My Fair Lady

Chapter 11

"Dad, how do you tie this thing?" Joey desperately held out a formal black tie to his father. Billie Joe said nothing, he didn't even cock an eyebrow at the odd request, he just simply tied the tie on his son.

"Calm down Joey." He told him softly as he finished the job, "It's going to be fine."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Joey flustered. "Have you seen her?"

"No, I haven't. I've been in here with you. I will go check on her if you want me to." Billie Joe's voice was calm and soft as if he were talking to a small child instead of a grown man.

"No, no. No, no." Joey turned and began to wring his hands. "I don't want to seem psycho or anything. Especially not on the wedding day." He gave a false laugh and smile before his features dropped in anguish. "Oh God, what if she changes her mind?" He sat down hard on the sofa in the room. "I can't live without her. I would die if she didn't come down that aisle." Joey was talking in a trance, staring at one place on the wall.

Billie Joe grinned, shook his head, and took a seat across from Joey and began his fatherly and best man duties. "Joey,... Joey. Look at me... Yeah, there you go. Listen," He put his hands on Joey's to ensure his attention, "Amy loves you, okay? She loves you and she wants to be with you. What you're feeling, it's totally normal. Hell, when I married your Mom, I was so scared she was going to change her mind and go back to Minneapolis and leave me. You know she was engaged before we were? Well, I had the biggest fear that she was going to go running back to him, but she didn't. And we've had a great life together. We have two sons, one of which is fixing to start a life of his own. Give Amy a little credit. You wouldn't have gotten this far, and gotten her that pregnant, if she didn't love you."

Joey gave a shaky sigh and nodded. "You're right, you're right. Thanks Dad."

Billie Joe nodded and kissed his son. "You and Amy are going to have a great life together. You found yourself a good one."

Joey nodded in agreement just as the groom's door opened and Jakob sauntered inside. Billie Joe and Joey exchanged a look. "So, where have you been?" Billie Joe asked coyly, though knowing exactly where he had been.

Jakob grinned, shrugged, and began to look for his tie.

"Uh huh." Joey began. "I know where he was. He was macking on my wedding musician."

"Uh, one little correction," Jakob came over to where his brother and father were, "That is my musician, thank you very much. I am simply letting you borrow her for your wedding. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have a operetta singer at your wedding so you should be saying 'Thank you Jakob. ' And FYI, I was making out with Chloe behind the chapel tapestries, which is a better thing for me to have done than put shaving cream, glass chalk, and Vienna Sausages on the getaway car."

Joey's grin dropped. "What?"

"Uh, huh. Am I straight?" He held his neck out for his dad to check his tie.

"Oh, no." Joey buried his face in his hands. "They didn't."

"They did." Jakob confirmed as Joey's two other groomsmen came through the door. "And I saw Amy's parent's come in."

"They came?" Joey's head perked up. "Has Amy seen them?"

"I don't know. They went straight into the chapel. I tried to say hey to them, but either they didn't hear me or ignored me."

"Probably ignored you. They show up after all the work is done and after all the Hell they put their daughter and finance's parents through. Adie and I were here until one this morning finishing everything and there's still shit to be done." Billie Joe muttered under his breath.

"Dad, don't start." Joey warned as the door opened yet again to reveal Adrienne pinning the mother of the groom corsage on her dress.

"Okay, unless you are family, out boys." She threw her thumbs behind her as Joey's two unrelated groomsmen left, leaving him, Billie Joe, and Jakob. "Jakob, why don't you leave for a second too? Go finish ravaging Chloe in the hallway in plain sight but for God's sake, don't mess her hair up. It took almost two hours to get it right."

Jakob pretended to be offended as he made his way to the door, a tad quicker than a normal pace would allow.

As he shut the door, Adrienne sat on the sofa next to Joey. "Are you ready?" She put her hands on his shoulders.

Joey nodded wordlessly. "I am. I'm scared and excited and terrified and... How is she?"

"Beautiful. Especially with her belly poking out in her dress." Adrienne beamed and kissed her oldest son. "Your father and I are so proud of you and we wish you and Amy the best in the world." She kissed her son and smiled brightly. "Now, let's get you married."

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"You were great." Jakob kissed Chloe on the cheek as he sat down next to her at the reception. She blushed prettily and her cheeks almost became as deep a red as her dress.

"They look so happy." She commented as she nodded towards the dance floor where Joey and Amy were taking their first dance as husband and wife.

"Yeah." Jakob agreed as Amy smiled and laughed as his older brother twirled her about. He leaned back in the chair and put a hand on Chloe's leg as the song ended. She leaned her head on his shoulder and they sat comfortably as people milled about them, greeting Jakob and complimenting Chloe.

"Oh my God, look at your parents " Chloe exclaimed as she pointed to the dance floor where Billie Joe and Adrienne had taken center and did a well known, older dance.

"Oh my fuck, I didn't know they could dance." Jakob said as he clapped and cheered his parents on.

"Where'd they learn that?" Joey and Amy appeared behind them, both gaping at Billie Joe dipping Adrienne in perfect routine.

Jakob shrugged and put an arm around Chloe and kissed the side of her head. "I love you" he whispered softly to her.