the main course, I excused myself and headed over to Josh’s table. I kissed Alannah on the cheek. “You look so beautiful.”

She smiled. “Thanks. You look pretty handsome yerself.”

“Thanks.” I turned to Josh. “Is anyone sitting here?” I gestured to the chair next to him.

His face clouded momentarily before he shook his head. I sat next to him.

“The ceremony was great, wasn’t it? Caroline and James both looked so gorgeous.”

“Yeah. It was nice.”

“So when do I get to meet Roger?”

Josh sighed and frowned. “He’s not here.”

“I’m sorry, Josh. Work emergency?”

“I have no idea. He never bothered to call, and he’s not returning my messages.”

“That really sucks.”

The look on Josh’s face made me want to envelop him in my arms until all his pain went away. “Yeah, it does.”

I smiled. “If I had known we’d both be stood up, I’d have taken you as my date.”

Josh smiled back. “I’d have liked that.”

The waitstaff began serving dessert, so I returned to my table. Jody put his arm around me. “Everything ok?”

“Roger stood Josh up. He’s really upset.”

“That sucks.”

“Yeah.”

The DJ started playing dance music as we ate our dessert. After the obligatory ‘first dances’ from the wedding party, “I’m Sexy and I Know It” started blaring from the speakers. I stood and removed my suit coat before rolling up my sleeves. I grinned at Jody and pulled him onto the dance floor. Not that he was complaining. He loved to dance as much as I did. We put on quite the show, gyrating and moving in time to the beat and the lyrics. A circle of whistling, clapping guests formed around us, encouraging us every step of the way. It wasn’t long before the dance floor was filled with bodies dancing to the pulsating beat. We danced for several songs before I needed a break. Jody and I grinned at each other as the music faded.

“One more fast song, then it’s time to slow it down for our first slow dance of the evening, so get your dance partners ready!” As the DJ played another fast, popular song, I walked to my table and gulped down my glass of water.

“Ye’re a great dancer, love. You and Jody are something out there,” Alannah said.

“Thanks. I love dancing. Jamie and I used to drag Jody and Liam with us when we went out to the clubs in college. Liam didn’t take to it like Jody did, I’m afraid.”

Alannah laughed. “That’s ok. I made it perfectly clear he’s dancing the slow songs with me.”

I winked. “Believe me, there’s nowhere else he’d rather be.” I glanced at the table next to me. Josh was talking to a woman in a black dress. I smiled and set my glass down. “Excuse me…I’ve been waiting for this moment all night.”

I walked up to Josh and held my hand out, bending slightly at the waist. “May I have the honor of this dance?”

His companion smiled and smoothed her dress. “Oh, I’d be delighted!”

Josh smiled and took my hand. The woman in the black dress looked chagrined as he stood, and we walked to the dance floor hand-in-hand. The music faded and blended into “Unchained Melody”.

“I don’t know how to dance,” Josh said.

“That’s ok. You don’t have to.” I placed his right hand on my waist and mirrored the movement. I rested my hand on his shoulder and he followed suit. We moved slowly, in time with the music. It felt so right having him in my arms. I moved my hand from his shoulder to the back of his neck, snaking my fingers up into his hair. We had stepped closer to each other, so now our bodies were pressed together. I turned my head slightly and mouthed the words to the song as my eyes started to fill with moisture.

“You really do look amazing, Josh.”

“So do you, Galen.”

I pulled him even closer to me and rested my head on his shoulder. I knew in that moment that I’d been lying to myself when I thought I could just be his friend. A tear ran down my face as I listened to the words of the song and held the man I loved.

I made a vow to myself as I swayed gently in Josh’s arms. I was determined to fight for him, if I had to. He deserved someone who didn’t stand him up on a routine basis and would cherish him for the incredible man he was.

The music reached its crescendo as the singer belted out the final words of the song. I closed my eyes and a shiver ran through my body as Josh shifted his weight and his hand found the bare skin of the nape of my neck.

The music faded and we stood, holding each other for another minute into the next song. I don’t think either one of us wanted the moment to end. I moved my hand to the side of his face, feeling the roughness of his faint stubble. My lips touched his cheek as I spoke. “I never want to let you go.”

His arms briefly tightened around me. “I don’t want you to,” he whispered.

I smiled and dragged my lips lightly across his cheek to whisper in his ear, “Thank you.” I blinked the tears away and stepped away from Josh, walking quickly back to my table. I grabbed a glass of wine and drank it in about two gulps.

Jody placed his hand on my shoulder. “Everything ok, babe?” He had a worried look on his face and glanced in the direction of the exit.

I nodded. “Yeah. No. I don’t know. I need more wine.” I started to walk toward the bar, but Jo stopped me.

“No, you don’t. C’mon. You love this song.” He dragged me back out onto the dance floor.

The rest of the evening was a blur. I danced with Jody and Alannah, but not with Josh again. I kept stealing glances at Josh every chance I could. Whenever he caught me looking at him, he would get a curious half-smile on his face, then look away. Liam and Alannah danced every slow song together, and it made my heart happy to finally see them in a romantic light. I managed to make it to the bar enough times that Jody had to drive me home and help me into bed. It wasn’t enough to make me forget how I’d betrayed Ethan, or how much I loved Josh.