Needing Happily Ever After

by Elena Aitken

  “Hey,” she did say a moment later. “Where are we going?” They’d just driven past the main gates for Ever After, and were still headed down the gravel road. She tried to twist around in her seat. “You passed the gates.”

  “Oh, I know.” Faith grinned at her. “We’re going in the back gate. It’s closer to the river and I want to get some pictures down there. Logan is meeting us with the quad and he’ll take us around to the other sites after.”

  “The other sites?”

  “Just the ceremony site and the barn.”

  Katie groaned.

  “I know, I know. But it will be fun. I promise.”

  Katie stared out the window. There was no way any of it was going to be fun. But a promise was a promise. And she always kept her promises.

  And isn’t that what got her into this predicament in the first place?

  Damon paced the length of the barn, and then again. He felt like a caged animal, unable to do anything but wait for his captor to let him out.

  In this case, his captor might also prove to be his savior. Because when it was time, he’d get the text message saying everything was ready to go.

  It was a huge plan and there was no way he would have been able to pull any of it off without his friends’ help. He really owed them.

  If it worked.

  It had to work, because Damon had no idea what he was going to do if it didn’t. The last few days without Katie had been hell. There was no way he could imagine a lifetime in that purgatory. He needed her just to exist. And he hadn’t even realized it.

  He’d almost broken down the night before and gone to see her, but ultimately forced himself to stay put. They’d put all the work in. All that was left was to execute. Besides, there was nothing that he could say that was going to be able to properly express to Katie how he felt. He needed to show her. He needed the big, huge, massive grand gesture. And that’s what he was going to do. Because there was no other choice left.

  Damon pulled his phone out of this pocket for the dozenth time to make sure he hadn’t missed the text message.

  He hadn’t.

  With a sigh, he put his hands on the bar and dropped his head.

  “Son?”

  Damon’s head shot up to see his father in the doorway of the barn, leaning heavily on his walker. “Dad? Is everything okay? What are you—”

  “I needed to tell you something.”

  Damon crossed the floor and led his dad to a nearby table, where he settled him into a chair. He had no idea what his dad could possibly have to tell him now that they’d set everything straight.

  Anthony held out his hand, and Damon took it in his. It was the second time in as many days, but it still felt strange to hold his father’s hand. But he welcomed the connection. And despite their strained relationship, the contact settled Damon.

  “I’m proud of you, son.”

  His father said the words so simply and without any fanfare, but they resonated in Damon’s head. Not once, not even when he’d designed and sold the microchip, had his father ever expressed anything resembling pride to him. He closed his eyes and bent his head, absorbing what he’d said. Even as a fully grown adult, the words still meant the world to him.

  After a moment, he looked up. “Thank you, Dad.”

  “I mean it,” Anthony said, a slight waver in his voice. “I haven’t always been a good father, but you are a damn fine son, and you’ve grown into a man that any damn fool would be proud of. Especially today.”

  Damon couldn't help but shake his head a little. “There’s still a lot left to happen today, Dad. We don't know how it’s going to go. I don’t know if she’ll—”

  “She will.”

  “We don’t know that.”

  “No,” Anthony said bluntly. “But no one knows the future, do they?”

  Damon chuckled a little. “We certainly don’t.”

  “All we can do is our best, son. And you’re doing your best here today. And for that, I’m more proud of you than I’ve ever been before.” He squeezed Damon’s hand in his. “I love you, Damon, and your mother would be so proud of you today, too.”

  He pressed something into Damon’s hand but before he had a chance to respond, or even wipe the tear that had developed in the corner of his own eye, his father struggled to his feet at the same time that his phone chirped with an incoming text.

  Go time.

  Chapter Nineteen

  For the next thirty minutes, Katie forced herself to smile and tried to look bridal—whatever that meant—as Faith took pictures of her standing by pine trees next to the river. Most of the time, she was able to convince herself that it was all business and for marketing purposes only, but more than once, she glanced down at her dress and tears welled up in her eyes as the memory of her standing with Damon as they exchanged vows rushed back in vivid detail.

  “Faith, are we almost done?” Katie called out over her shoulder. Faith had directed her to put her arm up on a tree and gaze out over the river, but she hadn’t given her any direction for a few minutes.

  “Um…hold on.”

  Katie turned around and sighed. Faith wasn’t even holding her camera. Instead, she was staring at her phone.

  She’d had enough. This was torture. Katie left her tree and picked her way through the tall grass toward her friend, whose head shot up.

  “Good timing. Let’s go finish up.”

  “Finish up?” She groaned when she remembered what Faith had said about taking some pictures at the ceremony site. “Seriously? We really have to do that?” She crossed her arms like a pouty teenager. “I’m not sure how much you know, but Damon and I—”

  “Oh!” Faith interrupted her. “Logan’s here. It’ll be faster to go there in the golf cart. Ready?”

  Katie sighed as her brother pulled up with the little golf cart that he and Faith used to move around the property. With a resigned sigh, she got into the backseat and closed her eyes. Maybe if she stopped protesting, they could get this over with faster.

