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The palm trees had been wrapped in lights, and every surface was adorned with flowers. It was a stunning paradise fit for a princess and Elizabeth looked the part in her simple white designer gown alongside Daniel on top of the bridge with the minister.
“She looks beautiful,” Austin whispered in my ear, “but not as beautiful as you did two nights ago.”
I smiled and leaned in. “You’re biased, my love. But thank you.”
He kissed my cheek as we watched them repeat their vows to one another, promising to love and cherish each other until the day they died. I couldn’t help but think about how much time we might have together, because a lifetime with him would never be enough.
When the minister pronounced them man and wife, we stood and clapped. Their guests greeted them as they descended the bridge.
“What are you thinking about?”
I looked up at Austin as he gazed at me. There was no way I could tell him I was thinking about my mortality, but it was a fact of life. Instead, I gave him part of it. “I’m thinking about how a lifetime with you will never be enough.”
My handsome husband held my gaze and nodded. “Thank you for saying yes. As beautiful as this is,” he said as he looked around at the splendor that surrounded us. “I’m so happy we didn’t wait.”
I laughed. “It wasn’t like you gave me a choice. You were all ‘Let’s get married right now.’”
“Did you want a choice?” His eyes sparkled with something familiar.
I shook my head. “No. Not at all.”
After dinner, there was a bevy of toasts and speeches while the couple sat and laughed at stories that friends and family shared about them. Before the dancing started, my niece stood and looked over at me.
“I want to take a moment to say thank you to my Uncle Greer for everything. He allowed us to take over his beautiful home for our day, and I can’t thank him enough.”
I smiled and nodded, feeling a little nostalgic about her.
“But he’s also been keeping a little secret from us. As it turns out, my Uncle Greer has also gotten married recently. Like, two days ago.”
A flush crept up my neck as the small gathering gasped and awed. “I’m gonna kill that kid,” I muttered to Austin through my smile, shifting in my seat.
“But in true Greer form,” Elizabeth continued, “he didn’t want to spoil our day. But he couldn’t be more wrong. You just made it more special.” She reached down and picked up her champagne flute, then held it into the air. “Please join me in toasting Greer and Austin.”
I looked at my husband, who beamed like the Cheshire cat, then raised my glass, clinking his. “Thank you,” I said, then reached over to kiss him square on the lips. I was going to make sure everyone knew he was mine.
The DJ, who had been quiet up to this point, announced that the newlyweds were going to have their first dance. “The bride and groom are going to have their first dance as a married couple and ask that the new uncles join them.”
“Oh, fuck,” I muttered under my breath. “We shouldn’t have told them anything. I should have kept my mouth shut.”
Austin let me babble on as he stood with a smile and held his hand out to me. I looked up into his green eyes and got lost. “Come on, husband. Time to have our first dance. We didn’t get that the other night.”
I stood, realizing he was right. “We didn’t, did we?”
“No, we sure didn’t. So, let’s have it now.”
My fingers laced with his as he led me to the dance floor. I turned as he drew me to his chest as ‘Unchained Melody’ by the Righteous Brothers filled the air. “I guess this will be the second time I’ve ever danced with a man.”
He leaned in and kissed my cheek. “I’ve got you, babe.” I fell a little more in love with him when he sang the song to me as we swayed in each other’s arms. Everyone here disappeared, except for us.
I’d never really listened to the words, but I knew they were a perfect choice for us. We’d both suffered so much over the last decade, and it was time to live our lives to the fullest. And that’s what we were going to do.
At the end of the night, after dancing with both my niece and my sister, we said goodbye to the other newlyweds and sent them off to the honeymoon suite at the Regency Resort. Leaving the cleanup to the staff Katherine had hired, we made our way upstairs to our room.
I went to my phone, which had been turned off since we’d returned. My General Manager knew I was taking a few days away from my phone, and we’d made our draft choices if things went the way we expected at the Combine. I wasn’t expecting to find any messages, but one was waiting.
“What’s wrong?” Austin asked as I sat down on the bed.
I read through the message that waited, then flipped over to my email. Austin sat down beside me, his alarm evident from the way he tensed up.
