Beauty (Prescott Family #1.5; Love In All Places #1.5) Read online

  Copyright © 2016 by Mignon Mykel

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a media retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and the publisher of this book, excepting of brief quotations for use in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.

  Cover Design and Formatting: oh so novel

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter One

  Caleb

  It was finally the day I had been waiting for.

  Sydney Meadows was becoming Sydney Prescott, and I couldn’t be any happier than I was right now.

  This last year had been fantastic. After Sydney and I moved into our house in San Diego, she did both remote casting and traveling for Sorenson Media. She successfully casted three shows, one of which earned a fucking Emmy for Unstructured Reality Programming. I couldn’t be more proud of her.

  As for me, I had easily the best season of my life, helping bring the San Diego Enforcers to a repeat performance for the Stanley Cup, which we won in four games.

  But none of that, not a single one of them, could compare to what I was feeling today. Ecstatic didn’t even begin to cover it.

  For the first time in over a year, I slept in a bed by myself while Sydney was in a nearby room. I understood the reasoning and as a hockey player I could appreciate the superstition, but it didn’t mean I liked the fact that I slept in one room while my soon to be wife slept in another.

  My mom was doing a brunch with all the girls before they had to get ready, so I knew they wouldn’t be moving around for another hour or so. As for me and the guys, we had a six a.m. tee time so I had better get moving.

  I opted out for a regular bachelor party. I didn’t need the partying and everything else that came with it. The guys I had with me, I did enough drinking with. Except for Porter, of course.

  I was surprised the kid wanted to golf with the rest of us, to be honest, but he surprised me now and then. He was now fourteen and if I thought he’d been on his way to juvie last year, he was well on his way now.

  Over the last year, the kid broke into the high school with some of his friends and took down the basketball nets, went for a joy ride in dad’s truck while Dad was out of town, and was caught at a party with alcohol and drugs, not that he did any, or so he said.

  At fourteen.

  Sure, the nets thing wasn’t all that terrible, not talking about the breaking and entering part, but he definitely was changing—and for the worse.

  Come to think of it, it all started getting worse when Jonny married Jenna over All-Star break last January.

  A game Jonny was supposed to be a part of, mind you. But the dimwit passed up the spot, saying the wedding had been planned for some time, when in reality, Jenna only solidified the date a few weeks prior.

  Just another thing to dislike about her.

  Speaking of Jonny and Jenna, it would be a fucking Godsend if this wedding went off without a hitch from the bitch herself. Last year at Thanksgiving, she went off on my mom for not offering a vegetarian option.

  She wasn’t even a vegetarian!

  And then last minute, as in Christmas Eve, Jonny called and said he wouldn’t be making it to Christmas after all; that Jenna’s family was going somewhere tropical and that was where Jenna wanted them to go.

  Slowly, more and more with each passing day, Jonny was getting more distant. He was his normal self in the locker room, but I knew my brother. I knew there was more going on than what he told people. He may have joked and laughed, saying the whole, “Happy wife, happy life” thing, but there was definitely more going on there.

  And as much as I wanted to pull him aside to talk to him about it, there never was an ideal opportunity.

  But I wasn’t going to worry about Jonny and his issues today. Today was mine and Sydney’s.

  I got out of the empty bed I once occupied up until college, and made my way to my bag, ready to get the day started. Seven hours, and Sydney Meadows was becoming my wife.

  Chapter Two

  Sydney

  The vibrating alarm on my phone, sitting under my pillow to try to stifle the noise, woke me at seven. I smiled, my eyes still shut, as my body woke with excitement.

  It was finally here.

  The day I was going to marry the man who quickly became my best friend.

  I opened my eyes and sat up, looking around the room I stayed in the night prior—Myke’s childhood bedroom. In the bed next to me was Myke herself and on the floor on air mattresses were Avery, McKenna, and my best friend through high school and college, Anna. The only one missing was Grace, but she’d arrive a little later.

  I stretched before quietly getting out of bed, tiptoeing around the girls and making my way to the bedroom door.

  I knew for a fact that Caleb didn’t have a posse of people in his room, but the girls insisted that if they were in the room with me, I couldn’t sneak out to meet Caleb nor could he find his way to me.

  The Prescotts were a superstitious hockey family, after all.

  I left the room and made my way to the bathroom that apparently all six Prescott siblings shared growing up. I couldn’t even begin to imagine.

  I’d been lucky to have my own bathroom in my teens and my brothers had two between the three of them. Six people to share one bathroom must have brought up fights and time tables.

  I quickly brushed my teeth and, rather than throw my hair in its typical messy bun, I braided the long locks over my left shoulder before making my way downstairs for much needed coffee. It was an acquired taste, sure, but I was getting better with it.

  In the kitchen I was met by Ryleigh, who smiled wide when she noticed me. Her arms went out as she walked toward me, and I could feel my eyes begin to water as everything today entailed came rushing at me.

