Page 21 of Boundless Love
“Name it.”I was expecting the usual request.Go to church, don’t be so hard on yourself, visit more often.
“Give me some grandbabies,” she deadpanned.
There went my entire body, flinching all at once.“We are not having this conversation right now.”
She laughed as she took my arm before we left the room, which Clay’s staff had set aside for me and my groomsmen.I’d asked the Vegas crew to stand by my side, along with Clay, all of whom were now waiting in the ballroom, which had overnight been transformed into something out of a fantasy.
Mom’s gasp was more powerful than a thousand words.I gave her a minute to take it all in as I did the same, admiring the forest that had been created from hundreds of branches trimmed in silver and white.They formed an archway spanning the length of the aisle created by rows of chairs draped in black and silver.LED candles were suspended from the branches in glass holders, twinkling, creating an enchanting effect.It was exactly what Lenny was going for when she and Mira sat down to hammer out the details.
“Your bride-to-be has a real flare, doesn’t she?”Clay found us, chuckling at Mom’s overwhelmed expression.Her eyes would fall out if she widened them any further.“Really, I think we’ve outdone ourselves.”
There was something close to hero worship in my mother’s eyes when she turned to Clay.“You are artists,” she gushed, practically swooning.“Everything is perfect.I don’t know how you did it.And maybe it’s not my place, but thank you for giving my son such a special day.”
He was the picture of graciousness as he took her hand in both of his.“You’re so welcome.”He then turned to me, looking me up and down.“You clean up nicely, West.”
“I was about to say the same about you.”It wasn’t easy to maintain a genuine conversation with a photographer snapping photos nearby.“Somehow, this doesn’t feel quite real.Like I’m going to wake up, and it was all a dream.”
“It is very real unless we’re having the same dream,” Clay added.“What do you think?Are you ready for this?”
I looked out over the hundreds of people gathered in the enormous room, waiting for the ceremony to start.I was about to stand in front of them and pledge my life to the only woman I’d ever loved.“Are you kidding?I’ve waited years for this,” I told him.
It wasn’t long, and I was standing beside the officiant, with Clay and the others behind me.My heart pounded in the moments before Lenny appeared, but there was nothing remotely resembling fear.I was excited.Anticipating the moment I’d pictured countless times over the year of our engagement.
By the time the soft music from the string quartet switched to “Canon in D” to signal the bridal party’s entrance, Mom was already crying on my side of the aisle while Lenny’s mother did the same on the opposite side.
The bridesmaids wore chic, black dresses that skimmed their ankles, with silver wraps around their shoulders.I knew it wasn’t my imagination.I heard the guys murmuring to each other as one girl after another stepped up opposite where we waited.Serving as Maid of Honor was Chloe, who, more than a year ago, had shown Lenny the ropes the night she first came to work for me.We exchanged a warm smile as she took her place with the others.
This was it.Silence fell over the guests, everyone holding their breath in anticipation.Breath that was soon released in a soft sigh when my exquisite bride appeared at the far end of the aisle.
“Wow.”Clay gave me a slight nudge.“She’s beautiful.”
She was more than beautiful.She was radiant, wearing a cream silk gown that flowed over her body like water and set off her supple curves to perfection.An elaborate arrangement of cream-colored roses adorned her dark waves, arranged in a bun at the nape of her neck.She walked on her beaming father’s arm, the two of them taking their time.
While part of me wished they would hurry, the rest of me didn’t want this moment to end too soon.I wanted to soak in every second.The love in her eyes, her brilliant smile, the lights twinkling around her with every step she took that brought her closer to me.To our future.
Once she handed off her bouquet of roses to Chloe, she turned to me and offered both of her hands, tucking them into mine as we had practiced during our rehearsal.
“Hi,” she whispered, her eyes shining.“Thanks for meeting me here.”
And it was for that reason we started our ceremony laughing.If anything, it fit.
If we found a way to laugh through all of life’s ups and downs from this moment on, we would be luckier than almost anyone I knew.
* * *
“I’m so tired.How am I so tired?”Lenny practically dragged herself through the doorway of our bedroom in the bridal suite, groaning softly as she did.
“It might have something to do with the way you danced for three hours straight,” I suggested.I hadn’t come anywhere close to that, and I was feeling fatigued myself.
“It all went so fast, didn’t it?”There was wonder in her voice as she sat on the padded bench at the foot of the bed, then bent to take off her shoes.“I kept telling myself to pay attention, to listen and watch.To live in the moment.”
“The second you tell yourself to live in the moment is when you start losing track of the moment,” I concluded, and she nodded in agreement.
“Did you see the girl Vaughn was dancing with toward the end of the reception?”Gently removing the flowered comb from her hair, she giggled.“If we had done a bouquet toss, I would’ve handed it to her just to watch his face drop.”
“I have a feeling the rest of the guys would’ve paid good money to see you do that,” I told her with a laugh.“And what about Lex whooping like a maniac when he got the call from that agent?What was that about?”
“Oh, something to do with book rights he’s been trying to get his hands on.The author said they want Summer to turn the book into a movie,” she explained.“That’s why Summer was dancing in the middle of that big circle of people.”
