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Kayla was last. She looked me up and down and then fixed my tie. “You’re not going to run out on us, are you?”
I pulled her into a hug. “Even though you’re not my cancer kid sister, you are my kid sister and I love you.”
She rolled her eyes and laughed. “Way to piss me off and make me love you all at the same time.”
I winked.
My parents each gave me a hug in turn.
“I guess you never thought your heart attack would bring all this about, old man,” I teased.
My dad pumped his eyebrows. “Or maybe I knew all along.”
I laughed uneasily. Whenever my dad spoke like that, it made me wonder if he knew more than he was letting on.
“He didn’t,” my mom said with a laugh. “He’s just teasing you.”
I took my mom’s hand and gently squeezed it. “I love you. Thank you for being my lifeline all these years.”
She leaned in and kissed my cheek, being careful not to get lipstick all over me. “I knew you’d come back.” She winked. “And I do mean that.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
Ella
I examined my reflection in the large mirror the church had set up in one of the side rooms. Mercy and her daughter Megan were there, fussing over every detail. Kayla and Noah’s mother had come in, and my mother was sitting in a chair and wearing my color, pink. I’d never expected my mom to be at my wedding, but I liked having her. It was a beautiful day.
Megan fluffed out her dress and twirled. “You look marvelous, Aunt Ella.” She curtsied.
I laughed and curtsied too. “You also look marvelous.”
Mercy squealed and put her arm around me. “We all look marvelous.” She gestured to Kayla. “Come over here. Let’s look at all of us.”
Kayla and Noah’s mom joined us, and we all curtsied in a circle. Then we giggled.
Suddenly, the music changed, and we heard “The Wedding March” start.
Kayla rushed toward the door. “Quick! We’ve got to get to our places so she can walk down the aisle.”
Everyone scattered except my mom. She hung back, and then she said, “I know I didn’t ask you, but can I walk you down the aisle?”
Honestly, it hadn’t occurred to me, but I smiled at her. “I would like that.”
We’d had a lot of long talks over the past few days. She’d stayed at the cabin with me, and it had felt right. She’d told me she would go back to her reporting in New York after the wedding, but she was grateful for closure and forgiveness.
I stepped out of the room and went to the aisle that had been prepared for me to walk down. My mother joined me, looping her arm through mine.
Noah’s mother joined the rest of the family at the front of the aisle.
Megan was the flower girl, and she threw flowers down as Kayla and Mercy walked behind her. She was a little boisterous with her flower throwing, and the audience laughed periodically.
I was a little nervous as I walked down the aisle, until my eyes met Noah’s. His blond hair was a little longer on top and shaved at the sides. He had that perfect level of facial hair, because I told him I liked it that way. He wore the most stunning smile I’d ever seen.
When we got to him, my mother took my hand and ceremoniously gave it to him. “I know you will, but take good care of her.”
“Of course.” Noah was answering her, but his gaze was fixed on me.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
