Chapter 16

CHAPTER

SIXTEEN

A bigail Young could stand inside the circle of her husband’s arms forever and die a happy woman. She’d given her three younger children a stern lecture about acting appropriately at their older brother’s wedding, and the last time she’d checked, Melissa had Carver and Pippa sitting at a table with Gabe and Hilde’s children.

So she’d taken this opportunity to dance with Tex, something they didn’t get to do as often as she’d like. “We should do more date nights,” she said, causing him to lower his chin to get his ear closer to her mouth.

“Yeah?” he asked. “Would you go out with me?” The sexy rumble of his voice made her insides quiver, and Abby smiled against his shoulder.

“Always,” she whispered, and Tex kneaded her closer. She’d watched Bryce and Codi lead everyone onto the dance floor, and the Youngs certainly knew how to throw and participate in a party. Everyone—every single one of Tex’s brothers—had brought their wives out onto the floor, and Codi’s brothers had done the same.

With Kassie and Reggie here, and Harry with his date-not-girlfriend, Belle, Bryce and Codi had some people their own age too.

Abby would have to give up Tex in a few minutes, as Kassie had come to say the parents’ dance would be happening soon. She knew the familiar refrain to listen for—as Bryce had chosen one of Country Quad’s songs for the dance.

Then Codi would dance with her daddy and Tex, and Bryce would dance with Abby…and his mother. No, he hadn’t known if Corrie would come to the wedding until today, but they’d planned for him to dance with her for the whole dance if she didn’t.

Abby didn’t truly mind sharing Bryce with Corrie. That wound needed to heal, and she’d gladly give the two of them a chance to mend things between them if she could.

The song ended, but Tex didn’t step back until he heard the first few chords of the song he’d written with Otis. Trace played this opening, as he did for a lot of Country Quad’s songs, and that caused Tex to straighten and glace around. “I think…yep.”

Abby squeaked as Tex spun her, relieved to find Bryce standing there waiting. He took her into his arms as easily as his daddy did, his smile wide and perfect and handsome on his newly-married face .

“Hey,” he said quietly.

“Hey, yourself.” She clung to him and tried to find any unrest inside him. “It’s been a beautiful day.”

Only she and him, and Codi and her daddy, danced now, with plenty of eyes watching them. Nerves struck Abby, and she wanted Bryce to say something.

He finally looked down at her. “Yeah,” he said. “So far, things have gone great.”

“So far? You worried about something?”

“I think I’m just partied out.”

“You’ll be okay dancing with your mom?”

“Should be.” He spoke the words without a trace of emotion in his tone, but his jaw tightened, and Abby had gotten very good at reading Bryce’s non-verbal cues to figure out how he really felt.

“I saw you with Bailey.”

“One dance,” he said. “Codi wanted to dance with OJ.”

“It was sweet.”

“She’s doing good,” Bryce said.

Abby nodded and looked over his bicep to find Tex approaching Codi. Abby’s heart filled with love over and over again for the good cowboy and all those he’d brought into her life. He radiated so much goodness and love, and Abby simply liked to bask in it.

She also moved away from Bryce, but his mother hadn’t come out onto the dance floor the way Tex had.

Panic reared inside Abby, and she cursed herself for acting a little prematurely. She should’ve stayed in Bryce’s arms until Corrie had arrived .

Not only that, but Abby couldn’t even see her anywhere. The faces on the sidelines blurred, and Abby couldn’t quite get a full breath. Someone touched her lower back, and she nearly jumped out of her skin.

But it was just Bryce, and as she looked at him, finally seeing a face, she found him frowning mightily. “Where is she?” he asked. “I know she got the same memo as the rest of us about this dance.”

Bryce stood there, also surveying the crowd at his own wedding, and Abby wanted to rage at the woman who could cut him so deeply. “Let’s just?—”

She cut off as Corrie pushed through the crowd, a measure of panic on her face too. “Sorry,” she said loudly as she came toward Bryce in her heels and pretty, pale blue mother’s dress. It glinted with gems and jewels, and she glanced at Abby. “I was having Melissa put ribbons in my hair.”

She reached up to pat her dark hair where she indeed had some pink, blue, and white ribbons braided in. She wore a look of radiance, and Abby gave her the best smile she could as her adrenaline came down.

“Hey, Mom,” Bryce said, and Abby headed for the sidelines. She felt every eye on her as she did, and she held her head high. A lot of Tex’s brothers—fine, all of them—looked to him as a mentor. The wisest older brother who knew what to do in any situation. A source of strength.

A lot of the other wives did too, and Abby finally reached Dani and Georgia, who both took her by one arm and hugged her.

“So that’s done,” Georgia said, echoing how Abby felt about it. “But look at Tex.”

