“It’s not?” I ask as he leads me out of the bookstore.
“Nope. In fact, it’s only just begun.” He spins me around so I am now facing his chest. “See, I don’t just want to marry you, Lauren Lawson.”
“You don’t?” I’m not sure where this conversation is going. What else does he want to do with me?
He leans down, brushing soft kisses up my neck. “Nope.” I feel his breath hot on my skin as he trails kisses over my jaw to my chin and finally finding my lips. “I want to marry you today.” Kiss. “I don’t want—” Kiss. “—to go—” Kiss. “—another day—” Kiss. “—without you—” Kiss. “—being my wife.” Kiss.
I gasp, and he takes that opportunity to slip his tongue in my mouth, seeking my own. He breaks the kiss all too soon for me, but we’re standing in front of a crowded bookstore. Taking my cheeks in his palms, he brushes away the tears with his thumbs. “So, what do you say?”
“Yes. There is no doubt in my mind I will marry you today, tomorrow, whenever. But…” I pull my bottom lip between my teeth. I’ve imagined Finn proposing over and over again along with marrying him, but my sister was always beside me, and my mother would be the one to give me away. “I just wish our families were here.”
He kisses the tip of my nose and smiles like the Cheshire cat. He is clearly up to something.
“Good. I was hoping you’d say that because our families are waiting for us. You’re going to go shopping with the girls for a dress. Pick out the most beautiful wedding dress there is, the cost doesn’t matter. I want your day to be perfect.”
Tears threaten to spill from my eyes as I process his words. This day has been a dream come true. I can’t believe all the work and planning Finn put into this moment. Words cannot even describe the love I feel for this man. “Of course, today is going to be perfect no matter what I wear because I’m going to be marrying you.”
“As much as I want to stay here with you reliving this moment over and over in my mind, we have a schedule.” He laughs. “Wow, I am starting to sound like my sister back on her wedding day. Lord, help me.”
“Say that again?”
We begin walking to the car with his arm around my shoulder and my arms wrapped around his waist. “What, that my sister was a total bridezilla in regards to keeping on schedule?”
I shake my head. “No, I am totally telling Kelsey that you called her that.”
We reach the car quickly, having parked upfront. “Meanie,” Finn calls from the driver’s side, sticking his tongue out at me.
“No, the other part,” I respond, buckling my seat belt and leaning over the center console.
Finn meets me halfway, his mouth barely touching mine. “Oh, you mean the part where today is my—no, our wedding day.”
My face beams. “Yeah, that part.” With one last kiss, we continue on our journey for wherever our family is waiting. I don’t even bother Finn asking for more details like I had on the ride up here. I glance down at my ring and process his words. He has held on to this ring all this time. Today I finally become Mrs. Griffin Reynolds.
I assumed we were headed to a hotel, but instead, we pull up to a charcoal gray-and-white-trimmed beach house. I notice the row of familiar cars parked around the driveway.
“What are we doing here?” I ask as I undo my seat belt and take in the house and its size.
“It’s ours,” he says as he exits the vehicle.
“Ours?” I scream, chasing after him. “What do you mean ours?”
“Okay, not ours.” He shrugs. “I rented it. Our family arrived last night, which was why your sister was ignoring you, not because she had work deadlines. They’ve been setting up everything for us.”
My eyes begin to fill up as I process all that Finn is saying. He has gone through so much this weekend to make it perfect for me, for us. “We can’t afford this.”
“Yes, baby, we can. It’s all taken care of. You deserve your happily ever after.”
Finn wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. I kiss Finn slowly, savoring the way he tastes, but it quickly turns heated. He kisses me back in a way that makes me forget that my heart was ever broken, that we had spent anytime apart, and for a moment that we are about to get married.
“Lauren Elizabeth Lawson, you better get off that man, not get him off!” I hear my sister yell behind me.
