“I’m the groom’s best man.” Damion pointed at himself. “And he’s the bride’s best man.”
“And I’m not gay,” Nick quickly added. “For some reason when people find out I’m the bride’s best man, they automatically assume I’m gay!”
Daniel laughed at this. Oddly, he’d found himself enjoying Nick’s company the more time they spent together.
“What about Emma’s father?” Damion turned to face Daniel. “Isn’t he having the same suit as us?”
“Apparently not.” Daniel shook his head just slightly; he couldn’t risk moving too excessively while his suit was being fitted.
“Oh?”
“I offered him one of our suits, but he said he’d rather wear the suit he wore on his wedding day.”
“How nostalgic.”
“I’m just impressed by the fact that he can still fit in it!” Nick quipped. “When I’m his age, I anticipate that with my lifestyle I’ll have doubled in size!”
Daniel and Damion both laughed at this.
EMMA COULDN’T BELIEVE that her wedding day had finally arrived. She’d barely slept the night before, and when she awoke in her apartment, the sun was already streaming through the window, promising a beautiful day ahead.
She jumped out of bed and proceeded to run around the apartment screaming loudly, “I’m getting married today!”
The door to the spare bedroom creaked out, and Nick emerged in just his designer boxers, his hair matted madly around his head.
“Ems,” he croaked, “it’s six in the morning.”
“And I’m getting married today!” Emma cried with delight.
“Someone’s excited.” Sebastian Delacourt got up from the sofa where he’d been sleeping and came over to kiss his daughter on the cheek.
“Today is my wedding day!” Emma merrily sang the words as she spun around.
“Is it too early for champagne?” Nick asked groggily as he headed towards the kitchen.
“Not on my wedding day!” Emma sang after him.
“Good,” Nick called back as he stuck his head inside the fridge and retrieved the half-drunk bottle of Dom Perigon from the night before.
Last night the three of them had eaten takeaway pizza, watched chick flicks, and downed champagne. There were two empty bottles already in the trash. Both Nick and Sebastian were united in their mission to keep Emma happy, to keep the whole day frivolous to minimize any sadness she might feel due to her mother’s absence.
Emma giddily sipped champagne as she tried to eat her breakfast of wheat toast and poached egg.
“You need to eat something,” her father insisted. “Or you’ll feel sick with nerves all day.”
“Did you feel sick on your wedding day?” Emma asked quietly.
“Dreadfully.” Sebastian smiled tenderly at her.
An hour later the hairdresser and makeup artist arrived with great vanity cases of gadgets to help beautify Emma. They locked themselves away in the bedroom, leaving Sebastian and Nick to put on their own suits and prepare for the big event.
Nick was wearing the same designer suit as Damion. A sleek navy number with sterling silver cufflinks. He styled his hair and coated himself in a generous amount of cologne before wandering out of the spare bedroom. Sebastian was already out there, wearing his black suit from his own wedding day, which had faded slightly with time but still fit him like a glove. It was a little outdated with its bell bottoms, but it retained a sense of vintage chic, which was in keeping with the day.
“Looking good,” Nick kindly complimented as he sat down beside him.
“You don’t look too shabby yourself.” Sebastian smiled.
“I do my best.” Nick winked.
The door to the bedroom cracked open, and the hairstylist emerged, looking flushed and excited.
“She’s almost ready to come out,” she told the two waiting men. “Are you ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Sebastian told her.
A few moments later the door opened fully as Emma gracefully stepped out in her Delacourt Designs bespoke gown. Her hair was artfully gathered at the nape of her neck, and smoky eye shadow accentuated her eyes. A slick of red lipstick made her truly look like a film star of a bygone era.
Both Nick and Sebastian instantly stood up and held their breath as she walked towards them.
Nick was rendered speechless. Emma looked absolutely stunning. She was the definition of beauty. He swelled with pride as he looked at her; she had become his best friend. The more time they spent together, the better a man he became. He knew that thanks to Emma, he was closer to healing his own heart, closer to finding his own happy ending.
Sebastian raised his suit sleeve to his eyes to catch the first falling tears. He spluttered slightly as he tried to hold them in.
“Emma,” he gasped her name in awe. “You look stunning.”
“Thanks, Daddy.” Emma tried to stop herself from getting teary.
“Think of your makeup,” one of the ladies nearby whispered kindly.
