Love Lost And Found: A Holiday Romance

by Ava Celeste McCullough

  “Me too.”

  “Will you forgive me?”

  “I already have.”

  “Then will you be with me?”

  He nodded. Then with a huge grin, he came around his desk and Lara threw herself into his outstretched arms. They kissed fervently. Then Kyle lifted Lara up and twirled her in the air. She shrieked in giggles.

  Suddenly, the secretary knocked briefly and entered the office. She paused in surprise when she saw Kyle was setting Lara down and the two were grinning like naughty kids. “Um. Mr. Ernhardt is here to see you?” she said, dropping her eyes to her shoes.

  Who’s the one smirking now? Lara thought triumphantly.

  “I have to go,” Kyle said with deep regret in his voice. “But I want to see you tonight,” Kyle told Lara.

  “Just come by. I’ll be waiting for you,” Lara said.

  They had not been together since the summer between high school and college. It felt so right to be in Kyle’s thick, manly arms. The scent of his cologne and skin and sweat so close to her nose made Lara feel like swooning. At times she was so in the moment that she did not even question what was happening. Other moments, something would distract her, and she would realize that she was actually with Kyle. How could this have happened? How could she be so lucky?

  Afterward, they just held each other, drinking one another’s presence. Lara lay next to Kyle, twirling locks of his hair between her fingers. It felt so natural to have him lying by her side. She had lit her tiny apartment up with candles and the flickering, soft light and dancing shadows made Kyle look even more gentle and lovable.

  Meow Meow jumped onto the bed and began to bat at Kyle’s chest, Meowing fervently. Instead of being annoyed the way most boyfriends would be, he merely murmured something about a nice kitty and began to scratch Meow Meow behind the ears. The cat seemed to love him and began to rub his hand vigorously.

  “You are so sweet,” Lara said.

  “You are even sweeter,” he said back.

  They were so relaxed that they easily drifted into sleep. Lara had not slept so well in months. Having Kyle next to her made her feel relaxed and safe, so that she could drop into slumber like a stone into a well. She slept with her head in the crook of his shoulder, which formed the perfect natural pillow for her head.

  In the morning, Kyle asked, “Would you like to go to breakfast with me?’

  Lara kissed his earlobe. Every part of him was snuggly and kissable. He looked so good, even in the morning, with his hair all rumpled and nothing but a pair of black boxers and a pair of Nike socks on. “Sure. Would you like to go to a wedding with me?”

  He pulled back in surprise. “A wedding?”

  “Not our wedding,” she said hastily, then laughed. “I meant a friend’s wedding. You could be my plus one.”

  They had breakfast at a little pancake house near Lara’s apartment. The food was absolutely delicious and the portions were tremendous. They were both ravenous, however. Last night and then again this morning had made them both need more nutrition than usual.

  “I haven’t slept so well in a long time,” Kyle said.

  “I did, too.”

  “I will go the extra mile to love you the way you deserve to be loved, Lara. I’m so happy with you. Everything just feels right.”

  All Lara could do was smile in joy. She felt the same way. And she had no doubt that Kyle meant what he said. Never had she felt such a genuine connection with any other guy.

  “Meredith? I know you’re stressed with the wedding and all…but is it too late to add a plus one to my RSVP?”

  Meredith shrieked. “Please tell me you are bringing Kyle.”

  “I am bringing Kyle.”

  “Oh my God! This really is a fairytale wedding. I can totally add a plus one for you. We already have more than enough food for everyone.”

  “I am so excited!”

  “You two are finally together?” Meredith asked.

  “Yes, finally.”

  “Wow. I feel like I’m an inspiration! One of my other friends went out and got with the man of her dreams, too.”

  “You are the love genie,” Lara laughed.

  “Well I gotta go. We’re doing cake tastings today. But I’m really happy for you, girly. You better come by and get your highlights done before I close shop to go on my honeymoon.”

  “I will.”

  Chapter 15: Marriage is in the Air

  The morning of the wedding, Lara woke up next to Kyle and stroked his neck with the tip of her finger until he opened his eyes. “Good morning, honey,” she crooned.