I groan, which only makes Finn deepen the kiss more. Kate and our family can wait as I continue to assault my fiancé’s mouth. Oh my God, the butterflies I get in my stomach calling him that, and in just a few short hours, I get to call him husband. After years of scribbling “Mrs. Lauren Reynolds” in my notebook, my dream is finally coming true.
I turn to face our family, who is taking up the entire front steps of the beach house, still in Finn’s arms.
I can’t hold back my smile or the tears as I hold up my left hand, showing off the diamond ring that had finally found its way home to my finger. Our families erupt in cheers and celebration, rushing to us both.
After all the congratulations, hugs, and kisses, the women whisk me away to a wedding dress boutique in town in search of the perfect wedding gown.
Standing in the dressing room, I stare at myself in the mirror. How did I go from Lauren Lawson, plain old second-grade teacher, to soon-to-be Mrs. Finn Reynolds searching for the dress I will wear when I say I do?
This is now dress number four I tried on; I just didn’t love any of them. This dress is beautiful, don’t get me wrong, it’s just not the one for me.
“Well, are you going to stay in there all day, or are you going to come out and show us,” my sister shouts impatiently.
I sigh before I come out from behind the curtain. A collection of “oohs and ahhs” from Finn’s mom and sister, as well as my mom and Dani, greet me as I step up onto the platform. I spin in the mirror but chew on my bottom lip, feeling disappointed from this experience. I want to marry Finn today, and hell, I would marry him in leggings and a T-shirt if I could, but now that I’m here trying on dresses, I want to find the right one.
“What do you think, sweetheart?” my mom chimes in.
I shrug. “It’s nice, but…maybe I’m just not going to find it.”
Kate is watching me intently in the mirror, sensing my disappointment. I hold her gaze, but my attention is quickly drawn away to a mannequin standing in the corner. It has on a simple halter dress covered in white lace and an empire waistline. Through the reflection, she follows my trail of sight, landing on the dress. The corners of her mouth turn upward.
“I believe we found the dress,” she says, rubbing her hands together in excitement.
“Were you not paying attention? She just said that wasn’t the one,” Kelsey responds.
“No, not that one,” she says, pointing to the dress I’m currently wearing. “That one.” She points to the mannequin over in the corner, and everyone turns to look.
“Excuse me,” my mom calls out to the salesperson who has been helping us. “My daughter would like to try this dress on.”
She nods and goes to retrieve the dress before meeting me back in the dressing room. After helping me out of the “no go” dress, she helps me into this formfitting “hopefully the one” dress and excuses herself from the room, giving me a moment.
Once the straps are situated, I spin to face the mirror.
This is it. This is the dress. It even fits perfectly. That has to be a sign, right?
I finally experience the moment every bride dreams about when they finally put on “the dress.” I run my hands down my waist over the delicate lace and close my eyes, imagining walking down the aisle directly to Finn.
As I walk out of the fitting room, the crowd goes silent, like I can hear crickets beginning to chirp outside quiet. Well, that can’t be good. From the mirror, I browse everyone’s face.
“You look so beautiful,” my mom says, covering her nose and mouth in awe. Her eyes are filling up with tears.
“Simple yet elegan
t, just like you,” Dani manages to get out while accepting a tissue from my mom to wipe her eyes. “I’d blame the hormones, but I think it’s the dress.” She laughs between tears.
My sister still hasn’t said anything, and I stare at her in the mirror. She steps up beside me, careful not to step on the train of the dress, and places her hands on my arms.
“Is this the dress you’ve envisioned your whole life?”
I nod, entirely at a loss for words.
“Good because I think so too. And if you didn’t buy it, I would have, and I don’t even have a man.” I laugh. “Now come on, I’ll help you out of this.”
“I can’t believe you knew about all of this and didn’t say anything. Some maid of honor you are,” I joke, rolling my eyes. Kate pauses, her eyes wide in shock. “Oh please, like you didn’t know you’d be my maid of honor. As you said, I’ve been planning this day for my entire life, and there is no one I can think of that I want next to me when I say I do to forever.”
