CHAPTER FIFTEEN
WITH ALL THE PREPARATIONSgoing on for the impromptu wedding, Bailey hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to Landon. He’d blown her away by telling her that he was falling in love with her. For a moment she’d stood there frozen and missed the opportunity to say it back to him. She was the luckiest girl in the world. Bailey was soaring like a high-flying kite. In so many ways Landon was the partner she had always dreamed of having. Warm. Kind. Loving. Loyal.
And their feelings mirrored one another’s.Squee.It was almost too good to be true, but it was happening. Really and truly. If this was all a dream, Bailey didn’t want anyone to wake her up.
Once everything settled and they had a moment alone, Bailey would tell him that her feelings mirrored his. She felta smile tugging at her lips just thinking about it. This would be a first for her, admitting serious feelings for someone. All her nerve endings were on fire, sparked by the anticipation of what was to come.
At the moment she was up in Hattie’s bedroom with Sophia and True, helping Hattie get into the ivory-colored lace dress they’d found among her dress collection. It was a perfect dress for a bride to get married in. It was so spot-on that Bailey had to wonder whether Hattie had been planning this moment for a while.
“Were you just saving this for a rainy day?” True teased.
“It’s just a little something I had stashed away.” Hattie winked at them. “A girl can dream, can’t she?”
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams,” Bailey said. She’d always loved that quote, and by choosing love in this fragile moment, Hattie was cementing another part of her legacy. Love never fails.
Hattie met her gaze, her eyes full of understanding. “Eleanor Roosevelt. A personal shero of mine. She had an iron will and a heart of gold.”
“Now who does that sound like?” Sophia quipped, hand on her hip.
“I have no idea,” Hattie said coyly.
After rummaging among Hattie’s dozens and dozens of hats, True found an ivory-colored fascinator to serve as a veil. They brushed out Hattie’s hair and swept it up into a sleek chignon before clipping on the fascinator. With a little blush on her cheeks and soft pink lipstick, she was simply radiant.
“You look stunning,” Bailey said, reaching out and gripping her friend’s hand.
“Jacques won’t know what hit him,” Sophia said, nodding approvingly.
“I like the sound of that,” Hattie said, sounding gleeful.
Helping Hattie downstairs was a delicate balance due to her lack of strength. It took all three of them to make it happen. Bailey thought that Hattie’s determination to get married had caused a sudden burst of energy that made it possible.
This was all so sweet and romantic, Bailey thought.
Jacques had put on a slate gray suit with a red tie. He looked dashing and handsome. The Stone brothers and Red flanked him. She wasn’t sure how they’d pulled it off, but all of them were wearing dark suits. All of them standing together in a row provided a stunning visual. Bailey couldn’t take her eyes off Landon. He came forward and offered her his arm, and she looped hers through his.
“This is so exciting,” Bailey whispered. “I’ve never been to a wedding before.”
“Never?” Landon asked. “Not even once?”
“Nope,” she said. “I kind of thought my sister Lynn would be my first wedding, but that’s not happening.”
“Probably for the best,” Landon said. “I think that when people pledge to love each other for a lifetime, they should really mean it. Your sister deserves much better than someone who wasn’t even willing to go the distance with her.”
Landon totally got it. He understood what it meant to make a commitment to another person and make promises for a lifetime. Just when she thought that she couldn’t possibly love him any more, he went and said something so powerful and poignant.
“That’s really true. And it’s so beautiful to see Hattie andJacques ready and willing to take this leap of faith and promise each other forever, especially under the circumstances. Their love for one another is awe inspiring.”
He reached for her hands and gently pulled her toward him. He looked down at her, then pushed away some curls from her face. “I’m really glad that you’re here to share this with us. It means all the more to me just having you here.”
“I’m honored to be here with your family. It may sound corny, but it feels like I’m being enveloped in one big circle of love.”
“You are,” Landon said, his eyes locked with hers.
He was sending her a message that was tied into the words he’d spoken to her earlier. Bailey couldn’t have been more thrilled. This man made her feel safe and secure, and very loved. It was time she told him how she felt instead of leaving him hanging.
“Landon, I—”
Just then the strains of the wedding march started to play through the speakers, and Lily began to walk down the makeshift aisle. She was clutching a poinsettia to her chest. Since the ceremony was last minute, they’d had to think fast on their feet for flowers. Hattie was next. She was in her wheelchair being pushed by Xavier.
