Page 86 of Duplicity

She smacked his shoulder.

“Fine. Love you.” He kissed her cheek as well.

Freya sniffed. “I love you both, too. I’m proud to be your sister and that you’ll be this baby’s uncles. But don’t be surprised that I thanked God on my knees it wasn’t twins.” She squeezed both their arms and headed out.

Peter followed her, and Simon shut the door behind him.

Catalina stood in the hallway. Peter said something to her that was too quiet for him to hear and kissed her cheek. Then he continued on, using the side door to enter the little sanctuary.

She lifted her gaze to him, eyeing him appreciatively. “It turned out nice. You look good.”

He frowned, rolling his shoulders. “I feel ridiculous.”

She giggled.

“You’re the one that looks good.”

She’d been self-conscious about the graze on her arm being a visible scar that would mar the occasion, but so many of them had scars that they’d convinced her it just made her one of them to have survived something that could’ve killed her.

Fortunately, she hadn’t settled on the square-necked dress with sleeves to her elbows.

“We should go.”

He tore his gaze away from her collarbones. “Hmm?”

Cat chuckled. “Come on. Or we’ll miss it.”

She wrapped her arm in his, and they headed for the lobby. Simon got a look at Selena across the other side of the entrance, where the hallway to her dressing room had been. He touched ahand to his chest and stopped. His eyebrows rose as he took in her gown. The whole package. “Wow.”

She smiled wide.

Cat said, “Seriously. I hope I look half that good when we…” Her voice trailed off. “Uh…”

Simon tugged her to face him. “Is this where I tell you that you’d look good in a garbage sack?”

“That’s true. I would.”

“Or one of those itchy potato sacks. Or a cardboard box with arm holes.”

“It would have to be a pretty big box.”

“When we…” He smiled. “You know.”

She lifted up on her toes and kissed him. “I know.”

“Good.”

As far as he was concerned, that pretty much settled it. They would get married sooner or later. She would look amazing. He would try not to be uncomfortable in whatever he wore. The preacher would unite them in front of God and the people who RSVP’d.

Life would go on.

They’d have families of their own.

Births. Deaths. Happiness. Hopefully, not too much tragedy. Through it all, God would still be good. And goodtothem.

Selena clapped, and her entourage snapped into gear. “Let’s go people. Let’s get this show on the road.”

Simon chuckled. Cat slid her arm through his, and they stepped into the sanctuary, walking down the aisle to a sweet hymn of thankfulness. He kissed her, and she took her seat, then he went to stand with his brother.

Peter pulled him into a bone-crushing hug.

And then the wedding march began.