Wedding at Willow Lake (8 page)

BOOK: Wedding at Willow Lake

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“Pretty good covert operation, don’t you think?” He smoothed back her hair and twined his fingers with hers. Bathed in moonlight, with the stars for an orchestra, he slipped into a slow two-step. “You were beautiful, Cate. You are beautiful.”

“Keep that up, and you’re going to make me cry.”

“Only if they’re happy tears.”

“Oh, yes…only happy tears.”

“In that case…” They danced, had their fill of dancing, before he finally murmured, “Sit down, Cate.”

She slipped onto the bench that she knew Ryder had fashioned out of oak harvested himself from the surrounding forest.

“I’d like to say something, if you don’t mind.” Brody’s eyes were so rich and round with love that they rivaled the brilliance of the full moon caressing the sleepy shore of Willow Lake.

“I...” Suddenly her heart skittered, and the sky seemed to brighten.

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Brody.”

“Give me a minute here.” Brody’s voice grew husky as he knelt before her. “My presentation obviously needs a little work.

“What? Oh, Brody…” She couldn’t say another word. Her heart had leapt into her throat.

“Catherine Jones, I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but loving you isn’t one of them. Loving you has never been one of them. I am impatient and short-tempered, and sometimes, as you so eloquently put it, even pompous—”

“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean—”

“My turn, so hush and listen.” He pressed a finger to her lips. “I have loved you since the first day I laid eyes on you and I’ve never, ever stopped. Nor will I.” He slipped his hand into the pocket of his jeans as his gaze held hers. True and steady. “I can’t imagine spending another day—another heartbeat—without you by my side.”

“Brody…oh my!” Catherine’s pulse flew off the charts as Brody pulled a ring from his pocket and a diamond caught the light. “That’s the ring…the same ring. You kept it all these years.”

“Of course I kept it.” He reached for her left hand. “Will you marry me, Cate?”

“You kept the ring, Brody. Oh my goodness, I can’t believe you kept it! She threw her arms around him as the tears—happy tears—began to flow. “Yes, I’ll marry you. And I’ll love you forever, Brody Simmons. That’s a promise.”

Cheers erupted from the inn’s deck, along with catcalls and whistles.

“It’s about time you two came to your senses,” Ryder called. “Congratulations and welcome home, both of you!”

“Now get back in here,” Josie added, “so we can celebrate.”

Epilogue

“You couldn’t have ordered a more perfect day for a wedding.” Ryder crossed over to Brody, grinning like a man who’d already survived the matrimonial firing squad and was proud of it. “Are you ready?”

“I think I’m going to pass out.” Brody tugged at the collar of his tux as he leaned against the inn’s deck rail. In the field below, a small crowd settled into white wooden chairs that had been lined along the lake’s shore. Trees exploded in a rainbow of festive autumn hues, reflecting off the water in an impressive quilt of color. Ali, Maci, and Josie, dressed in stunning shades of hunter green, gathered just beneath the deck. Their laughter drifted as they waited with Catherine for the crowd to settle and the wedding music to begin. “This is it…the real deal. I’m going to be a husband.”

“And one day down the road, most likely, you’ll become a daddy, too.”

“Oh…” Brody grabbed the rail as the floor tilted. His heart began to thunder. “I’m strangling in this monkey suit.”

“There’ll be none of that.” Ryder handed Brody a glass of iced tea. “Drink it and take a breath. This is the hardest part—the waiting.”

“I’ve waited ten years…what’s a few more minutes?”

“I know. Been there, done that, and let me tell you—it’s worth every minute of the infernal wait.”

“Look at them…” Brody paused to chug the tea, draining the glass in one long gulp before he set it on the rail. “Three women with bellies like a progression of small mountains. Maci’s due any day, with Josie and Ali to follow.” It had been a surprise to all of them when Ryder and Ali announced they were expecting their second child. “Soon the inn will be crawling with a platoon of kids.”

“As it should be.” Ryder grinned. “This place—the inn and the land surrounding it—was meant to be explored and filled with the squeals of children. Maybe you and Catherine will add to the army?”

“Cate would be over the moon for that, and I’m good with it, too. But let’s get the ceremony over, first.”

“Soon enough, my friend.” Ryder laughed and smacked him on the back. “There’s the music now. We’d better head down there. You don’t want to be late.”

“Nope. You have the rings?”

“Right here.” Ryder patted the breast pocket of his tux. “Safe and sound.”

They’d been safe and sound for a decade. Now, it was time to put both rings in their rightful place—on the marriage finger.

Brody descended the steps and made his way to the head of the crowd, turning to face his friends as the music crescendoed. One by one Ali, Maci, and Josie appeared along with Ryder, Hunter and Mason through the inn’s French doors to flank him beneath the wedding arch Mason had constructed. A slight pause and then Catherine’s gaze met his as she, covered in a mist of veil, stepped through the doors.

His heart soared and all thought fled—everything but his deep and pure love for her—as she floated toward him over a carpet of rose petals. The crowd seemed to disappear, leaving only the two of them as the distance between them closed. All the years of waiting—and hoping—melted away. He took her hands in his and sighed.

Together, they’d finally made it home.

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Where Faith is the Cornerstone of Love™

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May God’s glory shine through

this inspirational work of fiction.

AMDG