The Morrisons Ch. 26

The loud speakers sparked to life when Marsh said, "I'd like to thank everyone for coming here today to celebrate the love that Dan Morrison and I have the privilege of sharing, with our soul mates. I know it was short notice for most of you. Even the beautiful lady that made the original plans for this trip had no idea just how big this day would turn out to be."

"Thank you Beth Morrison for getting this event in motion. Thank you Dan Morrison for instigating her."

"I hope you all have fun here today. This event was not part of the initial plans. For those of you who don't know, Beth Morrison was Beth Thompson as lately as this morning, when she woke up in the cabin of my boat, the From Elise."

"As it turns out, Beth proposed to my friend Dan Morrison, only yesterday. He seems to have accepted, with conditions. Those had to do with whether or not a wedding could be arranged on short notice."

"At this time I would like my resort manager, Leyanni Lau, and Dan Morrison's estate manager, Terri Powell-Morrison to come up here with me."

Leyanni and Terri both turned red through the total bronze of their normal skin tones. They walked up hand in hand, to where Marsh stood.

"Leyanni started the process. She sent me to pick up Beth's family. Then she and Terri got to work to make this an event to be remembered. I think they were wildly successful. Would you give it up for Leyanni Lau and Terrie Powell-Morrison?"

The crowd erupted in applause and cheers which lasted at least a couple of minutes. Meanwhile Leyanni and Terri blushed as they timidly waved at everyone.

Marsh once again talked to everyone as he reminisced a little about his past before he walked towards the back of the stage and picked up his guitar. His sister Rosalea walked up from the back of the stage when Marsh introduced her and told everyone she was going to accompany him with the song he was going to sing to Trish and Becca.

He went on to introduce the song by Alan Jackson who he told us he had the privilege of meeting. The name of the song he was going to sing with his sister Rosie was, Like Red On a Rose.

Marsh picked a few cords on his guitar and then played a short intro before the band joined in. Marsh moved over and sat in front of Trish and Becca as he sang. Marsh's baritone voice blended perfectly with his sister's alto harmonies.

When Marsh and Rosie finished singing, Marsh stayed where he was and stared into the eyes of his two loves, Trish and Becca, as the audience erupted once again in applause and cheers. When the applause died down, Marsh stood up and walked to the back of the stage where Rosie handed Marsh the headset she had been wearing.

Marsh announced that he would like to have Jimmy Turner, Jake Thompson and me to come up on stage. As we were walking up the steps he asked Kim and Beth Morrison to come up and join with Jake and then turned to Trish and Becca and asked them to join with Jimmy.

Marsh took off his headset and handed it to me. He put on the headset that Rosie gave him and I looked at him wondering what the difference was. Marsh didn't say a word when he saw my questioning look.

Marsh walked back to the front and center of the stage before he said into the boom mic attached to his headset, "Earlier today, Dan asked the band if they knew Butterfly Kisses written by Bob Carlisle and if they would mind if he sang it as a father and daughter dance. Our band leader, Leyland told him that this was the most requested dance song at all weddings."

"I've made an executive decision un-aware to Dan; I'm going to play along with the band. However we are one person short up here, I'd like to ask Jenna Morrison to please come up here and join her father and my friend Dan Morrison."

"Dan you had a hand held mic this morning when you practiced but with the headset boom mic, you can sing and dance with your lovely daughter for this father/daughter dance."

Again, applause rose from the audience as Jenna made her way up on stage to join me. When she reached me, she wrapped her arms around me and whispered in my ear, "I love you dad and we can do this together."

I looked towards the back of the stage and saw Leyland's wife wearing her headset. It looked like we were ready and she was going to sing backup with me.

The band played a short intro and I looked at Marsh saying, "Thank you Marsh."

When the intro finished, I started to sing as I hugged Jenna and we danced to - - -

There's two things I know for sure She was sent here from heaven And she's daddy's little girl As I drop to my knees by her bed at night She talks to Jesus and I close my eyes And I thank God for all of the joy in my life Oh but most of all

For butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer Stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair Walk beside the pony daddy it's my first ride I know the cake looks funny daddy but I sure tried.......

