“Is Braden okay?! You two really are in love.”

“Is he? Where is he?”

“They’re all in the courtroom waiting. They wouldn’t let him come downstairs. In fact, it took Adam and two deputies to hold him back. He’s pretty upset.”

“Oh God. I feel so bad.”

“Gabrielle, you were just in a hostage situation in lock-up. Cut yourself some slack. Come on though! We need to get upstairs. Judge Channing wants to see you too.”

“Oh fuck! I was supposed to come back to do my cases. Am I in trouble?”

“Are you nuts? No, you’re not in trouble! He wants to see for himself that you’re okay.”

We got to the courtroom door and Mark led me inside. Suddenly a cheer went up and a dozen public defenders, a few prosecutors who were Braden’s friends, Judge Channing and various other members of courthouse personnel were waiting but I only focused on one person. I literally ran to Braden who pulled me into his arms tightly and wouldn’t let go.

“Mr. Pierce! Take her back into my chambers,” Judge Channing ordered. “Don’t come out until you’re ready.” Braden kept his arms wrapped around me as he led me quickly up the stairs and behind the bench where we went through the door and back into the judge’s chambers. He closed the door behind us and pulled me over to a sofa and onto his lap where we just held each other.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Eventually, I stopped shaking and eventually Braden was willing to loosen his grip. Our heart rates even started to slow down.

“I want to get married,” he said. I sat back and looked at him with confusion. My brain was pretty scrambled at the moment.

“I know. You gave me this ring, remember?”

“Saturday, before the party.”

“You want to get married before our engagement party?”

“Yeah. If we apply for the license today we’ll get it on time. Judge Channing will marry us. I asked him.”

“You did? In the middle of all this?”

“That deputy who came and got you earlier came back and interrupted court in the middle of the hearing. He said that there was a riot down in lock-up and that you were one of the public defenders trapped inside.”

“Oh God, Braden! I’m so sorry about what you must have gone through.”

“Me?! Baby … anyway, I tried to leave but they held me back. They said there was nothing I could do down there. They wouldn’t even let me call you until they knew what was going on.”

“I wouldn’t have had much to tell you. I was holed up in an interview room with two other PDs and guy named Terrell who was only in for taking advantage of BOGO on some marijuana.”

“I felt so powerless, Gabrielle. It made me realize that anything can happen and life is too short to waste. Whatever does happen, I want it to happen to us together as man and wife. So, I asked Judge Channing if he would marry us and he said yes. Now I know that …”

“Okay,” I interrupted.

“…we talked about … Did you just say okay?”

“I agree. Life is short and whatever happens I want it to happen to us together.” I didn’t care about what anyone said. Even if it had only been a few months I knew that this relationship was the real deal. Braden looked elated.

“I was thinking that we could do it Saturday before the party!” he said with a huge grin filled with relief and love.

“Maybe the Ritz will let us have a smaller room too. Just a little private ceremony and the party can be our reception.”

“Yeah! And we could see if your friend Stan is free to play us a song.”

“Stan?” I smiled. “You would let Stan play at our wedding?”

“He played at our first date. And we can invite your friends from the kabob place too.”

“Oh Braden!” Finally, I had tears in my eyes and they were tears of joy. Go figure.

“So how about if we get the hell out of here, and go apply for a marriage license. Then we’ll go get our dog, go home, make plans, and make love.”

“Yes to all of that.”

“Come on, let’s go.”

That night we mostly held each other and talked. We discussed all the details we had left hanging including the plans for our non-profit. We tossed around some names and The Justice Project was our favorite so far. We agreed to talk to our parents as soon as possible to get their help with setting it up and we hoped to be able to start running it by the new year or at least by the spring. We decided that even though we would be working on the same team in the future, we would keep our skills sharp by arguing cases with each other privately. After all, we liked all that adrenaline, and arguing cases was much better than arguing about personal things.

