Page 109 of What I Should've Said

“All right, all right, I get it. I’ll let it be today.”

I smile, holding Autumn’s head close and breathing in her baby smell. “Thanks. I appreciate it. I want today to be perfect for Norah.”

Clay jumps up and comes over to give me a pounding slap on my free shoulder. “It will be, dude. Whole town’s been working all night to make sure of it.”

I stand at the altar, and a drape of bright pink fabric Norah made from the blanket we lay on with Summer to see shooting stars hangs over a golden bar behind me. It blows in the breeze, carrying heavenly memories with it, and the bulk of the town sits in white folding chairs down the slight hill of my pasture. Norah and her bridesmaids wait in the barn for the beginning of their march, and Clay holds our sweet baby Autumn at my side.

Breezy steps out first, carrying a bouquet of vibrant pink roses and wearing a matching pink dress, and I imagine Summer smiling down at all the touches of her that Norah’s made sure to include everywhere.

I take a deep breath and then another, waiting impatiently for my bride as Lillian and then Josie make their way down the aisle too, forming a line on the other side of the altar and waiting.

Finally, as the music changes, Norah steps out in a white lace dress that falls off her shoulders, her natural, wild, curly hair floating all over the place. She has a pink belt at her waist and a pink bundle of flowers too, and her bare feet showcase glittery pink toenail polish.

Sheriff Peeler smiles like a loon at her side, an elbow linked through hers as he escorts her down the aisle.

The whole town is here again, just like at the fake wedding we had for Summer last year. But other than our sisters, people linked to us by blood are noticeably absent.

Her mother Eleanor wasn’t invited. Though, I don’t imagine she could have made it even if she had been since she’s awaiting her trial, set to start this fall, in a Manhattan correctional facility, along with Thomas Conrad Michael King III. Clearly, they’re not wearing pink today, but instead, orange.

Just the thought gives me a zing of joy I can hardly describe.

Of course, I’d never invite my asshole brother. And my parents couldn’t be bothered, busy flitting through their meaningless lives. I wish I could say I was surprised, but after they missed Summer’s funeral and Autumn’s birth, I didn’t expect them here. And if it weren’t for Norah, I never even would have asked them to be.

Norah’s smile is big and bold and beautiful, and her eyes shine in the powerful sun. Butterflies dance throughout the tall grass around us, and I have to clutch at my chest to ease the warmth inside it.

She’s everything I never knew I wanted. She’s everything I thought I didn’t need. Norah Ellis is the love of my life.

“Who gives this woman to be married?” Pastor Bob asks from behind me as Pete and Norah come to a stop just in front.

“I do,” Pete boasts proudly before placing her hand in mine.

Norah’s smile is soft as she kisses Pete on the cheek, and an unbelievable blush hits him right underneath. I didn’t know the old goat had it in him.

Norah hands her bouquet to Josie, and Lillian steps forward to fix the back of her dress as Norah turns to face me. I take her hands in mine and immediately have the urge to skip all the formal stuff and go straight to the kiss.

Norah smiles and winks, and I swear she knows exactly what I’m thinking.

With a small shake of her head, she puts her hands in mine.

“Welcome, welcome, everyone,” Bob recites, scanning the crowd with his signature smile. “Thanks for joining us today to celebrate this magical occasion.” His focus turned back to us, he carries on. “Norah and Bennett, today we gather to join your lives together—though the baby probably did that pretty well already.” The crowd laughs, and I roll my eyes. “Anyway, let’s get started, shall we?”

I nod eagerly, making Norah’s smile soften with affection.

“Norah, will you take Bennett to be your husband, through thick and thin, sickness and health, for richer or for poorer, until your dying breath?”

“I will,” Norah answers quickly, and my fingers spasm around hers.

“Bennett, how about you? Will you take Norah to be your wife, through thick and thin—”

“I will.”

“Bennett, I didn’t finish.”

“It doesn’t matter, Bob,” I say simply. “I’ll take Norah through anything.”

Norah licks at her lips as tears moisten her eyes, and I reach up to catch the first drop before it falls. “I love you, Norah.”

“I love you too, Bennett.”

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