“I promise.”
He clasped A. J.’s hand. Already caught up in conversation, they drifted down the hill through the maze of people toward the parking lot.
The center was in good hands. I breathed in, counted to ten, and exhaled before turning around to face everyone again. The last thing I needed was to lose my composure in front of Mr. Preston.
He was right in front of me. I had to force myself not to jump backward.
He gestured to my robes. “Riley wasn’t exaggerating when he said you were top of your class.”
I waved it off. “He overestimates my abilities.”
“I’d wager that he thinks you overestimate his as well.” He laughed at the confession written on my face. “I suppose that’s what happens when you’re in love. You become each other’s biggest fan.”
Was this conversation actually happening right now?
Riley glanced over at us. He set a hand on my mom’s arm. “Excuse me for a minute.”
“And you become a bit overprotective,” Mr. Preston added when Riley practically sprang to my side.
Riley eyed him carefully.
“I was just congratulating Emma on a job well done,” Mr. Preston said.
Not a single muscle on Riley’s face moved.
Mr. Preston placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled. “If your father were here, I have no doubt he’d be very proud of you.”
I might’ve been able to speak if I could’ve breathed. Instead, I simply stood there, arms at my side, staring into the kind of look a father held for his daughter.
Thank God, Jasmine was there to hijack my near meltdown. She played with the edge of my oversized robe sleeve. “Do you think Reed will accept me?”
“They’d be crazy not to,” Riley said.
Melody ruffled the top of Jasmine’s hair the way Austin sometimes did to me. “She’s gotta make it through high school first.” She scrunched her face at Riley. “You shouldn’t egg her on.”
He mimicked her pose. “And you shouldn’t discourage her.”
I knelt to the grass, unpinned my cap, and placed it on Jasmine’s head. “There’s nothing wrong with dreaming early.”
I caught Austin’s grin on my way back up.
Mom stood a few paces in front of him and Anna. “We’re going to head back to the hotel.” She closed me into another tender hug. “We’ll see you tomorrow, honey.”
“Bright and early.” I kept my smile in place until the car turned out of view. As much as I loved San Francisco, I didn’t want to think about going home or being apart from Riley for any length of time.
Mrs. Preston grabbed Jasmine’s hand and stretched her other arm around Melody’s shoulders. “We’re going to take a quick tour of the campus. I think my girls want to follow in their big brother’s footsteps.”
They headed toward the campus center, away from my last chance at putting off the conversation now staring us in the face.
I entwined my arm around Riley’s.
Mr. Preston stashed his hands in his pants pockets. Coins rustled against the awkward silence. He cleared his throat. “I suppose you two know what I’d like to talk with you about.”
Riley edged forward, my body safely guarded behind his. “Dad, before you start, I need you to know that Emma is the most important thing in my life. You may not have the highest estimation of me, but I’m ready to love her with everything that I am.”
He peered back at me. “It’s important to her that we receive your blessing for our wedding.” He squared off again. “Please don’t deny her that honor.”
Mr. Preston’s stern expression didn’t fade.
How could there be no air outside?
“It’s important only to Emma?” he said slowly.
Riley didn’t break eye contact. “No, sir.” He lifted his chin. “It’s important to both of us.”
Mr. Preston nodded, looking like he was about to dive into whatever speech he’d prepared.
I skirted around Riley. “Mr. Preston, please, I want you to know—”
He raised his hand. “That’s quite all right, Emma. You’ve already made your love and devotion to my son more than obvious.” He faced both of us. “I have no reason to doubt either of your commitment to each other.”
He returned his focus solely to me with an expression I didn’t understand. “You remind me of Rose when she was your age. Stubborn, vibrant, full of life. You’re not afraid to go after what you want.” His smile saddened. “Or make sacrifices for the one you love.”
Riley’s back straightened. “Emma isn’t Mom. And I’m not you.”
