A/N: The idea of writing a Shandy Wedding Fic was suggested to me by one of my Tumblr followers, tearsandbrightness. So, if any of you are looking for someone to thank for this, please thank her. Also, in case any of you were wondering, the title of this was inspired by the song, Forever Like That by Ben Rector. If you've never heard the song, I highly recommend you give it a listen. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or M/C, but if I did, this is what would happen.
Chapter 1: Something New and Dodger Blue
As Sharon woke up that morning, the first thought that came to her mind was how much she'd missed Andy sleeping next to her the previous evening. It seemed silly, but Sharon had grown accustomed to having Andy there next to her every night since they'd made the decision to move in together. She'd certainly missed his strong arms enveloping her first thing in the morning as he leaned over to kiss her. Sharon's bleak mood soon began to recede though because today was a special day. Today was the day she and Andy were getting married and that thought quickly put a smile on her face as she climbed out of bed and slipped on her robe before making her way towards the kitchen in search of coffee.
Sharon wasn't at all surprised to find most of her bridesmaids were still asleep. They'd come over yesterday evening for a girls night after Andy had gone to stay at Provenza and Patrice's house with his groomsmen the previous afternoon. It was still fairly early, but Sharon wasn't at all surprised to find that Patrice, a former nurse, was already up and had brewed some coffee.
"There's the blushing bride," Patrice teased as she hugged Sharon.
"More like bare faced bride this time of the morning, but thank you," replied Sharon as she smiled and returned Patrice's hug.
"Want some coffee?" asked Patrice.
"Please. I didn't sleep that well last night," said Sharon.
"Missing that groom of yours?" inquired Patrice as she poured Sharon a cup of coffee before carefully handing her the mug.
"Thanks. Yeah. I guess I've just gotten used to having him next to me every night and rolling over to see him in the morning when I wake up," answered Sharon.
"I get that way too when Louie's working late on a case. It's just better having them next to you and knowing they're safe and staying out of trouble," said Patrice.
Sharon quickly swallowed the coffee in her mouth as she quietly laughed at just how true Patrice's statement was before she said, "Definitely. Especially the two of them together."
"Amen to that," replied Patrice.
"Speaking of that, would you mind doing me a favor this morning?" asked Sharon.
"Girl, it's your wedding day. It basically gives you license to ask for whatever you want," declared Patrice.
"Okay. I have a little something for Andy that I want him to have before the wedding, but I wanna send a letter along with it. If you can give me about 30 minutes, I can have it ready for you to take over there," explained Sharon.
"Of course, honey. Plus, it'll give me a chance to make sure Louie and the guys haven't completely destroyed the house overnight," joked Patrice.
"Thank you," replied Sharon gratefully as she quickly refilled her mug before heading back into her and Andy's bedroom to write the letter.
As promised, about thirty minutes later, Sharon and Patrice were standing in the hallway as Sharon handed off the small box and envelope to her good friend. A moment later, Emily came walking down the hall towards them with her own mug of coffee.
"We didn't wake you, did we?" Patrice asked her.
"No. I'm still on east coast time. So, I almost always wake up early when I'm out here in LA," Emily answered.
"I'll be back in a little bit," said Patrice.
"Thank you again," Sharon told her.
"Don't mention it. Like I said, today's your wedding day. Ask away," replied Patrice before she excused herself and began making her way down the hallway and out the front door.
"She's so sweet. How did Provenza manage that one?" inquired Emily.
"I'm not entirely sure sometimes. What I will say though is that Patrice has the patience of a saint," replied Sharon as she walked into the master bedroom with Emily and almost completely shut the door so they didn't wake the others.
"Where's Patrice off to so early?" Emily inquired as they both settled on the bed with their mugs of coffee.
"I had some custom cufflinks made as a little surprise wedding present for Andy and I wanted him to wear them today. So, Patrice agreed to drop them off for me and make sure the guys haven't completely destroyed her house overnight," Sharon informed her daughter.
"Aww…I'm sure he'll love them. Are you excited about today?" Emily asked her.
"Yes. So excited. I never thought I'd be getting married again at this stage in my life. Andy and I finding each other was definitely something neither of us expected to happen, but it's been such a wonderful surprise. I honestly couldn't ask for a better man to be marrying today," said Sharon as a few stray tears fell from her eyes.
"Oh mom," said Emily as she wrapped her mother in a hug.
"I'm sorry. I'll try to keep the tears to a minimum today. No promises though," said Sharon as she began to wipe some of her happy tears away.
"Cry as much as you want, mom. That's what waterproof mascara is for," Emily pointed out.
Sharon laughed at Emily's comment before wrapping an arm around Emily and pulling her daughter towards her in a hug as she said, "I guess you're right."
"Mom?" said Emily.