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I sang the whole song while I held my daughter close to me. Probably the hardest thing I've ever done was sing Butterfly Kisses while dancing so close to Jenna, without having my voice crack. I will admit I had tears streaming down my cheeks just like Jenna and everyone else. I looked around and saw even Jimmy Turner wiping his eyes ....

Kim and Beth were still hugging Jake even after the song was long finished. Jenna looked up at me again and said, "I love you to the moon and back daddy. You are the best daddy a girl could ever ask for."

Terri caught my eye from down on the sand and held up a champagne glass and I realized what she wanted immediately. "Ladies and gentlemen, and anyone else, who doesn't fall into either of those categories, please find a drink of your choice so we can have a toast."

Leyanni and Terri brought a bottle of champagne and Martinelli's sparkling fruit juice along with some glasses up on the stage. The drinks were poured and I turned to the audience and said, "Neither Marsh or I had a best man per-se, I guess I'll be Marsh's best man and offer him and his brides a toast."

With all of us standing up on the stage, I raised my glass saying, "To a man whom I met recently and discovered we might be brothers from different mothers." The group on the sand cheered loudly so I waited for them to quiet down.

"To the redhead whom I didn't realize was a redhead, the first time I saw her ...."

Marsh coughed loudly and I quickly realized I was headed down the wrong road so I continued with, "because I was so fascinated by her beautiful body, her flaming red hair was the last thing I saw .... if you know what I mean..."

Everyone standing by their table and on the dance floor laughed loudly. Becca stepped forward and took a bow before she said, "Some men say I have a charming persona, some think I'm beautiful and some never get to form an opinion. Dan is lucky, he's right in the middle."

"Now where was I? Oh, Marsh is a very lucky man to have married such beautiful young ladies and in my opinion, he certainly married up."

"I propose a toast to Marsh and his gorgeous brides. May they have good health and live long and happy lives together! May they remain as happy as they are today."

The crowd roared, "Here - Here!" immediately followed by each person taking a sip of their chosen drink.

When the commotion died down, Marsh stepped forward and looked around the stage and then looked out at all of the people gathered. Marsh cleared his throat before he said, "TODAY, all of us up here on stage are honored to be surrounded by family and friends. I'm sure I talk for all of us when I say all of you have helped make this day complete. Thank you."

"Now, it's my turn to toast a man and his wives who are not only friends but also my neighbors......"

"As a number of Dan's friends are aware, I visited Dan's home before he and I met. After the mess I made in his kitchen, it is with great admiration for him and his wives that I can proudly say Dan's wives are the most understanding women I've had the pleasure to meet, and I hope no one tells his insurance company who I am."

There was applause, laughter, and whistles from a lot of Dan's friends and some of Marsh's family, and looks of confusion from several of his family members.

"Dan I raise my glass in a toast to you, your beautiful wives, and to a long friendship for all of us.

Once again the crowd roared, "Here - Here!" and immediately took a sip of their drink.

Marsh, Becca, Trish and Jimmy joined with us as we congratulated each other before we broke up into two family groups.

I took off the headset and handed it to Leyland before Jenna and I walked over to Jake, Kim and Beth. I kissed and hugged both Kim and Beth while Jake hugged and kissed Jenna. Jake looked at me for a second before he said, "What the hell, come here son, you get a hug too."

I smiled saying, "As long as you don't grab my ass in front of all these people, you can hug me."

Beth slapped my ass and said, "Get over there and give daddy a hug. I love to see two men who are able to drop that macho thing and enjoy the moment."

While Jake hugged me and welcomed me to his family, Kim, Beth and Jenna formed a trio saying, "ohh la-la!"

Becca and Trish were on the other side of us when Becca called out, "Now that's how men should hug. None of this man-hug stuff, you have to get right in there and squeeze.

Jake and I turned so we were looking at our agitators before I asked, "Are the five of you jealous?"

We shared some laughs while the girls giggled. The girls rushed over to Jake and me and each of us received plenty of hugs and kisses.

When we walked down the steps back to the sand, Kevin was right there to take Jenna in his arms and kiss her. I smiled as I watched the love Kevin seemed to have for our daughter.

