One Hundred Seventy-Three

Allegra crossed her ankles on the pool lounge chair, hidden in the dark shadows of night when she should have been sleeping.  She was getting married in seven hours, and here she sat, her mind stuck on the man who was her biological father instead of having deliciously dirty dreams about what she would do to her husband tomorrow night.

After they’d left the hotel coffee shop, she and Richie spent a while talking about what happened and she’d taken the opportunity to check out his shoulder for herself.  Satisfied that he was telling the truth about it being a minor injury, she took advantage of touching him, which led to kissing him.  The instant his tongue slid into her mouth, it was like throwing a lit match into a pile of dry leaves  - the flames took on a life of their own.  Breaking forcibly apart, Richie decided if it was best to escort Allegra to her room.  He left her there with one final kiss.    

“Your last kiss as Allegra Castanelli,” he breathed against her lips.  “The next time, you’ll be Allegra Sambora.  My wife.”

It had sent shivers of desire licking down her spine and curled her toes.  The promise of what tomorrow would bring made her tingle with excitement.    

Yeah.  That’s what she’d rather be thinking of right now.  Not the guilt and confusion she had about her birth father and how to tell her parents about him.

“Shouldn’t you be getting your beauty rest?” came a voice from the darkness.

Allegra jack-knifed into an upright position, gripping the arms of the chair, her heart beating like a hummingbird’s wings.  She opened her mouth to scream, barely swallowing the sound when the light glinted off of his blonde curls.

“Oh.  My God,” she gasped, collapsing back into the lounge chair with one hand clasped against her chest.  “David, you scared the crap out of me!”  Eyelids blinked shut and she drew several deep breaths in an effort to get her heart rate back where it belonged.

He chuckled softly, bending to kiss her forehead before claiming the lounger next to her.  “Sorry,” he apologized, perching on the edge of the chair, elbows perched on his knees.  His khaki shorts, dark t-shirt and sandals were nearly a mirror image of her own attire.  “I honestly didn’t mean to scare you.”

That quickly, she could sense something different about David.  His larger-than-life sense of humor and personality were much more muted than they had been earlier in the evening.  He was almost melancholy.

“I couldn’t sleep,” she told him, reclaiming her relaxed pose of a few minutes ago.  Allegra allowed her head to loll back against the cushiony top of the chair.  “Too much on my mind.”

He gave a half-hearted waggle of his eyebrows to go with his half-hearted grin. “Wedding night fantasies?”

“No.”  She wasn’t playing that game tonight.

“Worried that you’re gonna hit a sour note in the morning?”

“I wasn’t until you said that.”

“Then what’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”  He leaned forward and patted her knee affectionately.  “You’ll feel better once you tell Uncle Dave all about it.”

Rolling her head to the side, she looked his direction in the dim light.  “I’ll tell you if you tell me.”

“Tell you what?”

“What’s got you wandering around in the dark looking like your puppy just got kicked.”

His soft laughter carried on the evening breeze and he pushed a hand through his hair, messing up already unruly curls even further.  “What a lovely colloquialism.  Maybe you should see if PETA wants to license that.”   

Even his laughter didn’t sound right.  Allegra pushed her own ‘problem’ to the back of her mind and concentrated on drawing out her usually boisterous friend.

“David?”  A feminine hand reached out, waiting until his palm rested against hers.  With a gentle squeeze, she prodded, “What’s got you in a funk, honey?  Did you and Lexi have a fight?  Is there something going on with the kids?”

The left corner of his mouth tipped upward.  “I’m not in a funk, merely muddling through a bout of introspection.  Us creative types tend to do that now and again, you know.”  He gently freed his hand,  swinging over to her lounger and nudging her legs aside so they could sit face-to-face .  “Lexi did point out that I was being exceptionally obnoxious tonight, though.  If that’s true, I’m sorry.”

“You were just being David.”  She smiled and tugged at the trademark curls dancing in the warm breeze.  “Totally annoying, yet charming.”

“Is that how you think of me?  Annoying?”

Taking into consideration the frown that marred his normally pleasant features and the way he studied their clasped hands, she weighed her words carefully before speaking.  “Isn’t that what you want to be?  Mr. Wise Ass getting the laugh and attention?  Your other side stays pretty well hidden, even from the ones that are close to you.  I assumed it was your choice.”