  A few minutes later, the cart slowed to a stop and Katie opened her eyes. She instantly closed them again and shook her head. “No.”

  “Come on,” Faith said quickly. Obviously anticipating the objection, she’d turned around and grabbed Katie’s hand. “I needed it to look real, and we needed guests for that.”

  “No.” Katie shook her head again and forced herself not to cry. “Faith, I don’t know how much you know about what happened with—” She tried again, but once again, Faith cut her off.

  “Come on. It’s just a few people. They’re going to pretend to be guests.”

  It had looked like a lot more than just a few people, but Katie really didn’t want to open her eyes again.

  “Katie, it’s not a big deal.” Logan spoke up. “Besides, if we don’t get these shots, it won’t look real for the ad campaign.”

  Slowly, Katie opened her eyes and stared at her brother, whom, she noticed for the first time, wore a suit. “And I suppose you’re going to be my pretend groom?”

  Instead of answering, he laughed, jumped out of the cart, and held out his hand to her. “Come on.”

  “This is ridiculous.” She pressed her lips into a line and shook her head.

  “We’re almost done,” Faith pleaded. “Please?”

  “You owe—” She cut off her own words. Faith didn’t owe her anything. After all, she’d already thrown her a fake wedding, all because of Katie’s lies. If anyone owed anyone anything, it was her. And she knew it.

  She took her brother’s hand. “Let’s get this over with.”

  Katie tried not to make eye contact with the guests Faith had brought in for the shoot, but she did vaguely register Sarah and Brody as Logan, whose job clearly was to walk her down the aisle—probably so she didn’t bolt—and not to be her pretend groom, started doing just that. She swallowed hard against the lump in her throat and sent a silent prayer for the photoshoot to end quickly.

  “It’ll be fine,” Logan
whispered into her ear. “Trust me.” He winked at her and just before she could ask him why he was being weird, music started to play.

  Wedding music.

  This was too much. Sure, she could understand that Faith wanted it to look as real as possible, but music? It was all bordering on completely ridiculous.

  She would have run, but Logan held her arm tight and started to walk down the aisle toward the front of the gorgeous ceremony space that was set up with a stunning arch, covered in fresh wild flowers and tulle that was blowing, just slightly, in the breeze. The sky had cleared, and the rain they’d had left everything fresh and greener than before. It was perfect. The only thing missing was the groom.

  As if her thoughts had conjured him, Damon appeared, his father next to him. He didn’t look up as he helped Anthony to a front-row seat, next to…her mother? When Mr. Banks was settled, Damon moved into position under the arch, turned around and looked directly at her.

  She was gorgeous. Even more so than the first time he’d married her—if it were even possible.

  He dropped his head briefly and took a deep breath. Everything was on the line with this. It needed to work. As he lifted his head again, he caught his buddy Nick’s eye. Nick winked at him and nodded. It was such a small thing, but the support was appreciated and he was grateful that Nick had stuck around. He’d been a big help in pulling it all off.

  He exhaled slowly and looked back to the love of his life, ready to do what it took.

  Katie held tight to her brother’s arm, and even though they were still a few feet away, Damon could see the way she shook and the look of question on her face. He held her gaze, doing his best to impart everything he was feeling for her in his eyes.

  When they got close enough, he stepped forward. “Damon? What...the photo…” She looked to Logan, clearly trying to figure out what exactly was happening.

  Logan shook his head and leaned forward to kiss her on the cheek. “It was our turn to lie,” he said with a grin, before gently extracting himself from the situation, leaving the two of them alone—with everyone watching.

  “Damon?” Tears pooled in her eyes.

  Damon took hold of her hand. It shook in his, but he wasn’t going to let it go. He dropped to one knee and smiled up at her.

  “What are you doing?” She hissed at him under her breath. “This doesn’t make sense.”

  “It does,” he said. “This is the thing that makes the most sense. Katie, I love you.”

  “Damon, I know. I love you, too, but—”

  “No, Katie.” He had to make her see. “I’m in love with you. Madly, deeply, and completely crazy in love with you.” He chuckled a little. “I can’t even see straight most of the time when you’re around. And I’m certainly not thinking right. I think that’s clear from the way I’ve been behaving.” He shook his head a little. “I don’t even know how to properly explain this to you, Katie. But I’m going to try, okay?”

  She didn’t look convinced, but she nodded, just a little, and that was all Damon needed to keep going.

  “You’ve always been my best friend. The one person in this world I couldn’t imagine living without. I think I’ve always been in love with you, Katie, but I was too young and stupid to see it for far too long. We are more than good together.” He noticed the way she winced at his choice of words, but it didn’t deter him. “We are everything together.

  “Marrying you last week was the best decision of my entire life.” A tear slipped down her cheek and he resisted the urge to stand and wipe it away. He needed to finish first. “My only regret was that I didn’t give you the wedding you deserved the first time.” He swallowed hard. “No,” he corrected himself. “That’s not my only regret. My biggest regret was trying to pretend it wasn’t real, because it was. You and I are the most real thing I’ve ever had in my life and I need you to know that, Katie. I love you with all of my heart and more than anything, I want to spend the rest of my life proving that to you.” He took a deep breath. “Will you marry me?”