Finally, after we were all talked out, he brushed a piece of hair that had come untucked behind my ear and then leaned in to kiss me slowly, lovingly, and sweetly. I responded, pouring all of my feelings and my desire into it. Finally, he pulled back, scooped me up into his arms and carried me into our bedroom. Bruno followed along but he was perfectly content to just lounge in his doggie bed with his chew toy. We really had trained him well.

Braden put me down and the two of us undressed each other slowly and walked hand-in-hand to our bed. Then we lay down next to each other and just stared into each other’s eyes for a long time. There were no words at all to describe the intensity of emotion between us that night. It may have only been a few months, but we were deeply and passionately in love. I felt like our souls recognized each other. Like we had always been together and we always would be. We began to kiss and caress each other tenderly and when he finally slid slowly into me, he told me that he loved me and that he would love me for the rest of his life. I told him that he was my bashert – my destiny – and that I would love him forever. Later, we fell asleep in each other’s arms.

The rest of the week was kind of a blur. My office gave me some time off, which I appreciated. Braden also took a couple of personal days and he enlisted his mom to organize the wedding, a project she performed with great talent and skill. She managed to secure the musical talent of Stanford Benson, (also known around Philly train stations as Stan the Bluesman) to play a special dedication for our first dance. She not only invited Ahmet and Damla, she put in a huge order for their special Turkish pastries. Their desserts would be sampled by senators, congressmen, judges and various other notables. Since they would all be joining us at the engagement party turned wedding reception later, Claire even made sure that they all had formal clothes to wear. She thought of everything.

Senator Pierce and my dad quickly assembled more security than the Pentagon had and arranged for us to have access to a private plane and a room at a lovely resort for a long weekend on St. Thomas the following week. My mom dedicated her energy to trying to get her relatives to behave themselves. She had the toughest job of them all. She also came into Philly several times that week, and took me shopping for my dress, veil, and shoes, out for mani/pedi, to have my hair trimmed and styled, all the good girlie stuff. She and I talked a lot about marriage, the ups and downs, the give and take. In case I haven’t mentioned it, my mom is an incredible woman.

Braden and I spent our time mostly talking and planning. We took the first steps toward forming The Justice Project and found some nice Center City office space. The week flew by. Before I knew it, it was Friday evening. My parents, along with my aunt, uncle and cousin would be arriving any moment along with …Bubbe.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

The Pierces had planned their house party carefully. Beth had conveyed my anxiety to Claire, who, in turn, had felt guilty. She didn’t want me to be embarrassed, so she had purposely invited the most questionable relatives of theirs who she could find as well, which was how Derek came to be there. Braden and I went to Bryn Mawr together that evening. He was planning to stay overnight there with his family and I would return to the Ritz with my parents and stay with them in their suite there until the next day. He squeezed my hand as we saw the two limos pull into the drive.

“I love you, Gabrielle,” he said solemnly.

“I love you too Braden,” I replied, trying not to sound overly fearful.

The doors of the lead car opened and my parents stepped out looking fabulous. They came over and hugged Braden and I warmly. Then doors opened on the second car and my stomach dropped into my shoes.

“Oy vey! A cab to a train to a car! What are you going to put me in a rowboat next? I’m an elderly woman!” It was Bubbe.

“What are you complaining about?” My cousin, Rachel, exclaimed in her heavy New York accent. “You rode in luxury on the Acela and you were driven in style in a limo! It’s not like your son-in-law tossed you in the trunk of a Chevy Nova!”

“Enough already!” My Aunt Ruth said, looking like she was on her last nerve. “The two of you have been arguing since we left Penn Station. You’re giving me a headache!”

“Braden, you remember my relatives I’m sure,” my mother said with a smile.

“I do, Judy.” He laughed. “Hello everyone! Welcome to my family’s home. Let me get you inside and introduce you to my parents, Tyler and Claire.”

“This is a nice place!” My Uncle Ira said, looking the house over. “So your father’s a senator, Braden!” As he passed by me he said, “Good job, Gabrielle!” in a whisper loud enough for half the house to hear. I rolled my eyes heavenward.

