Riding Tall: Fencing You In Part 24

Harvey walked through the door and it sc.r.a.ped shut behind him. He was carrying a white bottle down the stairs and Gage saw that it was drain cleaner. The gun was sticking out of his pocket.

With a grin, Harvey raised the bottle. "You'll drink this as soon as I'm finished with taking Tess in front of you. And you will drink it-I'll kill her if you don't." He looked at Tess. "No blood then, right babe?"

As Harvey looked at Tess, Gage made his move. With everything he had, ignoring every bit of pain in his body, he charged Harvey.

Harvey looked surprised. He dropped the bottle of drain cleaner and reached for the pistol.

Just as Harvey grasped the gun, Gage was on top of him. He felt something in his own shoulder give as he grabbed Harvey's arm and slammed his wrist against the concrete floor.

Bone snapped in Harvey's wrist and he screamed as the pistol flew from his grip.

Black dotted Gage's vision as he and Harvey rolled toward the gun that was now near Tess's feet.

Just as Harvey reached for the gun with his good hand, Tess brought her foot back and kicked him in the face.

Harvey screamed again and blood gushed from his nose and his lip split.

Gage's head swam as he grasped the gun. He whipped it around and put the barrel against Harvey's temple.

The man went still.

"You're right. It is snake shot," Gage said. "And you're the snake."

"Don't kill me." Harvey's expression crumpled. "I don't want to die."

"But you were ready to kill me and possibly both of us." Gage kept the pistol to Harvey's head. "Why shouldn't I get rid of you?"

"I'm sorry." Harvey was sobbing. "Please don't."

"Let's get up real slow." Gage didn't lessen his pressure on the gun barrel, praying he had the strength to get up himself while not showing any sign of weakness. Harvey and Gage got to their feet at the same time. He stood to Harvey's side so that Tess wouldn't be in the way if Gage had to shoot Harvey.

"Face the wall," Gage told Harvey. When he turned, Gage raised the gun and slammed the b.u.t.t down on the back of Harvey's head.

Harvey went down, hard. Wary, Gage rolled Harvey onto his back. The man was out cold.

"We can use these." Tess stood by him, holding her cuffs and the ones that had been on the pipe.

While Gage kept the gun trained on Harvey, Tess snapped the cuffs on his ankles. They managed to drag the man to the bed and cuffed his wrists to a metal bedpost.

Gage pulled his cell phone out of the holster at his belt. He tried to dial the number for the police. "No service," he said.

"Probably because it's a bunker." Tess pointed up. "We just need to get up there."

"I don't think I can get up these stairs," Gage said. His body was starting to give out on him.

"I'll do it." Tess put on the torn dress. Despite her protests, Gage struggled out of his b.u.t.ton-up s.h.i.+rt, being as careful as he could with his shoulder, and handed the s.h.i.+rt to her to wear over what was left of the dress. "When Harvey comes to, we can get the door code from him," she said.

As they stood in the center of the room, waiting for Harvey to come around, Tess flung her arms around Gage's neck. "I love you, Gage." A sob was in her voice. "I don't want to live without you."

"I love you, too, Tess." He felt no pain in his body as he held her close, only a love so deep that it filled him with renewed strength.

She leaned back and kissed him so hard that she took his breath away. He kissed her in return with so much pa.s.sion that he didn't think either one of them would ever let go.

When they finally drew apart, tears were rolling down her cheeks. "I love you, love you, love you, Gage McBride."

He grinned. "I love you more."

She smiled. "Not possible."

He hugged her again and held her for a long, long time.

Chapter 38.

Gage stood beside his brother, Ryan, as his best man while Tess was on the opposite side of Megan as her maid of honor. Gage's gaze wasn't on the bride or the groom. He couldn't take his eyes off of Tess.

She looked as radiant as a bride herself with her short, glossy blonde curls pulled back away from her face, a delicate blush to her cheeks and wearing a royal blue bridesmaid's dress. She had an inner glow that lit up the room. Between her and Megan they didn't need any lights in the small church.

A month after the ordeal, Tess was holding up well. She'd worked through what had happened with the help of a counselor and Tess said she believed she had fully recovered.

Gage couldn't help but feel protective over her. He'd never wanted to kill anyone in his life until Harvey had taken Tess. Thank G.o.d Harvey hadn't done more than he had, which had been bad enough.

Megan and Ryan exchanged their vows but Gage barely heard them. The next thing he knew, the groom was kissing the bride.

Jenny led the way back down the aisle, tossing pink flower petals as she walked, a cute grin on her precious little face. She wore a pretty velvet and satin dress in the same colors as the bridesmaid dresses and her own blonde hair was in corkscrew curls around her face. Barry, the cla.s.s bear, sat in the basket as she tossed flowers. It was her turn to have the bear and she was taking him everywhere, including her aunt's wedding.

The bride and groom walked arm and arm and then Tess and Gage moved together to follow Megan and Ryan. Tess looked up at Gage and smiled as he took her arm. Her smile did amazing things to his gut, sending sparks of lightning through him like he'd never felt before.

Behind Tess and Gage the ushers and bridesmaids followed as they headed out of the church. With all five McBride brothers and four bridesmaids and the bride, they made a long procession.

