Page 95 of It Could Happen
She breathes a sigh of relief and thanks me for saving the day. If that’s the only hiccup we have for the rest of the day, we’ll be in good shape.
As soon as we’re all dressed in our perfectly pink bridesmaid dresses, we anxiously wait for Caroline to come out. I can’t believe this moment has come. I feel like it was just yesterday when I showed up at that kickoff party. The memory makes me smile. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that night.
“Here she is,” Caroline’s mother calls.
There’s a collective gasp when we see Caroline in her gown. Tears burn my eyes, despite my attempts to stop them.
“Don’t you dare start crying,” Caroline shouts, her voice cracking.
We all start breathing deeply and fanning our faces. The next few minutes are crazy as the planners hand us our bouquets and go over the final instructions. Caroline’s father arrives, and we all continue to fight back tears as his emotions take over.
“Oh, sweet pea, you’re as pretty as the day you were born,” he says, getting choked up.
“Let’s do this,” Erica demands, embracing one of her final moments as the best maid of honor ever.
We follow the wedding planners, who are talking into their headsets like they are a part of the Secret Service. The ceremony is being held outside on the sprawling green lawn. It’s another perfect spring day, and as long as a random rain shower doesn’t pop up in the next half hour, we’re in the clear.
The procession begins with Jeannie making her way down the aisle. There are lots ofoohsandaahsfrom the crowd over her and her cute baby belly. Mark gazes at her with so much love that it causes tears to threaten my eyes again. I follow Jeannie down the aisle. My parents are seated near the back, and my mother gives me a wave and dabs the corner of her eye with a tissue. I continue to face forward, my eyes locking on Tyler’s as I approach the front. He has a wide grin on his face, and all I can think about is him kissing me again. Leslie is right behind me, followed by Erica who looks like she’s loving every second of this. Once we’re all in our places, the guests stand as Caroline and her father head toward us.
The entire ceremony is romantic and wonderful. And before I know it, Caroline and Andy are officially married. The guests cheer, and we slowly follow them back down the aisle.
“Good job,” Matt says as I take his arm.
“They did it,” I say, letting out the breath I’ve been holding in. He holds up his other hand, and I touch it with mine, giving him a high five.
The planners are waiting to direct us to various locations to take at least a million photos.
“You look phenomenal,” Tyler whispers in my ear as soon as we have a moment to talk.
I breathe in his familiar scent.
“You clean up pretty well, too,” I tease.
“I can’t wait to start our date,” he whispers.
Before I can respond, Tyler is called away to join the groomsmen. “Duty calls.”
After what feels like hours, the pictures are done and my face hurts from smiling so much.
We’re about to head to the reception when Erica gasps loudly. We all stop talking and look over to see Rachel and Christian loitering on the sidewalk.
Is this really happening?
We all knew Rachel was still here, but Christian too? They’ve officially crashed Andy and Caroline’s wedding.
Clint and Leslie protectively move to stand by Erica. Anger flashes across Andy’s face as he charges quickly toward Christian and Rachel.
“What are you doing here?” he shouts furiously. Whoa. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Andy so mad.
Tyler and I exchange glances before he follows Andy. I don’t think a fight would actually break out, but there’s a lot of tension in the air.
“I drove up here to say congratulations and apologize to all of you,” Christian says, clearing his throat. “You’re my best friend.”
I look at Caroline, whose joyous expression has changed to sadness.
Leslie and Clint lead Erica inside, along with Jeannie, Mark, and Matt.
“Do you want to go inside?” I ask Caroline.