  The Prescott family had been incredibly open to me since the moment I met them and I couldn’t wait to call them family.

  “Good morning, pretty girl,” Ryleigh said quietly as she hugged me tight. I hugged her back just as tight.

  “Morning.” I smiled as I stepped back from the hug. Ryleigh, knowing me well by now, turned to grab a mug and handed it to me, full and ready for consumption.

  I took a sip, smiling at the bitterness as it hit my tongue. Ryleigh, who I found early on I could confide in and was therefore the only person in on my secret, made a great decaf.

  “Are you excited? Of course you’re excited.” Ryleigh grabbed a cup for herself and leaned into the counter, bringing the mug up to her lips with both hands.

  “I am. It’s kind of surreal, though.”

  After taking a sip, Ryleigh nodded, lowering the mug and placing it on the counter beside her. “I’m sure. But you and Caleb have been doing the day-in and out for a while now, so really, and don’t take this the wrong way,” she said, holding up a hand, “it’s just a piece of paper at this point.” She paused, waiting for my reaction, I’m sure, but I completely understood what she was saying. “You are already so much a part of this family, Sydney. Today just makes it official.”

  I co
uldn’t wipe the smile from my face. “I’m excited to see Caleb’s reaction when he sees me later. You either have great moments, or decent moments, but I think Caleb’s going to be one of those great ones.”

  Ryleigh laughed quietly and nodded. “He certainly has a soft side when it comes to you.”

  “Have they left already, the boys?” I took another sip of my coffee as I waited for her reply.

  “They have. Bright and early. Porter, too.” Ryleigh shook her head. “I didn’t think the boy had it in him to wake up before the sun.”

  “Everything ok with him?” I had been on the receiving end of Caleb’s opinion on his baby brother, and was part of Skype conversations where his teenage antics came up.

  Porter…

  When Porter was a good kid, he was a good kid. But when he was a bad kid, he did it with flare and style.

  Ryleigh chuckled. “He’s definitely the most difficult of the six, but I think he’s had a lot to adjust to this year.”

  I’m sure that was true, with Caleb and my engagement, Jon Jon and Jenna’s engagement and then quick wedding, and McKenna leaving the family home now too, leaving just Porter and Avery.

  “He’s just…Porter being Porter.” Ryleigh paused before continuing, as if she were considering her next statement. “You know I had a cancer scare, right?”

  I nodded. “Yes.” Caleb had mentioned it once when we were talking about family histories. Ryleigh had a double mastectomy when Caleb was a teen.

  “Well, I wasn’t supposed to get pregnant until after my procedure.” She pointed to her flat chest, which she wore proudly. “We all know how babies are made.”

  I could feel my face heat, but Ryleigh continued on, not judging me in any way.

  “So I won’t bore you with that, but I will say my pregnancy with Porter was as much a surprise as my pregnancy with Myke was. And because my surgery was elective, I pushed it back until after he was born.”

  “Which Porter decided was a good time to enter the world right after Noah left for an away trip,” I said with a grin, having heard that part of the story. When Caleb told me Porter was a hellion from conception, he really hadn’t been kidding.

  “Right,” Ryleigh said, a smile on her face. As much as the kid likely caused the grays in her golden blonde hair, it was extremely evident how much he was loved by his family. “So from the moment I knew I was pregnant with him, I knew I was going to be in for a ride. If he started acting like any of the other five, I would be concerned.” The last was said around a laugh and I couldn’t help but giggle lightly too.

  I sobered up with small nods and a sip of my coffee. “He’s a good kid. He’ll get there.”

  “Perhaps with a record,” Ryleigh joked. And knowing Ryleigh as I did, and the family for that matter, I knew one-hundred percent that she was joking. If he were to start committing serious offences, there would be an end to them. Noah and Ryleigh weren’t loose parents by any means. The other five turned out just fine; Porter just had to find his way.

  “Are the other girls waking up yet?” she asked, changing the subject.

  I took another sip from my mug and shook my head while allowing the java to work it’s magic. “No, not yet. I’m sure they will soon, though. Do you know what time Jonny and Jenna made it in?”

  For whatever reason, they couldn’t make it for the rehearsal dinner the night before and I hadn’t seen Jenna in the room with the rest of the girls this morning when I snuck out. I assumed she slept in Jonny’s room with him.

  There wasn’t a rule that she had to stay with the girls and to be completely honest, I was glad she didn’t end up in Myke’s room.

  Since meeting Jenna back on the cruise, I hadn’t done a ton of interacting with her. She had her cold and aloof moments when the family was all together but to be honest, it was a rare occurrence when the two of them managed to make it home. Something always came up. It was easy to see why Caleb didn’t care much for his sister-in-law.

  “I think Noah said it was around two.” Ryleigh, bless her soul, managed to say it with a straight face and void of any emotion, but I often saw what not having her third baby around did to her. At dinner last night, she’d have quiet moments where she’d stare at the chair he was supposed to occupy. For holiday meals, she always kept his spot open, just in case he managed to make it home.

