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“Yes, yes, yes! I’ll marry you. Of course I’ll marry you!”
He rose up in one swift moment, catching me around the middle and swinging me in a tight circle.
When he set me back down, he was grinning from ear to ear. “Today.”
“Today?” I asked, unsure what he meant.
“Your family is already here. My family is already here. We already have the rings and the marriage license. Marry me today.”
“What?” I gasped. “But … we don’t have a venue or anyone to marry us or …”
“We’ll do it here, and we can get someone last minute. Just marry me. Let me take you back to my place as my wife.”
There was no way I could deny him.
Everything was set, and nothing was. We’d been planning several hundred people at an enormous wedding. But hadn’t English always said that eloping was the way to go? Everyone was here. What else did I need?
“Okay. Let’s do it!”
36
WHITLEY
“Ican’t believe this is happening,” I said from the top of the Bethesda Terrace stairs with my three bridesmaids.
“It’s happening,” English said, barely containing her glee.
Somehow, all the months of planning our wedding had been condensed down to a matter of hours. Katherine got me into emergency hair and makeup. Harmony brought over my dress. Gavin and I had sent texts to our friends and family to meet us at the fountain, dropping the guest list from hundreds to thirty with the snap of a finger.
My dad had even been discharged from the hospital in record time and approved by his doctor to participate. Now, it was time to go, and I could hardly believe it.
I had whiplash from my utter despair over yesterday to delight that this wasactually happening! It felt like a fairy tale. And I couldn’t believe it was mine.
“Showtime,” English said.
She’d taken complete control of all the finer details. I hadn’t even had to worry about it, as she had assured me it would be better than I even expected. Knowing my groom was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs was enough for me.
Wesley and Wynona headed out first. Wynona gleefully throwing flowers as Wesley walked stoically beside her. Lark went down the stairs next, followed shortly by Katherine, and then it was English’s turn.
She pressed a kiss to my cheek. “I love you, sister. You deserve all of this and more.”
I choked back tears. “Don’t make me cry yet.”
She laughed. “No. Not yet.”
Then, she walked down the stairs in the matching red dress that Harmony had apparently designed for my bridesmaids. Leave it to Katherine to get the most from herIOU.
Finally, the music shifted, and it was my turn. I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and then walked down the middle of the stairs. Tourists still roamed Central Park, looking on at me in awe. Many of them took pictures as they walked past, but my eyes were only on the bottom of the stairs, where my dad waited, holding a cane. The concession from his doctor to let him leave the hospital. My dad hadn’t been happy, but he’d relented.
“Daddy,” I whispered.
He pulled me into a hug. “You look beautiful, honey.”
“Thank you.”
He offered me his arm and I slid mine through his. He fingered my mother’s diamond bracelet. “It suits you.”
“Thank you.”