"Hmm?" Sharon hummed questioningly.
Emily sat up to look at her mother as she said, "I know I'm not here all the time, but I just want you to know how happy I am that you and Andy found each other. From what I've seen, he's a great guy and those brothers of mine seem to love hanging out with him. Most importantly though, I've seen him make you unbelievably happy over the last few years and that's all any of us have ever wanted for you. I'm not saying you weren't happy before, but it's a different kind of happy, you know?"
Sharon swiped at a few more stray tears that escaped her eyes at Emily's touching words before she wrapped her arms around her daughter and replied, "Yeah, I do. I'm so glad all three of you are here to celebrate and be a part of this day with Andy and I. It means so much that you guys made time to be here."
"Oh, mom. We wouldn't miss this day for the world," replied Emily as she hugged her mother back.
Just then, Andrea pushed the door open as her and Amy walked in with their coffee.
"Has she been crying already, Emily?" Andrea joked good naturedly.
"Twice," replied Sharon as she patted the bed and encouraged her and Amy to sit down.
As the two women each took a seat on the end of the bed, Amy asked, "Where's Patrice?"
"She should be back soon. I asked her to stop by her and Provenza's house and drop off some new cufflinks I had made as a surprise gift for Andy," Sharon answered.
"Well, hopefully Lieutenant Provenza and the guys didn't trash the place too much last night. Otherwise, the lieutenant is in for an earful," said Amy.
"Yes. Patrice said as much before she left," replied Sharon as she chuckled at Amy's comment.
The women ending up making more coffee and eventually migrated to the living room to continue chatting. About thirty minutes later, Patrice walked in the door and set her purse down before coming to join the rest of the women.
"So, what's the damage?" Sharon asked jokingly.
"It wasn't too bad. Most of them were still sleeping when I got there, but that soon to be husband of yours and Mike were up cleaning the kitchen and living room when I got there," said Patrice.
"How did Andy like the cufflinks?" Emily asked her.
"He was very touched and asked me to tell you that he'd wait a lifetime if it meant he got to spend the rest of his life with you," Patrice told Sharon.
Sharon smiled and looked up to try and avoid even more tears from escaping her eyes this morning.
"Looks like the count is up to three now," commented Andrea.
"That's what waterproof mascara is for," said Patrice.
"That's what I said," replied Emily as she high fived Patrice.
"Sounds like you've won the lottery with the Lieutenant, Commander," Amy piped up.
"Amy, it's my wedding day and you're a bridesmaid in my wedding. I think we can dispense with the formalities outside of the PAB," Sharon gently suggested.
"I'll try. It's a hard habit to break," responded Amy.
"That's all I ask. Now, wait here. I have some gifts that I want to give all of you," Sharon told them before she headed down the hallway towards the master bedroom.
"We should've seen this coming," said Andrea.
"Oh, that reminds me. Andy gave me a little something to give to her," said Patrice as she got up to grab an envelope and a small wrapped box out of her purse.
As Sharon returned to the living room, she began handing a gift bag to each of the women. When she handed Patrice hers, Patrice thanked Sharon and handed her the envelope and small box as she said, "Your groom asked me to give you this."
Sharon looked down at the items in her hand and smiled as she made her way back over to the couch and sat down next to Emily. She slid a finger under the flap of the envelope and popped it open before pulling a folded piece of paper out and opening it to reveal a fairly short letter that from what she could tell seemed to have been written this morning. As she read through Andy's beautiful words of love, she laughed and smiled and even shed a few happy tears at the joy the contents of the letter brought her. After Sharon finished reading the letter, she handed it to Emily as she tearily told her, "You can read it out loud. I'm just too big of a mess right now to get through it without crying all over again."
"Okay," replied Emily before she began to read Andy's letter to her mother aloud.
My Dearest Sharon,
Words can't even begin to describe how happy I am that this day has finally arrived. If somebody had told me five or ten years ago that you and I would one day be married, I probably would've called bullshit and laughed them out of the room. Everybody else probably would've too considering you worked in FID and I was one of the biggest pains in the asses that FID had ever seen. It's amazing what a bit of time can do to completely change the course of your life. In the best way possible I might add.
Even in my wildest dreams, I couldn't have imagined that things between us would turn out as wonderful as they have. Having you in my life has been and will continue to be one of the greatest blessings I've ever received. I am in awe of your capacity for love every single day. From the way you love me so completely, flaws and all, to the way you have loved and accepted my children and grandchildren into your life as if they were your own.
What we've accomplished in the just over two years that we've been together is nothing short of a miracle. Especially considering the baggage the two of us and our families have had to deal with. Neither of our pasts have been exactly rosy, but like I said before it's amazing what time can do to completely turn your world around.
