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“It’s all just so much to get my head around,” she says. She shakes her head, then puts on a brighter smile. “But if this is what you want, my darling, then let’s go out there and meet your new husband.”
“Thank you,” I tell her, squeezing her hand in both of mine. “I’m really glad you’re here. And if we can be as happy as you and Dad have been together all these years, I know we’re going to have just the best marriage.”
Mom wipes at her eyes, sniffing with a look of reproach. “Oh, you’re going to ruin my makeup before we even get in there.”
“Don’t worry,” I laugh. “We’ll get a chance to do new wedding photos at the next one, won’t we?”
Someone knocks at the door, and I nod at mom to let her know she can answer it. She does, and dad steps in, eyeing us both. I can see that he’s also emotional, though he’s trying to hold himself together.
“Alright, it looks like it’s time,” he says. His voice is gruff like he’s trying not to show how he’s feeling. It almost makes me want to laugh, but only because I love him – both of my parents – so much.
“I’ll go in and sit down,” Mom says, and I know she’s giving me a moment with dad before we go in. I kiss her on the cheek as she passes by me, so grateful that she always seems to know exactly what dad and I need.
When she’s gone and we’re alone, I face my dad. He’s dressed up in his best grey suit and is even wearing a pale blue tie, a nod to the colors of the wedding chapel we’ve chosen, baby blue and white. It wasn’t as though we had enough time to pick out matching outfits for everyone and make a truly coordinated wedding party, but he’s done pretty well.
“You ready to go in?” he asks.
“Yes,” I say, but I pause. I face him head-on, no longer just his child but a woman now, as strong and independent as I always wanted to be. I can face him on equal terms, or at least as equal as it’s possible to get whilst retaining that same level of respect. “Are you?”
Dad’s face opens up into an expression of sharp surprise, before he cools again, considering the question. “Thank you for asking that,” he says, at length. “I don’t know how we managed to raise such a mature woman.”
“You led by example,” I smile. “Now, come on. You can tell me if you want to wait.”
Dad takes a breath, looking at the floor for a long moment, I think he’s going to tell me to call it all off. But then he looks up, and I see that his eyes are clear. “This is what you want,” he says. “You say he makes you happy. And that’s all I’ve ever wanted for my baby girl – for you to be happy. So, why would I stand in the way now and make you wait any longer for your happiness?”
“Oh, Dad,” I say, leaning in to hug him one last time as a single woman.
We walk out into the chapel together, my hand on his arm, and now it’s my turn to try to blink back the tears of happiness.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Jonas
My heart thunders in my chest until it feels almost like it will break as she comes down the aisle towards me. I’ve never seen such a beautiful sight in all my life.
She’s dressed all in white, just like she was on the day we first met. This time it’s a vintage lacy dress that goes down to the floor, over a smooth white inner layer that prevents the dress from being at all revealing. Even though I can only see the shape of her body, not the full view, I still think she’s the most attractive she’s ever been and I have never wanted her more.
But at the same time, it’s not even about the physical – about lust. It’s pure love that I feel, a possessiveness, the desire to have this woman at my side through thick and thin for the rest of the time that we are both alive. And I’m at peace, too, because I know that I’m about to get what I want. The vows that will bind us together, before God and in the eyes of the law, until the day that we die.
I can’t stop a smile from breaking out onto my face, so big that my jaw aches. I can’t remember the last time I smiled until my jaw ached – the last time before I met her, anyway. I don’t even know if I ever did it. But here we are, and everything is exactly as it should be, and why shouldn’t I be so happy that I think I might actually explode?