Marsh handed his guitar to Carlos, the lead guitar player for the band, and then joined Jimmy, Trish and Becca near the front of the stage. Marsh hugged and kissed Trish and Becca before they walked down the steps, to the sand.

We, as in my family were standing near the bottom of the steps when Marsh, Jimmy, Becca and Trish came off the stage and all of us hugged and kissed and congratulated each other.

We talked for a few minutes before one of Marsh's friends tapped his arm and begged forgiveness for interrupting. Marsh and Becca stepped away follow by Jimmy and Trish. It wasn't long before Marsh was surrounded with his friends and family. They were soon engaged in a conversation about the past, present and future.

Beth, Kim and I were also surrounded by our family and friends and congratulations were echoed over and over again. Everyone expressed their happiness for us and they wished us a long happy life together. Like Marsh, our group opened a conversation which covered the past, present and the future.

Beth, Kim and I assured everyone that nothing had or was going to change. When we got home our lives would be the same as when we left. Suddenly Kathy spoke up loud enough for everyone to hear, "Hear that Thompsons, remember to keep a bag moderately packed because Dan Morrison may send a plane to pick us up in the middle of chores!" Everyone exploded in laughter.

After we had vacated the stage, the band immediately started playing their first set and the dance floor was loaded with people. That was just the beginning to a very long party. In between each of the band sets, Holly played music so people could continue to dance.

There was plenty of food and fruit available to everyone along with beverages of all kinds. For those who didn't partake in the alcoholic beverages there was a wide variety of juices and of course Martinelli's sparkling juice drinks. We ate, we drank and we enjoyed the festivities.

My family and I spent a lot of time on the dance floor, sometimes moving rapidly to the "fast" songs. When the "slow" songs were played, I pulled the person I was dancing with close to my body and I didn't see anyone else with space between them. As the afternoon progressed some of the Te pāreus were taken off and hung on the individual's chair. There were more nude people than there were people still in their Te pāreus and sandals.

I was talking to Jake, Tony, Tom and Ted when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and saw Marsh's smiling face. In a quiet voice I said, "OH - OH, guys this can't be good. We are being stalked by some of the most dangerous people in the world."

All five of us laughed at my remark with Marsh interrupted me saying, "You should be glad I like you Dan, and you to Ted. Tony, Jake and Tom, you're off the hook on this one." Marsh jokingly replied.

"Do you want us to leave so you can talk" Tom asked.

I replied, "No, stay here, this won't take long, I'm sure."

Marsh began with, "I came over here to talk some business. However, since it's our wedding day, I think we should make this decision together. I asked Becca to go find Joanna."

Marsh then explained what Mama Vicky had proposed to him.

Marsh acknowledged the fact that Joanna was still a cop and couldn't receive the reward money while still employed by the city. He continued by saying, "If Joanna made the final commitment to work for Turner Security Division, she could receive the money."

"Her two weeks isn't technically finished, Marsh," Ted said when Marsh finished speaking. "But, I think we can let that slide, if everyone agrees. This would be a nice place to give her the recognition she deserves."

Marsh turned to me with a sly grin, "Dan, I was thinking I'd have Leyanni take a couple of her guys with her and bring a briefcase down from the safe. We can put the money back in the safe after the presentation. We'll explain to Joanna the case is just for show, here in Hawaii. She'll get the real thing when we get home."

There was some discussion in the group and everyone was in agreement that Joanna should be recognized. Everyone else in the group agreed.

"Marsh," I said as I put my hand on his arm, "I want to be a participant, since she was covering my ass at the time all this happened."

"I wouldn't have it any over way." Marsh told me.

Marsh was looking around and when he spotted Leyanni, he excused himself and moved off towards her.

In the meantime Becca found Joanna sitting with John Donnelly, Paul Johnson and their wives. She was invited to join the little group.

"Hey Becca," Joanna quipped. "These guys know a lot about your husband that I didn't. I'm learning a bunch of cool stuff."

Becca joined the discussion and enjoyed sharing some information with the others. When there was a slight break in the conversation Becca turned to Joanna and asked her, "So Joanna, have these law enforcement officers given you enough information about Marsh to convince you to take our offer and come to work for the Turner Security Company?"

