"You look beautiful mama." I step behind my mother as she runs her hands down the fabric of her white dress.

Her dress was perfect.

It was a simple white floor length gown with a long white shawl that could pass for a train.

She didn't want a big or extravagant wedding. She wanted it to be small and intimate with her closest friends and family.

Her hair was a slicked back low bun with a few curled pieces of hair framing her face. Her makeup was so natural that it was as if she was wearing little to none.

Her skin was glowly and had a natural red hue to her cheeks but not from the blush. She was so happy to be marrying the love of her life today.

My mother turns to face me and the girls with a broad smile on her face. " Do you think he'll like it?" She questioned, holding her hands at her sides.

Knowing Jax he'd probably pass out upon first look.

" He's going to love it!" Elizabeth gushed.

" He'd better cry." Sade simply said.

He definitely will. Jax was not afraid to show his emotions when it came to his loved ones.

" What a milf." Jora sighed dreamily.

My mom simply squinted her eyes at Jora, pointing her finger in Jora's direction. Jora held her hands up in self defense as if she just didn't hit on my mother.

" I'm just being honest." She shrugs her shoulders.

" Thank you for your honesty and the ego boost." Mom winks as she turns to face the mirror once more.

"Are you excited? Nervous?" I asked as I palmed her shoulders.

She inhaled deeply as she spun on her heels."I feel like my heart is going to burst out of my chest but it will be worth it when I see him at the end of the aisle."

I was happy for my mom.

I was happy for Jax.

They were both given a second chance at love that many don't get. They were both given a second chance to be happy and find their person all over again.

Sure they had different encounters with their past relationships but that didn't matter. They were both in love and would be solidifying that today.

They deserved each other.

Jax made my mom the happiest she'd ever been and for that I would forever love and appreciate him.

" Do you have your speech written?" Mom turned to me.

I waved my phone as I nodded." Written and memorized. And if not Elizabeth could always do it for me." I joked, peeking over my shoulder at Elizabeth who rolled her eyes.

" Speaking of," Elizabeth checked the time, squinting her eyes at the clock as she put the backing into her earrings."We should be getting ready to start."

The girls sent my mom air kisses before exiting the room, leaving me alone with my mom for a few minutes.

Approaching my mother, I engulfed her in a hug with my cheek laying against hers, careful not to get makeup on her dress. Her hands touched mine gently as she closed her eyes, sighing softly.

" I love you mom." I start," And I am so happy that you finally found the person that makes you the happiest. You deserve nothing but the best and Jax is the very best."

My mother melts as I squeeze her shoulders." I love you too, baby girl. And no matter how happy Jax makes me, you will always and forever make me the happiest person alive."

My eyes water up slightly as she smiles, pinching my cheeks as her own eyes pool up. " Okay we should stop with the snappiness before we ruin each other's makeup."I pulled away from our embrace and fan my face as she chokes on a laugh.

" Right." She agrees as the door to the room opens and my grandfather walks in on the verge of tears as he takes in my mother.

I give my mom one last look before greeting my grandfather. " Looking sharp old man." I pay his shoulder as I pass him by.

" You look beautiful." He says over his shoulder as I walk out of the room and down the stairs of the house on the property of the wedding venue.

Before walking towards the back exit I paused near the full vintage standing mirror and ran my eyes over my appearance.

Makeup was still intact.

Hair was still in a super slicked and laid braided ponytail.

My dress was a gold satin maxi dress with an O-neckline and a scoop neckline with a closure tie in the back.

The colors for the wedding were white, gold, and emerald. I was my mother's maid of honor while Dominic was Jax's best man.

I let Dominic at the back entrance where Rhegan and Carson waited with him. Rhegan held my bouquet in her hands along with hers because my mother also made her a bridesmaid along with Giselle.

Carson and Cairo were a part of Jax's groomsmen.

" Thank you." I take my bouquet from Rhegan's hands as I stand in front of them.

Carson makes his way over to me.

He looked so sexy in a suit and tie. His hair was helped back with a few strands aborting the mission and settling in his eyes. The emerald tie brought out the color in his eyes as he approached me.

" You look beautiful, Angel." He presses a quick kiss to my temple knowing better to kiss me on the lips due to my lipgloss.

My hands make quick work of fixing his tie that was a tad bit crooked. " You look very handsome." I tilted my head as I ran my hands down his chest, smoothing over his look.

" Who knew that you two could clean up so nicely?" The joke earned a grunt of disapproval from both Carson and Dominic.

" Tuh, I look nice and fine everyday." Dominic fixed his tie in the mirror as he threw me a sharp side eye." Isn't that right, Ice?"

Rhegan looked up from her phone, most likely texting her father for his estimated time of arrival."Um yeah sure. Whatever you say, Nic." She says, giving away the fact that she wasn't listening to the conversation.

Regardless she was still agreeing with him and that made him happy.

He was like a lovesick fucking puppy.

It was oddly adorable... even if Rhegan was giving him hell by dragging her feet in regards to their relationship.

" It's starting!" Giselle sings in excitement as she and Cairo join us at the double doors leading out into the garden. Giselle grips my hand, squeezing it softly as we take our places.

