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“Eloise,” he whispered. “Please tell me where she is.”
Once again, her eyes darted toward the backside of the house.
Without prompting, he headed in that direction.
“You’re not going to find her.” Eloise’s voice died away as Wade hurried out the back door. His head swiveled back and forth. Shoot, she was right.
No one wandered in the backyard. The only thing he could see was the expanse of the property and the barn to his right. There wasn’t a good chance she was in there; someone would have been bound to see her enter the barn when they were mingling before the ceremony.
And yet he felt drawn to the building.
Wade strode forward, not caring whether or not he was caught. Everyone from town was seated and likely gossiping about the scandal his wedding had become.
The bride had disappeared.
The groom marched from the altar.
They probably didn’t know if the wedding was going to take place at this rate.
Wade couldn’t think about that right now. He had to find Brielle and make sure she was okay. He had to be her person. When he reached the barn, he was officially stumped. It was empty. No Brielle.
He moved slower through the building until he got to the back of the barn and then stood in the doorway. That was when he caught sight of a flash of white. A lone silhouette of the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with stood near a tree a few yards away.
Her hand rested against the bark, fingers trailing along the grain. The white fabric of her wedding dress dipped low on her back. It made a soft whispering sound when rustled by the breeze.
Brielle’s hair was curled and swept up on her head, covered by a sheer layer of fabric. Her veil drifted along with the leaves when the breeze picked up again. He could watch her for hours, just standing there looking out at the beauty of nature.
Only that wasn’t something they could do today. He took a step forward, his boot snapping a twig. She glanced over her shoulder toward him, and for a moment, he thought she would get angry.
She didn’t.
Brielle smiled at him, turning just enough to reach her hand toward him. “Hey,” she murmured.
“Hey.” His hand slipped into hers, and he peered in the direction where she’d been looking, only seeing the vast expanse of the property her father owned. “What’s going on?”
She took in a deep breath and let it out. “I was just missing my mom.”
“Eloise mentioned that might be something you were working through today.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her against his side.
She rested her cheek on his shoulder and sighed again. “Yeah.”
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“You don’t have to be sorry. She’s been gone for so long. This was always how it was going to be. I just wish…”
“She’s here.”
Brielle glanced at him, a wry smile on her lips. “Except for the fact that she’s not.”
“From what I know about her, she loved her daughters more than anything in the world. And I believe that God created heaven to be a wonderful place. I know that there are things we don’t understand that happen every day. There are miracles that we can’t explain. And I think it would be wrong not to suggest that your mother is here with you today, watching you take this step.”
She craned her neck around so she could look into his face. A tear slid down her cheek, and she let out a painful laugh. “Don’t make me cry.”
He lifted his hand and swiped the tear from her cheek. “Too late.”
Brielle laughed again. “Do you really think she’s here?”
Wade shrugged. “I don’t know. Even if she isn’t, her memories are. You carry those memories with you wherever you go. And because of that, she will be with you for the rest of your life.”
