Page 106 of Second Dance
“With this ring, I thee wed,” I said, slipping the band onto her finger.
“With this ring, I thee wed,” Gillian said.
Sonya beamed at each of us in turn. “By the power vested in me by the great state of California, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss.”
The moment our lips met, the guests rose to their feet. Lanterns swayed in the ocean breeze, their reflections shimmering across the glass-covered pool. Somewhere behind us, the first notes ofThe Motherbegan to play.
When we finally pulled apart, Gillian laughed through her tears. “Is it all real? Or a dream?”
I smiled back. “It’s real, my love.”
“And now we eat,” Bella said, a little too loudly.
It was thus that we started our married life laughing. I hoped there would be many more moments of laughter and joy and the wonderful messiness of family.
I took Gillian’s hand and we turned toward the guests, lifting our hands in the air to the sound of our cheering friends and family, before heading down the aisle toward the feast that awaited.
22
GILLIAN
Alex and I delayed our honeymoon so that we could pack up my cottage and put it on the market. I cried on the day we officially moved out, not because I was sad but because it was the end of an era. Grace and I were no longer a family of two. We were now part of a messy, chaotic family of five. We’d lived in our small home for as long as we’d been mother and daughter. Letting go was harder than I thought it would be.
But two weeks later, Grace and I had settled into Alex’s house. It still didn’t feel completely like home, but every day brought our fledgling family closer. We enjoyed summer evenings on the patio, eating Sonya’s delicious meals and spending time together.
I’d worried that Grace would feel strange in our new environment, but she seemed to take it in stride. She and Bella had become close. They huddled together on the couch watching videos on their phones, helping each other pick out clothes, or giggling about boys—all like real sisters. They were still careful with each other, afraid to hurt the other’s feelings, which wasn’t like most sisters. However, all five of us seemed to have a sense of the fragility in the formation of a new family. Thus, we were extra considerate of one another’s needs. I wasn’t sure if it wouldcontinue that way after years together, but, for now, I thanked God every day for the sweet, compassionate people I had the privilege of going through life with.
Peter and I bonded over our shared love of puzzles. Currently, we were working on a thousand-piece puzzle spread out in the family room on the coffee table. We spent hours putting the pieces together, talking, and getting to know each other. The more time we spent together, the fonder of him I became. He was like his father—sensitive and kind but also fiercely competitive. I became his mother while sitting in the bleachers at his baseball games, shouting my head off. I did the same at Bella’s soccer games. Grace teased me about becoming a sporty mom, but I could see how much it pleased her to have a sister and brother. Throwing myself into Bella and Peter’s lives at such a late point in their childhoods was necessary if we were to truly be a family. At the same time, I made sure Grace and I had our alone time together too.
In those first few weeks of marriage, I debated the future of my career. Alex said he would support whatever decision I made regarding the studio. In the end, I decided it was impossible to walk away from the business I’d spent so much time and energy building. However, now that money wasn’t an issue, I hired several new instructors, including a barre teacher for adult classes, another Pilates instructor, and a retired ballerina for the children. After the honeymoon, I planned on teaching only three days a week. Having so many free hours to be with Alex and our children was surprisingly satisfying, considering my ambitious and driven nature.
We left the children in Sonya’s care and took off for a honeymoon in Paris. Alex had said I could choose wherever I wanted to go, and France had been a lifelong dream. We spent two happy weeks exploring Paris, staying at the Ritz Paris, Suite Impériale. I couldn’t help but feel a little intimidated by theother guests—everyone so rich and privileged—but I kept that to myself. It still seemed foreign to think of myself as the wife of a billionaire, especially because Alex was the same grounded man he’d always been. Still, the hotel was like living in a fairytale, and I a princess.
We shopped in Le Triangle d’Or in the 8th arrondissement. Alex had hired a personal shopper—very French and haughty—who chose clothes for me. I had to laugh, thinking of how many hours I’d spent in leggings and workout tops when we headed back to the hotel laden with bags from Chanel, Dior, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Saint Laurent, and Valentino. One afternoon we had champagne at the Plaza Athénée and watched the fashionable people from the window. Where I would ever wear half of what Alex insisted on purchasing, I had no idea. When I brought that up to my new husband, he grinned and pulled me into his arms. “You have no idea the adventures I have planned for us.”
After Paris, we ventured down to Bordeaux and then over to Burgundy to enjoy French wine and the beautiful countryside. We visited castles in the Loire Valley and took a bicycle tour in Saint-Émilion that included lunch outside in the gardens of a beautiful château. On our last night, before we were to fly home from Paris, a full moon hung low in the sky as we snuggled close on a boat that took us down the Seine. Alex had brought us two small bottles of prosecco to sip as we looked at the sights one last time.
The boat slipped silently along the water, its wake a ribbon of silver threading through the heart of Paris. Oh, how the city glittered. Bridges like jeweled cuffs clasping the river, lamps glowing amber along the embankments. Beyond them, the silhouettes of spires and domes rose up, taking us back in time.
We passed under the Pont Alexandre III, its gilded nymphs gleaming in the night sky.
“It doesn’t even look real,” I said.
“A magical city,” Alex said. “With my magical girl.”
The Eiffel Tower loomed ahead, gold and glorious. As the clock struck nine, it burst into a shimmer of light. Thousands of sparks cascaded down its frame. I gasped, amazed, even though I’d seen it several times by then.
“Are you ready to go home?” Alex asked, wrapping his arm around me.
“I am. I miss the kids.”
“Me too. Although, it’s been nice to have you to myself. We should make it a priority to go someplace new every year.”
“It would be hard to beat this trip.”
“Challenge accepted,” Alex said.
“Do you know what I would love?”
