March, 2022:

      "Hon, you really need to sit still, unless you want me to accidentally ram one of these clips into your skull," Aidan declared, as she placed a hand on Aerin's shoulder to gently push her back into her chair. "If you keep this up, I'm still gonna be getting your hair in order when everybody else is out there ready to go."

      Aerin closed her eyes and let out a deep breath, then said, "Yeah, you're prolly right. Ash, would you look in my bag over there and hand me the two little black pouches that are in the side pocket?"

      Ashley rummaged around for a few seconds, then walked over to place the requested items in Aerin's hand. A puzzled look crossed his features as she stuffed one of them into the pocket of her jeans, and he inquired, "What's that for?"

      "Something I should have done as soon as I got up this morning," Aerin replied. "I made these up before we left home so I could keep my head on straight during all of the chaos, and if I'd actually had it on me, I wouldn't have the fidgets so damn bad, and Aidan prolly coulda been finished making me presentable by now."

      She then held up her hand, indicating that Aidan should stop what she was doing for a moment, then turned to look at Zoe, who, in her position as flower girl, was on the opposite side of the room making a last-minute check on the flowers. "Zoe, hon, would you mind taking this to your dad for me?" she requested. "He'll know what it's for."

      "Sure, I can do that," the younger woman replied, making a slight adjustment to the emerald-green strapless dress she was wearing as she moved across the room to take the remaining pouch from her soon-to-be stepmother's hand.

      "I guess I'll go ahead and take my stuff along with, so I don't have to worry about holding things up by having to run all the way back here to grab the basket so I can get out there on time," she continued, as she leaned down to give Aerin a quick hug. "I don't know if I've said this before, but I'm glad that you and Dad found each other," she stated. "He's been by himself for too long, and since Zach and I both outgrew the fantasy of him getting back with our mom a long time ago, I'm just glad he's found somebody who actually cares about him, and makes him happy. So thank you for that."

      The statement appeared to have Aerin at a momentary loss for words, but after a few seconds, she managed to say, "Thanks, hon, that actually means a lot. And so you know, I'm just as glad about it as you are, if not more so. Your daddy is basically everything any girl could want in a man, and you can be sure that I'll have no problem making sure he knows he's appreciated."

      "Good. I'll hold you to that," Zoe replied with a grin. "But I'll also be keeping an eye on him to make sure he appreciates your appreciation. I mean, we all know how men can be, right?"

      "Hey, you've got one in the room, y'know!" Ashley protested from behind Aidan, where he was helping her by adjusting the laces in the back of her corset-style dress as she continued to arrange Aerin's hair. This sent all three women into a fit of giggles, so after he had the cord secured, he huffed in mock indignation and declared, "Fine, then. I'll just go start putting our crap in the rental, so y'all can actually talk about me behind my back."

      The grin that crossed his face assured them that he wasn't really annoyed, so Aidan turned her head to brush her lips across his cheek and said, "Would you be a doll and put my shoes in the front floorboard? I know we're going barefoot for the ceremony because heels aren't really good on a beach, but I'm pretty sure I'll need them at the restaurant."

      After slinging her duffel bag over one shoulder and grasping the handle of his rolling bag, he picked up the teal-colored satin sandal-boots that Aidan had dyed to match the color of her dress in his other hand and said, "Of course, milady. Your wish is my command."

      Zoe hurriedly collected both her and Aerin's shoes, along with her basket, and opened the door to let Ashley out, following along behind him. Once the door had closed behind them, Aerin let out a breath and inquired, "Are you done with my hair yet, hon? If not, let's get 'er done, cuz I really need to take a potty break before I put on my dress."

      Aidan quickly fixed the last couple of clips in her friends hair, then as Aerin hurried to the bathroom, she removed the sheer gray, lavender-lined halter dress that Aerin had chosen for the ceremony from its garment bag, checking to be sure it hadn't become wrinkled or snagged. Then once the bride-to-be emerged from the bathroom, she stuffed her jeans and T-shirt into her suitcase, then allowed Aidan to carefully drop the dress over her head and fasten it. Once that was done, Aerin retrieved the pouch of tumbled stones from her pants pocket and tucked it into the pocket she had added to the lining of the dress expressly for that purpose.