The afternoon was filled with greeting family and friends, posing for pictures, followed by toasts, eating, drinking, and dancing. The entire time, Gage wouldn't let Tess out of his sight and couldn't wait to get her alone.

When the new husband and wife had escaped to leave on their honeymoon to Cancun, Gage drove Tess and Jenny back to their house.

"Is it time?" Jenny asked Gage when they walked into the house and Tess had kicked off her shoes and set her purse on the dining room table.

He nodded. "It's time."

Jenny jumped up and down and clapped her hands before running to her room, still holding Barry by one paw.

"Time for what?" Tess tilted her head to the side.

He just grinned at her and her gaze turned suspicious.

Jenny returned, running back to stand beside Gage. She carried a big poster board folded in half in one hand, Barry in her other. She looked up at him and he nodded, and she set Barry down.

Tess looked from her daughter to Gage, wondering what the pair of them were up to. Jenny looked like she could hardly contain herself, and Gage had a silly grin on his handsome face.

"Go ahead," he said to Jenny and she opened the big poster board.

The pink poster had sparkly letters, flowers, hearts, and glitter all over it. Tess read the words slowly.

Will you marry me, Tess?

Love, Gage and Jenny Tess put her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide as she looked from Gage to her daughter and back. Gage held something in his hand and he knelt in front of her. He opened his hand and on his palm was a diamond solitaire. The look in his eyes was intense, loving.

"Please, Mommy?" Jenny said and Tess half laughed and half cried.

She knelt in front of Gage and Jenny and lowered her hand. Her eyes filled with happy tears.

"Yes." She nodded and flung her arms around Gage and Jenny. "Yes, I'll marry you."

"Yay!" Jenny grinned as she moved aside and bounced up and down. "Now I'll be able to call you new-Daddy instead of new-Uncle."

Gage brought Tess to her feet. He slid the ring on her finger then wrapped her in his embrace and kissed her gently.

"Are you kissing the bride?" Jenny asked.

Gage and Tess laughed. "Yes," Gage said. "But we'll have a wedding like Aunt Megan's and you can be our flower girl." He turned to Tess "If all of that is okay with you."

"It's amazing." Tess kissed him again before hugging Jenny to her. "How long have you two been planning this?"

"Forever." Jenny nodded emphatically.

"Since last night." Gage grinned. "While you were at Megan's getting ready for the wedding, Jenny and I got together and made the poster."

"He asked me if it was okay if he married you," Jenny said solemnly. "I said yes."

"I'm glad you did." Tess couldn't stop smiling, her heart wouldn't stop pounding so fast that it throbbed against her breastbone. "I love you, sweetheart." She hugged Jenny tightly.

"I love you, Mommy," Jenny said with a broad smile.

When Tess rose to stand again, Gage put his arms around her. "I love you, Tess. G.o.d, but I love you."

Tess smiled at him. "I love you so much."

A small form squeezed in between them and wrapped her arms around them as high as she could. "I love you both."

Gage settled his arms around both their shoulders. "My two favorite girls." He leaned down and kissed Jenny on top of the head and then kissed Tess on the lips. "A man couldn't ask for anything more."

"Do we have to wait as long as Aunt Megan and Uncle Ryan did?" Jenny asked. "Can't we get married now?"

Tess grinned at Jenny's use of "we." Tess met Gage's eyes. "What do you say?"

He grinned in return. "I say you have a very smart little girl."

Chapter 39.

Jo volunteered to fly to Las Vegas with Gage and Tess as a witness and to watch over Jenny when the pair took off for their honeymoon. Tate went along as a witness, too.

The wedding was held in a small chapel off of the Las Vegas Strip. Jenny twirled around and threw silk flower petals all over the chapel, not just down the aisle, after Gage and Tess said their vows and "I do's".

When they stood outside the chapel, Tess's heart was almost too full to speak as she looked at her new husband and her daughter.

"Can I pleaaaaase go on the honeymoon with you?" Jenny looked up with Tess and Gage with big blue pleading eyes.

Gage crouched in front of Jenny. "When your mom and I get back, we'll all three go somewhere special."

Jenny looked doubtful. "Somewhere more fun than going on a giant s.h.i.+p?"

He nodded. "When we get back from the cruise, we're going to Disneyland."

Her eyes got big and her mouth opened. "To see Mickey and Minnie and Belle and Ariel and Cinderella and Goofy and Donald Duck and-"

With a grin, Gage tugged on a lock of Jenny's hair. "Yes. Your mom and I wanted to surprise you."

Jenny clapped her hands, her eyes bright with excitement. "How long before you come back so we can go?"

"One week," Tess said.

Jenny looked like she was contemplating it for a moment. Then she gave a big smile and threw her arms around Gage and then Tess and hugging each of them tightly.

When she drew away, Jenny looked at Gage seriously. "Can I call you Daddy now?"

Warmth went through Tess's chest and she saw Gage's look of surprise and then his broad grin. "Yes, you can."

"I love you, Daddy." Jenny hugged Gage again and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I have two daddies now. An angel daddy and you."

A tear escaped from Tess's eye. "Yes, you do," Tess said as she smiled at her daughter.

Tess thought she saw a tear in Gage's eye, too. "I love you, Jenny," he said and kissed her cheek in return.

The three of them huddled together in one giant hug and Tess couldn't imagine ever being happier than she was at that very moment.