Page 52 of Striker

Doc pulled out a deep red long piece of lace, a long black piece of leather and a white piece of satin. He quickly braided them together and turned to us. “Your hands, my dears.” We both put our hands in front of Doc.

“To bind, I take your hands in mine and with this string, I will entwine your powers. I’ll forever bind from now until the end of time.” He made us hold our hands together as he wrapped the materials around our hands. Doc clapped his hands together “Now, by the power vested in me by the state of Montana, I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may now kiss...” before he could even finish I took Lilah’s face into my hands and kissed her.

The strings fell from our hands and wrapped around Lilah’s wrists. I wrapped my arm around her and bent her backwards, kissing her with everything I had. Everybody cheered as I pumped my fist in the air. Lilah was now officially Mrs. Lilah Rose Walker. My wife.

As the rock and roll ‘Canon in D’ came on, I picked Lilah up and carried her down the aisle, surrounded by our family and friends. They all threw leaves as we made our way past them.

As we got into the barn, the reception was already set up. Long wooden tables lined the barn, mismatched chairs ran along both sides. Each table had a long handmade table runner down the middle in different shades of red, orange and yellow. Mismatched plates, silverware and glasses were at each seat. It matched our life perfectly. Heaven and hell, light and dark, devil and angel. Lights were strung all around the barn, mason jars with candles on each table.

The big barn doors at the back were opened wide and you could see a dance floor made from pallets right in the middle of the field. Barrels full of mums stood at each corner, a tall pole in the middle with more strings of lights connected them all. On either side of the dance floor were two large fire pits with hay bales around it. Each bale had a quilt covering it and a basket of fleece blankets next to it.

A makeshift bar sat beside the barn, made from whiskey barrels and a sheet of wood. Bottles of liquor lined the top and on both sides of the bar were wheelbarrows full of ice and beer bottles. Next to the wheelbarrows were ladders with boards laid across the rungs, creating a shelf. On each makeshift shelf, were glass bottles of soda and large glass pitchers of lemonade and water. It was absolutely beautiful and all created by my brand new beautiful bride.

“You’ve outdone yourself, Little Lark. I can’t believe you came up with all of this.” She shrugged as I wrapped my arm around her.

“I couldn’t have done it without my Mama, Bambi and Ellie Jo to be honest. And all your brothers helped a ton. It was certainly a family affair.” She gazed up at me with her beautiful green eyes, “Everything is absolutely perfect, thanks to them.”

I bent down and gently kissed her as everybody made their way into the barn. Upbeat music started to play and people grabbed their glasses and headed toward the bar. “Looks like it’s time to party, Little Lark.” We both laughed as we danced our way to the dance floor.

“Alright ladies and not so much gentlemen!” My road captain, Hawk, was by the music booth with a microphone in his hand. “Let’s give it up for the brand new, Mr. and Mrs. Walker!” Everybody cheered as we got onto the dance floor.

The music faded out and ‘Like Jesus Does’ by Eric Church came on. Everybody cleared the floor as I wrapped my arms around my Little Lark’s waist and pulled her into me. Her arms wrapped around my neck and she rested her head on my chest. We swayed back and forth to the music while everybody watched and the ladies cried. I leaned down and whispered in her ear, “I love you, Mrs. Walker.”

Goosebumps covered her arms and she looked up at me. “I love hearing that name, Striker. I love you so much.”

Once our song was over, everybody swarmed onto the dance floor. We danced until the sun set and the stars came out. Lilah looked over at me and winked, I grabbed her hand and we headed to the microphone.

“Listen up you party animals!” Everybody laughed as they turned their attention to us. Lilah leaned into the microphone and cleared her throat. “We want to share some good news with you. You all have been there with us through everything, so it’s only fair we share.”

We looked at each other and then spoke at the same time. “We’re having twin boys!” Everybody went wild, cheering and throwing their hands in the air.

Mama Crawford and my Pop came running over and gathered us into a big hug. Maverick and Goose came up from behind to get in on the hug too.

We spent the rest of the night dancing and celebrating the good news of twin boys. I placed my hand over Lilah’s growing tummy and pulled her into me. “Why don’t we get out of here, Little Lark?”

She turned with a big grin on her face, “I thought you would never ask.” Taking her hand in mine, I led her through the barn and to my Harley. We got our helmets on and hopped on the motorcycle. I revved the engine as we took off into the night.

We headed down the driveway of my family ranch and past the old barn. Lilah gripped my arm and yelled into my ear, “Where are we going?” I just smiled and kept going.

I had planned this whole weekend out and was able to keep it a surprise from her. We came to a path in the woods and slowed down. “Hold on tight, Little Lark!” I sped up just a little as we flew through the woods. Lilah squeezed me tight and buried her face into my back. The motorcycle started to ascend up a small mountain until we came out into a clearing.

There was a small field with a babbling brook next to it. The whole clearing overlooked the mountains and you could see for miles. I had a tent and everything set up. Solar lights were strung up in the big oak tree that sat in the middle of the field. Under the tree I had the tent set up with two camp chairs by the stacked wood. I slowed and pulled the motorcycle next to the tent and helped Lilah off. She wandered all around the field looking at everything.

“Striker, this is amazing! You did all this?” I just nodded and came up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist.

“All for you, my Little Lark. Come check out the tent.”

I opened the tent, turned on the lanterns and let Lilah step inside while I started the fire. I set up an air mattress with a pillow top to make sure she would be comfortable, especially with the pregnancy. All her favorite blankets were on the bed along with her newest cravings; chili chocolate bars and supplies for s’mores.

Lilah came out of the tent and cozied up next to me at the fire. “This is amazing, Striker. Thank you for all of this.” She shivered as she scooted even closer to me and wrapped one of the blankets around us.

“Why don’t we get you inside and warmed up?” I winked as I picked Lilah up and carried her into the tent.

Gently setting her down on the bed, I kicked my boots off and got on my knees. I slowly took her cowboy boots off then reached up for her leather jacket. “This right here, is fucking hot. Remind me to thank your brothers for this.”

Lilah laughed as she leaned down to kiss me. “I don’t think my brothers want to know how turned on you are seeing me in this.” I took off my vest and unbuttoned my shirt.

“Don’t give a shit. I’m gonna do it anyway.” Lilah laughed as I made my way up on the bed.

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