“This was all Jo,” Katie said.
“But your beauty is all you.” Jo reached for her best friend’s hands, giving them a squeeze.
“Are you excited?” I asked.
“Actually, I’m kind of nervous,” Katie admitted. “I know we’re technically already married now, but this feels…different.”
“Well, if you’ve changed your mind, I can pull the truck around. You can just hop in the back,” I said with a grin.
She and Jo laughed.
“I don’t think I need a getaway car,” Katie said.
My own emotions clouded my eyes. I couldn’t even come up with a snappy comment or a single Tommy Lee and Pamela joke.
I nodded. “I know. You really love him.”
“I do,” she said, her eyes glittering as Jo fanned her own face.
“Save it for the ceremony,” Jo insisted, pulling Katie into a hug as the faint sound of string music filled the air. “It’s time.”
I knelt to scoop up Emilia, handing her to Katie. “Don’t forget your flowers,” I said with a grin.
Jo led the way, and I looped my arm through Katie’s as we trailed behind her.
“I’m happy for you,” I said. “Thank you for letting me be a part of this.”
“Are you kidding me?” she asked, covering my hand with hers. “I couldn’t do this without you. Jo may be my matron of honor, but you’re my maid of honor.”
I scrunched my nose, unable to resist teasing her. “Can you call me something else? I’m afraid that might ruin my street cred.”
She leaned into me. “How about we call you one of my best friends?”
We stopped just inside the back entrance, and I wrapped her in a hug. “I think that’s perfect.”
Jo was pressed against the wooden door, her eyes lit with excitement. “Ready?”
Katie nodded. “Ready.”
Jo opened the door, and I audibly gasped when I saw what she’d done. She’d transformed the backyard of the hobbit house into a magical candlelit dreamworld. Near the back of the garden was the quartet, giving us the most beautiful soundtrack. Dallas looked dapper in his suit as he stood waiting beneath a floral archway lined with fairy lights, the preacher and Derek at his side.
And then there was Luca.
My heart lurched when my gaze landed on him, the chilly breeze tousling his hair. He wore gray slacks and a simple black button down with the sleeves rolled up. I’d never seen anyone more perfect.
I took a breath to ground myself as Jo started down the back stairs and up the glowing path that led to Dallas. She took her spot on the other side of the archway, and I began my descent down the stairs. I swallowed the lump in my throat as Luca caught my eye, his hand raking over his mouth, an unreadable expression on his face. Jo smiled at me as I took my position behind her.
Then we turned our attention to Katie. She looked like an angel as she floated toward us, her eyes glittering. But most of all she looked happy, in love, and unafraid. She reached Dallas’ waiting hands, and I had the perfect view of his face as he looked at his bride.
My throat tightened when I saw the tears slip down his cheeks. But his smile said it all. He’d waited his whole life for her, long before he even knew her name. Back when she was nothing but a distant dream, a someday maybe, a wish he didn’t know would ever be granted.
I never allowed myself to hope that big before, because it felt too impossible. Too rare and precious, like witnessing a star shooting across the sky. Even if I could be lucky enough to spot one, would it last?
There, under a late October sky, as Dallas took Katie in his arms, I started to believe. Maybe itwaspossible for me.
EIGHTEEN
Luca