  “Hi, love.” He kissed her lips before sliding out of bed to pull on some pants. “What are we going to do about breakfast?”

  “I don’t know. I’m nervous, to be honest.”

  “Why?” Kyle laughed.

  “I don’t know. Seeing Meredith get married, I guess. I can’t explain it.”

  “Well, everything will be fine. Though I must admit, I’m nervous, too.”

  “Why?”

  “This is the first time I get to meet your friends here,” Kyle said. “I hope they like me.”

  “I know they’ll love you. Meredith is already crazy about you, just from the things I’ve said.”

  “Well, you paint a pretty picture of me, then,” Kyle laughed.

  “I’m thinking I’ll take my pad and do cartoon sketches of everyone. Meredith would probably love that,” Lara said.

  “That would be nice. Let’s go to the pancake house first. Then we can head out to the Bay for the wedding.”

  By the time they reached the wedding, Lara already felt better. Her stomach butterflies had calmed. She entered the pink-laden area where Meredith’s wedding planner had erected chairs and a little platform. Everything was so beautiful. She placed her gifts on a table and began to circulate with Kyle, thinking over and over how happy she was that she was not here alone. Everyone else was with someone and she knew she would have felt awful without Kyle at her side.

  “Meredith!” she cried when she saw her friend.

  Meredith beamed and hugged Lara. She was in the most amazing dress. The upper part was white, but the bottom of her skirt was dip-dyed in salmon pink. There was also a crest of mother-of-pearls over her chest and her hair was done elaborately. She was truly a beautiful bride. “So you’re Kyle,” she said, as she pulled away from Lara.

  Kyle smiled and took Meredith’s hand. “Very nice to meet you. Lara talks about you a lot.”

  “Don’t believe anything she says. I’m really not that evil,” Meredith joked. Then she turned to Lara. “Wow, girly, you have good taste. Well, I’ll see you two at the reception. You’re coming to the reception tonight, right?”

  “Wouldn’t miss it,” Lara smiled.

  The wedding was beautiful. Meredith and her husband truly matched each other. Lara had only met him once before, but she thought he was just perfect for Meredith. He was her James Dean, people kept saying.

  Afterward, everyone went to the fancy Baldwin Hotel for the reception. It was another elaborate affair, with a primarily pink theme. The dinner was salmon or steak, and Lara and Kyle got both so that they could eat off of each other’s plates. Meredith and Ty opened their hundreds of gifts, then cut the cake. The interior of the cake was strawberry, pink just like everything else.

  When it came time to make speeches, Lara stood up with a rush of confidence that was unusual for her, and said, “I just want to say how happy I am for my friend, Meredith. Not only is she a magician with hair, but she is a genuinely sweet and lovely person, who is loved by many. And I am so happy that she found her man. I must admit, that if it weren’t for Meredith, I probably would not have found mine. She helped me realize that love is not easy. It takes some work. It takes some forgiveness. And it is worth every hard emotion that you have to overcome to make it work.”

  Meredith beamed and clasped her hands in front of her chest. Then Lara scanned the audience for Kyle, worried about what he may think of he
r speech. He was watching her with the oddest expression.

  When she handed the microphone to the next person, she hurried back to their table. “Sorry if I put you on the spot,” she said immediately.

  Kyle looked at her for a second, then suddenly stood up. Lara became confused. Then, Kyle was suddenly on one knee before her, and he removed a ring box from his jacket pocket. Lara shrieked, as did the other women sitting at their table. “Lara,” he said, “you are the love of my life. I’m glad that your friend helped you decide to be with me. Will you marry me?”

  Chapter 16: The Pumpkin Patch

  The wedding was everything that Lara had ever imagined. It was small, cozy, and intimate, with all the people she loved there. And it was in the pumpkin patch, where Aunt Lynn always bought her pumpkins for her famous pumpkin pie. Aunt Lynn and Uncle Joey and the members of their church had gone all out, even erecting a little wooden platform in the center of the field for the nuptials and tying fresh flowers to the chairs. It was beautiful. The white of the chairs and lilies and streamers, and even Lara’s dress, contrasted almost bleakly with the naked gray trees and the bright orange pumpkins of the patch, but it was nevertheless beautiful.

