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During the ceremony, I was thankful for our choices. I was shaking as he held my hands and gazed into my eyes. I didn't feel like I would have been able to stay on my feet if we'd chosen a longer version of the ceremony. This was so surreal, and yet it felt exactly right. This was everything I'd been wanting for so long.
Finally, it was time for our kiss, and the officiant declared us husband and wife. My heart leapt, and I joyously leaned into the first kiss from my new husband. Allison handed me my flowers back, and Mark and I headed back up the aisle under the cheers and applause from our friends and family.
After some pictures and reuniting with our baby daughter for a few cuddles, it was time for the reception. I couldn't wait to let loose and celebrate with Mark. We had a spread of all our favorite foods, a huge tent set up in one of the fields was full of light and music, and everyone was cheerful as they congratulated us. It was nothing short of perfect.
During the dancing while our guests were distracted, Mark took my hand and led me out of the tent. We giggled as we scurried through the dark toward the nearest barn. The horses looked at us with their big, soulful eyes as we ducked inside. They'd been specially groomed, and flowers woven into their manes and tails for the wedding, but now they were back to normal and settled into their stalls for the night. We'd decided not to ride off into the sunset on horseback, but that didn't stop Mark from stealing a kiss right there in front of them all.
EPILOGUE
CARMELA - FIVE YEARS LATER
Looking back at our wedding day on our anniversary, I could still remember the sheer joy and fulfillment I felt as Mark took me into his arms, and we danced surrounded by our loved ones. I'd looked into his eyes and seen everything I'd always been looking for and never knew, as well as the future we'd promised each other.
Even with all the years stretched out in front of us, on that day, I couldn't imagine ever feeling as purely happy as I did then. But I was wrong. The last five years had been the happiest of my life, and more amazing than I would have even dared to dream.
I woke up on the morning of my fifth anniversary to the feeling of a little one squiggling around under the sheets with me. I opened my eyes and saw Mark wasn't on his side of the bed, but a small lump in the covers was moving around as it came up toward the pillows from the end of the bed. I was very familiar with that small lump. It was just two years before when it was still in my belly.
I pulled back the sheets suddenly, and Amelia gasped, then grinned and giggled. I loved that sound. Scooping my toddler daughter up, I kissed her all over her face and the curve of her neck. She still smelled like a baby. It wasn't going to last, I knew that. Cassandra had started kindergarten in the fall, and our son, named after his grandfather, was a little honeymoon souvenir for us, arriving just a couple of months after Cassie's first birthday. They both had their distinctive smells I figured were stronger for me as their mother, but they'd lost the special baby scent that went with the first couple of years.
We didn't think Amelia was going to be our last. Neither one of us were fond of the idea of having just three children. We'd been talking about having one more and then deciding if our family was complete, or if we were going to commit to a truly large family and keep going.
"What are you doing?" I asked my giggling, squirming daughter.
"Having breakfast," she said matter-of-factly.
I looked around. "There's no breakfast up here. Want to go downstairs and get something?"
She shook her head. "Nope."
I was about to ask what she was talking about when the door to the bedroom she'd left cracked when she slipped inside and wriggled up from the bottom of the bed swung open the rest of the way. Mark came inside, and I immediately saw what she meant. He was carrying a huge tray loaded with plates of my favorite breakfast foods.
"Happy anniversary," he said.
I felt my heart skip a beat. Even after five years of marriage and three children, he could make my heart flutter and give me butterflies in my stomach. I hoped that never stopped.
"Happy anniversary," I said. "What's all this?"
"Five years is a big milestone," he said. "I wanted to do something special."
He settled the tray over my lap, and I looked at the huge spread.
