Page 39 of Reuniting with Lucy

Was it creepy that she wanted to sit and watch him breathe? Yeah, probably. Before turning out the light and leaving the room, one thought drifted through her mind—in sickness and in health.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The following week flew by in a blur. And between the pre-wedding activities, work, the remodel supervision, and spending time with Jack, the long days were taking their toll on Lucy. Every morning she woke exhausted, sometimes even queasy. She’d recovered from the flu but was still dealing with lingering fatigue and sporadic nauseousness.

Today was Emma’s wedding, and, wanting to be at her best, Lucy had turned off her alarm and planned to sleep as long as needed to feel rested. She didn’t get out of bed until ten o’clock, which seemed to have worked, because she felt great.

Lucy’s parents—well, mostly her mother—had thrown a lot of parties and hosted a lot of gatherings, but Sophie Parker had gone all out for this particular shindig. A huge canvas tent encompassed the backyard. Tall metal heaters lined the perimeter and blasted hot air over a small wooden stage. Tables were draped in white linen and covered with Christmas-themed flower arrangements. The ceremony and dinner would both be here. It would be small, yet elegant.

Just like Emma, Lucy thought.

“Mom, I can’t believe you arranged all this in just two weeks,” Lucy said. “Everything looks amazing.”

“Thanks, honey. Kate helped, but yes, it’s pretty incredible it all came together so quickly.”

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” Lucy’s father said, wrapping his arm around his wife and kissing her head. “You are so amazing.”

They were so in love, even after thirty-something years. Lucy had heard the story of how they met a thousand times, but didn’t really know what happened after that. What was the bridge from love at first sight to happily ever after? Now that she found herself in a similar situation, she decided to ask.

“Did you guys really fall in love the second you saw each other? Or is the ‘how you met’ story over-dramatized?”

Her mother looked at her father. “I did,” she said, smiling.

“Me too,” her father said, returning the smile and winking at her mother.

“So, what?” Lucy said. “You looked into each other’s eyes, knew it was forever, and everything’s been a bouquet of roses since?”

Her parents laughed at that. “Oh, no,” her mother said. “Love at first sight doesn’t mean no problems or issues to overcome. We’ve had to work at this thing every day.”

Her father nodded. “Marriage is never easy, but it helps to pick the right person to take the journey with.”

Lucy agreed. But was Jack that person? Sure, they’d snapped together like two strong magnets, both ten years ago and two months ago, but was it enough?

Her sisters sipped mimosas all morning, but Lucy’s stomach was still on edge, so she stuck to water.

After everyone had gone through hair and makeup, they started on photos. At the first-look pictures, where Dirk saw Emma in her dress for the first time, Dirk strode to her and kissed her thoroughly. “You’re so beautiful,” he said through teary eyes. They stared at each other for a long moment while the photographer clicked away, and Lucy’s heart warmed with excitement for them. It also gave her hope. Dirk and Emma had only dated for a few months, and it proved to Lucy that falling hard and ending up together was a conceivable notion.

After the family photos, the guests began to arrive. When Jack showed up, Lucy about lost her mind, he looked so good.

“Damn,” she said. “You look amazing.” The suit fit him perfectly, showing off his broad shoulders, lean torso, and long legs. She licked her lips.

“You look pretty good yourself,” he said, kissing her and waggling his eyebrows. “Think anyone would notice if we disappeared for a few minutes?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Later though. For sure.”

The ceremony was short and sweet. They were married by a friend of Dirk’s, who did a fantastic job. Her mother somehow found the time and energy to bake and decorate a fabulous cake that no one could believe she’d done all by herself. It was as good or better than any professional could have made.

Nana looked beautiful in a long pink dress and danced all by herself, completely out of tune with the music. Lucy’s mom had been happy to report that Nana hadn’t had any “collection issues” since Halloween, which was a kind way of saying she hadn’t stolen anything. Lucy thought it was probably because there’d been so much going on that Nana just wasn’t bored.

Caught up in the wedding bliss, Lucy wondered if it would ever happen for her. Nana had attempted mind-reading last year. Too bad she wasn’t any good at it, because Lucy would give a small fortune to find out what was going through Jack’s head at that moment.

Lucy and Jack sat at a table with most of her sisters and Adam. They were discussing the beautiful ceremony, which morphed into a conversation about how they envisioned their own weddings. They’d discussed the topic many times amongst themselves, but it seemed appropriate, so they had it again.

“I’m going to elope,” Daisy said.

“You wouldn’t do that to Mom,” Kate said. “She’d never forgive you.”

“That’s true,” Daisy said, taking a bite of her second piece of cake. “Plus, I want her to make my cake. This is frickin’ delicious. My other idea is a destination wedding. Somewhere out of the way. Like a mountaintop or the middle of a rain forest.”

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