Abby turned to watch her husband laugh at something Codi said. She loved Codi so very much, and she found herself once again thanking God that He’d led this extraordinary woman into all of their lives.

Bryce’s especially, but Abby adored her too. Tex did. All the kids did. Every horse, dog, and duck Codi came in contact with adored her too.

Her mother had passed several years ago, and Abby had enjoyed the honor of planning this wedding with Codi, and she teared up at the thought of being able to watch her and Bryce build their life together now that they were married. She wondered if they’d have kids right away or not, and she prayed that no matter what they decided, that she and Tex would be able to be right there in the front row, cheering them on.

Her gaze wandered to Bryce and Corrie, who stood in a somewhat stiff way, though he easily swayed them back and forth. They did not talk, and Bryce didn’t even seem to be looking at her, though his face was pointed down. Everything maternal and protective inside her wanted to march out there and rescue him, and Abby had to remind herself that Bryce was a grown man. He didn’t need rescuing, at least not from this dance, and not from Corrie.

“Momma,” Carver said, and Abby’s attention diverted to him.

“What, baby?” She stroked his dark hair down and smiled at him. “Did you get to color Lucky? ”

“I got the last one.” He held the paper in his hand and lifted it to show her. “Will you hold it while I play?”

She took the line drawing of Bryce’s dog that he and Codi had turned into coloring sheets for all the young cousins at this wedding and looked at her son. “Sure. When is that?”

“Reggie just came to get me and OJ,” Carver said, looking back into the crowd. “So right now.”

“Okay,” Abby said. “Then you best go with him.” She smiled her son away, grateful there were so many good men he had to look to for an example. Carver had been taking guitar lessons from Bryce for almost a year now, and Otis had been teaching OJ too.

Boston could play, as could Cash and Cole, and Harry had come up with the idea for all the younger boys who could and wanted to, to play a song for Bryce and Codi at their reception.

So she wasn’t surprised to see Cash reach for Carver’s hand and take it before he led him away from the party to where Reggie stood waiting with Harry, Cole and Boston.

Her mother heart squeezed again at the goodness of the children in this family. Blaze had come to Coral Canyon with a broken soul and a son he hadn’t known, and they’d both been healing, growing, and providing relief for everyone since.

The song ended, and Abby started to clap along with everyone else. The festivities went back to normal, but she didn’t go meet Tex on the dance floor.

Bryce and Codi came off it too, and they seemed touched with magic. Everyone wanted to be around them, and Abby had learned from Georgia how to share her loved ones with a wide net of people. She’d seen Georgia do it over and over with OJ, though she sometimes didn’t want to.

So Abby simply thanked God for people like Graham and Laney Whittaker, who stepped in and hugged both Bryce and Codi as a couple, their smiles real and genuine. All the Whittakers had come, as had the Hammonds, and Abby loved this small Wyoming town she belonged to.

The music stopped and someone said, “I need everyone’s attention, please.” Harry had the mic now, and as he’d been Bryce’s best man, he’d already given a touching speech at the dinner.

“Yeah, right here. Spotlight me, Kassie.” The spotlight shook and jiggled and jogged around the floor until it landed on Harry, who wore his rockstar smile for the crowd.

One thing about him—he had more charm and charisma than everyone in Country Quad combined, and that was one of the biggest selling points of Tex’s brotherly band. They loved each other, people, and performing.

Harry did too, though he didn’t love touring. “Where did the bride and groom get to?” He shaded his eyes. “They’re gonna want a front-row seat for this.”

“I want a front-row seat for this,” Tex said as he slid his hand along Abby’s waist and pulled her close. “Look how cute Carver is with that guitar.”

Abby could see him, and she once again found so much right with the world. No, not everything would come up roses and not every day held sunshine and blue skies. There would be more storms in her life, in the Young Family, and with Bryce and Codi. God didn’t spare anyone from the hardships, the trials, and the growth opportunities of this life.

But they had each other. Each of them knew how to forgive. And they had God. So no matter what came their way, Abby held the hope that all would be well.

“What have we got here?” Bryce called toward his cousin. Tex knew exactly what they had there. A male cousin guitar concert for the cousin they all loved best.

His son.

Tex had been holding onto his emotions by a thread for a week. He found himself getting emotional in the stables, feeding horses—something he’d done often with his son. Or that Bryce had done when he’d needed time to himself.

He couldn’t see his other children’s shoes without thinking life had gone by too fast for him and Bryce. He’d missed a lot of his son’s life in the beginning, and the guilt he felt over that still cut through him powerfully sometimes.

Every day, Tex had tried to fix the mistakes he’d made earlier in life, but some things couldn’t be repaired. They simply had to be acknowledged, and forgiveness had to be issued.

