I glanced at Leigh. She was watching me, her camera lowered, tears on her cheeks.
“And Delaney,” I continued, “you made him happier than I’ve ever seen him. You brought light into his life when he was living in darkness. You were destined for each other. Even when others got in the way, tried to keep you apart, you still sometimes found your way back to each other. You gave him a family—Cade and Barrett and this whole beautiful chaos we call home.”
Delaney was crying now too, Billie passing her tissues.
“Watching you two find your way back to each other gave me hope,” I said, my voice getting thick. “Hope that sometimes the right person is worth fighting for. Worth changing for. Worth choosing, even when it’s scary.”
My eyes met Leigh’s across the tent.
“To Trace and Delaney,” I said, raising my glass. “To second chances. To love that never gives up. To home being a person, not a place. And to forever.”
“To forever!” the crowd echoed, raising their glasses.
I sat down, my heart pounding.
Leigh was still looking at me, and the expression on her face was one of love, understanding and promise.
She mouthed: I love you.
I mouthed back: I love you too.
After the toasts, the band started playing.
Trace and Delaney took the floor for their first dance, swaying together as the band played something soft and romantic.
Everyone watched, transfixed by the sight of these two people who’d found each other twice and refused to let go.
When the song ended, the band opened the dance floor to everyone, and people flooded out to join in.
I stood and went looking for Leigh.
I found her by the edge of the tent, changing lenses on her camera.
“Dance with me,” I said.
She looked up, surprised. “Dex, I’m working.”
“Take a break. Please. Dance with me.”
She hesitated, looking at her camera, then at the dance floor, then back at me.
“One dance,” she said finally.
I took her hand and led her out to the floor as a slow song started.
She fit perfectly in my arms, her hand in mine, her head resting against my chest.
We swayed together, and for a moment, it was just us. No wedding. No guests. No tomorrow waiting with all its uncertainty.
Just us.
She pulled back to look at me, a smile on her face. “Tomorrow we drive to Blue Point Bay.”
“Yeah.”
“You’re going to see my whole life. My apartment, my studio, my friends. Everything.”
“I can’t wait.”
