Give Me Your Heart

“You know, you make a pretty beautiful bridesmaid”

Riley, who had been fixing the last of her hair, shook her head a little at the sound of Gerard’s voice before she turned around, offering both him and Alexander a soft smile. It had been a little while, after Gerard had proposed, almost a month had past, and whilst they were both excited about the prospect of planning a wedding, they had opted to keep the news to themselves for a little while, wanting a chance to get used to the idea before they involved other people. It was still a little odd, the idea that they were more than just boyfriend and girlfriend, but they were slowly growing used to it, something which pleased Gerard who, even despite her reassurances, had worried that Riley would change her mind.

“What are you doing here?” Riley posed as she stepped towards them, her fingertips gently smoothing out the dark hair on the top of Alexander’s head.

“We missed you” Gerard quipped “We’ve not seen you since you left yesterday afternoon and we thought we’d check in before you get too wrapped up in getting Cassidy ready. We’re not intruding, are we?” he posed softly. It had been a little strange, with Cassidy due to get married that day, Riley had spent the night with her friend, and as silly as it was, Gerard had missed her, something which had encouraged him to arrive slightly earlier.

Riley shook her head. “Of course you’re not” she insisted “I just didn’t think you’d be early. You’re never early for anything” she teased.

Gerard offered her sarcastic smile before Alexander made a noise, pulling his parents’ attention to him. “He missed you this morning” he noted gently.

Riley offered him a small smile before she stepped towards him, gently taking Alexander into her arms. “He didn’t cause you any trouble, did he?” she posed, a small amused grin on her face.

“He was a little fussy when it came to getting him dressed” Gerard mused with a small smile “But all in all, he was great. We have a pretty great baby, Ry” he teased gently.

Riley offered him a soft smile before she flicked her attention towards Alexander, cooing to him gently.

Gerard, who’d moved to sit down, watched her for a moment before he reached out his hand, gently tugging her towards him. “You do make a very beautiful bridesmaid, Ry” he quipped.

“You think so?” Riley posed, a small blush on her cheeks.

Gerard smiled a little at the blush on her cheeks before he leant up, kissing the reddened skin softly. “I do” he confirmed “Though, I think I will prefer it when you’re the bride” he quipped with a small amused grin. It wasn’t something they’d talked a lot about, since Riley had accepted his proposal, talk of their wedding had been kept to a minimum, but Gerard wanted to start thinking about it, even if their engagement was to be a long one, he didn’t see the harm in thinking ahead.

“It’s going to be a little while before you see that, hombre” Riley countered “We’ve not even told anyone that we’re engaged yet” she added as she carefully moved to place Alexander back into his arms, allowing her to slip her feet into her shoes.

Gerard nodded his head. “I know that” he quipped softly “But perhaps, once Cassidy’s wedding is over with, we can start to think about the prospect of telling people” he suggested gently.

Riley mulled his words over for a moment before she quirked a small smile, something which made Gerard shake his head. “That’s your way of saying yes, right?” he quipped.

Riley opened her mouth to respond before the door to room she had been getting ready in swung open, revealing Cassidy who was still dressed in a dressing gown. “Are you eventually going to join me, Riley, or do I need to find another maid of honor?” she quipped, her voice more than a little frustrated.

Riley smiled a little at the tone of her friend’s voice before she stepped towards Gerard, pressing a soft kiss against his lips. “We’ll talk later, OK?” she posed softly.

“Of course” Gerard agreed with a small smile “Happy wedding day, Cassidy” he teased.

The blonde offered him a glare before she stepped out of the room, Riley in tow.

~#~
Straightening out the material of her dress, Riley spared a small smile, her eyes fixed on Cassidy and Ryan who had just started their first dance. It had been a beautiful day, from the second that Ryan had set his eyes on Cassidy, neither one of them had stopped grinning, and Riley was pleased for them, especially since their day had gone off without a hitch. She was pleased to see her two friends looking so happy.

“Do you think I can have this dance?”

Riley, who’d been preoccupied with watching her friends, startled a little at the sound of Gerard’s voice before she turned slightly, offering him a small smile. “Where’s Alex?” she posed softly.

“Cassidy’s mother is watching him for a second” Gerard replied “But I was sort of hoping I could get a dance with my beautiful fiancée” he added lowly, a teasing grin playing at the corner of his mouth.

Riley’s cheeks warmed a little before she ducked her head, something which made his smile widen a little. He liked the idea that he still had the ability to make her blush.

“That’s a yes to the dance, right?” he teased as Cassidy and Ryan finished their dance, earning a ripple of applause.

“It’s a yes” Riley agreed gently “But please, avoid treading on my feet” she added.

Gerard rolled his eyes before he laced their finger together, carefully leading her out onto the dancefloor. Riley followed his lead before she carefully wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close as he carefully swayed her to the music. “So” Gerard mumbled softly “We were talking earlier” he added gently.

“We were” Riley confirmed “And I am sorry I had to duck out. Cassidy was having a pretty major wobble and she needed to be calmed down” she explained gently.

“It’s fine” Gerard noted “But I just wanted to clarify. I want to tell people, Ry, I want to start thinking about a wedding date and making plans, and I want to know whether or not you’re on board. I don’t want you to think that I am trying to…” Gerard’s words trailed off as Riley leant up on her toes, pressing a soft kiss against his lips.

“I want to start telling people” Riley murmured softly “I want to start thinking about making plans, but I would still like us to take our time. There’s no need to rush this” she insisted softly. She knew that he was excited, from the moment that she had said yes, he’d been itching to tell people, and whilst she too wanted to share the news, she wanted to ensure that they took their time. Things were good between them, they had been for a while, and she didn’t see the need to put a rush on it.

Gerard mulled her words over for a moment before he nodded. “We can still take our time” he noted softly “We can do this our way, Ry, I promise” he insisted gently.

Riley quirked a small smile before she leant up, pressing a kiss against his cheek. She knew that people would be excited, the news that she and Gerard were engaged was pretty big, but still she wanted to be careful, even if things between the two of them were good, she wanted to ensure that they stayed that way.