“Yeah,” she whispered, then looked at my parents and me. “I commissioned and helped design the wedding invitations behind my parents’ backs—”
“Wait, that was you?” I asked. “Tally-Ho in her tartan blanket, the Christmas tree barn, and the frozen pond watercolor? I thoughtAustingave the artist the vision for the invitations.”
“Nope,” my brother said proudly. “That was all Katie.”
“I love your home,” she said. “Connecting with you was challenging, but I immediately felt wrapped into this magical, timeless place. It always feels like a warm hug every time I pull up the driveway.” She sighed. “I really wanted the wedding to be that way, too.”
“I think it still can be,” I said, excitedly sitting up in my chair. “Or, at least, a piece of it can.” I turned to my parents. “Is it too late to get the deposit back on the rehearsal dinner venue?”
“Yes,” Dad said, then waved his hand. “But by all means, speak now.”
I grinned and did.
Winter
Twenty-Six
I was still in a boot by December, but I could officially put weight on my ankle again. “No, don’t even think about it,” Marco said when I tried to help Austin and him move Dad’s antique rolltop desk. “You aren’t allowed to lift high-impact, heavy stuff yet.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?” I asked. “Everything here is high-impact.”
“Supervise!” Da called. “Visualize!”
It was December 13, and everything in the Cheval Collective’s barn was either being moved upstairs or stored in our garage. We had other plans for the office tonight.
“Should we take the current listings down?” Amanda asked, eyeing one Realtor’s FOR SALE board on the wall. “And leave the artwork?”
“Definitely.” I nodded. Dad had an impressive art collection, all classic oil paintings featuring what else? Horses. “I think the art will go well with the wreaths.”
Amanda smiled. “Mom made so many.”
“They’re stunning,” I said. It had taken a hot second to getMrs. Gallant on board with the new plan for Katie and Austin’s rehearsal dinner. But Mr. Gallant, who’d deemed this the best idea ever, had dropped Katie and his wife off at a spa for the morning. “This is your show,” he’d told my family. “Stacy and I want to help, but I don’t think she needs to necessarily be on the premises…”
Once the office was all cleared out, Amanda and Nana hung Mrs. Gallant’s handmade wreaths on the warm wood-paneled walls. Fresh pine and boxwood were mixed with magnolia leaves and cypress, and Mrs. Gallant had adorned each wreath with perfect bows in blue, amber, and gold. Dad and Nana strung green garlands and fairy lights around the barn’s wood beams.
Then came the rugs. Mr. Gallant and Da hauled in Persian rugs, which we unrolled to create a patchwork quilt across the floor. “The guys are here!” Austin announced when the groomsmen arrived that afternoon, and we immediately put them to work, arranging the round teak farmhouse tables and chairs. Carina Álvarez brought over the sound system while Rose Álvarez and her crew marched into the barn’s kitchen, because who else was catering tonight?
Ember & Ash.
“Fear not, friends!” a voice called later. “I’ve arrived!”
I glanced up from arranging the table centerpieces (a trio of white candles arranged among more greenery and pine cones) to see Wit walking into the barn. The groomsmen basically lost their minds, whooping and whistling. “Okay, but he’s not even a groomsman,” I told Austin.
“No, he’s not,” my brother said. “But I still asked him to give a speech tonight…”
“Samira’s coming tomorrow, right?” I asked quietly.
Austin nodded. “She promised she’d be there. After, though…” He sighed. “We’re not going to talk for a while. She said she wants some time.”
To fall out of love with you, I knew.She needs to fall out of love with you.
It would be bittersweet, but their silence wouldn’t last forever. “You can’t lose her, Austin,” I’d overheard Katie gracefully tell my brother. “She’s a once-in-a-lifetime friend.”
“Ay!” Wit pointed out the barn doors. “The bridesmaids are here, too!”
“That’s my cue.” I clapped my hands. “Time to herd some cats.”
Austin smiled. “You know you’re the best, right?”