“You see this, Rachel?” Bubbe asked. “This is what you get when you keep a man happy! You make sure that when you’re married you keep giving him whatever he asks for in bed, Gabrielle!”

“Oh, my God,” I whimpered. Braden put his arm around me reassuringly.

“We’ll have to introduce her to Derek,” he suggested with a smile. We all went inside and we introduced my relatives to Braden’s relatives. Claire had amazing hostess skills! She had found a second cousin who owned a string of tuxedo rental places in New York. He and Ira were talking some serious dry cleaning before long. My Aunt Ruth found a common interest in daytime television with a rather loud cousin with a heavy Boston accent. Rachel and Derek hit it off immediately. That was interesting. I would have imagined that she would have been more interested in Drew. Speaking of Drew, he and Bubbe and a couple of frat boy cousins were having a great time drinking, playing poker, telling dirty jokes and smoking cigars out on the patio. Which meant that Braden and I were able to relax and enjoy some time with our parents together.

“So Tyler, I understand that you popped the question after six weeks too,” my dad said.

“I knew right away that young lady was right for me,” he said, smiling at Claire lovingly. “I guess that Braden inherited my decisiveness and my impatience.”

“Well, Gabrielle must have inherited my courage and adventurous spirit because I accepted his proposal after eight weeks of dating,” my mom added, gesturing at my dad.

“You’re courageous? Have you met her mother?” my dad joked. “Never question how much I love your mom, Gabrielle,” he said looking at her adoringly.

“When Braden asked me I said he was the bravest man I knew besides you.”

“I can’t believe that at this time tomorrow you’ll be my wife,” he said looking at me in much the same way that Tyler had looked at Claire and my dad had looked at my mom. Seeing that look I knew that it would be okay.

We stayed until nine and then Braden and I hugged each other tightly and went to spend some private time with our parents. We knew that while they were thrilled, it also wasn’t easy for them to see their babies grown up. After a lovely night full of laughter and tears with my parents I found myself getting ready for my wedding the following day in their suite, accompanied by Jess, Lily and Beth. They were acting as my bridesmaids and they had all bought very pretty matching dresses in a deep sapphire blue that looked great on all of them. I had bought a simple white (yeah, whatever!) bias-cut silk sheath wedding gown and I wore my diamond necklace and long sheer veil attached to the back of my head with a beautiful diamond clip that had belonged to Braden’s great-grandmother.

My parents had reserved the entire floor for close friends and family. Braden’s family had taken over the floor above. It was still only four when I was finished getting dressed and made up and I wanted to go walk to work off some nerves, so we set out to see who was around.

“You look so gorgeous, Gabrielle, I can’t wait to see Braden’s face when he sees you,” Beth said, sounding emotional. She had told me that there had been plenty of laughter and tears at the Pierce home the night before as well.

“I can’t wait to see him. I’ll bet he looks amazing,” I answered just as we turned a corner. I saw someone else who amazed me in the hall up ahead of us. I knew that bellman!

“It’s him!” Lily suddenly cried out. The figure looked up quickly and took off down the hall. Without even really thinking about it, I hiked up my skirt and took off after him.

“Wait, Gabrielle!” Jess cried. When I didn’t stop, my friends, loyal until the end, took off in pursuit with me. The bellman ran into a stairwell and I ran after him. I could hear him a flight below and I did everything in my power to follow and not break my neck. After two flights I heard him exit and I followed, yelling for him to stop. Jess. Lily, and Beth were not far behind me. He had exited onto a mezzanine that connected with the grand staircase. As I chased after him I heard a voice call to me from below.

“Gabrielle?! Baby, what are you doing now?!” Braden called out. I realized that this probably looked kind of odd, a bride and three bridesmaids chasing a bellman around a fancy hotel. We did seem to be attracting some attention. I hoped that they hadn’t let the media in yet.