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ted for the ceremony and then the party afterward had been decorated by the staff. We’d gone to look at it early this morning, and as I got closer, I noticed how different it was with all the white wooden chairs occupied by people.
“Aria!” I heard Belle shout, and I whipped my head around. “Over here!”
I grinned as she poked her head around a wall. They’d set up a little spot for us to wait until we walked down the aisle. “Hey!” I crouched down in front of her, my eyes welling with tears. “You look so pretty!”
She twirled around in her gold dress, so similar to mine but with a poofy skirt. “We’re the same!” She wrapped her hands around my neck and lowered her voice. “Are you scared of all the people?”
“A little,” I admitted, seeing Lola out of the corner of my eye. “But I’ll be right behind you, so I know I’ll be okay.”
“You will.” She smiled wide and let me go. “Where’s Auntie Jan?”
“She’s coming,” I said, at the same time the elevator doors whooshed open, and she appeared. “There she is.” I stood and pointed at Mom as she made a beeline for us.
“Auntie Jan!” Belle shouted, waving her hand wildly in the air.
Mom smiled over at Belle and gasped. “Oh my god! You look beautiful,” she told Belle, which made Belle beam even more.
“Okay, guys,” Lola said, clapping her hands. “Here’s your flowers.” She handed each of us a bouquet, Mom’s being the biggest, and stepped away from us. “I’m going to tell them you’re ready.” Her chest moved as she took a big inhale. “Let’s do this.”
“Let’s do this,” Mom repeated, her nerves obvious.
Lola left us behind the cornered-off area, and a couple of minutes later, the music started. We all took our places, Belle in front, then me, and Mom behind the both of us. The doors opened, and Belle began to walk down the aisle. Once she was halfway down, I followed her, and my heart beat crazily out of my chest.
I didn’t recognize most of the people standing and watching us come down the aisle, but the closer I got to the front, the better I felt. Uncle Brody’s and Lola’s faces came into view first, and then Ford and Uncle Brody’s team, and finally, Cade.
My breath left me as my gaze met his, and even though my feet wanted to carry me to him, I continued walking down the aisle and to my spot on the left. The music changed, and I had to break my stare with Cade to look at my mom as she came down the aisle.
It was only seconds until she was at the altar with Sal and they were saying their vows. It all went by quickly, and before I knew what was happening, the officiant was telling Sal he could kiss the bride, and everyone was cheering.
Asher broke free in the commotion and ran right to me. “Aria!” he shouted, but I could barely hear him over all the applause. I bent down as he got closer and didn’t hesitate to pick him up. It was a balancing act with my bouquet of flowers too, but he was the perfect gentleman and took them from my hands as he planted his face in them to sniff. “Ew.” He screwed up his nose, and I laughed, so carefree I would have scared myself if I really thought about it.
Mom and Sal walked back down the aisle, and I followed them out with Asher holding on to me tightly and Belle beside me. The plan was to have drinks outside while they turned the room around for the evening party, so I followed the crowd out there.
“When I get married, I’m going to wear the bestest dress,” Belle told me, twirling around and making the skirt of her dress come up. “It’s going to be amazing, and everyone will be super jealous of how beautiful I look.”
“Is that right?” I asked, unable to wipe the smile off my face as we finally made it outside. “And who will you be marrying?” I moved to the right, staying toward the back of the crowd, and pulled Belle with me. I couldn’t see Uncle Brody or Lola.
“Duh.” Belle rolled her eyes as if I was stupid. “Ford, of course.”
“And I’ll be coming to this wedding, right?”
“Yes! You can help me plan it.”
“It’s a deal,” I told her as a hand connected with my back.
“You look so fuckin’ beautiful right now,” Cade whispered in my ear, only loud enough for me to hear. He placed a kiss on the side of my neck, and I couldn’t bring myself to care if anybody saw him do it.
“There you are!” I heard Lola say, and I spun to see her heading toward us. “We need to do pictures—” She halted, her eyes widening, and then she demanded, “Do. Not. Move. A. Single. Inch.” She held her hand up. “I mean it, stay exactly like that.” She yanked her cell out and snapped several pictures. “You can move now,” she told us, a grin on her face.
“What was that about?” I asked, boosting Asher higher on my hip. He was getting heavier and heavier by the second.
Lola stepped forward and showed me her cell, and my smile widened even more. The four of us were standing together, all with grins on our faces and happiness shining in our eyes. “I’m framing that one,” Lola said. “It’s perfect.”
“What’s perfect?” Uncle Brody asked, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind.
“This picture.” She showed him her cell and his gaze flicked over to me and then to Cade who was still standing behind me, his hand lingering on the bottom of my back.
“Looks good,” Uncle Brody said, but there was something else shining in his eyes as he stared at me. Something I couldn’t place but had me at ease.