And his amazing son had given Tex the forgiveness he so often needed. Out of anyone, Bryce knew what it meant to truly repent, feel bad, pay a price, and reach the other side of that battle.

He laughed the loudest as OJ raised his guitar and yelled, “We’re gonna play for you, Uncle Bryce!”

Uncle Bryce.

Just like Tex was Uncle Tex and not Grandpa .

“Oh, boy,” Bryce said, still chortling from a few feet away. “Where’s my dad? Look—Grandpa is out there.”

Surprise ran through Tex, because while he’d known his son was going to play, he hadn’t known his daddy was. He’d been through some health troubles lately, and Tex’s first instinct was to jog out there and make sure Daddy had the stability and support he needed to play a guitar.

“Some of you might not know this,” Harry said. “But my daddy learned to play the guitar from his daddy.” He gazed over to his grandfather with love and admiration showing clearly on his face. “Gramps wasn’t a professional or anything, but every evening after the work on the farm was done, he’d gather his boys around and he’d play.”

Harry looked out to the crowd again. “I’m told he did it to give Grandma a few minutes of quiet in the evenings, after dinner, so she wouldn’t kill them all.” He laughed, as did many others.

Tex felt like bursting into tears, but he’d been keeping them dormant by laughing. His felt too loud, but he did it anyway.

“Gramps couldn’t pay for guitar lessons, but I know Uncle Otis and my dad worked extra jobs to have the money they wanted for lessons. So as I was organizing this special treat for Bryce, I figured—I could get a little taste of what my daddy and uncles got as boys too.”

He smiled over to his grandfather, and Abby leaned into Tex, providing some extra support for him right when he needed it. “This is great,” she said.

Tex couldn’t quite get his voice to work, so he just nodded. He had no idea how he’d get through good-byes tonight. Bryce and Codi were only going to Jackson Hole tonight, where they had a beautiful room at a luxury lodge before they’d continue their honeymoon in Canada.

“Take it away, Gramps,” Harry said, and he seated the mic in the stand and stepped over to Reggie, who handed him his guitar too.

Daddy began to play, and Tex got transported right back to his boyhood, to the living room of the house where he now lived. He hadn’t realized that Daddy had gathered the boys to give Momma a break, but it made perfect sense to him now as a parent.

Daddy had sung to them as boys, and he’d taught them loads of songs. All of Tex’s musical heritage could be traced to his father, and pure gratitude streamed through him for such a gift. He’d made music his whole life, the way he’d earned a living, everything.

And he owed that all to his parents.

He didn’t sing today, but he played through an old song that he’d once told his boys was the Young Family song, and Tex managed to tear his eyes from his father to see how his brothers were reacting .

Trace stood there, stoic and straight-faced, his baby in his arms. Tex knew that look, and it hid a lot. A whole lot.

Blaze had about the same reaction, though he softened as Faith said something to him and he nodded. They both looked back to the group up front, where Blaze’s son Cash held a guitar expertly in his hands, watching his grandfather intently.

Morris and Gabe had linked arms, and they both smiled at their father. Mav wiped his eyes and met Tex’s gaze. They nodded at one another, and Tex looked over to Jem and Luke.

They stood near each other and near their wives, and they both watched their father play with a sense of wonder accompanied by love in their expressions.

Otis wore the biggest smile of all, as he’d inherited all of his musical talent from their parents. So much song-writing ability, which seemed to have infected Harry’s blood too.

Otis’s free hand—the one that wasn’t in his daughter’s—tapped against his side, and just as Tex looked back to Daddy, he lifted the bridge of his guitar and lowered it.

All the other boys came in on the next note, and since they had pure professionals mixed with little boys like Carver, it took Tex a moment to recognize the song.

“It’s the same song,” he said as the crowd started to clap and cheer. He wanted to as well, but the thread keeping his emotions in check snapped.

Daddy had taught the boys in the group their family song—and they were all playing it.

His son was playing it .

Tex let the tears gather and burn in his eyes. He let them trickle down his face. He clapped along at the end with everyone else, and he let his smile loose when they finished.

Then he wiped his face quickly and he whistled through his teeth as he clapped for the boys with guitars.

Because he was really clapping for his family.

He was really clapping because he was so glad and so grateful to be a Young. He was really clapping for his momma and daddy, who’d taught them all so well, accepted them for who they were, and loved them unconditionally.

They’d shown him how to handle life when it got rough. They’d shown him how God would act in certain situations. They’d shown him all the best parts of himself.

So they definitely deserved the deafening applause and cheers that went on and on as the little boys ran out of the spotlight. Daddy stood and handed off his guitar while Harry did the same. Then he pulled the young man into his chest and hugged him, and Tex lost the battle against his tears all over again.

At least his wasn’t the only wet face in the crowd.