Page 101 of Faking I Do
We stepped out into the sunlight. The crowd rose to their feet, and everything blurred until I saw him.
Bodie.
He stood under the arbor, in a dark suit, his shoulders squared, his eyes locked on mine.
The rest of the world disappeared.
And in that split second, right before I took my first step toward him, I felt the weight of everything that had brought us here: the lies, the chaos, the love that refused to quit. This wasn’t about saving the town or trying to redeem my family name. Thiswas about me and Bodie and finally having the courage to create our own happy ending.
I took one step forward. Then another. Walking toward the man who’d shown me what love meant and convinced me we had the kind that would last a lifetime.
Bodie
I stood next to the repaired wooden arbor, waiting for my first glimpse of Lacey. There was no maid of honor, no best man. Shotgun was still at the vet taking care of her new brood, so we didn’t have a ring bearer, either. My gaze rested on each one of the folks who’d gathered under the gorgeous Texas sky to bear witness to me and Lacey pledging our love to each other.
Jojo gave me a thumbs-up, then started the music I’d downloaded. Strains of “Here Comes the Bride” floated through the portable speakers. I tried to force a swallow past the lump in my throat. Lacey’s dad appeared first, his arm crooked at the elbow where she’d tucked her hand.
I closed my eyes for a heartbeat. When I opened them again, she was there . . . a vision in white in the dress I’d driven into Houston to have dry-cleaned overnight. Escorted by her dad on one side and her brother on the other, she floated toward me.
Her lips curved into a tentative smile. The closer she came, the bigger her smile got until it stretched clear across her face. My cheeks hurt from beaming back at her, but I couldn’t help myself. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her any more than I could stop the world from turning or stop my heart from beating.
She paused in front of me and I waited while first her brother, then her dad, kissed her on the cheek and shook my hand. I was gaining so much more than a bride today—I was gaining a family. I’d always felt more a part of the Cherish family than my own, but binding my heart to Lacey’s for a lifetime made it official.
Her dad took the small bouquet of wildflowers she’d been holding and handed them to Zina, who sat in the front row. Lacey put both of her hands in mine.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re gathered here today to celebrate the union of Bodie and Lacey.” Thank goodness the minister had been free. I tried to listen, but I could barely hear the man through the sound of blood whooshing through my ears.
“Do you, Bodie Phillips, take Lacey Cherish to be your lawfully wedded wife? Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect her, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for as long as you both live?”
My heart pounded as I waited for the minister to finish speaking. “I do.”
“Do you, Lacey Cherish, take Bodie Phillips to be your lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love, honor, cherish, and protect him, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for as long as you both live?”
Lacey’s eyes shone. She nodded, smiling as she said the words, “I do.”
I let out a sigh as the minister led us through the exchange of rings. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Lacey, the most beautiful bride I’d ever seen. My bride. My wife.
As the two of us joined hands and turned to be introduced for the first time as husband and wife, I swept my gaze over those gathered. If Lacey thought she’d burned her bridges, she was wrong. The town had finally done what she’d been trying to getthem to do all along. They’d come together to build something beautiful—something that would give them all hope for years to come.
The flash of a camera caught my attention and I blinked. There in the back, Jay crouched down in the center of the aisle and snapped picture after picture.
Whatever happened with Ido was out of my hands. I had what I needed—the woman next to me. No matter what came next, we’d face it together. As a couple, as a community, as a town.
EPILOGUE
LACEY
A few weeks later
I skippedup the steps to the sheriff’s office. I’d been in the middle of a city council meeting when I’d gotten the call from Jojo, who’d talked to her sister in Houston, who’d been shopping at the local market and picked up a copy ofTexas Times.I’d hopped in my truck and driven the ninety miles round-trip to Beaumont to grab my own copy, not willing to believe what I’d heard until I saw it with my own eyes.
“Is Bodie in?” I barely paused in the reception area before brushing past the sheriff’s secretary’s desk.
The woman pointed to Bodie’s open door as I whisked by.
“Hey, Sweets.” He rounded the desk, greeting me with a kiss.
We’d been married only a month, and I still couldn’t believe this gorgeous, caring, wonderful man was mine. As his lips touched mine, heat blazed through my veins and I almost forgot the reason I had to barge into his office unannounced.
