AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Epilogue
~ FREYA HANSEN-ADLER ~
Two Years Later
“I told you so.”
My voice is silent.I only mouth the words to my husband as he stands, looking dashing in his Navy uniform, next to Harris.
I receive a slight eye roll in response and suppress a giggle.
I am going to savor this moment of triumph, whether he likes it or not.
I stand on the bride’s side of the aisle in my red bridesmaid’s dress that matches the roses in my bouquet.Christmas decorations are subtly infused with all the standard wedding trimmings—tulle bows and silk ribbons and flowers interspersed with fresh holly that I make a mental note to keep my little girl away from, because she’s at that age when everything ends up in her mouth.
Glancing downward to my daughter, I gently squeeze the tiny hand in my grip.
My sweet toddler fidgets next to me in her adorable flower girl dress.
My Astrid.
Again, my eyes flit to my husband and I send him a warm smile—this time without my usual sassiness or pride that yes, I am the one to be thanked for bringing Harris and Ava together.
This time, my smile is filled with nothing but love and gratitude for this life Mason and I share together.
Then, after swooping Astrid into my arms because she’s getting that fussy look, I whisper in her ear, “Ice cream in about ten minutes, baby.”
“Yay,” she whispers back just a little too loudly, and I see Nicholas, the ring bearer, send me a grin in return.
Nicholas, who will have a very proud stepfather in just a few minutes.
Then the crowd stands and the bride enters, escorted by both of her parents.
Ava is radiant, a vision in an off-the-shoulder ivory silk dress with intricate lace appliqués.The gown is stunning, but it pales next to the glow of her smile when her eyes meet Harris’s as he waits at the front of the church for her in his Navy dress uniform.
They recite their vows to each other—beautiful words that seem to flow from them, filling this church with warmth and hope.
Words that they wrote themselves, despite my offers to help.
As I look at Harris, I can’t help remembering the first time I met him so long ago.It was after Mason and I had become friends, long before I finally realized what apparently the entire world knew—that I was desperately in love with Mason.
Harris has been a dedicated friend to both of us—a brother, really—a term that the military does tend to apply to people a lot even when they aren’t related.
Somehow, seeing him get married, feeling chills cascade over me as he slips that ring on Ava’s finger, I feel this sense of finality.
I glance at each of Mason’s brothers—Carson, Colt, and Graydon—as they sit in the crowd with their wives by their sides.Natasha has a little baby boy on her lap and Hailey’s belly is stretched to capacity, due any day now.Max and Colt have yet to grow their family, but I have a feeling I won’t have to wait long to see it happen; Only about an hour ago, I saw the way Max lit up when she was holding Natasha’s baby, giving his mommy’s arms a little break.
In that moment, Max definitely caught baby fever.
I smile, thinking about it.
And now, Harris is finally paired off.
It took them a while to walk down this aisle.He asked her about a year ago.But they took their time planning a wedding.Harris got a year-long extension in his previous job, so was still traveling a lot.
But when he followed that job with a much more reliable one doing Navy intel at the NSA at Fort Meade, they were finally able to set a date.
A Christmas wedding seemed like the right time for them.
