Page 90 of Calling on the Matchmaker
“Bellamy?” The matchmaker surely wouldn’t allow Riley to marry Bets, not when he’d been working so hard to match her and Riley.
“Bellamy came by a short while ago asking if I’d perform the marriage ceremony.”
Finola glanced to the door again and swallowed hard. Were they all waiting outside even now?
“I told him I couldn’t do so. Not with you here.” The priest seemed to be trying to reassure her, but a panic was rising and threatening to drown her.
“Then it’s true.” Riley was getting married. She cupped a hand over her mouth to hold back a cry of distress. What if he was already married?
“That Riley Rafferty is such a good young man. We’ve all been hoping he’d find a good wife.”
“Aye, to be sure.” She wanted to be that good wife for Riley. Shecouldbe that good wife with God’s help, couldn’t she?
She twisted the ring on her finger. The ring he’d given to her. His mother’s ring. Surely he wouldn’t get married without it. Did she have time to go to him? Did she dare interrupt the ceremony?
Her insides quavered at the prospect, but how could she stand back silently and watch the man she loved pledge himself to another woman?
She shook her head. She couldn’t remain silent, had to speak up, even if doing so would take more courage than she had. “Did Bellamy say where he might go next?”
“I suggested the Cathedral.”
Finola flew down the aisle and burst through the door, with only one thought at the forefront of her mind—she had to get to the Cathedral of St. Louis before Riley wedded Bets.
Her limbs were still trembling, but she didn’t let that slow her down. With her pulse pounding a fearsome rhythm, she picked up her skirt and ran down the street, not caring that she was splattering mud, that she was drawing attention from the many people out at midday, or even that she was about to make a fool of herself.
She had to stop the wedding. That’s all that mattered.
By the time she neared the waterfront and glimpsed the Cathedral’s octagonal steeple with gilded ball and cross on top, she was breathless and her side ached. More than that, she was frantic with the need to make sure Riley heard everything she had to say. She didn’t know what that would be, except that she had to tell him how she felt.
As she finally reached the church with its towering Greek Rival columns, she didn’t pause to admire the limestone front with the marble slabs engraved with various Scripture verses like she usually did. Instead, she raced up the steps directly for the middle of the three doors.
When she was only feet away, the door opened, and Bellamy stepped out.
“Bellamy.” She wheezed, halting and pressing a hand against the sharp ache in her side. “Stop the wedding.”
He closed the door behind him, then leaned back against it and crossed his arms. “No, Finola. I can’t do that.”
She straightened, only to find that in her vigorous efforts to reach the church, her hair had come loose from its knot. She’d run at least a mile—if not more—and she was breathless, disheveled, and now her hair hung in disarray. She was in no mood to be told no.
“Let me in.” She took a step forward and pushed against his chest.
He didn’t budge. In fact, his expression was much too smug. “Give me one good reason why I should let you.”
She sucked in a breath and tried to still her body. What reason could she offer? She glanced to her hand and the claddagh ring. She tugged at it but couldn’t make herself take it off. “Riley needs his ring back.”
Bellamy cocked his head. “Really? That’s all you can come up with? I expected more creativity from you than that, so I did.”
“Creativity? Whatever do you mean?”
He shrugged. “You’ve given me a good challenge so far. If you’re planning to keep playing your games, then at least make your excuses believable.”
She wanted to deny that she’d played any games during this whole matchmaking process. But what purpose would that serve now? Especially since he already knew, maybe had known from the start. “Fine, Bellamy. I’m done playing games. I really just want to see Riley.”
“Why?” His dark eyes held hers and demanded she tell the truth.
Could she? After years of keeping everything locked inside, she had to keep moving forward down this new path of being more vulnerable and sharing more honestly.
She clasped her hands together to stop the trembling, then she closed her eyes and said the words that Bellamy was waiting for. “I love Riley.”
