Page 38 of Matrimonial Merger

“Do you want to go down the aisle together?” Daphne asked. “Because… I’m feeling like that’s what I want. I want to spend the day with you—not alone. We entered this together as adults—fully-formed adults who lived a life before falling back into bed together, right? And you’re my partner in everything, Cal. It feels right.”

I gave her a long kiss. “Whatever Miss Delphine wants, she gets.”

12.SURPRISE NUPTIALS

Daphne

Before my first wedding,I’d held onto my father’s arm for dear life, afraid I was making the biggest mistake of my life. I told myself it was just nerves, but knew deep down it was wrong. And in the end, it had been. Today was different. Today, I wore a chic dress to match the grown up, empowered Daphne I’d become. I held the arm of a man I loved beyond reason. My favorite earrings and a bracelet I’d inherited from my grandmother tied me to the past as I stood out facing my happy future.

I still thought about what would have been if Cal and I ended up together that year—if I’d stayed in Chicago—but he was right, we couldn’t change the past and the timing was off.

As we hid in a hallway, I looked Cal’s way. It was perfect. I missed Dad. I wished he could be here, but I loved this man. It was right.

“You okay?” Cal asked. “You’re not going to faint or?—”

“No,” I shook my head. “Cal, I love you. This is perfect. Dad would have been proud.”

Cal smiled. “He would be so happy. I just wish he could be here.”

“Same, but… in a way if he’d never asked you to watch over me and if I’d never found my way back to you, it never would have happened, right? He’s here in spirit.”

“He sort of ordained it,” Cal snickered. “That’s David.”

“Making a deal—a merger—posthumously,” I giggled.

“Sneaky bastard—in life as in death.”

I rested my head on Cal’s shoulder and said, “I don’t want anything else. I couldn’t.”

Cal held my waist tighter. “Never.”

“Cal?”

“Yes, baby?”

I looked back at him with all the love in the world. “I want the baby to be Delphine-Markham. I want her to have both names.”

“That’s probably good because I told John to announce us that way. We talked about it?—”

“I know,” I said. “But we should do it. I want the kids to havebothnames.”

“Same,” Cal said. “So, now we’re talkingkids?”

I blushed as the music picked up. “Is that terrible?”

“Daphne! Cal!” The wedding planner waved us over. Our guests were seated. It was time to go. There was no time for Cal to answer.

We took our places before slowly walking down the aisle. Any worries about my confession abated as I glanced at Cal. He was high on the feeling, not at all worried about my words. He loved me. Everything else faded. Our families and friends looked on. Dora Elizabeth, Dahila, Chloe, and even Elise Markham cried what I hoped were happy tears. Mum would never cry like this, but she smiled. These people wanted to be here for us. It was a perfect moment—more perfect than I ever dreamed up.

The judge began, “We gather today to join Cal and Daphne in matrimony today. Before I begin, the couple would like to welcome you all.”

Cal and I looked out and I began other lose it. Tears welled. Delanie rushed forward on cue to hand me a tissue.

“Thanks,” I whispered.

We turned back to one another, our gaze never dropping until Cal pulled out our vows—his written in his terrible scrawl, mine in my neat script. Hell, as bad as his handwriting was, I could only think about it with love now.

He elected to go first. “Daphne, I won’t pontificate too long about my love for you, because I think it’s pretty obvious, but I do love you. You are so wonderful—compassionate, loving, and supportive beyond measure. But what I admire about you most is your willingness to go to the mat for your family. And today, I am so lucky to officially be in that fortunate group.”

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