EPILOGUE
DELIA, ONE YEAR LATER
My sister kisses me on the cheek. "I've never seen a more beautiful bride. Except myself, of course." We laugh together, then her face becomes more serious. "I wish you and Beck all the happiness in the world."
"Thanks," I say, tearing up. "Oh no. No, I can't ruin my makeup, don't make mecry, Gill!"
This makes us laugh, and my other bridesmaids--Laurel, my college bestie, and Maddie, the librarian at the high school in Dogwood Falls and my new bestie--gather around to wipe my eyes gently and touch up my mascara, patting me and smoothing my wedding dress.
My mother smiles at me from the corner, where she looks gorgeous in a silvery silk cocktail dress. "You know I think you're beautiful, honey. Even better, you're happy. I think you would have been okay if you'd married what's-his-name...but you wouldn't have been really happy. Beck makes you happy, and he'll keep you happy."
I nod. "He does."
The man made me believe in romance. Real-life romance, not just between the pages of one of my books.
He'd kissed me passionately after the rehearsal dinner last night, and then gone back to our house just outside Dogwood Falls, all of twelve minutes' drive from Love Lake, to sleep. I stayed with Mom and Gillian and Gillian's family in the large resort cabin they rented for the weekend. When we got up, Gilly's husband Skip made blueberry pancakes (with locally-produced maple syrup), and I had a lovely time with my nieces and nephew.
Now I'm waiting for the ceremony to start, and it's sweet torture because when you've found the One you want to spend your life with, you want that life together to begin as soon as possible.
But finally the music starts. Finally my bridesmaids start down the aisle. Finally, my mother holds her arm out to me and I take it, and we walk toward the altar, where my beautiful love is waiting for me, together.
Mom kisses my cheek and places my hand in Beck's, and we begin.
We say the words. We look into each other's eyes. "For better, for worse. For richer, for poorer. In sickness, and in health."
We promise each other ourselves, forever.
We dance at the reception. We eat delicious food and wedding cake, I hug everyone, I drink two glasses of champagne, and I dance with my new husband some more.
And then.
We sneak off and leave the party going. We walk down the path to Lakeview Bliss, which we've rented for our honeymoon, and when the path gets a little dark, my sweet husband swoops me up in his arms and carries me there and over the threshold.
"Happy wedding day, Delia," he says softly, those blue eyes of his glowing at me.
"Happy beginning of the rest of our life together," I say back.
We kiss.
We hold each other.
We take off our wedding finery, Beck carefully unzipping my lace sweetheart-neck dress and helping me out of it, then laying it carefully across the couch before turning to look at me in my lacy lingerie.
His mouth drops. "Delia...baby. You look so good."
"You look pretty good to me, too," I confess. "But you'd look even betteroutof that suit, so take it off." I roll my hand in a hurry-up gesture.
He smiles, his dimples dancing, and starts with his tie, hands moving surely and swiftly as he takes off each piece of clothing and drapes it on the couch next to my dress.
My mouth waters, looking at his strong chest and manly thighs and the bulge in his boxers. He slips those down last, letting his shaft loose with an audible sigh of relief.
I can't wait to get my hands on him. "Now you can carry me to the bedroom," I say in a voice suddenly husky with emotion, "and we can make this official."
"Sweetheart, it was official the minute you fell in the pool that very first day we met," Beck says in a similarly husky voice. "I'm yours, and I always was."
"We belong to each other." I hold my arms up to him, and he picks me up. I wrap my legs around his waist, and together we stumble down the hall to the bedroom, where we leave all the lights on and do all the things we want to do. He takes my lacy underwear off with appetite, covering me with hot kisses where the fabric was, and settles between my thighs to feast on me.
I leave my beautiful strappy sandals with their ankle bow on until well into the night, until after we've made the promises with our bodies and are ready for sleep.
I drop the shoes onto the floor by the bed, and turn back to where Beck is sighing with satiation and reaching for me.
"Cordelia Winsome Perry," he says sleepily, and tucks me into his side, stroking my hair. "My wife."
"Beck William Perry," I say back, and snuggle into him. "My husband."
"Always," he says, and we drift off into dreamland, the first night of our forever together.
I think this is gonna stick.