  It wasn’t like the Prescotts deliberately scheduled meals on the holiday when maybe Jenna or my family wanted to do dinners. No, Ryleigh made a point to ask what day would work best and tried her damnedest to get all her kids around the table somewhat near the holiday.

  I knew Jenna pulling Jonny away was hard on Ryleigh.

  “And Jonny still got up to golf?” I lifted my brows. “My goodness, I hope that boy’s not afraid of makeup for the ceremony,” I teased, which accomplished what I wanted it to when Ryleigh laughed, nodding.

  “I think only Caleb can pull it off.”

  “Aw, Caleb hated every part of it,” I said, grinning and shaking my head. “Damn makeup, and damn haircuts,” I added, mimicking my fiancé.

  “For all his complaining, he sure made out pretty good from that show.”

  My perma-smile was still stretched on my face. “I like to think so.”

  Ryleigh laughed and gave me a side hug, shaking my shoulder in the process. “Just remind him if he gets out of line. Boys need that sometimes.” She released me and glanced at the clock. “Why don’t you go get the girls and we can get this brunch started.”

  Chapter Three

  Caleb

  Little did I know, but my soon to be wife scheduled the photographer to follow us guys when we golfed. He met us at the course and lugged his camera around, following behind us in his own golf cart.

  But like the cameras I never got used to last year, it was really easy to lose track of the guy. So when Jonny and Porter started wrestling a little too close to a waterway, and the camera guy shouted that that would make an excellent shot, I was torn—shocked that the guy was still here? Or afraid that one of my kid brothers was going to drown and I’d be out one.

  ‘eh, it wasn’t that deep.

  “Get him, Ports!” I yelled laughing as all five six of the kid took down my six two brother. Chuckling, I looked to my left where one of my groomsmen, and best friend on the team, Jordan stood.

  “You’re not afraid your ma will kill you if something happens to one of them?” he asked, a grin stretching his face as he leaned forward on his putter.

  Jordan was traded to San Diego in the middle of last season but it was a damn good move on the team’s part. The guy looked like Mr. Clean and he sure as hell cleaned the ice with his grit and fists.

  I shook my head. “Nah. Jonny’s pissed her off lately and Porter always pisses her off.”

  “What are you two gabbin’ about? We have a game to finish,” Trevor Winski said, walking up to the two of us. Sydney threatened him his left nut if he showed up to the wedding without his teeth in.

  They were in now.

  I wouldn’t put it past him to take them out at some point later today, though. Winksi was one of the first people Sydney met when she first came to talk me into a show I wanted nothing to do with.

  And look where that got me.

  “Where’s your wife?” Winksi asked, his eyes on the fiasco that was my brothers. There was laughing and gut shots; I wasn’t too concerned.

  “Mine?” I asked, looking at him briefly. “That’s a stupid question, Winsk.”

  “No, dumbass. Yours,” he said, leaning around me to fix a look at Jordan.

  “She had to stay back in San Diego.”

  While I only met the two of them no more than six months ago, Jordan and Marlo were the epitome of rock solid. Those two had been together for more than half their lives.

  “That’s too bad. I wanted to steal her for a dance,” Winksi said with a taunting wink.

  Jordan chuckled, shaking his head and giving our teammate the bird.

  “She’s too good for y
ou, bro,” Winksi continued.

  Still, Jordan just nodded slightly, his gaze on my brothers getting a far-away glaze to them. “Don’t I know it,” he finally said.

  “Well, men, we have to get going,” I said, checking my phone. We had to get back and get cleaned up.

  “Dude! We didn’t finish the game!” Jonny yelled over, popping up from the grass. Porter used both hands to try and push him back down but Jonny was prepared, holding his ground.

  “Dude,” I said, mimicking him. “It’s a wedding. It takes precedence.” Not that he knew. He eloped without family there with him to support him.

  God knew he’d need support.

  Again, I thought that I just wanted this day to go off without a bitch session from Jenna. The day had nothing to do with her, but I wouldn’t put it past her to make it about her.

  Letting Jonny and Porter figure out their shit, Jordan, Winksi and I headed toward the carts, piling in one and heading back to the lot so we could get home.

  Chapter Four

  Sydney

  Brunch went incredibly well. The photographer Cael and I hired hung out with us while her assistant went off with the boys. She got some pretty good pictures when Grace finally arrived.

  She and I kept up with one another after the show and she became one of my closest friends in San Diego. She actually lived near mine and Caleb’s house.

  After brunch, the photographer followed us to the venue—a historic barn that was often used for weddings—taking pictures of us getting ready in the main house, laughing, and drinking champagne.

  Some of us stuck with sparkling apple.

  Like Avery. She was underage.

  Jenna talked on and on about how she and Jonny were trying to get pregnant, but she probably downed a bottle by herself.