“Well, fuck,” she chokes out, wiping under her eyes. “I think some of Dani’s hormones stuck to me because I’m never this emotional. I mean, I knew it, but hearing you say this makes this all real. First, Kyler got married, and now you.” She exhales and composes herself with a smile on her face. “Now, what do you say we go get you hitched? I worked hard decorating last night, and I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but fucking beep beep. It looks amazing. I can’t wait for you to see it. I may or may not have gotten a hold of your wedding Pinterest board when Finn came to me with this plan, and Kelsey and I have made your dreams a reality.”
“Thank you” are the only words I can seem to find at this moment. Thank you is obviously not enough though. I am not even sure how to thank her for all that she has done, and not just all of this scheming, but forcing me to confront my feelings for Finn; otherwise, I may not have gotten here.
Kate helps me out of my dress and hangs it on the hanger while I change back into my clothes.
“I was right, you know,” she says over her shoulder.
“No surprise.” I playfully roll my eyes as I slip my shoes on. “About what?”
“Finn is your lobster.”
I chuckle and nod. “Yeah, I think he is too.”
The lantern lights dangling from the pergolas in the backyard and pool area twinkle in the dusk sky. I had left Kate and Kelsey in charge of decorations, and it’s more than I ever imagined. I was in awe when I stepped out back this afternoon when the girls all left to go shopping, but seeing it now as I wait here at the makeshift altar for my bride, it is truly something out of a fairy tale.
Paper lanterns light Lauren’s path. I can’t wait to see her face when she sees all this. She had been whisked away so fast earlier when we arrived, and the room that she has been getting ready in all evening faces the front of the house.
I turn to Chase, who is standing next to me as my best man. “Thanks for standing up here with me today as my best man.”
“Of course, I’m always here for you. Kelsey and I are here for you and Lauren always, man.” I nod. “I’m sorry Jax couldn’t make it. But I’ll take the job even if I got it just by default.”
Soft music begins to play, and that’s when I see her standing at the top of the stairs, just moments away from being mine forever.
With her mom and sister on each side, she begins her walk down to the altar. Her dress is simple, with lace going all the way to the floor and dragging behind her. Her hair is down in soft curls, pinned back from her face with her shoulders on full display. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever laid eyes on. She has been ever since our first meeting.
I love watching her face as she takes in the scene around her. Her brown eyes are glistening with tears, happy tears, of course. This moment is a dream come true.
Her love radiates off her as she approaches me. That smile, God, it’s making me weak in the knees.
Before the minister gets a chance to speak, I notice something on Lo’s cheek.
“Lo, you have a…”
I swipe a tiny eyelash off her cheek.
With my thumb resting lightly against her lips as to not ruin her lipstick, I whisper, “Make a wish, baby.”
She closes her eyes and purses her tips together, blowing the eyelash away.
I lean in, kissing her cheek briefly. I don’t want to mess up the flow of the ceremony kissing her before I’m supposed to, so I settle on my lips against the soft skin of her cheek.
When she opens her eyes slowly, her smile grows wider than I ever thought possible. “I wished for you. I’ve always wished for you.”
As the ceremony begins, and Lauren and I recite our vows promising each other forever, there is a looming feeling in my heart knowing there is an empty chair next to my mom where my father should sit. But I also know that he is smiling down on me.
“You may now kiss your bride,” the minister announces.
I slide my hands along my wife’s cheeks and pull her to me to claim her lips for our first kiss as a married couple. The smile on her face lights up the evening sky. Just before our lips touch, I think to myself, Well, Dad, I finally got the girl.
Cookouts at our house are beginning to become a regular thing. Life couldn’t get much better in our little family, and it is about to grow even bigger. My niece and nephew are due to arrive in just a few months. Zach and Haylee’s family will be growing by one more too. Her due date is right after Dani’s.
Babies, babies everywhere.