I link arms with Dominic as Giselle and Cairo walk out first."If you let me fall I'll key your key." A smile plasters on my face as he whips his head towards me.

If looks could kill I would be dead, brought back alive, and killed all over again.

Dominic didn't play about three things.

His family, Rhegan, and that damn car.

" Now I let you stepping on my forces slide, Ayanna." He started off his chastising." I will draw the line with my car. That's a boundary that we do not cross. Ever!"

My smile grows as Carson walks off after his parents, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

"We'll then you better make sure I don't trip."'I share a glance with him, lips tilted up as he squints and shakes his head at me.

" You're an evil woman Ayanna Heart." He concludes.

My tongue pokes my cheek as I giggle." I love you too, Dommy." I pinched the sleeve of his tux for extra measure as we watched Rhegan walk off before us.

" Stop staring at her ass and focus perve."

Dominic mumbles under his breath something along the lines of let me live woman.

Once Rhegan was down the aisle we followed suit.

Jax's smile widened once he saw the two of us walking down the aisle. He looked like a proud father at the sight of me and Dominic together.

Our two families were blending into one now.

" He looks so happy." I whispered through my smile.

Dominic cleared his throat." He is Ayanna. He is very happy to have the two of you in his life."

I craned my head to look up at him after he clears his throat once more." And so am I." He admits. "I'm very thankful for both of you."

Fucker was going to ruin my damn makeup.

" I'm thankful for the both of you as well." I squeezed his bicep as we reached the end of the aisle and separated to our rightful positions.

The bridal march started to play and the guests on each side of the aisle stood to their feet as my mother and grandfather stepped foot onto the white cloth covered in gold dusted rose petals.

My grandmother had her handkerchief at the ready as she dabbed away at her cheeks.

My lips parted as I watched the sun shine down on my mother, brightening her appearance with each step that she took. Her lips tilted up in the perfect smile of hers as my grandfather whispered something into her ear.

By the nudge to his side that he earned from my mother, it was most likely a threat against Jax's life if he hurt her.

The pastor motioned for everyone to take their seats as my mother and grandfather approached the gazebo.

My eyes tore away from the two and shifted to Jax who looked like he was going to pass out from an overwhelming sense of happiness and nervousness.

Poor dude was already starting to break a sweat.

As if sensing it, he took out his handkerchief and dabbed his forehead. He pocketed it into his tux pocket as my grandfather and mother paused at the stairs.

" Who gives this woman to be married to this man?" The pastor starts as Jax simply stares at my mother in awe.

" I do." My grandfather didn't hesitate.

Pressing a kiss to my mothers temple, he handed her off to Jax who captured her hands and helped her up the stairs of the gazebo.

My mother turned her body slightly, handing her bouquet of flowers off to me before fully conjoining hands with Jax.

The pastor gave his speech which I zoned out for the majority of it. My attention shifted between my mother and Jax before catching the eyesight of a familiar pair of grey eyes.

Carson winked at me when he'd finally gained my attention. Using my free fingers, I created a small heart and motioned downwards with my eyes.

Carson followed my drift with his gaze, his lips tilting up in a lopsided grin. My eyes drifted down to one hand making a circular motion and the other pointer finger sliding in and out of it.

I almost burst into laughter at his obscure gesture but held myself back. Biting my inner cheek to restrain myself from doing so, I shifted my gaze away from him, ignoring his childish antics and listened as Jax and my mother exchanged vows.

" I never believed in second chances until I met you." Jax started off his vows. " I never believed that I could fall for any other woman after losing Elise. I never allowed myself to be happy or even think about moving on."

Jax inhaled a deep breath, squeezing my mother's hand as he finally showed a glimpse of his tears. " I never thought that I could be happy again until I met you. I never thought that I could love again until you bumped into me at the grocery store. I never thought that I would meet another woman that made time stand still for me like you did."

" My heart was completely healed when you came..." he chuckled, his eyes twinkling with mischief." Or should I say ''bumped" into my life."

Laughter filled the audience as my mother wiped her cheeks of her wet tears. " Stop lying to these people and tell them that it was you who bumped into me." My mother's voice cracked as she laughed.

Jax's answering sigh gave it all away." Fine... I bumped into her."

The crowd continued laughing as he huffed, rolling his eyes at the grin that formed on my mother's lips.

" Somedays I wonder if you were sent into my life at the right moment. Somedays I wonder if she sent me to you as a sign that it was okay to be happy and move on. Whatever it was, whoever it was, I am grateful that we crossed paths. I am grateful to love, to hold you, and to call you my lover and best friend. I am grateful for you and Ayanna."

His gentle eyes shifted towards me." Ayanna, I am grateful to have you become my daughter. I am grateful for the bond that you and Dominic have created. And I am so grateful that you accepted us and made room for us in your life. I love you dearly."

What is with these Steele men trying to make me ugly cry?

" I love you too, Jax." I smiled, wiping at my cheeks as Rhegan squeezed my shoulder blade in comfort.

