“Say, you wouldn’t want to go to a gift opening in a few hours, would you?”
“I’d like nothing more.”
CHAPTER 39
Life is Beautiful
Brianna
“Good God, there are a lot of naked lady statues here,” Leo mutters, holding his flute of plain orange juice in front of his mouth.
We’re back at the senior Hammer residence, but this time, instead of Mr. Bananas as my plus one, I’ve got a very handsome, charming, incredible-in-the-sack-even-though-I-didn’t-actually-have-sex-with-him man.
We’re standing at the back of a semicircle of chairs facing Amber and Zidane, who both look happy, if not bleary-eyed from being out late last night, drinking in every last drop of their wedding reception. And by that, I mean, based on Dane’s face, every last drop of booze behind the bar.
Kandi is sitting to the right of my sister, like a dutiful bridesmaid, writing down all of the gifts, as well as who they’re from, in a little wedding notebook. Valerie, who’s sitting next to her, is in charge of putting all of the wrapping paper into recycling bags and folding up the gift bags. Quinn takes each gift from Valerie and passes them to Dane’s mum, where they begin the rounds so everyone can ooh and aahh over the plethora of stemware, heavy, expensive cutlery, and thick linens. The off-duty groomsmen sport sunglasses and slouch down in their lawn chairs, and it’s not entirely clear whether any of them are actually awake or not. Isabelle is busy helping her auntie and new uncle open the presents and thoroughly enjoying being the centre of attention.
Amber has just unwrapped a wooden handmade sign that says “Welcome to the Hammer Residence. Love lives here.” She smiles, tearing up as she stands to hug whichever one of Dane’s buff, mustached relatives made it for them. Normally, I’d find the whole thing sappy, if not amusing, because of the whole “Hammer Residence” thing, but today, I think it’s kind of sweet.
This afternoon’s cheese people platter is a near replica of the original Dane and Amber, except this time, Amber’s not sporting a veil.
But somehow, the cheese people platter doesn’t annoy me today, neither do the bridesmaids or groomsmen or even my mum, who gave me the once-over when she saw me in my comfy maxi dress and flip-flops. Nothing could bother me this morning, because, well, I suppose you know, because, well…sexy time.
But it’s not just that, it’s also knowing I very likely will be spending my future with literally the most thoughtful, generous, fun man I’ve ever met. Not to mention the best-looking, most charming man here. Kandi, Valerie, and Quinn keep glancing at him, then looking at me, their expressions screaming mismatch. But I don’t care, because it’s a lovely day, the wedding is finally over, my exams are done, and life is beautiful.
Last night was literally the best night of my life. Up to this point, my only sexual experience was Roderick, who, upon comparison, turns out was a completely selfish lover. Wham, bam, knocked me up and ran.
“Can I get you another drink?” Leo asks, smiling down at me.
“I’m good, thanks.” And I am.
The happy couple reaches the bottom of the present pile—thank God—and Izzy comes rushing over to Leo and takes his hand. “Come see the dolphin statue.”
“A dolphin? Does he have any clothes on?” Leo asks her.
Isabelle wrinkles up her nose in confusion. “Dolphins don’t wear clothes, silly. Come on!”
“Excuse me, Brianna, it appears I have an ocean-dwelling mammal to meet.”
I watch as they stroll hand in hand, my heart squeezing at the sight. Smiling to myself, I think about the future that lies ahead—a future with him in it, and I can’t imagine anything more wonderful.
EPILOGUE
We Did it Our Way…
Brianna — Six months later
Leo and I stand in front of our not-too-big, not-too-small, canary-yellow two-story house that I’ve had my eye on for years. We snapped it up the same day it went on the market, which incidentally was a month after our wedding.
As it turned out, Leo was able to make a most compelling argument for getting married right away. He did, after all, give up his fortune for me, then made it his life’s goal to shed his cocoon of luxury and become a full-fledged, responsible-yet-still-wonderfully-fun adult. Plus, we were both getting sick of using Kevlar Condoms with double the thickness and triple the spermicide. Their slogan is “The tank of condoms. Nothing’s getting through these babies…especially babies.” We’re still using protection, but not quite as much, which is a huge bonus of being married.
Leo proposed the night he received his acceptance letter for university. He borrowed the tandem bicycle and recreated our perfect date together. Over a bottle of wine at Hidden Beach, he convinced me without a shadow of a doubt that I, Brianna Lewis, deserve to be loved. That I am enough, just the way I am, and he’s the man to do the loving. He slid a beautiful, but sensible, blue apatite and copper engagement ring on my finger, and we sealed the deal with some skinny dipping in the ocean as the sun set.
And now, we’re here, standing perfectly still for a moment, listening to the sounds of the trees rustling in the breeze and the gulls flying overhead. Our little house isn’t waterfront, but it’s close enough that you can smell the salty air from here, and there is a view of the water from the small balcony off our bedroom, where we will someday have a couple of cozy reading chairs. The house has a nice, big yard and a detached two-car garage with a lovely, well-appointed granny suite above it where Aunt Dolores will live.
“I can’t believe this is ours,” I say, taking it all in. “Are you sure you’re not going to miss the life of Riley?”
“I honestly can barely remember it, but what I do recall seems utterly empty.” He slips his arm behind me and pulls me toward him for a lingering kiss that makes my toes curl and my entire body warm up. “This is my real life, with you and Izzy. And Aunt Dolores and her cats.”