Mr. Preston’s rueful smile overtook his eyes. “No, no you’re not.” He moved toward me. “Sacrificial love certainly isn’t a bad thing. Just be careful not to let Riley chase his dreams so far that he loses sight of the more important things.”
He looked away, but not before the regret on his face tore through.
“I’ve made my share of mistakes. Not the least of which was allowing my shame to shut my only son out of my life.” Drawing a deep breath, he turned to Riley. “I wanted you to see me as the successful musician I wanted to be. Someone you could look up to. And instead, I pushed you away.”
A tendon on Riley’s neck twitched as he swallowed. “I didn’t want a musician. I just wanted a dad.”
“I know.” His chin drooped. “I swear I tried. I drove you hard because I didn’t want you to end up like me.” He raked his fingers through his hair the way Riley did when he was frustrated. “When you gave up on music, you took away the one distraction I used to keep from facing my own failures. I had nothing left to hide behind.”
His shoulders caved another inch. “Except anger. I fought to let it go, but when you came back at Christmas, I realized I was still too afraid to.” He braved a glance in our direction without raising his head. “I know I didn’t show it, but your sisters have taught me a lot about what it means to be a father. I’m just sorry it was too late.”
I gripped Riley’s sleeve, silently begging him to tell his dad there was still time, but Riley didn’t speak.
Mr. Preston swished the coins around in his pocket again. “I can’t change the past, but I wouldn’t be the kind of father I always wanted to be if I denied you happiness.” He withdrew his hands and stood tall. “I’ll give you my blessing on one condition.”
Riley’s body tensed against mine.
Face completely softened, his dad smiled. “I’ll consent to your wedding, if you’ll allow me to have a part in the ceremony.”
Every imagined condition that’d raced through my mind in those few seconds seeped out in a sigh. Relief pooled over every muscle. Until I looked up at Riley.
A statue of resolve, he squared his jaw.
Mr. Preston’s smile fell, along with my heart.
“Having my dad make some small appearance at my wedding isn’t good enough.” Riley placed a hand over his dad’s sunken shoulder and met his eyes. “I need him where he always should’ve been. Right beside me.”
A dozen different emotions touched Mr. Preston’s expression during the minute it took him to respond. He raised his chin and gripped Riley’s shoulder in return. “It’d be my honor.”
The space between them collapsed into possibly the longest awaited hug I’d ever witnessed.
Mr. Preston blinked away any evidence of tears and straightened out the front of his dress shirt. “I better go find my girls before Rose writes a check for two enrollment deposits.”
He stopped midway in a turn but then kept trekking down the hill, fading from a moment that had just changed everything.
I took his place in front of Riley. “Now who’s the brave fiancé?”
He shrugged it off.
“I’m serious. It took a lot of courage for your dad to own up to his mistakes. And even more for you to give him grace. I know that wasn’t easy.”
He exhaled. “We’ve had too many wasted years. I’m tired of what insecurities have cost us all.” His forehead
pinched. “But listen, about what he said earlier. We don’t have to go to Nashville.”
“Yes. We do.” It was time to move on.
“I don’t ever want to put my music above you.”
“You won’t.”
Doubt stole the usual confidence in his eyes. “How can you be sure?”
“Because I know you.” I lifted a hand to his unshaven cheek. “And I won’t let you forget who you are.” My promise melded into a kiss I didn’t want to release. Love was enough. It would carry us through the summer, through moving to Nashville and building both our dreams there, and even through whatever time apart we’d have to spend while he toured.
He smiled against my lips. “You know, I just realized we have absolutely nothing holding us back now. Technically, we can get married whenever you want. Even before June.”
“How about right now?” I said, still recovering from that kiss.
He threw his head back. “Tempting, but I doubt we can plan a whole wedding in a couple of hours.”
“Ah, don’t underestimate the matron of honor. She’s a pro.”
Riley laced his fingers around my lower back. “Maybe we should start with choosing the location. Do you know where you want to have the ceremony?”
