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She shakes her head. “No. Marian will walk me down the aisle.” She smiles at me. “I saw how much she loved it at your wedding, and it makes sense.”
It’s traditional for the father to walk his girl down the aisle, but I feel certain our romances are far from traditional or conventional.
“When we met and were struggling to stay together, Caleb pulled out of investing in my father’s vineyards. That was a blow. But now, he’ll need to pay me back.”
“And Jeremy will never get a penny either,” Aubrey says with a happy sigh.
“He’ll never hold onto a penny,” Lauren says boldly. “Dalton’s legal team reamed him for what he did to you, too. Libel, slander, all of it. He’s looking at doing serious time for all of his combined crimes. He’ll forever regret the day he made you lose your job because you helped me escape from marrying him.”
I whistle. “We are quite a bunch of sloppy relationships,” I tease.
“Only in getting there,” Lauren argues. “Now we have our happily ever afters.”
My fund is in my hands, too, and like Lauren, I feel like everything is falling into place as it should. I haven’t spoken to my mother yet. I don’t plan to. Her lawyers are hounding after me, and Sawyer has stood up for me, blocking them from communications. The best was when a pair of snobby legal eagles flew out here and tried to harass me while we were down in town. Ken and Earl were more than just helpers at a wedding. Those usually cranky, old chess players really care about the locals here, and I now belong in that category.
Dalton found out that my mother fled to Europe after the devastating blow of losing my portion of the Renard estate. She has never been one to deal with the fallout of her own actions. I’m happy to have an ocean between us.
Being surrounded by loving and friendly people who want to support me and not tear me down is a greater wealth to have come into than the billions in my account.
I have yet to touch it; I’ve been too busy with planning my shop.
“Oh.” Lauren lifts her hand to her mouth and her eyes go glossy.
Now, this, I’ve had practice with in Paris.
“Look up. Blink. Up at the ceiling and blink. Press your fingers under your eyes and breathe steadily,” I order gently.
Aubrey giggles. “You’ll be coaching that often, huh?” She’s no better, tearing up at the sight of Lauren in her gown. I’m misty-eyed, too. The blonde is absolutely beautiful in this dress, but I look deeper, seeing the gorgeous product for my first design job ever.
“Well, with the time and care and money brides will be putting into makeup, yeah.” I laugh lightly, fussing over fluffing out the dress more. Aubrey’s right. I bet I will soon be an expert in advising women not to cry.
“It’s beautiful. It’s perfect.” Lauren steps off the dais and gathers us both in a hug and holds us tight. She releases us, but not before pressing a kiss to my cheek. “It’s everything I ever could have wanted.”
Aubrey, ever the smartass, sniffles and fights with her tears. “Let’s do a recap. No shoulder pads.” She holds up a finger. “No Madonna-esque lace from the eighties.” She lifts another finger, and we laugh.
“No weird strips of tight plasticky fabric under my boobs,” Lauren adds.
“And no layers of tulle and pouf with enough volume to rival a freaking storm cloud,” Aubrey says.
I grin, loving their humor and inclusion, but it’s time to move this along. “Nope. None of that. Just the dress of your dreams.”
I hug them both again before urging them to get a move on, and I escape and hurry through the venue to find Sawyer in his seat.
“Everything went well?” he asks as I slip in next to him. He leans over to kiss me and holds my hand.
I nod. “She’s beautiful.”
He leans closer to whisper. “The ladies behind us said that guy over there,” he says as he tips his chin toward the side where some stand, “is a—”
I gasp, my eyes going wide. “A well-known fashion vlogger!” He’ll see my dress. Caleb’s always been the one to attract publicity, but until now, I hadn’t considered that the dress I designed for Lauren would also be getting so much attention.
Sawyer winks at me, and I try to contain my excitement as I look around the whole place. Caleb has pulled out all the stops for Lauren. He funded the dress of her dreams, and he’s spared no expense in making sure she has the wedding of a lifetime. Third time’s the charm, after all. This wedding and this groom will be her last, and it’s absolutely lovely in here. With the flowers, lights, and small touches I suggested way back when, it’s a stunning vista of wedding perfection.
When the music comes on, Sawyer and I go quiet, giving the bride our attention. As Lauren and Marian pass, I struggle not to be overly critical in inspecting the dress. Lauren is radiant, though, capturing my eye, as well as everyone else’s.
She glides down the aisle and reaches Caleb, standing tall and smiling wide at the altar. Sawyer and I are seated a ways back, but from this distance, I see that he’s struggling not to cry at the sight of his bride.
Holding hands and clinging to every minute of the ceremony, Sawyer and I sit together and enjoy witnessing our friends exchanging vows.
