Patsy approached, her own smile beaming. No shyness, no hesitation. Just pure joy.
At last, both couples stood before Deputy Hansen, the same man who’d married her and Sampson.
She couldn’t help another look at her husband. Was he remembering that day the two of them stood in the hotel’s parlor for their ceremony? Sampson had brought her a holly branch since there weren’t flowers blooming. She should have realized then what a good man he was.
In truth, shehadknown. That was why she’d braved marrying him, even though she’d only met him the day before. His integrity had come out from their very first meeting, when he found her trying to clean a very upset Ruby out there in the cold.
He’d come to help then and had never stopped helping.
He smiled his tender, intimate smile, the one he reserved just for her. “That was us two weeks ago.”
Had it only been two weeks? A very life-changing fortnight. She was nearly a different person now.
One who was treasured. Loved beyond what she’d ever allowed herself to imagine. By Sampson. By his family—her new family. And by God, the Father she’d been coming to know more every day.
She slipped her arm around Sampson’s waist and leaned as close as she dared with his broken arm.
The deputy began the ceremony with the traditional opening, speaking about the sanctity and blessings of marriage. Blessings, indeed.
And she hadn’t even experienced them all. Sampson had been so patient, waiting for her to be ready for the final step that would join them.
Gil was the first to speak his vows, as he held both of Jess’s hands in his. Grace had never seen a man cry, but his voice broke as he promised to love and cherish her. She could only see Jess’s face in profile, but her smile shone with the radiance of a woman fully loved.
Grace knew how that smile felt.
When it was Jonah’s and Patsy’s turn to speak their vows, Jonah sent his bride a wink as he started into his part. “I, Jonah Coulter, take thee, Patience Whitman, to be my lawfully wedded wife.” Something in the way he spoke her name made it sound like there might be a story there.
Patsy’s cheeks flushed a pretty pink.
He turned serious as he spoke the rest of the vows, but the joy never left his face. And when Patsy returned them, her voice rang rich and strong. These two had been waiting a while for this day.
The deputy concluded the ceremony giving the couples a moment to kiss.
Sampson turned to her with a twinkle in his eye. She didn’t have to guess what he intended, and though their family stood all around, his idea was still a good one.
She rose up to meet his kiss. Somehow, Sampson could make the simple brushing of his lips over hers feel like fire that tingled all the way through her body.
When he pulled away, she opened her eyes to see he watched her with a smile. “We didn’t get to do that on our wedding day. I have to make up for lost time.” His eyes still held that twinkle, the one that made her belly flip.
Did she dare say what she really wanted to? Yes. This was the time.
She rose up on her toes to whisper in his ear. “There’s something else we didn’t get to do on our wedding day. I think it’s time for that too.”
When she lowered to the ground, his eyes stayed locked on hers. The twinkle had shifted to a question.
She met his gaze, letting her eyes sayyes.
His rich brown orbs darkened to almost black. Then he swept in for another kiss. This one was even quicker than the first, but his intensity nearly made her knees buckle.
He shifted to murmur in her ear. “I love you, Grace Coulter.”
Those five words filled her heart to overflowing. Every time.
She reached up to cup his warm cheek, her voice a whisper. "I love you, too, Sampson. More than I ever thought possible."
His eyes glistened with emotion as he pressed a tender kiss to her palm. The promise in that look, the depth of his commitment to her—it stole her breath.
The rest of the family started to disburse, heading back to the house for the meal.
