Page 49 of Long Past Dawn
Amity and I both chuckled at her comparison. “While that was stressful,” I said, “this is nothing to be petrified or nervous about, Heaven. In an hour, you’re going to be married. After that, the hard stuff is over. Then we can hit back a shot and party like it’s 1999.”
Heaven turned away from the mirror and grinned. “I’m going to let those words run through my head the whole time I’m doing this.”
“Whatever gets you through it, Heaven,” Amity said, handing her a box. “Your something old.”
I held the box in my hand so Heaven could take the lid off it. She glanced up at her soon-to-be mother-in-law. “What is it?” she asked, lifting the tiny silver ring from the box. “An earring?”
Amity shook her head. “No. It’s Blaze’s baby ring.”
“His baby ring?” Heaven asked in confusion.
Amity smiled and took the ring, tying it to a ribbon in Heaven’s flowers before she handed the bouquet to her. “It’s something we do in our family. When a new baby is christened, they wear a small silver ring on their ring finger. Then the ring is saved as the first family keepsake for the child to take with them when they leave home. Every bride gets their husband’s ring on their wedding day.”
Heaven cocked her head and gazed at the woman in confusion. “Blaze has been married before, Amity.”
She nodded, her eyes dropping to the floor for a moment. “I know, but we weren’t here. Even if I’d had time to send it, I wouldn’t have. I’m a mother, and I knew that Blaze and Callie were never meant to be. He tried to break it off with her before they left Texas.”
“I know,” Heaven agreed, nodding.
“Well, this time, I know. I have no doubt in my mind that you’re Blaze’s one true love. The ring you carry now, and the one he will put on your finger this afternoon, are the two rings that will join you together as a new family. Trust in that.” Amity leaned forward and kissed Heaven on the cheek, patting my shoulder on the way to the door. “I’m heading back to Bison Ridge. See you in twenty?”
“See you in twenty,” we both said in unison.
Heaven sighed once we were alone. “Do you think she’s right?”
I spun back to the nervous bride in front of me. “I know she’s right. Moms know things. Trust in that. Remember, you’re only going to do this once, so don’t let anxiety or fear steal a single second of your special day. Live every breath you take and love it all, even when things don’t go perfectly. At the end of the day, you’ll crawl into bed as Mrs. Heaven McAwley. That’s the only thing you have to get right.”
“And then we’ll get busy making sure you are the next one to join the McAwley clan.”
Heaven winked, turned, and walked out the door, her laughter filling my head and my heart.
Thirteen
Blaze and I nervously pulled at our ties where we stood at the front of the aisle. Everything had changed in the last two hours. Suddenly, I was not only the best man but also the wedding officiant.The judge they'd lined up to do the ceremony was in surgery for an emergency appendectomy, and while he would survive, he wasn't going to be asking these two if they do.Luckily for Blaze, I had officiated someone's wedding a few years back, so my internet rights gave me legal power to marry them. Tex would have to sign as the witness, but he didn't seem to mind.
So, here we stood, both of us nervous for different reasons. I'd seen Heaven's dress, but I hadn't seen Dawn's, and I wondered if I'd be able to speak once she stood beside me.She was drop-dead gorgeous in flannel and jeans that left me tongue-tied every time I saw her. I could only imagine how impossible it would be once I saw her in that dress. I’d probably stutter my way through the whole damn ceremony with no hope of stopping.
The music started, which meant that any minute, the women we loved would walk toward us, stealing our breath the same way they stole our hearts. I grabbed Blaze's shoulder in support, but in actuality, I was grounding myself. Dawn would be the first to come down that aisle. I inhaled deeply, holding it inside my chest as soon as she appeared. It whooshed from me loud enough that Blaze could hear, and he went from freakin’ out to grinnin' in one step of her sweet cowgirl boots. Her dress was lace, red, came to the knee, and left nothing to my imagination. She wore the leather fringe vest I'd made her last year for her birthday over the dress, and it only served to accentuate her sweet breasts. I may have moaned.
“How are you even upright?” Blaze asked from the corner of his mouth.
“Sheer will,” I muttered. “Your turn is next.”
I smiled and took Dawn’s hand to kiss when she was finally within reach.You’re so beautiful, I mouthed, and that brought a smile to her lips. She stood next to me as the music changed, and Heaven and Ash appeared at the end of the rows of chairs. Heaven was a beautiful bride, but the wanton woman next to me held all my attention. The audience stood as the bride, and her escort began their walk toward us, revealing the whole picture to her groom. Blaze swallowed hard, tipping his hat back and fidgeting with his tie. Heaven wore a shy smile and a white lace shoulder harness that held her bad arm securely, so it blended in with her gown. The florist had made her a bouquet that slipped over her hand and stayed on her left wrist, leaving her right hand free to hold Blaze’s.
“I'm going to faint,” Blaze whispered as he knelt, the beauty of the woman he loved overpowering him.
I clasped his shoulder until he could stand again, then I leaned over and whispered into Dawn's ear. “Heaven is beautiful, but you take my breath away, darlin'. I love you.”
Dawn was blushing when Heaven and Ash made it to us, but I had to turn my attention back to the ceremony at hand.
“Welcome everyone to the marriage of Blaze McAwley and Heaven Lane. None of us ever thought we’d see this day, did we?” I asked. The guests chuckled while nodding in agreement. “Here we are, though, and so I ask, who gives this beautiful bride to the groom?”
Ash placed Heaven’s hand in Blaze's. “Her father, Duane Lane, does. Of that, I am certain.” Heaven’s chin trembled, and she hugged Ash spontaneously the way a daughter would hug her father. Ash patted her face lovingly and then put her hand back in Blaze’s before joining Amity again. Blaze lifted her hand and brushed a kiss across her knuckles while I spoke.
“Today, we gather together to join Blaze and Heaven in holy hell it’s about dang time matrimony,” I said, dragging laughter from everyone, including the bride and groom. “Welcome to the ranch on Bison Ridge. We promise the party to come is worth sitting here in the beautiful sunshine to watch these two profess their undying love to each other, which I’m quite certain they’re about to do. Blaze, do you need to repeat after me, or do you got this?”
Blaze was still laughing when he reached out to punch my shoulder. “I most definitely got this. Heaven, my idiot brother was right. It has been a long journey to get us to this day. But we’re here. We’re standing in the sunshine, surrounded by our family and friends, and ready to share our vows. We’re vowing to love each other through all the good times and the bad. Through sickness and health. To cherish each other every day. While I could easily repeat those simple vows and slip this ring on your finger, there is so much more to say. I vow to appreciate all the little things in life, like nights at the campfire, lazy Saturday mornings in bed, a cold winter morning filled with laughter around the Christmas tree, and warm summer nights watching the fireworks fly high into the sky. Life here can be hard, draining, and repetitive, but our time together will be the greatest reward to cherish. I love you today, tomorrow, and for eternity, Heaven Marie Lane. With this ring,” he said, holding it up as Heaven’s lip trembled, “I do.” He slid the ring onto her right ring finger, signifying their uniqueness as a couple in one motion.
