Larisa laughed from where she sat in a lounge chair. "No, today you're going to be on display for the entire kingdom, including all of the visiting delegates from other realms who want to watch the making of a queen. You, my dear, are the social event of the year."
"No time for jeans and boots, that's for sure," Vinia replied. "You are now a proper lady."
Larisa gave her a little hug. "I'm going to check on my brother and make sure he has everything on schedule."
After she left, Vinia met Sarah's eyes in the mirror. "I am so proud of you."
Sarah leaned back against her. "Thank you, Mama. And thank you for always being there for me, even when I was being a shit and keeping everything secret."
"Now that I know, I understand. You and Luke are going to be so happy together. But, Sarah, are you sure that you don't mind all of us moving here? I don't want you to think that we're intruding on your territory."
Sarah turned and hugged her. "I'm thrilled that you all are going to be here. And Luke made sure that you all had the proper housing. You have your old house! He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t want you here. And of course I want you here. I wasn't sure I could leave you guys anyhow, so it worked out perfectly."
"Your father would be so proud of you."
It was rare that Vinia spoke of him, and tears welled in Sarah's eyes. "Stop. I'm going to ruin my makeup."
"You could not even be wearing any and still be gorgeous."
Sarah kissed her mother's cheek. "Thanks, but I do have it on, so I don't want to look like a raccoon." She met Vinia’s eyes. “Can we talk about Daddy more, when this is all over? You can tell me all of your stories about him.”
Vinia’s eyes glistened. “I would love to. I know I haven’t always spoken of your father, but I think being back in our old house will help the stories bubble up.”
A knock on the door interrupted them. Vinia peeked out before she pulled the door open to let Drake in. He let out a low whistle when he saw Sarah. "You are a stunner in that dress. I almost can't even tell that my little bit is hiding in there."
"They did a beautiful job, didn't they?"
"They certainly did."
"And I didn't do it to hide the baby," Sarah corrected. "I didn't want anything form fitting, and I wanted something comfortable to wear all day."
"Hey," he told her as he gave her a guy, "no explanations. They just did an amazing job."
"How's Luke holding up?"
"Oh, he's fine. His sister is with him, so I figured I'd pop over." He took a slow walk around her. 'I can't believe my baby sister is getting married. The last of the Hales."
Vinia agreed. "I was thinking about that earlier. We don't get any more weddings until the grandchildren."
Larisa came back in. "Okay, they're starting the music. We need to get to our spot."
Sarah grabbed Drake's hands. "Thank you, for always being my friend even when I wasn't very friendly."
"You've covered my ass a time or two." He winked at her. "Besides, we're going to live here. It's not like we won't still have more opportunities to be best buddies."
"My daughter is going to love her uncle." Sarah pulled him into a bear hug. "I love you, Drake."
"I love you, too, sis. Now let's go."
Colton waited for them in the hallway when they reached the garden where the ceremony was being held. Like Drake, he let out a low whistle when he saw her. "If you aren't a beautiful bride."
She smiled at him and took his arm. "Thanks, Cole. That means a lot."
Since Colton had always assumed the paternal figure in the family, it was only right that he gave her away. Drake took Vinia's arm and walked her to her seat. Across the flower beds, Sarah could see Luke standing at the front in full king garb, and he looked just as nervous as she felt.
"You know, for someone who snuck around with this guy, I should have beat his ass when I met him. But I actually like the guy."
She giggled. "That's always a plus."