  Lara kept wanted to cry as Cassie and Meredith both did her hair up with a million tiny flower clips. She was just so happy. Last year, at Meredith’s Bachelorette party and at Cassie’s trailer, she had felt so small and left out. But now she knew that she was about to join the legions of blissfully married people. She felt so blessed. She could appreciate Kyle more than most wives, and she knew that her marriage would be a happy one. They would love each other and take care of each other, through good and bad, sun and rain.

  Mrs. Brennan did not seem to be enjoying herself. She was standing at the edge of the field, with her arms crossed. When the pastor arrived and everyone took their seats on the white chairs, she sat in the honored groom mother’s spot, but she kept her arms and legs crossed as if she were flinching from the outside. She definitely was not much of an outside person. Even her flourishing garden was the handiwork of a hired Mexican gardener, not her. Her white scarf fluttered in the breeze and she seemed cold in her thin, ice blue sweater.

  Lara tried to not focus on Mrs. Brennan. After all that she and Kyle had been through, they deserved their happiness at last. Bitter people had no place in their lives. Mrs. Brennan could scowl and pout all she wanted, but it was Lara’s day.

  As everyone started to assemble into their seats, Cassie ran up to Lara and held out her phone. “Behind the scenes selfie!” she shrieked. She had lost most of the baby weight from her last child and was now dazzling in her navy blue maid of honor dress. She tucked her phone into her clutch and ran up the aisle to take her place as maid of honor. Lara’s other bridesmaids, Meredith and Sadie from Seattle, giggled and waved with their little lily bouquets.

  Then Kyle took his place. He was dazzling, too.

  Aunt Lynn started playing organ music on a CD player and Uncle Joey hooked his arm through Lara’s. Lara felt ten feet tall as they walked down the aisle. The train of her gown caught on the grass and stumps of pumpkin vines in the pathway, representing the only downside to a pumpkin patch. But Lara did not even notice the snagging sensation. She was just excited to reach her husband-to-be at the altar as soon as possible, to clasp his hands, and to be with him.

  It seemed that they had waited so long. Lara was practically trembling with excitement when the pastor read their vows. “Yes I do!” she felt she said too loud when he asked if she took Kyle as her husband.

  She did not even have the slightest doubt. And neither did Kyle. He said “I do” with a smiling confidence and then tossed back Lara’s veil and kissed her deeply.

  The wedding photographer had Lara and Kyle pose on the biggest pumpkin in the center of the patch. It really was a record breaker for the farm and the farmer’s prize. Tourists were coming in from all over to climb on the thing. It could have been the pumpkin in Cinderella’s magical carriage, it was so massive. Lara and Kyle found that it was hard to sit on it comfortably without the massive stem digging into their tailbones. Once or twice Lara slipped off. Kyle also helped her up, laughing, and they began trying to arrange themselves again.

  “How adorable. This is going on my fridge,” Aunt Lynn said when the photographer showed her a preview of the winning photo.

  “I feel like Cinderella,” Lara said, and she meant it. She had never been able to put into words what she felt around Kyle until today. He made her feel like a princess.

  “Here,” Mrs. Brennan stepped forward. With a faint attempt at a smile, she handed Lara her bouquet. “If you are ready to toss it.”

  Lara was surprised. “Well…thank you.” She hadn’t planned on tossing the bouquet since all the women at the wedding were married, except for Denise. But she stood up on the little podium and hurled the bouquet. Everybody lunged at it, even the married women. Cassie caught it and carried it to her little girl, who was cooing in a stroller pushed by her husband. The baby stared at the flowers in fascination and reached out a chubby hand to touch the petals. “I get to get married!” she joked with her husband, who beamed and kissed her forehead.

  “God bless you,” the farmer called as Lara and Kyle got into their “Just Married” car.

  Kyle’s dad had arranged for the reception to be held at the country club. The country club really was beautiful inside, with chandeliers and red carpet. There was even a catering company that brought in dishes, even duck. This was the glitzy, fancy part of the wedding that made Lara feel like she was ill-fitting. But in her gown, she knew she fit in at the country club. For once in her life, she felt fancy.

