Dear Tabitha (41 page)

The priest gives them a minute for this beautiful display of unity. Of family. Shit, my eyes start to tear up.

He begins the service again and asks Alex to say his vows.

He removes one hand from her belly and places it on her cheek. She leans into it as he swipes away some tears with his thumb. He continues to cradle her face as he begins his vows.

“Tabs. My God, you’re perfect. In every way. Perfect for me, for Sara, and for our family. I’m thankful for the years that we spent together and also for the years that we spent apart. Our love brought us back to each other. You are my soul mate. My life partner. My best friend. From the first moment I laid eyes on you, I knew that we’d be here. Our connection has been too strong to deny it. We deserve a lifetime of happiness together. Forever.
You
deserve to be treated with respect and love. With confidence and trust. I will honor these words and my commitment to you. To our family. Forever. Until I die. I love you.” He removes his other hand from her belly to caress her entire face in his hands. She’s crying and Sara offers a tissue to her. She bends down to get it and dabs her eyes. Then she laughs a little and dabs Alex’s eyes.

She mouths what seems like ‘I’m so happy, Alex’.

The priest clears his throat and asks Tabitha to begin her vows. She nods her head and composes herself. Her hands reach for his, and they drop between the two of them.

I still try to picture myself across from her, but it’s getting harder and harder. As much as I want to be there, I know that she only has eyes for Alex. Why not me?

She clears her throat.

“Please squeeze my hands to let me know this is real.”

He nods and they look down at their joined hands. She takes a deep breath and continues.

“Alex. From the first moment that I saw you in the bookstore, I knew that you were something to cherish. To love. You found me at one of the most difficult times in my life, grabbed my heart, and never let it go. You’ve given me security, comfort, and love. And now you are giving me a
family
. Something that I have only experienced one other time.” She looks up to the ceiling and says quietly, “I love you Trina. God, I wish you were here.”

Alex quickly wipes another tear from her cheek and the priest says, “She is here, Tabitha. She’s all around you.”

She takes a moment to compose herself.

“My life wouldn’t be complete if it weren’t for you. Thank you for taking care of me when I didn’t think I needed it. Thank you for being a wonderful father to my Sara. Thank you for giving me this gift.” She touches her belly and looks up at him. “I love you now, always, and forever.” She chokes on a sob as he pulls her to his chest.

Dax reaches into his pocket, pulling out the rings. He walks over to Alex, pats him on the back, and places them in his palm. I watch as they silently slide the rings onto each other’s fingers. Alex lingers with Tabby’s hand in his and bends down to kiss her ring finger.

He then turns to Sara, gets down on his knees, and grabs her hands. She giggles as he says, “Sara, I love your mother with all of my heart, and I love you just as much. Thank you for welcoming me into your family.” He kisses her on her cheek and fastens a bracelet around her wrist.

She hugs him tightly and says, “I love you, too, Alex!”

The priest blesses the rings on their fingers. When he is finished, he states, “Who here objects to this union? Please speak now or forever hold your peace.”

I grip my chest. Of course, I don’t object. I can’t. She is so incredibly happy with Alex and her new family. I realize that, as much as she cared for me, this moment was destined to happen. I take a deep breath, swiping the last tear from my eye. I’m so incredibly proud of the woman that she has become. She seems so strong and sure of herself. She’s a
mother
, something she thought she was never fit to be. She’s now a
wife
to someone who undoubtedly loves her with every ounce of his being. She has everything that I’ve always wanted for her. I just wish it was with me. It’s over and I need to move on.

I whisper to no one, “Goodbye, Tabby.”

The priest blesses their marriage and declares, “I give you, Alex, Tabitha, and Sara Treadway!” The church erupts in applause and Kirsten, Garrett, Dax, and Tristan all converge on the happy couple. They all hug as the priest concludes the ceremony.

Suddenly, I hear the speaker system kick in. Instead of traditional wedding music, I hear the beginning of a very familiar song. I watch as Kirsten walks down the aisle with Tristan and Garrett escorting her. I then see Dax pick up Sara and carry her down the aisle. Tabby and Alex are the last, and he kisses her one more time. They turn, grasp hands, and walk down the aisle as Peter Gabriel’s
In Your Eyes
pipes through the speakers.

I watch as every last guest leave the church, and I listen to the cheers from outside. I stay in the balcony until I know that everyone is gone.

I walk down the stairs, stopping in the back of the church to look at the altar. I clear my mind of my fantasies from earlier when I pictured myself in place of Alex. That isn’t fair and wouldn’t have been right. I bend down to scoop some rose petals from the floor.

I hear footsteps behind me. I turn and see Alex.

His smile freezes on his face. “Seth?”

Shit. I tried to avoid this.

