Page 121 of Under Fire

“The owner is obsessed with my coffee and was happy to work us in.” Sasha tapped her finger on the plate with the banana and one Hershey’s kiss. “Your breakfast is courtesy of Matt including the tea. He dropped it by earlier this morning.”

“Did he sleep at all?”

She shrugged. “He said he slept enough. I don’t question the Fortress operatives. They know what they need to do to keep themselves in peak physical condition. Eat your breakfast and dress. We’ll leave as soon as you’re ready.”

Delilah ate, showered, and dressed in ten minutes flat. She and Sasha were escorted to a treatment room as soon as they walked in the front door of the exclusive spa.

For the next three hours, Delilah and her friend were pampered and polished and emerged from the spa refreshed and ready for the next part of the day. Courtesy of the spa’s owner, a makeup artist and hair stylist prepared each of them for the wedding.

Back in the SUV, Delilah said, “The owner must be obsessed with your coffee to treat us like this.”

“I think her coffee will be comped from now on. This was beyond anything I asked her to do. Did you have fun?”

“I did. Thanks for arranging this, Sasha.”

They returned to the house to pick up everything they needed to dress for the wedding and drove to the church. After making sure Matt was nowhere in sight, Sasha helped Delilah carry their bags into the building.

Thirty minutes before the wedding, a knock sounded on the door of the room where Delilah and Sasha waited. Liz Cahill peered inside. “Delilah, your brother is here. He’d like to see you if you have a minute.”

“Sure. Send him in.”

“You look beautiful, honey. You’ll take Matt’s breath away when he sees you.”

Delilah pressed her trembling fingers against her stomach. She hoped Liz was correct. Now that the wedding was due to start soon, Delilah worried he wouldn’t approve of the dress or might back out altogether. Stupid. Everyone was right. Matt was as crazy about her as she was about him.

A moment later, the door opened again and her brother slipped inside the room. His eyes widened when he saw her. “Dee, you look incredible.”

She glanced down at the white sheath dress and ran her hand over the silky material. “Thanks.” Although she’d tried on several princess-style dresses with miles of skirt and long trains, none of them suited her as well as this one.

“I brought you a gift. I hoped you would wear it today.”

Curious, she accepted the wrapped box Zach handed her. Tearing off the paper, she opened the oblong box to see a single strand of delicate white pearls. “Zach, they’re beautiful.” She hugged him. “Thank you for thinking of me.”

“I think Mom would have approved of Matt and this marriage. She developed a fondness for pearls during the past two years. I went to the same store where she purchased all her jewelry and bought the sister strand to the one she owned. She would have liked for you to have hers if they would have survived the fire. If you won’t take them from me, think of them as having come from Mom.”

“Because the necklace is from both of you, it means even more.” She motioned to a group of chairs. “Sit with me until it’s time to go.”

“Sure. Um, I paid off that debt. I’m free and clear, Dee. You won’t have to look over your shoulder.” He gave a small smile. “And your husband won’t have to kill me.”

Sasha grinned as she handed both of them small bottles of water.

“Zach, since Dad’s not here, would you mind walking me down the aisle?”

He smiled. “I’m glad to stand in for him today.”

They spent the next minutes becoming reacquainted. When Liz returned to announce it was time to go, Zach helped Delilah to her feet and held out his arm.

“Let’s not keep your medic waiting. I have a feeling he’ll track you down if you’re late.”

Delilah laughed, joy exploding in her heart as butterflies fluttered in her stomach. All the nervousness, however, disappeared the moment she saw Matt Rainer dressed in his military uniform waiting at the altar for her. The love in his eyes and the broad smile were all she saw. Nothing else registered until Zach kissed her cheek and placed her hand in Matt’s.

Matt kissed the back of her hand and murmured, “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, baby.”

Marcus Lang cleared his throat, his eyes twinkling, and began the ceremony. Within minutes, he pronounced them husband and wife, and Matt’s lips were on hers.

After a long, deep kiss, he turned with her to face the audience. Shock rolled through Delilah. Cornerstone Church was packed. Some of the guests she didn’t recognize. Must be Matt’s co-workers from Nashville.

Behind them, the pastor said, “I’m happy to present Matthew and Delilah Rainer.”

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