Page 142 of Champagne Fizz

Everyone turns at that voice. It’s a voice that shouldn’t be here right now.

“Edwin, you don’t mean that,” she says.

“Yes, I actually do mean—” Only, Ned shuts up mid-sentence when he turns to see it’s Olivia he’s arguing with.

She looks stunning in her bridal gown, the gold sunlight accentuating her figure as her bohemian dress catches the wind, whimsical applique flowers dancing. She looks positively radiant, except her arms are crossed and her eyebrows are pinched.

Ned takes one look at her and his face crumples, forcing him to turns his back on everyone.

Oh no! This is a disaster. You’re the wedding planner—do something, Kendall!

But then Ned turns around again. His hand is over his mouth and his eyes wet. Emotion has overtaken him as he looks at his bride.

“You—” Ned can barely talk. “You look—”

He’s crying.

Connor grabs his brother’s arm to keep him upright.

All the air seems to rush away from the shore as we all realize Ned’s seeing his bride for the first time on his wedding day—except, she’s not walking down the aisle, she’s breaking up a fight between him and his mother.

Olivia reacts, tears pricking her eyes too as she takes in his reaction.

“I’m—I’m not supposed to see you before the—” Ned’s face crumples and he shakes his brother off, turning away again. Only, Olivia rushes up to him and takes his face in her hands.

“Hey,” she says soothingly.

“I ruined everything!” Ned says, forcing his eyes shut so he’s not looking at her.

“No, you didn’t.” Olivia wipes the tears off his cheeks. “Hey, look at me.”

Ned shakes his head. “You’re supposed to be walking down the aisle.”

“And we will do that in a minute,” Olivia says, trying to assure him this isn’t a big deal. “Baby, look at me.”

Ned frowns, still not daring to do it.

“Edwin!” Olivia scolds, and he opens his eyes.

“You look incredible,” Ned says, another wave of emotion rippling over him as he takes her in. “How the hell did I get so lucky?”

“Handcuffs,” Olivia says, and Ned laughs, releasing some of the tension he’s been holding. Olivia gives him a sexy smirk. “Handcuffs and maybe a few dirty tarts.”

Ned laughs again. “Arie’s meddling is the worst.”

“Or it was the best thing to ever happen to you,” Olivia replies lightly.

Ned shakes his head. “You’rethe best thing to ever happen to me,” he corrects.

“Are you going to throw lawyer semantics at me on our wedding day?” Olivia chides, and Ned frowns before putting his forehead against hers.

“Not until you legally sign that paperwork and you’re officially mine.”

Olivia strokes his cheek lovingly, and I’m impressed with how quickly she de-escalated this situation.

“Good decision,” she says, as Ned looks at her adoringly. “I love you. The only thing that would ruin our wedding is ifyoudon’t show up.”

“There’s no way that’s happening,” Ned says, leaning into kiss her.

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