      She then inspected her reflection in the mirror before announcing to Aidan, "Okay, I guess I'm as good as you're gonna get me. How much longer until we can get started?"

      "We've got about ten minutes before everyone is supposed to hit the red carpet," Ashley informed her as he walked back into the room. "Your officiants are out there getting their stuff together as we speak. And just for the record, kiddo, you look great, so don't start second-guessing yourself."

      "Yeah, what he said," Aidan chimed in. "Remember, Bobby said he'd marry you if you showed up in a Ralphie Parker bunny suit, so I'm pretty sure he'll be blown away by this. But right now, I'm gonna grab your bag and stuff it in the car before I go check to see if everything's ready. We can swap it out to Bobby's car when we get to the reception."

      She picked up the suitcase, then took the keys from Ashley and left the room, followed moments later by Ashley and Aerin, who returned the room keys to the hotel desk before making their way toward the site Bobby had chosen for the ceremony, waiting for everyone else to take their positions before falling in behind them. Aidan turned to offer Aerin a reassuring smile, and to blow Ashley a kiss before tucking her hand into the crook of Bret's arm as they prepared to move forward, following Zach and Zoe up the runner of red carpeting leading to the altar where Bobby stood waiting with the Pagan couple who were officiating the ceremony. 

      Once the rest of the wedding party had taken their places around the altar, Ashley moved forward to deposit his friend and surrogate sister in her place next to Bobby, and after a brief exchange where he cautioned the older man to treat her properly, he retreated to take his seat as Aerin passed her bouquet of tiger lilies and red roses to Zoe so that she could clasp her fiancee's hand. 

      This was the cue for the Pagan couple, who referred to themselves as Outlaw and Gypsi, to begin the ceremony as the wedding party and guests listened with interest, because while it was in many ways similar to a typical wedding ceremony, there were also a number of differences, particularly the part where the officiants bound Bobby and Aerin's hands together with scarves as they recited their self-written vows to each other. Even these caused some puzzlement among the observers, as a portion on Bobby's vows were spoken in what was obviously a foreign language, which brought Aerin to tears, even though the words made no sense to anyone else present. Then, once they had shared their first kiss as husband and wife, Bobby led his bride across the beach, through a shower of birdseed, to his car before using his teeth to loosen the knot in the scarves that still bound them together.

      Once he had removed the scarves, he pulled his new wife into an embrace and kissed her once again, while Ashley transferred her suitcase to the back seat of Bobby's vehicle. When the couple finally separated, Bobby helped Aerin into the car and placed the scarves into the glove box before climbing behind the wheel to lead the rest of the group to the restaurant he had sold only recently, which he had booked for the reception, promising the small group of friends and family in attendance a "very special" dining experience.

      It didn't take long for the group to reach their destination, and be ushered to the private dining area by the new owner, who was also a long-time friend of Bobby's. After everyone had taken their seats, Bobby offered a short speech thanking everyone for attending the ceremony, which was immediately followed by CC commenting on the mischievous grin that kept flickering across Aerin's face. She revealed the reason behind her smile to her new husband, earning a somewhat startled, yet elated response, and he in turn shared it with their friends, prompting everyone to leave their seats and gather around the couple in hopes of feeling the babies move.

      This continued until an appetizing smell, which was quite familiar to the new bride, as well as Ashley and Aidan, drifted into the room, indicating that their food was on the way to the table.  Aerin appeared to be somewhat taken aback as she realized that Bobby had shared the recipe for the linguine she often prepared during his trips to Tennessee, but didn't take him to task for it, understanding that he had done it only to be sure that she would enjoy the meal.

      After the food was served, Bobby received another surprise when Aerin requested milk for Rikki's children in Italian, leading him to the realization that she had actually understood the words that he had added to his wedding vows, even though none of the other guests had. When CC quizzed the bassist about a translation, both he and Aerin clamped their lips closed, unwilling to share the words, which they preferred to keep private.

      This meant that everyone gathered at the table was taken completely off guard when an unfamiliar female voice came from the opposite side of the room, announcing, "He said, 'Baby, I love you.I couldn't live without you any easier than I could live without breathing, 'cause you mean everything to me'."