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In the background, I can hear that familiar sound of the shutter as Jade captures this moment, and I’m grateful I’ll get to keep it for eternity. Three women who have shaped my life into what it is today, each one of them bringing me to this moment right here.
A knock sounds against the door, snapping us out of our bubble.
“Who is it?” Becky yells, jumping at the door like a ninja. “I swear if it’s Emmett, I’ll….”
“Bradley.”
“Oh.” Still, she only opens the door a smidge, checking that he’s alone before allowing him to enter.
His eyes go to Mabel instantly, giving her an appreciative look. It’s always her first, it’s like they can’t help themselves whenever they’re in the same room, and I swear I can feel the air sizzle between them.
Some people would probably find it weird that their dad is clearly in love with their aunt, but not me. They both have been through too much, and they deserve to be happy. Besides, it’s not like I’ve ever seen Bradley with Mom. They dated before I was born, and he didn’t know about me until I moved to Bluebonnet. But based on the stories I’ve heard, he and Mabel have been friends since they were teens, although Mabel always had a crush on him.
I give Mabel a nudge with my elbow. “You should really put the guy out of his misery, you know,” I say softly so only she can hear it as he shifts his attention to Penny and then finally to me, a smile curling his lips. “Damn, you ladies look gorgeous.”
“Thank you. Is everything ready?”
He nods. “Just waiting for you. Still sure you wanna do this? If not, I can have the car in front of the house in five, and we can make a run for it.”
“Oh, I’m doing this,” I let out a soft chuckle. “If for nothing else, then to make the torture of the last few months mean something.”
“Weddings take planning and preparation, young lady.” Mabel gives me a pointed look before she leans in and kisses me on the cheek. “I’ll see you downstairs.”
Bradley lets her pass by, his gaze lingering just a tad longer before he extends his hand to me. “Let’s get you hitched off, shall we?”
I slip my hand into his. “Thank you for doing this, Dad.”
Bradley looks down at me, that familiar black Stetson throwing shade over his face, but I’m pretty sure I can see tears glisten in his eyes. “Thank you. For letting me do this.”
Becky’s hand touches mine as she passes me by. Her eyes meet mine for a split second, and I can see a twitch of sadness on her face. Although I guess it’s understandable. Her dad left us when she was just a girl, so she would never have this moment.
“I’ll help Penny downstairs.”
“Thanks, Becky.”
We give them a little head start before I gather my dress in my hand and follow after them.
“Cowboy boots?” Bradley asks, his brows raised.
In all the years I’ve lived here, I’ve never embraced country life to the point I wore cowboy hats and boots. I was actually planning to get white chucks, but then I saw these, and I figured Emmett would love them, so I decided what the hell and bought them.
“Too much?”
“No, they’re perfect.”
“I thought so.”
We find Becky and Penny out by the door just as Becky places a flower ribbon around Henry’s harness. Penny wanted to have flowers, but they would just get in the way, so we decided to decorate the harness instead.
“You ready for this, Penny?” I ask her, just as the music starts.
She and Henry have been practicing this walk for weeks now at her own insistence. She, and this is a quote from her: ‘didn’t want to mess up my wedding by falling on her ass in front of half of Bluebonnet.’ I didn’t care about the wedding. I just wanted her to be fine. Hell, even Emmett offered to walk her down the aisle, but she refused, saying she’d do it by herself.
As much as I loved her stubbornness and determination, it scared me shitless too. But rationally, I knew I couldn’t baby her forever. She was a grown woman with her own desires and dreams, and she deserved to make choices about how to live her life.
“What’s going on with you?”
I glance at my best friend. “What do you mean?”