Emma blinked rapidly, forcing her tears back. Then she realized what her father was wearing. When she’d first seen him, she’d thought his suit looked familiar, but now she knew why. It was the same suit he was wearing in the wedding picture that once hung in their living room over the fireplace. The one where he was arm in arm with her mother, both of them grinning madly into the camera. They were happiness personified, and Emma had loved that picture growing up. She used to look up at it and dream that one day she’d too find that kind of happiness and sense of completion with another person.
“That’s your wedding suit,” Emma gasped.
“I wanted to wear it.” Sebastian sniffed. “So that...” He couldn’t finish the sentence. His emotions crept up his throat and threatened to strangle him.
“So that she could be here.” Emma reached out and held his hands, finishing his sentence for him. He squeezed her tightly, and for a moment, neither of them could speak.
Nick cleared his throat awkwardly behind them. “We really need to get going,” he announced. “The limousine has arrived downstairs.”
“Oh my God, it’s really happening.” Emma took a deep breath, her hands already starting to tremble.
“It’s really happening.” Sebastian smiled at her. “And I couldn’t be more proud.”
A STRING QUARTET PLAYED Prince’s “Most Beautiful Girl in the World” as Emma walked down the aisle. She held a modest bouquet of pink peonies and a huge smile that refused to budge. As Daniel turned to look at her, he felt his heart freeze in awe when he beheld how stunning she looked. She was a vision. He locked eyes with her and held her every step of the way as she walked towards him. Everyone else melted away, all the relatives, all the friends. There were no guests anymore; it was just Daniel and Emma.
She joined him at the end of the aisle, and they clasped hands as the official commenced the service. Emma could feel that Daniel was trembling, which made her own heart race madly in her chest. She wished she could slow the moment down and savor every single second, but already the day was speeding by her in a blur. Now here she was, marrying the man of her dreams.
And Emma did love Daniel. As she stood there beside him, she tuned out the official and thought of all their moments together. How they’d met as awkward teenagers in prep school and suppressed their feelings out of respect for Damion. Finally, when they acted on them, they were derailed by her father’s debts and a promise to marry Nick. Daniel fled not just her, but the country, but still they kept coming back to one another; they couldn’t stay apart.
Emma knew that Daniel was her destiny.
“Emma Delacourt, do you take Daniel Richmond to be your husband?”
Emma snapped back into the moment. It was her time to promise her love, to make a solemn vow before everyone gathered there.
“I do.”
She noticed a rogue teardrop down Daniel’s freshly shaved cheek. He’d cried. Emma looked down gratefully at her dress, the M
iranda, now certain that it would be a roaring success within her line.
The official continued his speech until, finally, the ceremony was concluding and they were officially a couple.
“You may kiss the bride.”
Daniel placed his hands on the small of Emma’s back and drew her to him. The kiss was tender and sincere. A kiss that would precede countless more during their married life and a kiss that sealed the promise they had just made to one another.
A cheer erupted within the crowd followed by applause as, hand in hand, the newly married Emma and Daniel walked back down the aisle, accompanied by the string quartet playing “For Once in My Life.”
Emma felt as though she were walking on air. She couldn’t recall a time in her life when she’d been this happy. Yes, she suddenly thought. She could. She’d been this happy when her mother was alive. A dark shadow suddenly threatened to cover the entire day, but Daniel quickly rescued her from her grief.
“I’m the luckiest man in the world,” he whispered to her. He was so close she could smell his cologne with the faint undercurrent of scotch.
“I’m going to love you forever, Emma Delacourt,” he promised her.
Emma leaned contentedly against Daniel. It fell against her like a wave. All her successes with the company, everything she had achieved with the company, it suddenly all felt so real and so important. Finally, she could enjoy it.
“You make everything complete,” she whispered, turning to face Daniel. “Without you, none of it mattered, not the company, nothing.”
“Then it’s a good job I’m here.” Daniel smiled warmly at her. “Because together we are going to conquer the world.”
“Is Delacourt Designs just the beginning?” Emma giggled excitedly. She loved holding Daniel’s hand, feeling his wedding band in her fingertips. He was officially hers; united together, forever. Now she was certain that he wasn’t going anywhere, that their love was infinite.
“Yes,” Daniel told her, staring deep into her eyes. “Delacourt Designs is just the beginning. Together we can have it all.”
The End
Author Info
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Designing Emma (Volume 6) Page 7