Page 110 of Love and Other Trials
Ariel walked over to her sister, and Dax watched as they embraced each other. Then Tiffany removed something from her clutch and pressed it into Ariel’s hands. More weeping from the bride before she gave Ariel one last hug and took Rob’s hand. They got into the classic white convertible Ford they’d rented and drove off into the sunset. Literally.
Ariel was clutching something to her chest as she walked back to Dax. Jeffrey rushed over and put his arm around her, clearly concerned.
But Dax thought he knew what she held. When she glanced up, her eyes were misty. Her face broke into a radiant smile.
His heart turned over. “You’ve got it,” he called.
“I’ve got it.” She thrust the paper into the air and wiggled her hips. “It’s mine!”
“Damn well better be,” Jeffrey muttered, hugging her hard before nudging her toward Dax. “You two go to the dance floor. I’ll request a slow dance. Something special.”
After blowing his sister a kiss, he rushed back to the tent. When Ariel reached him, he tipped her chin up. “Well, Elizabeth. Is this where we say, ‘All’s well that ends well’?”
She gave an indelicate snort. “Nah…this is where we say, this party just got started. Come on. I have a strong urge to dance with Captain Hotpants.”
“Not poor Stephan?”
“Yes, him too. How lucky am I to have three wonderful men to dance with?”
He was laughing as she took his hand. They ran back to the tent, avoiding drunken wedding stragglers on the way and theLord of the Fliesboys, whom Dax was only too happy to bypass. When they arrived, they stopped in the center of the dance floor, the white twinkly lights soft on her beautiful face.
She looked up at him, love shining in her beautiful baby blues. He knew this was another memory he’d hold on to always. Her hair wild and extra curly from the dancing and pelican attack. Her smile filled with joy as she tucked the piece of paper in her bodice, winking at him. Then she sidled up to him and wrapped her arms around his back, setting her cheek to his chest, already swaying.
When the music changed, Dax lifted his head, recognizing the song immediately. “Endless Love” by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie started to play over the loudspeakers. Ariel was already laughing. Dax found Jeffrey standing beside the DJ’s table, a hand pressed to his heart.
“Seriously, Jeffrey?” Dax called out, shaking his head as Ariel squeezed him tightly. “My mom used to listen to this song.”
“It’s a classic,” he shouted back, drawing a heart in the air. “Besides, it suits you two.”
Dax glanced down as Ariel looked up, her face filled with the kind of love he imagined must have inspired the song. “Yeah, I suppose it does.”
Lowering his head to kiss her, he felt her lips soften under his and heard the music swell all around them. He tightened his hold on her, never wanting to let go. They’d gotten through a few disasters together already.
After this? It really would be endless love if he had anything to say about it.
EPILOGUE
ELEVEN MONTHS LATER…
The sun was shining.There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. The salty smell of the sea hung in the air, and the oaks seemed like towering presences as their leaves ruffled in the gentle breeze. Her wedding dress had been exactly where she’d put it after having it pressed—in her closet in her grandma’s house in Folly Beach, which she’d shared with Dax from nearly the beginning.
But best of all, Captain Hotpants—because even after leaving the Navy and starting his new job, he still had the best buns this side of Biloxi—stood beside her in a very smart blue suit and tie under the gazebo in Charleston’s famous White Point Garden, known to locals as Battery Park. When she’d first suggested the venue to him, not only because they loved to walk Sherlock there but also for its military history, he’d jumped on her plan.
They were like that, her and Stephan.
Sherlock trotted over, decked out in the “perfect” outfit Jeffrey had suggested for their doggie witness: a canine tuxedo with a bow tie and bib, onto which he’d pinned a red rose boutonniere. Ariel rubbed Sherlock under the ears, thinking he was a sport for allowing her brother to dress him up. She couldn’t wait to see the wedding photos they were going to take after the ceremony. She and Dax had already picked out a cheesy frame to display one in their family room. Because she already knew the photos were always going to make her smile.
“Looks like the minister is here.” Jeffrey straightened the simple veil he’d helped her choose along with her white A-line wedding dress. He wore a dashing cream suit with an indigo blue cravat like he’d been born to it, and the joy she felt inside was reflected in his easygoing smile.
Ariel checked her watch. “The photographer should be here in a second too.”
“I see him.” Jeffrey blew out a relieved breath, play-acting. “You crazy kids ready to tie the knot?”
She glanced at her very sexy groom and adjusted the red rose boutonniere Jeffrey had brought for Dax today along with her beautiful bouquet of red roses with baby’s breath so fresh they still held their light scent.
“Beyond ready,” she answered with a little wiggle of her hips.
Dax caught her to him and caressed the line of her cheek, his green eyes filled with a love so strong it made her want to fly. “Me too.”