" And I love you, Raven. I love you with my whole heart. I love you to the ends of the earth and back. Without you, I would probably still think that I couldn't allow myself to love or be happy again. Without you I probably wouldn't have allowed myself to live again. You, Dominic, Ayanna, our new blended family, you guys are my reason for living now and I wouldn't have it any other way."

And then it was my mother's turn.

" I hated men." She started off, earning a few shouts of agreements from the crowd.

" Yes mama milf!"

I was gonna kill that girl.

The crowd once again laughed at Jora's praise as my mother shook her head at her antics.

" She's not lying." Jax agreed, easing his brows as he looked over my mother once more.

Again, laughter erupted as my mother threw them both glares." Behave. The both of you." Her tone was teasing.

Dear lord, she was making it worse.

" As I was saying," she continued when the laughter died down." I hated men. I had no reason to put myself out there. I had no reason to give my heart away only for it to be torn to pieces at the hand of another man. I was happy.

I was content with it being just me and my girl."

She turned her head, brushing her thumb over my cheek."Ayanna was all I needed to be happy."

" But then I met you." My mother spoke softly." When you bumped into me I thought "maybe men aren't so bad after all." At first I was awestruck, it's not everyday you bump into a 6 foot plus giant in the aisles of Costco."

" And it wasn't everyday that I was rendered speechless, especially by a man." She joked, her shoulders shaking as she laughed. " I was prepared to apologize and walk away even though it should've been the other way around. What I wasn't expecting was for us to go out separate ways only to see him again in the lane next to me at a gas station."

" I thought for sure it was just a cosmic coincidence." She said as if it were no biggie. " But it was as if the universe really wanted to push us together because for the life of me, I couldn't get rid of this man."

I loved hearing the story of how they met. They had an adorable meet cute which led to her believing that he was stalking her after seeing him a few days later.

" After running into him yet again on the streets, I was convinced that he was a stalker. What other reason could there have been for me to bump into him twice in one week in such a big city like L.A?" She continued.

" She freaked out on me and threatened to go to local authorities." Jax smiled, laughing heartily at my mother.

" And then he promised that he wasn't a stalker and offered to buy me coffee as a peace offering. One coffee turned into two, two coffees turned into three, three coffees turned into us getting engaged."

" Three coffees turned into me marrying the love of my life today. Three coffees turned into me gaining a son today. Three coffees made me hate men a smidge less." She showed a demonstration of how much less with her pointer and thumb finger.

" Three coffees turned into me giving love another shot and boy am I glad that I did."

And so was I.

__________________

Clicking the butter knife against my champagne glass, I gained everyone's attention in the reception hall as I stood

at the mic.

" Hello everyone!" I spoke into the mic as I sat the glass down. " For those of you who don't know me, my name is Ayanna, I'm Raven's daughter."

" For the longest as I could remember, it was always me and my mother. So imagine my surprise when I found out that she was dating someone, let alone dating someone for almost a full year."

Jax hooked his arm around my mother's neck as she leaned into his side. They looked like two teenagers that were utterly in love with each other.

" Sure I had noticed the signs of her acting differently but I never chalked it down to her dating someone. Imagine my surprise again when I walk into his house in Thanksgiving day to see my now boyfriend and his family, Dominic, and Jax fucking Steele standing behind the door."

" I had no idea what to expect but it surely wasn't that. But sometimes the unexpected are the best things that ever happen to you. Sometimes it's the unexpected that come and turn your life upside down in the best way possible. Sometimes the unexpected comes in the form of your pen getting stolen by the idiot basketball player who took it just to gain your attention."

" Sometimes the unexpected comes in the form of a 6 foot plus giant bumping into you in a Costco. Sometimes the unexpected can make you one of the happiest people on earth. Sometimes the unexpected is the best possible thing that could happen to you."

" So to mom..." I smiled as I tilted my champagne glass to my Jax." And dad... thank you for being each other's unexpected."

" I love you both! To Raven and Jax!"

"To Raven and Jax!" My words echoed around the hall.

" May you live happily ever after in each other's bliss."

After my toast, I made it back to my seat but only after showering my mother in Jax with hugs and kisses. Sitting down next to Carson, he pulled my chair closer to his by the leg and gripped my thigh in his hand.

" Nice speech." He compliments me." I'm very curious to know what your wedding vows to me will be like."

Well it definitely won't start off with you putting me into your favorite sex position on a kitchen counter with your lips attached to my neck in a room full of drunk and horny college students.

" Put a ring on my finger and you'll find out." I chide as he grins.

" Mark my words Ayanna Heart," he leans closer to me, whispering in my ear. " In one year and a few months you'll be wearing my wedding ring with my baby in your stomach."

And before I could speak, he gently palmed my cheeks and pressed a featherlight kiss to my lips. "What if it takes longer than a year?" I challenge, his eyes burrowing into mine as he grins.

" It won't." He says surely.

" Mark my words, Ayanna Heart."

Smiling, I grabbed his hand at the thought of our future together.

In one year he'd be playing for his dream team. In one I'd be setting courtside with my hot NBA wife friend group cheering him and the guys on. In one year, according to Carson, we would be married and starting a family of our own.

In one year my life would drastically change for the better.

In one year we would all be happy.

A lot can happen in one year... let's see where it takes us.