As much as I wanted to get married, I hadn’t given much thought to the details. They’d seemed so inconsequential. Until right now.
“Yeah,” I answered slowly. “Yeah, I think I do.”
chapter thirty
Always
Thank God, Jaycee had the summer off as a teacher and was able to come to Lake Tahoe for an extended visit. Few people were fortunate enough to have their own personal wedding planner for free. Especially one who was a miracle worker. In only three weeks since her arrival, we had every detail solidified from the ceremony to the reception.
Jaycee wasn’t the only one whose natural talents had come into play. Melody thrived at being in charge of coordinating the prerecorded and live music for the whole weekend.
Without any girls of her own, my aunt was delighted to open up their lake house to us and share in the excitement with my mom.
Even Mrs. McAllister had come down to help Jaycee with the finishing touches. As with Jaycee’s wedding, the project seemed to boost her mom’s spirits. I wouldn’t have known she was sick at all if it weren’t for the regiment of medicine she had to take throughout the day.
The collaborated team effort left little for me to do except take in each precious moment. The rehearsal had gone smoothly. Everything was in place for tomorrow. Yet as much as I was enjoying myself, an acute sadness lingered nearby, like the other side of a coin, inseparable from the joy of the occasion.
Friends and family members I couldn’t imagine this event without filled the house. All except one. The one person who, no matter how much my heart ached for him to be there, wasn’t coming. The pain of missing Dad pulsed with every beat.
“Everything okay?” Riley’s arms enclosed me in a shield of comfort.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “Just a little caught up, I guess.”
Riley glanced full circle around the packed living room. “I know what you mean. Do you want take a—”
“There you two are.” Jaycee and Trevor pranced up from behind and prodded us toward the less crowded kitchen. “It’s nearly impossible to catch you guys alone.”
Riley and I exchanged an amused glance. Evidently, her interference didn’t count.
“We want to give you our wedding present tonight, so we can see your faces when you open it.” Jaycee looped her arm around Trevor’s to keep herself from lifting off the ground in a bubble of excitement.
“A little something for the honeymoon.” Trev’s mischievous tone launched a fleet of nerves trickling down my spine.
He handed the immaculately wrapped box to Riley, whose arms buckled under the unexpected weight. He slid it onto the countertop.
My apprehension escalated each time Trevor’s brows bobbed a little higher.
Jaycee raised on her toes, shoulders nearly touching her ears. “Em, you open it.”
Holding my breath, I grabbed a knife from the block on the counter and sliced through the wrapping paper. A sideways glance caught all three sets of eyes staring at me in expectancy. No telling what I was about to unveil.
Gripping one edge of the box, I motioned to Riley for a joint effort.
We opened the flaps together. My stunned gaze bounced from Riley to Jaycee to Trevor. “You bought us chai?”
“An endless supply.” Trevor elbowed Riley in the arm, his grin expanding clear up to his temples. “I know they have all that daylight in Alaska, but we thought you could use a little caffeine too. Trust me. You’re not going to want to sleep.”
Riley scratched his jawbone. “Wow, um, thanks, Trev.”
Heat claimed my cheeks. My eyes widened at Jaycee, but she only laughed. “I told you to wait until it was your turn.”
Trevor hooked an arm around her. “C’mon, Jae. Let’s give these two a few minutes alone to let it sink in that they’re actually getting married tomorrow.”
They fled the kitchen, and Riley rubbed his chin with the back of his hand. “Nothing like a little humor to defuse the tension.”
I hunched against the counter. “Is that what just happened?”
He set his hands around either side of me, hemming me in his arms. “You’re very cute when you’re embarrassed.”
I strained not to give in to his lopsided grin. “Really?”
“Mm hmm.” He bent forward until his lips barely brushed mine. “Almost as cute as when you’re angry.”
With the distance between us lost, my pulse skyrocketed.
“Ahem.” Austin fake-coughed. “Sorry to interrupt.”