“Hey, Alex. I’m sorry. I tried to stay upstairs until you all left. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude.” I start to walk away, but turn around to say, “Congratulations, man. You both deserve this happiness.” As much as it pains me to say this out loud, it’s true.

He walks up to me, extending his hand. I reach out and we shake.

“Thanks, Seth. It means a lot. Tabs is out in the car. She forgot her bouquet.” He lets go of my hand and grabs her flowers from one of the pews. “You okay?” he asks me.

I chuckle. “Of course I am. I just wanted to be here. To see. Listen, I don’t want to hold you up. Congratulations, again.”

“Thanks, Seth,” he smiles warmly. “See you around?”

I nod as he jogs out of the church to be with his wife.

Tabby.

I take a deep breath and slowly drop the rose petals to the floor one by one. I have no regrets. Tabby was something special to me, and she will always hold a firm place in my heart.

I turn and walk out of the church into the bright sun. What a gorgeous day.

I put my hands in my pockets and walk toward my parked car. I’m suddenly determined. Determined to find what Alex and Tabby have. To find love and family.

I want to find my forever.

Read Other Books by Trudy Stiles

“Dear Tabitha”

Forever Family Series

Book 2

Seth’s story continues in the upcoming companion/stand-alone novel…

The Forever Family Series

Book 3

Summer/Fall 2014

After the Acknowledgments, be sure to check out an excerpt from JJ Rossum’s upcoming book

Head of the Class

If you or someone you know has been raped or abused, please urge them to seek help. Please beg them to tell someone.

No means No.

Do something and say something.

For more information about how to help yourself or a loved one, please visit one of these important websites or call the toll-free hotlines.

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network)

www.rainn.org

1-800-656-HOPE (4673)

Safe Horizon

www.safehorizon.org

1-800-621-HOPE (4673)

If you or someone you know has feelings of suicide or depression, please urge them to seek help to prevent a tragedy.

For more information about how to help yourself or a loved one, please visit one of these important websites or call the hotlines below.

National Suicide Prevention Hotline:

www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

1-800-273-8255

The Kristen Books Hope Center

www.hopeline.com

1-202-536-3200

Aside from writing a blurb, acknowledgments are always the hardest to write. Why is that? Could it be that I’m about to pour out my heart and soul to so many people? I think it’s more about the paralysis that I get when I’m absolutely terrified of inadvertently forgetting to mention someone. I’m going to apologize up front to everyone, because I promise you that I will forget and it is not intentional. I swear. I love you all and if you’re reading this note, then know that I love you too.

So, I started out thanking my family profusely after my first novel, Dear Emily was published. I also promised them that things would change. That I’d attempt to get more sleep, do more laundry, and keep the house fairly organized. And in keeping with tradition, my first acknowledgment is again directed to my family. But it’s an apology. I’m sorry. I lied. Dear Tabitha took just as much out of me as Dear Emily did and in writing this book, I fell back into bad habits and didn’t do all of the things that I promised that I would improve. Your constant support has been incredible and I love you for helping me through the creation of this book as well. Yes, I still have clothes piled to the ceiling on my dining room table and dishes in the sink. Mr. Trudy is and ever will be a saint. I love you so much and thank you for your unwavering support. My kids are excited that I wrote ‘book two’ and they can’t wait for me to write ‘book three’ although I don’t think they realize exactly what that means. For them, finishing ‘book two’ meant that Christmas stayed up in our home until after Valentine’s Day! I guess that’s pretty cool if you are six and seven years old.

Holy crap! I wouldn’t even be writing this acknowledgement if it weren’t for the incredible and awesome support that Dear Emily received from the blogging and author community. This is where I’m not going to list out each blog or author individually, because I WILL forget to name everyone. Someone will be left off and I don’t want to cause any hard feelings. So what I will say is this. Over 140 blogs and dozens of authors helped spread the word about Dear Emily through the cover reveal, release day blitz, and blog tour. They also jumped in to help out when I had a glitch with Amazon and went dark for almost a day. Did they have to do this? Absolutely not. Did they even know who I was at that point? Nope. Then what exactly happened? They all took a chance on a new indie author and welcomed me with open arms. They didn’t have to do it, but they did. I thank each and every one of you for taking that chance. And Wow! During the release and review blitz of Dear Emily, I heard from so many of you that connected with this story. Thank you for all of your notes and kind words. And a huge thank you for all of your reviews. As part of the indie community, you all know how important reviews are to continue to spread the word about our books. So thank you! I love all of you!

Thank you as well for helping support the cover reveal, upcoming blog, and review tour for Dear Tabitha. I hope that this story helps conclude what I started to tell in Dear Emily. I’ve tried to come full circle and show that beyond tragedy, there is the ability for a happily ever after. It just takes more time for others as you’ve witnessed through Alex and Tabitha’s journey.