One muscled shoulder lifted in a negligent shrug.  “It’s my thing.  Tico’s the godfather, Jon shakes his ass and smiles, Richie – no offense – gets the girls, and I’m comic relief.”

“Is this where the introspection comes in?  You’re analyzing your place in the Bon Jovi family?”

“No, not really.”  The shadows hid most of his features, but she thought she could make out worry lines in his forehead and around his mouth.  She definitely felt his gaze lock on her face.  “Things aren’t gonna change between us are they?  After you’re married?”

“I don’t see any reason why they would.  What exactly do you mean by change?”

Again with the lift of the shoulder.  Allegra had never seen David so introverted or uncertain of himself.  She nudged at him with her knee.  “That’s what you’re worried about?”

He gripped her bare leg to keep her from kneeing him again and spoke softly.  “I know we would never be ‘together’, Legs.  We’re both in love with somebody else.  But it doesn’t change the love I have for you.”  Sensing that he wasn’t finished, she didn’t jump in with a response right away, choosing instead to wait him out.  Her patience paid off when, after a lengthy silence, he mumbled, “I guess I was just wondering if you were gonna blow off Richie’s friends once you’ve got the ball and chain around his ankle?”

“David!” she scolded.  “Did you really just ask me that?”  Allegra sat up and bent as far forward as Bug would allow, placing a palm on each side of his head and demanding his eyes.  “You’re not the only one who thinks what we have is special.  I always dreamed of having a big brother, and when I dreamed of him – well, he was just like you.  Protective, loving… annoying,” she tacked on with a soft snicker.  “I’m not gonna let go of that for anything.”

“I’m sure Jon, Matt and Tony have always done the big brother thing.  You bring out everybody’s protective instincts.  What do you need with another gorilla hanging over you?”

“Um, hello?  The lack of Italian temper gives you a serious edge over my cousins.”  She placed a soft kiss against his sculpted cheekbone.  “There’s no comparison, David.  You’re one of a kind.”  Allegra leaned back, putting her index finger in the middle of his chest.  “And I certainly don’t think of you as Richie’s friend.  I think of you as my friend.  That’s not going to change because I’m wearing a wedding ring.”

“The big goon and I go back a long way.”  He forcibly removed her finger with a wince, and she murmured an apology, realizing she was poking him a little zealously.  “But if he ever does wrong by you, I want you to know that he’s gonna have to take it up with me, Legs.  The Brotherhood isn’t just about loyalty, it’s about kicking one another’s asses when we need it.”

“You’re sweet.  No matter what anyone else tells you David, you’re sweet, and I love you.”

“Don’t let it get around,” he growled, brushing a kiss across her forehead.  “And you know I love you, too.  Now tell me what’s got you out here in the dark when you should be in bed asleep.”

Scooting over to make room for him on the lounge chair, she patted the empty spot and waited until he had settled in beside her before sighing.  “Okay, but this is one of those take-it-to-the-grave secrets…”

♥%♥

“Your dress is obviously something new,” Therese recited only hours later in the bridal suite.  She was on hand to help Allegra make her final preparations, along with Dot.  Wanting to make her feel a part of the wedding, Joan had been invited to join them as well, while Ava had opted to sleep an extra half-hour.  “What about old, borrowed and blue?”

“I’ve got borrowed and blue covered.”  Dot rummaged briefly in her makeup case, unearthing two jewelry boxes.  Handing the smaller earring-sized one to Allegra, she informed her, “These are from your man.  He said you needed more earrings anyway.”

Allegra pushed her hair out of her eyes, thinking that it was going to be a nightmare keeping it out of her face out on the beach, then eased open the hinges on the black velvet box.  “Oh my,” she breathed when the light hit the sapphire and diamond earrings set in what she now easily recognized as platinum.  The round sapphire centers were conservative by many standards, but at least a carat apiece and were encircled with a diamond collar.  “They’re gorgeous, but he shouldn’t have.”

Dot waved her free hand dismissively as Therese and Joan both admired Richie’s selection.  “Don’t drag me into it, I’m just the messenger.”

“He has such good taste in jewelry,” Joan remarked, showing Allegra the ruby ring on her right hand.  “He picked this out for me several years ago.  Such a good boy to his mother.”  She patted Allegra’s shoulder affectionately.  “I know you’ll be happy together, and I’m going to be proud to call you my daughter-in-law.”