Also, I got you a little "something new" to wear today. The girls helped me pick it out and assured me that it would go with what I'm positive will be a stunning dress that you'll be wearing today. I missed you last night and I can't wait to see you walk down that aisle this afternoon.
All my love,
Andy
"So, that was the sweetest letter in the history of like ever," Emily commented as a few tears escaped her own eyes as she handed the letter back to Sharon.
Sharon pulled Emily into a one armed hug as she replied tearily, "I know, right?"
"So, what's in the box?" asked Amy.
"I don't know, but obviously someone here does," Sharon commented as she looked over at Emily knowingly.
"In our defense, Nicole and I were only there to provide feedback on whether it would go with your dress. Andy's the one who picked it out and I was only there via Facetime," explained Emily.
"He better not have gone out and bought anything extravagant," said Sharon as she began to tear the wrapping paper off the small box.
"Don't worry, mom. It's nothing over the top. Andy told us he just wanted to get you a little something special for the big day. Said knowing you and your sense of occasion as well as he does, he just knew some sort of gift from you was bound to show up the day of the wedding," explained Emily.
Sharon laughed at the truth contained in that statement before turning her attention back to opening the velvet box in front of her. Inside, she found a simple silver chain with a single pearl dangling from the middle of it with a pair of matching earrings on either side of it. As she ran a hand over the beautiful yet simple jewelry, she smiled as she said, "He knows me well. Beautiful yet simple."
"With good taste in jewelry, apparently," commented Andrea as she snuck a peek at the contents of the box.
"Never a bad thing to have," added Patrice jokingly.
"Amen to that," replied Emily.
"Speaking from personal experience?" inquired Amy.
"Yes. I'd like to know the answer to that question too, Amy," added Sharon as she turned to look at her daughter.
"Well, yeah. Nobody recently, but I've dated a couple guys in the past who have gifted me with some pretty decent jewelry," answered Emily.
"Me too. Plus, it's not like they asked for it back," said Andrea.
"Probably because they were afraid you'd eviscerate them in court," joked Patrice.
"I'm not gonna lie, I've actually done that to a couple of my exes," admitted Andrea.
"Why am I not surprised by this?" asked Sharon rhetorically.
"Because you know how much I enjoy raking pricks over the coals in court," responded Andrea.
"Touché. Now, before you girls open those, I'd like to make a little speech. I haven't always been surrounded by a ton of friends. For a multitude of reasons as you all well know. With that being said, I am eternally grateful to be able to call each and every one of you a very good friend of mine, and today, a bridesmaid. I seriously couldn't ask for a better group of women to stand at the front of the church with me this afternoon as Andy and I say I do. Your unyielding friendship means the world to me and I have no idea what I would do without each and every one of you in my life. So, these are a small thank you for all the love and support you've given me," Sharon emotionally told them.
It was then that each of the women stood up and enveloped Sharon in a big group hug as they each thanked her for whatever gifts were contained in their gift bags.
"Okay. Present time!" exclaimed Sharon excitedly.
"I swear mom. I think you get more excited about giving gifts than receiving them," joked Emily as she and the rest of the women shared a laugh over her statement as they each unwrapped the contents of their gift bags.
Inside each bag was a beautiful purple satin robe that had the woman's initials monogrammed in white near the top of the robe and a pair of simple silver drop earrings with a translucent gemstone at the end of them.
Each of the women pulled on their robes and set their matching earrings aside to put on before the wedding and joined together in the anticipation and excitement that was beginning to build over the couple's big day.
Meanwhile, over at Provenza and Patrice's house, everybody was now up and had eaten breakfast. Andy thought now was the perfect time to pull Ricky and Rusty aside and give them their gifts before things got too crazy.
"Hey. Would you mind coming back to the guest room for a minute? I've got something I wanna give you and your brother," Andy told Ricky.
"Sure," replied Ricky as he tapped Rusty on the shoulder and motioned for him to follow him and Andy.
The three men quietly slipped away from the group and headed down the hallway towards the guest room. Once they entered, Andy went over to the dresser and grabbed two small boxes out of a gift bag and handed one to each of them.
"Now before you open those, I wanna say something to the two of you. I knew even before your mom and I started dating that she was a package deal. As was I. We each have kids from either previous marriages or adoption and we knew that one of the most important things that needed to happen was for both of us to build relationships with the other's children. To gradually evolve from a yours and mine mindset to one where an ours exists when it comes to the five of you kids. A sense of family, even if not all of us are related by blood. Now, I think we've done a pretty good job of that so far as have the five of you. So, this is a little something that symbolizes the fact that while we may not be related by blood, I'm always here for you guys no matter what," said Andy before motioning for them to open the boxes.