Liar.
“But I need to borrow the groom for a few minutes.”
Riley looked at me but didn’t budge until I nodded.
Left in the empty kitchen, I ran my hands along my arms. I probably should’ve rejoined the rest of the party in the living room. But now that I had a few minutes alone, I knew exactly where I wanted to go.
I managed to slip out the back door unnoticed. A wave of solitude followed me down the stairs into the quiet backyard. I settled on the cool sand bordering the water’s edge.
Here I was again. Under the stars. In the same place I’d come to clear my head ever since I was a child. Even when I hadn’t fully understood what I was searching for, sitting by the lake had felt like being home. Peaceful. Uncomplicated. Life had always made sense here. If only for a few minutes.
A gentle breeze from across the lake covered me in a welcome-back embrace. The trees bordering the small inlet beside my uncle’s property waved shadows over the shoreline. I closed my eyes and hugged my knees to my chest, soaking it all in.
It would’ve been nice to take our Alaskan honeymoon in the winter when the Northern Lights were their most stunning, but the stars here at the lake had to come close to matching their beauty.
“Thought I might find you out here.” Mom crossed the yard, sat beside me, and pressed her freckled arm against mine. “All those summers here, I’d be going crazy wondering where you were, but your dad somehow always knew.” She laughed softly as though reliving a memory that hadn’t faded over time.
“He wouldn’t let me go after you, either. Said you’d come back in when you were good and ready.”
I faced the trees across the lake. “Sometimes I think he understood me better than I understood myself.”
“Well, he had a way of seeing things others weren’t able to. It’s one of the many reasons why I fell in love with him.”
I turned to her, tears churning. “I miss him so much.”
“Oh, honey. I miss him too.” She cradled my head to her shoulder and stroked my hair the way she’d done since I was a kid.
She leaned back and dabbed the skin under her eyes, finding a strength I wasn’t used to seeing in her. “Knowing he’d miss your wedding day was one of the hardest things he
had to come to terms with.” She withdrew a small envelope from her pocket. “But he made sure he’d still be here for you, sweetheart. He wanted you to have this tomorrow.”
I stared at the letter in my hands, swallowed hard.
“I thought maybe you’d want to read it tonight instead.”
I hugged her again and held on as tightly as I held on to Dad’s memory. “Thanks, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you too.” She squeezed my hand, rose to her feet, and wiped the sand off her pants. “I’ll give you some time alone.”
Time alone with Dad. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.
She stopped at the bottom of the steps leading to the second story deck. “And, Emma? Don’t stay out too late. Jaycee will have my head if you have bags under your eyes tomorrow morning.” Her soft laughter followed her up the wooden staircase. She knew Jaycee so well.
In the quiet, the heavens cast a glow over the lake. I used to stare at the sky and imagine the world as a brilliant painting. I’d sit on the edge of the shore, waiting for any hint of what the next paint stroke would be.
Had Dad known all along that I’d end up here on the eve of my wedding day? Had he known what it would take me to reach this point?
Drawing in a breath, I opened the letter. His handwriting reached off the page into the memory of his voice.
Emma, what I’d give to see my baby girl on her wedding day. I’ve never been angry at God for the things I don’t understand. But knowing I won’t be there to give you away was too much to bear until I understood that I don’t have to miss it. Not really. If I close my eyes, I can envision the day perfectly.
There you are—white dress, hair dolled up, looking as stunning as your mother did the day I married her. I’m beside you, prouder than any father could be. Austin’s up front, your biggest fan. And your mom’s already demolished an entire box of tissues.
But you, my compassionate, headstrong daughter, steal the show. It’s hard to miss the way the groom’s eyes light up as we make our way to the altar. He loves you. There’s no question in my mind that you’ve made the right choice. So, with slightly more ease knowing you’ll be well taken care of, your mother and I release you into the wonderful journey of marriage.
Hope Unbroken (Unveiled Series Book 3) Page 20