  There were a few gasps of surprise and muttering from the crowd that he’d almost forgotten was still there. Surely, the truth had spread through them all by that point—not that Damon cared what Faith and Logan had told them to get them there, as long as they were there. Katie had told him all about the wedding she’d imagined she would have and that’s exactly what he was going to give her.

  If she said yes.

  “Damon, I…”

  “Tell me that you don’t love me.” From his pocket, Damon pulled the ring his father had given him earlier. His mother’s wedding band. He squeezed it briefly, took a breath, and held it up. “Tell me that you don’t feel the same way, Katie. And if you do, I promise I’ll get up and walk away. But I need to hear you say it.”

  She was silent for a moment before dropping her head but still, Damon waited. After what felt like forever, she looked up and grinned. “I can’t,” she said. “I can’t say that because it’s not true. Damon, I do love you. You make me crazy and make me want to tear my hair out sometimes, but I can’t imagine my life without you in it.”

  Her lips flicked up into a smile and his heart about burst in his chest.

  “So, that’s a—”

  “Yes!” She shook her hand in his. “A thousand times yes. I will…stay married?” She laughed, but there would be time to work out the semantics of everything.

  For now, Damon had heard all he needed to.

  He slipped the ring onto Katie’s finger—where it had always belonged—jumped to his feet, and pulled her into his arms before pressing his lips to hers in the kiss he’d been dying to give her since he’d seen her.

  When they finally pulled apart, he kissed her again. And then again.

  Chapter Twenty

  Faith took in a deep breath of the fresh spring air. The noise from inside filtered out to her and made her smile, but she was happy to have a break from the festivities, even if it was just for a few minutes, to compose herself and regroup.

  It was days like this one that made Faith miss her sister so much her chest ached.

  Had she handled things okay? Should she have lied to Katie the way she had? Should she have… The shoulds threatened to actually drive her crazy. Which was ridiculous, because it had all worked out okay. More than okay. Damon and Katie were desperately in love—something everyone else had seen for years—and finally they both saw it and they were married.

  Sure, there’d been a few hiccups—massive understatement—but it had all turned out beautifully in the end. The reception had been in full swing for just over an hour. People were fed, they were drinking and laughing, and the dance would start soon.

  There’d been no further issues.

  Still. Faith knew Hope would have handled things so much better. She probably would have noticed right away that things weren’t what they seemed. It never would have gotten so far. She was always on top of everything, so organized, and so aware of people. Faith didn’t have those skills. She’d always been the self-centered one. The one who only thought about herself. Her twin sister had gotten all of the selfless traits. Among others.

  Faith sat in one of the wrought-iron chairs that were primarily used for decoration and pulled her phone out. No doubt Hope and Levi were in the middle of a grand adventure over in Europe, living their best life while they waited for the happy news that they were finally pregnant, the perfect complement to the love the two of them shared.

  Faith couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy but she couldn’t determine where it had come from. Was it the fact that Hope was out traveling the world while she was stuck in Glacier Falls, planning weddings? Was it that she was trying for a baby? Or was it the love she had with Levi?

  It was ridiculous for her to feel jealousy for any of those things. She’d never wanted any of them. Except maybe travel…but love, marriage, and a baby?

  Oh hell, no.

  Still.

  She pressed the button that would dial her sister. If
she was in the middle of something, too bad. Faith needed her.

  Hope answered on the first ring.

  “Hey. What’s up?” Her voice instantly soothed Faith the way only a twin sister could. “Is everything okay?”

  Faith laughed. “It is. And you’ll never believe it when I tell you about it.”

  She spent the next few minutes filling Hope in on the details and when she was done, Hope exhaled hard. “Damn, Faith. You nailed it. Good job.”

  “I don’t think I can take all of the credit. Logan was super helpful.”

  “He was? That’s good to hear.”

  There was a tone in her sister’s voice that Faith made a distinct point to ignore. She had enough mixed feelings about the man, feelings that had only grown even more confusing as she’d watched him work so hard for his sister’s wedding. A wedding he’d been so dead set against at the beginning. Maybe love really did get to everyone in the end?

  “I’ll admit,” she continued, “I had my reservations about the two of you working together, but to hear he’s been helpful…that makes me feel better.”

  Sure, he’d been helpful. Helpful in stirring up feelings in her that should have stayed buried forever. Helpful in distracting her from her mission to never let herself care about anyone else.

  She shook her head from the thought. “I wish you’d been here, Hope,” she said honestly. “You would have known what to—”

  “Don’t do that.” Her sister cut her off. “You’re more than capable of handling this. And by the sounds of it, you more than proved it. You need to give yourself more credit. Really.”

  Faith nodded. “Maybe you’re right. I’ll try to enjoy myself a little.”

  “Good.”

  “I miss you right now,” Faith said honestly a moment later. “What are you guys doing? You’re probably getting ready to have some amazing lunch at a cafe in Paris or something, right?”