As both Ricky and Rusty popped open the small boxes, they revealed identical pairs of engraved cufflinks that said, "Some families are created in different ways" on the left one and, "but are still in every way a family" on the right one.
"Wow, Andy. I don't know what to say. These are amazing. Thank you," Ricky told Andy before wrapping him in a hug.
"Yeah, Andy. These are super cool. Thanks," replied Rusty as he too unexpectedly hugged Andy.
"You guys deserve it. You're both great kids with great heads on your shoulders and we have your mother to thank for that. I seriously could ask for any better bonus kids than the two of you and your sister," said Andy.
"But we're more special than her cause we got gifts," joked Ricky.
"Oh don't you worry. I got her a little something too. As did your mother for Nicole and Brandon. That way everything's fair and equal," replied Andy.
"So much for your theory, Ricky," teased Rusty.
Ricky quickly shoved Rusty through the doorway and out into the hall as he and Andy followed behind as they made their way back out into the living room to join the rest of the group. Andy had brought the bag with his gifts for the groomsmen out and soon began handing out small boxes that were roughly the size of Ricky and Rusty's to the rest of the guys.
"What's this, Flynn?" Provenza asked suspiciously.
"A little thank you gift for standing at the front of the church with me this afternoon," answered Andy.
As they all opened the boxes, each man found a pair of cufflinks that said, "Suit" on one and "Up" on the other.
"These are great, Andy. Thanks," said Mike.
The rest of the guys offered Andy their thanks as well before Provenza commented, "Seems the Commander and her sense of occasion have been rubbing off on you."
"Good thing too," joked Julio.
"Yeah, yeah. Get it all out now before we head to the church. Cause we all know my soon to be wife will have all your asses if she hears that you've been acting like this in the church," Andy told them.
A chorus of laughter erupted from the group at just how true Andy's statement was. As the rest of the group became embroiled in conversation, Andy quietly slipped away and back down the hall towards the guest room. He'd left Sharon's letter unopened on the nightstand to read when he had a moment to himself and couldn't wait to open it. As Andy peeled open the envelope and unfolded the letter he couldn't help but smile at the sight of Sharon's familiar handwriting as he began to read the letter. It said:
Oh My Sweet Andy,
As I sit here sipping my coffee and writing you this letter, I can't help but smile to myself. Mostly because it's our wedding day and I can't wait to marry you, but for other reasons too. Like how I'm sitting here in one of your old Dodger T-shirts because it smells like you and I missed the feeling of your arms wrapped around me when I went to sleep last night. The thought of which triggered a whole string of other happy memories. Like how nervous you acted as you walked me to my door after our first date at Serve. You got all awkward and I found you all the more endearing for it. Because you care so much about little things like that and didn't just assume that things were going to end a particular way that evening. More than that though it showed that you respected me. Both as a person and as a romantic partner. It also quite possibly was one of the reasons I told you that you could kiss me if you wanted to that night. That kiss, of course, was only the beginning of the joy and love that you've brought into my life over the last two years...or if I'm being honest probably a bit longer than that.
You coming into my life the way you did was so unexpected. Yet, it has been one of the greatest blessings I've ever received. You managed to break down the walls around my heart with your friendship, the way you make me laugh, and the fact that you're always there to love and support me during both the good times and the not so good times. Before I even knew what was happening, I'd fallen for you, and even though the thought of that initially scared me, I've never been surer of something than I am of my love for you.
In a few short years, you've become my best friend, my boyfriend, my lover, the man I'm happily cohabitating with, and today, you will become my husband and I will be your wife. Just the thought of that makes me smile so much that my cheeks will probably start hurting soon, but I don't care because I've never been happier or surer of anything in my life. I can't wait to see you at the front of the church this afternoon looking positively handsome in your suit that you refused to let me see before the wedding. Speaking of which, I got you a little something for our big day that I hope goes well with that dashing suit of yours.
See you at the end of the aisle,
Sharon
By the time Andy finished reading Sharon's letter, he had the biggest goofy smile on his face. Today was the day he was marrying his best friend and the woman he was madly in love with. Sharon was the type of woman you never truly stopped falling in love with. Andy found that he was constantly finding more and more reasons to love Sharon and by some sort of miracle she had agreed to marry him today. He counted himself lucky every single day that she was in his life and that she had agreed to become his wife.
With that, Andy sat down to begin working on his vows. He began them the same way he began every letter and love note he'd ever written her.
My Dearest Sharon…
A/N: Hope ya'll enjoyed the first chapter of this fic. The plan is for this story to be a three chapter mini fic, but it might end up being four chapters if this next chapter ends up running long. As always, please leave me a review to let me know what you thought of this first chapter. As a writer, I find your feedback and constructive criticism to be of great value in helping me to become a better writer. Your support for my stories is greatly appreciated!