Eden by Jamie McGuire Read Free Book Online Page A

sidewalk. Jared and I stood with
Bex, listening to Cynthia and Lillian discuss how beautiful the
ceremony had been. I waited to hear some indication that Lillian
knew of Gabe’s presence, but if she knew, she wasn’t letting
on.
    “ Well, daughter,” Cynthia
said, dabbing her forehead with a handkerchief, “I have an early
appointment that Jared promised I would make. I best be
off.”
    “ Thank you for coming,
Mother,” I said, leaning in to hug her. Her embrace was more than
the usual awkward squeeze. She held me to her, and whispered in my
ear.
    “ Be safe, dearest. I love
you.”
    Cynthia turned on her heels and walked
quickly to a waiting pickup truck. She didn’t look back as the
truck slowly faded into the dark jungle. I waited until I could no
longer hear the engine, and then turned to Jared.
    He offered a half smile. “She loves
you.”
    “ I heard,” I said,
stunned. “I mean, of course she does. She’s just never…she’ll make
her appointment?”
    “ I’ve made sure of it,”
Jared said. “Bex is at the boat dock, now. He’s going to ride with
her to the mainland and get her on the plane on time.”
    “ Good. Remind me to thank
Bex later.”
    “ Oh,” Lillian put a thin
arm around me and pulled me to her side, “he’s happy to do it. I’m
going to catch a ride with Chad and Beth. She’s a sweet
girl.”
    “ Yes, she is,” I
smiled.
    “ See you at home. Come
over for dinner soon, okay?”
    “ Promise,” Jared said,
kissing her forehead.
    “ I love you both!” she
waved, following Beth and Chad to another waiting
vehicle.
    “ Where is our car?” I
asked.
    “ I have the bike I drove
over.”
    I looked down to my dress. “You’re
kidding.”
    Jared laughed once. “No. Not at all.”
He crouched and then brought up a bunched wad of my dress in his
hands. “It’s a nice night. It’ll be fun.”
    I shook my head and shrugged. “Why
not? Cynthia’s not here to freak out about it.” I took the bunched
tulle and silk under my arm and then took Jared’s hand. He led us
past the band to a small dirt bike. We took several back roads that
led us through a village or two—it was so dark I wasn’t sure if it
was tin buildings passing by or just shadows cast by the trees.
Before long, the trees thinned, and Jared slowed to a stop. Sounds
of waves caressing the shoreline weren’t far away.
    Jared took my hand, and we walked
beyond the trail until I could feel wet sand breaching the borders
of my sandals. The half-moon stubbornly glowed behind a thin,
broken layer of clouds. We ambled to where the ocean met the sand,
and walked along the beach. We didn’t talk, just walked hand in
hand, listening to Little Corn.
    The moon finally broke free of the
clouds, and its silver light danced on the water. We came upon a
large rock, and Jared motioned for me to sit.
    “ You must be exhausted,”
he said, sitting next to me.
    “ I’m tired, but you only
get one wedding day. I can feel a second wind coming
on.”
    Jared eyes turned soft, and they
lingered on my lips. “I just wanted to be alone with you and the
island for a little while.”
    His eyes seemed to glow in the silver
light, and suddenly I was nervous. It was silly to feel that way—I
was pregnant, after all—but the pressure of our wedding night made
it new again. We had no constraints; no worries about a pregnancy,
or being walked in on, or nightmares. It was just us, and the
knowledge that we were about to consummate our marriage. For
whatever reason, that made me incredibly anxious.
    “ What is it?” Jared
asked.
    Knowing I couldn’t comfortably explain
my feelings without some embarrassment, I pulled him to me and
touched my lips to his.
    He pulled away, laughing once. “I’m a
bit nervous about tonight, isn’t that ridiculous?”
    “ No,” I said, tugging on
his shirt. “I’m right there with you.”
    “ Yeah?” he said,
relieved.
    I nodded, and then looked behind us. I
returned to him, biting my lip. “How far