  Aunt Lynn and Aunt Mary got up together to give Lara and Kyle a toast. They were both a bit tipsy. Aunt Lynn didn’t cry at all during the wedding, yet for some reason now after a few glasses of champagne, she kept wiped tears from her cheeks. “I just remember you were a baby yesterday,” she sniffled. “And you were always a daughter to me. Now you’re all grown up and well – I couldn’t be more proud of you. You really did well. Not many women get to have great daughters like you. I love you!”

  “Yes, best of luck to you, honey! I know that you found a good one,” Aunt Mary shouted into the mic. She could barely stand. The two women clung to each other as they found their ways back to their seats.

  Then Meredith got up and beamed at the crowd as she took the microphone. “So I have known Lara a little while. I have the pleasure of coloring her hair. And she came to my wedding last year. Yes, I got married on New Year’s.” She wiggled her left hand, showing off her gaudy wedding ring. A few people cheered. Even though no one knew Meredith here, they were drawn in by her charisma even here. Lara had to shake her head in wonder at Meredith’s unique power over strangers. “Anyway, I remember that shortly before my wedding, Lara just seemed so sad. Heartbreakingly sad. And I felt guilty inviting her to my wedding. She sent her RSVP in without a plus one and,” Meredith shrugged, “I felt horrible. But then she called me.” Meredith started giggling and Lara did too, remembering that phone conversation. “She had found Kyle, again. A third time. And they say the third time is the charm. Well, I guess that is very true, because now one of my favorite people is getting married to her plus one. And I am so happy for her.”

  Everyone clapped. Lara noticed Mrs. Brennan was wiping something from under her eye. Was she crying? There was no way! Mrs. Brennan did not seem capable of wedding tears. Lara was actually surprised how mature Mrs. Brennan had been this whole time, never making any little barbs or bringing up Kayla or anything.

  The reception lasted late into the night with dancing. The DJ was fun and spun everything from 80s music to modern pop tunes. Everybody found something to dance to. They finally decided to wind it down around one in the morning, when Aunt Lynn and Uncle Joey kept drifting off at their table. Aunt Lynn was drunk for one of the first times in years. Lara laughed as she struggled to hold her train and help Uncle Joey lead Aunt Lynn, who was stumbling, to the car
. “I love you, sweety. You made a good choice,” Aunt Lynn mumbled as they rolled her into the front seat of the car.

  As Kyle and Lara thanked the last of the guests and collected their gifts, preparing to leave to their hotel, Lara swallowed and then ran up to the Brennans. “I really wanted to thank you both for the lovely reception,” she said, bracing herself for some biting remark from Mrs. Brennan. “The club is lovely and you did a lovely job with the decorations, Mrs. Brennan.”

  “Thank you,” Mrs. Brennan said. Then she added, “Call me Kathleen.”

  Lara left her wedding feeling, for once, that everything was going to be all right. Even her cold mother-in-law was no longer going to be an issue. She had at last found The One, or rather she had “refound” him.

  But most importantly, she had found herself. She actually loved herself now, and the house she had grown up in and her life in Seattle. All of her life was wonderful, a blessing in disguise. And Kyle was the biggest blessing of all, right in the center of it all. She looked at him and couldn’t believe she was so lucky.

  They went to sleep at a nice hotel in San Antonio. During the entire ride in their new just married car, Kyle reached over and touched her hand. “What do you think about going to the lake?” he asked. They were approaching the turn-off to the lake, where a little rusted gate and some dark, naked trees marked the spot. Lara remembered seeing that turn-off when she was a teenager, illuminated in headlights after sundown, and feeling excitement. She had felt the same way a year before, when Kyle had brought her for their first date after eight years.

  In the morning, they were embarking to Alaska for a cruise for their honeymoon. They planned to lie under the Northern lights and make love. Their flight was early and they needed to sleep. But Lara was too excited to be married to Kyle now to even worry about sleeping. She couldn’t wait for her honeymoon, but she also couldn’t wait to live in the moment. She was totally full of joy. “Sure,” she laughed. “We should celebrate this our way.”