“Oh, Joan, you’re such a sweetheart,” she esteemed, warmly wrapping her arms around the tiny woman.  “You’ve made your son into an incredible man.  I can’t thank you enough.”

The sniffles had begun when Dot cut in with her no-nonsense attitude and a laugh.  “Okay, can we hold off on the waterworks until the actual ceremony?  There’s no point in getting a head start here.”

Allegra stuck out her tongue and shook away the temptation to cry with one loud sniff.  “You’re such a callous bitch,” she teased Dot, who didn’t look as unaffected as she was claiming to be.

“That’s what my husband tells me,” was her dry response.  “Now this…”  She flipped open a flat necklace box, presenting it to Allegra.  “This is mine, but it happens to match your earrings, so I’m loaning it to you for your borrowed.” 

Lifting out the necklace by its platinum chain, Allegra could see that the round stone pendant was a near replica of the earrings, its larger size the only notable difference. 

“For God’s sake, though,” she continued, “Don’t lose it in the sand, or I’ll never hear the end of it from Jon.  It was my first anniversary present from him.”  Turning to the mirror, she straightened her ‘bridesmaid’s’ dress – a short orange chiffon sundress with spaghetti straps and an asymmetrical hemline that matched Allegra’s. 

Soft brown irises locked with azure blue in the mirror’s glass.  “There aren’t too many people I’d trust with my sentimental jewelry, Allegra.  I hope you know how much you’ve come to mean to me in the last few months.  I’m really glad we’ve gotten the chance to become not just family, but friends.”

Clasping the chain behind her neck, Allegra let the weight of the sapphire settle beneath the hollow of her throat before grabbing Dot’s arm and forcibly embracing her.  “To quote a corny song from the eighties, did you ever know that you’re my hero?  You make the impossible seem easy.  My fondest wish is that, with you as my role model, my marriage will survive as well as yours.”

“Oh, God, stop it,” Dot extracted herself with a roll of the eyes.  “I’m not a role model for anybody!  We’re both just too stubborn to become a statistic.”

Therese wagged her finger with a ‘tsk’ of reproach.  “That’s not a bit true, Dorothea!  Carol and I have talked about it many times.  As much as we love Jonny, you’re the backbone of your family and should be proud of what you’ve accomplished.  Things may not have always been perfect in your house, but it didn’t take you long to get them back in shape.”

“Okay, okay, thank you, but enough of that crap,” Dot waved their compliments off with a dab at her right eye.  “This is Allegra’s day.  What are we going to do about your something old?”

“I have something,” Therese offered quietly, withdrawing a folded handkerchief from the inside of her handbag.  Carefully unfolding the white cloth, she offered its contents on her open palm – a pair of antique silver hair combs.

“Mama, they’re beautiful,” Allegra admired, running a finger along the engraved edge that so much resembled the wedding rings they’d had made.  Richie loved the idea of the engraved bands, but flatly refused her off-hand suggestion of silver, proceeding to fully educate her on the merits of platinum.  Hence the reason she so readily recognized it in the earrings.  “Are they yours?”

A wistful smile tugged at Therese’s lips.  “No, they were Frannie’s.  I think she’d like for you to have them.” 

That was twice her birth mother had been mentioned in the last twenty-four hours.  Between that and Joseph’s presence on the island, she found herself thinking – surprisingly, without bitterness – that all of her parents had now made their mark on this major event in her life.

“They’re perfect,” Allegra commended with a gentle squeeze to her mother’s hand before accepting the combs.  “I was just thinking about how to keep the hair out of my face.  Richie asked me to wear it down, but I don’t think he realized the wind would be blowing it everywhere.”

She secured one ornate comb on each side of her head, allowing the rest of her hair to flow freely down her back.  They were heavy sliding into her thick tresses, but they felt undeniably right nestled there.

Performing a slightly awkward pirouette, she met the warm smiles of the women around her, asking, “How do I look?”

With effusive praise, each assured her that she was a stunning bride and that the combs were the perfect final touch. 

Inspecting herself one final time in the full-length mirror, Allegra was pleased with what she saw.  Her clothes, makeup, jewelry and hair were as flawless as they could be, and she felt as beautiful as any bride had a right to.  All that remained now was to collect her bouquet from Lani and meet her father on the path to the beach.

She grinned at her reflection.

It was time to get married.