Rachel bumped shoulders with Rose. “I bet you did.”
Rose shook her head, but couldn’t hide the blush heating her cheeks.
Maggie saved her from trying to come up with something to say by calling them all over to the back of the church, so they could practice the ceremony.
Rose pulled Maggie aside for a moment and whispered, “Are you okay?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t have time to really think about it.” She glanced over at Marc, then turned back to her. “He noticed something is off. And all I keep asking myself is, are there things I’ve ignored because we’re engaged and it’s inconvenient to look at them?”
Rose took Maggie’s hand. “I can’t imagine how you’re feeling right now. But I’m here for you, whatever you decide to do. You have my support and understanding, and I’ll help you in any way I can.”
Maggie hugged her. “I know you will.” She stepped back. “You were right. No one can help me make this decision. I have to decide what and who I want. I’d like to go away somewhere and think, but I can’t just walk out of here. I’m actually hoping going through the ceremony rehearsal, standing up there with Marc, will give me some epiphany or glimpse of the future to tell me what the right thing to do is.”
“I believe you know what’s right for you. But maybe saying it out loud, committing to it, is still a hard thing to do because you’ll hurt someone.”
Maggie pressed her hand to her heart. “I know what it feels like to be hurt like that. I don’t want to do that to Marc or Joel. They’re good men. I’d be lucky to have either one of them.”
“Then you have to ask yourself, who can’t you live without?”
Maggie opened her mouth, looking as though she wasn’t sure what to say, but got cut off.
“Babe! Are you going to keep me waiting on Saturday, too?” Marc called out from the front of the church.
All the groomsmen laughed with him.
Gray laughed along with them but looked at Rose with a question in his eyes.
“Let’s do this,” Maggie said for all to hear, and took her place behind Rose. Gray stood up front with Marc while the other groomsmen joined her and Maggie at the back. Rachel and Frankie took the lead, followed by Jamie and Rick, then Rose went ahead of Maggie. Maggie’s dad would walk her down the aisle on the day, but he and Brenda had skipped the rehearsal to make sure the restaurant was set up for their dinner tonight.
It didn’t take long for the priest to help them walk through the ceremony. Marc pretended to faint the second he saw Maggie walking up the aisle, Gray pretended he lost the rings—which he didn’t have on him in the first place—and all the while Maggie wore a plastic smile until Marc took her in his arms and kissed her with a tenderness that made all the women sigh.
Marc held her face, ended the romantic kiss, and said, “I can’t wait for you to be my wife.”
Maggie’s eyes teared up and she hugged him tight.
“And that’s all there is to it,” the priest announced.
Rose knew better. For Maggie, there was a lot more going on here than the simple ceremony. It shone in her eyes and the false smile.
Gray shared a sympathetic and concerned look with Rose.
No one else seemed the wiser about the dilemma making Maggie less than her normally vibrant self.
Everyone followed the priest toward the back of the church so they could head over to the restaurant for the rehearsal dinner.
Gray took her hand and held her back. “You okay?”
“Just worried about my friend.”
“Me, too. Poor Maggie.”
“You’re not concerned about how Marc will take it if she cancels the wedding?”
“I want Maggie to be happy.”
“Very diplomatic, Mr. Pearson.”
“They won’t be happy together if one or both of them doesn’t have their whole heart in it.”
“Gray! Rose! Let’s go,” Maggie called from the open church door.
Rose took his hand and they walked toward the exit, his fingers linked with hers.
“This is going to be a very long evening.”
She smiled, knowing he couldn’t wait for this dinner to be over, so they could be alone together. Though she worried about Maggie, she couldn’t wait for the drama to be over so she and Gray could focus on them.