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“You’ve always been a fairy tale to me,” she said, hearing his heart drum in her ear. “I never believed I could truly be with you.”
He took her face in his hands. Lily blinked up, losing herself in his convincing, eager eyes. “Believe it,” he said. And then he brought his mouth to hers.
Lily’s entire being expanded in his embrace. She kissed him hard, allowing the fairy tale to turn into reality.
Epilogue
Lily gazed at herself in the mirror. Her short, red hair was styled the best that it could be, one side longer than the other and curling around a delicate silver clip behind her ear. Her makeup was simple but elegant; gray shadow creating depth in her green eyes, lips rose-petal pink. And her dress was as fairy tale as they came. She twirled in a moment of ecstasy, attempting to see the gown from every angle. Ivory, with a full skirt that made her appear as though she was floating. The bodice was heart-shaped, embellished by trickles of silver like falling stars.
“This way, miss,” the photographer to her right said. Caught off guard, Lily peered at the man holding a professional camera with a wide lens up to his face as he snapped a shot of her.
Henrik had been sure to clear the photographer’s arrival with her. Their wedding would be documented and seen on magazine covers throughout the world, and Lily had agreed. These were pictures she didn’t mind being splashed on every possible source. She was fairly bursting with happiness. She couldn’t wait to see the pictures with Henrik in them. In fact, she couldn’t wait to meet him at the altar.
“Perfection,” the photographer said, snapping a few more.
“I don’t know about that,” Lily said, unable to suppress a smile anyway. In all reality, she couldn’t imagine things being any more perfect than this. Damon had been relocated to an Einvarian prison and was awaiting trial for charges of breaking and entering, for kidnap, and for lèse-majesté, threatening royalty. She’d also found homes for her parakeet, Artemis, her turtle, and Snow had taken Dr. Grumbles home with her.
Lily had turned in her notice to the Elirs, giving them plenty of time to find a suitable replacement for her. She’d gotten her driver’s license replaced, burned her fake IDs, and then packed her belongings in preparation for a move across the Atlantic Ocean as she’d always planned, with Pooksy and Frou Frou in kennels for the flight.
Henrik had helped her situate her belongings, not the bedchamber she’d stayed in during her first visit to Einvar, but in an adjoining room connected by a single door to the room right next to it. To Henrik’s.
“This can be your room for now,” he’d said, releasing Frou Frou from her kennel to explore. “But once we’re married, you’re in with me.”
“Deal,” Lily had said, matching his giddy grin. He’d promised to be a good boy and keep the door between them locked until then.
The prospect of sharing a room, of sharing a life, with Henrik was inching ever closer to reality with every tick from the clock on the table beside her four-poster bed with its exquisite bedding.
A knock sounded, and Aaliyah and Snow strolled in beside Lily’s mom. They each wore cream gowns accentuated with the faintest strip of sage green at the waist. Snow pulled Lily into a hug first, quickly followed by Mom and Aaliyah, until Lily found herself the center of a group hug.
“You look so beautiful,” Mom said with tears in her eyes.
Lily blinked fast, careful not to smudge her mascara. “Thanks, Mom. I’m glad you came.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it,” Mom said, but the words fell short. If it hadn’t been for this last Christmas, she might have. What would have happened if Lily hadn’t brought Henrik home with her? Hadn’t his outrageous offer been the reason she’d snuck out for a morning stroll to clear her thoughts? Lily would never have bumped into her parents. They might never have invited her and Ethan home.
“Your groom is waiting,” Snow said, offering Lily a bouquet of white roses. Their scent wafted to her, calming and exciting all at once.
Lily took the bouquet and held it to her nose.
“Hold it!” the photographer ordered, elbowing his way through the other women to snap an impromptu photo. She froze mid-sniff and waited.
Picture taken, Lily paused at the bedchamber door, bouquet in hand, waiting for Aaliyah to get her train, and then she nodded. The photographer dashed out before her, scurrying to the base of the stairs. The trek through Onsker Godt castle to its chapel took a mile and a millisecond all at once. Dad waited by the chapel’s grand doors, appearing debonair in a light-colored suit. His graying hair was gelled, and he’d never been more handsome.
“You look beautiful,” Dad said, offering his hand.
Lily took it, swelling with gratitude that he was here. This could have gone so differently, but it hadn’t. Her parents were here.
“Henrik is a lucky man,” Dad added, guiding her arm through his elbow.
“I’m the lucky one,” Lily breathed. That was all she could manage. She clutched the bouquet’s bundled stems, barely able to breathe as the doors were opened.
Soft music strummed from a guitarist in the corner. Guests shifted in their pews, which were marked with white roses and dripping ribbons. Sunlight gleamed through the stained-glass windows in the high ceiling, breaking colored beams across the aisle. A priest stood at the head of the room; Mom, Aaliyah, and Snow led the way and positioned themselves on the parapet’s left-hand side, but all Lily saw was the prince.
Henrik stood tall and polished, his blonde hair was styled to finish off the look of him in a light-colored tux with a sage green vest and tie. Suddenly, she couldn’t get to him fast enough. It was all Lily could do to keep pace with her dad. Henrik’s eyes had physical force. They seized every move she made, holding her gaze, never letting her go.
And then she was at Henrik’s side, fully taking in everything about him. His handsome features, strong jaw, the curve of his lips. Devotion glittered in his eyes, and his gaze spoke so much more than she could ever comprehend. She was sleepwalking. She was dreaming. She was awake and alive and here.
Lily gave her dad a hug, and then Dad kissed her hand before placing it in Henrik’s.