I run my hand over my flat stomach, and I can’t wait for the time when it will be my belly growing and shopping for the cutest baby clothes. For now, I will settle for spoiling the crap out of my nieces and nephew. One day, Finn and I will welcome a bundle of joy of our own, but for now, I’m perfectly content with spending this time just the two of us. Of course, that doesn’t mean we haven’t started trying.
Standing at the island, I continue to mix the pasta salad when I feel two large, rough hands wrap around my waist. I feel the scruff of his neatly trimmed beard along my neck—a new look Finn has been rocking as he settles into his new life. He trails soft kisses along my neck, and I try not to laugh as the hair tickles my skin. He makes his way to my ear.
“Hello, wife.”
I smile at that word—wife. I waited my entire life to be Finn’s wife. There was a time when I never thought that would ever happen, that my happily ever after could be achieved. My heart rate accelerates with him being this close. I have that constant feeling of butterflies in my stomach when he is around.
Finn spins me around in his arms, and my back presses against the cold granite. I love the renovations Finn has been working on at the house, adding his personal touches here and there just like he has on my heart. He places his hands on the island, caging me in.
“Hello, husband.”
I bring my hands to cup his cheeks and run my hands over his beard. While still leaning against the counter with one hand, he brings the other over one of my hands, enclosing his hand around mine. He brings our joined hands to his mouth and brushes his lips against them.
“What’s in that pretty little head of yours?” Finn asks, caressing his knuckle along my temple.
“I’m just realizing how much I love you.”
He grips my hips and lifts me on the counter. I shriek before he settles between my legs. I instinctively wrap my legs around his waist, not even caring that we have guests outside. My hands drape over his shoulders, and my insides turn to mush at how bright his smile is.
“Oh, you’re now just realizing that, huh. It wasn’t before you agreed to be mine forever.” He closes the distance, capturing my mouth with his. My fingers play with the hair on the nape of his neck.
We are quickly interrupted when the door that leads out to the backyard swings open. Finn places his forehead against mine and groans at the loss of my touch.
“I can’t believe you allowed Zach to bring that damn karaoke machine here. Actually no, I can’t believe that Dani an
d Kyler gave him that god-awful machine,” my sister yells from the back door before making her way into the kitchen. “Ugh, will you two get a room? There’s food being prepared here. I’m pretty sure you two are breaking like half a dozen health code violations.” I slide off the counter.
“Oh, Kate, you know if you don’t like where I make love to my wife, you could always leave,” Finn spits back jokingly. The banter between Kate and Finn is hilarious to watch. She might be on team Finn, but she loves rousing him up and giving him a hard time. It was always like this growing up but has gotten better with age.
“You’re going to let him talk to me like that? Your own flesh and blood? We shared a womb.” Kate slaps her chest dramatically as if she’s extremely offended. The glint in her eyes tells me she has a hard time keeping a straight face.
I wrap my arms around Finn’s waist from behind, burying my face in his back, using him as a shield between my sister and me. “I’m staying out of the middle with you two.”
I grab the tray of burger patties out of the fridge and hand them to Finn. “Here, go make yourself useful before you and my sister start bickering like schoolgirls.”
“Yes, ma’am, only because I love you shall I throw in the white flag.”
Kate throws her hands up the in victory, followed by waving fingers guns at him. ”One point for me, zero points for Reynolds.”
“You won by default.” Finn rolls his eyes before pressing a kiss to the top of my head and makes his way out of the kitchen.
“A win is still a win,” she shouts over her shoulder.
Finn pops his head back in. “You’ve only won until everyone leaves, and I take your sister right there on the counter. That’s Lawson – 1, Reynolds – 1.” He quickly exits, joining the rest of our guests in the backyard.
My face heats in embarrassment, and I yell, “Finn!” the same time my sister puts her fingers in her ears and goes, “Ah la la la la.”
I shake my head at these two and go back to preparing the pasta salad that I was working on before Finn had interrupted me.
I Never Let You Go Page 23