"Oh Becca," Joanna replied. "They certainly haven't given me any information that would deter me, but I decided to take Marsh's offer a couple days ago. There's no way I'm going to go back to jail duty when you and Marsh will pay me so much more money to do a job I have already fallen in love with. And to think Mary had to talk me into staying at the Morrison's estate while they were in Germany. I was never exposed to all the nudism stuff so I hesitated. Boy, am I glad I took her offer."

Paul Johnson cocked his head, and looked at Joanna. "So much more?" he quizzed. "Just how much is Marsh going to pay you? I may have to see if he has any more openings."

"Hey now," John Donnelly jumped into the fray. "Becca, don't you go recruiting one of my best deputies at your wedding reception. Marsh told me you are his executive VP, and you probably have very deep pockets, but I can't afford to start losing my best officers to the private sector. Even though, you're working with one of my best deputies, already."

Becca laughed as she turned to John's wife. "Sandy, would you like to come to work for me? In your place, you can probably have access to all the best deputies. You can be my west coast recruiter."

Everyone was laughing now except for John. "Oh sure!" he cried. You're gonna even turn my wife against me? I'm screwed!"

Now Becca looked from Sandy to John with a wicked smile. "I think that could be arranged," she retorted. The laughter went on.

******************

It was almost a half hour before Leyanni arrived back at the reception area, flanked by two very large men. Both of them had broad shoulders, trim waists and very muscular legs. Each of them had full bronze tans. Leyanni looked like a shrimp sandwiched between them.

Marsh had already told Jimmy what he was planning to do so all the key people knew. When Marsh saw Leyanni arrive in her cart, he walked over and greeted her. Marsh led the way towards the stage with Leyanni carrying the briefcase still sandwiched between the two huge guys. When they got to the stage Marsh signaled Leyland and when he finished the song he was singing, they took a break.

When the song ended, Marsh and his small entourage walked up the steps and he met Leyland center stage. Leyland handed Marsh a microphone. Marsh put it up to his mouth and asked, "May I have everyone's attention, please?" Marsh waited for most everyone to end their conversations and turn their attention to the stage.

"I need some assistance for this part of our celebration." He announced. "I'd like Dan Morrison to join me up here. I'd also like my executive vice president, Rebecca Mitchel to come up and bring one of our newest employees Joanna Doyle with her."

Everyone looked around and watched for the specified people to get up and move to the stage.

Joanna turned and bowed her head towards Becca. "Oh shit!" she whispered. What the hell did you get me into now, Becca? I'm NOT on the program."

Becca stood up and took Joanna by the hand, lifting her to her feet, and led her toward the stage. She smiled a wicked smile at her victim and softly told her, "You may not think you are on the program, but you are certainly on the menu, girlfriend."

Marsh began to speak again as I walked up the steps. I turned and waited with everyone else on the stage for Becca and Joanna. "I'd like y'all to give a big round of applause to a genuine hero. Miss Joanna Doyle!" Everyone applauded even though most of them had no idea why. Joanna turned red from the top of her face to her navel, which was as far as anyone could see.

Kim took Beth's hand and the two of them made their way to where Ted and Marion were sitting. Kim looked at Ted and asked, "Ted, do you know what's going on? Did you have anything to do with this?"

Ted put on his best, innocent, hurt little boy look. "Kim, how could you think these thoughts? I had absolutely NOTHING to do with this. And you'll see that I could not have even started to run in this circle." Kim's face reflected her skepticism, she was sure Ted was withholding evidence.

Everyone looked at me when Marsh handed me the microphone. After taking the mic I looked around the stage and then out at everyone and gave them a brief explanation of how Joanna had come to work on the Morrison estate. I then gave a less than detailed account about the morning our house was broken into and how Joanna led the charge to stop the intruders. I looked directly at Joanna when I said, "I am very proud to have you as a friend. I know you have told me you were just doing your job when you protected our home from those intruders but you did so much more than your job. You put down one of the most treacherous, malicious and violent mercenaries in the world, thereby saving the lives of many people, by your actions. Because of your training, you stepped up to the challenge and kicked ass."