DREAMING OF YOU GO PL

by Barbara Freethy

  "I've been hanging on to my rigid viewpoints for far too long. The truth is, I want you, Kate. And I want to see where all this goes."

  "Even if it goes toward a church and a reception?"

  He smiled with complete candor in his gaze. "Even then. I'm not ruling anything out."

  "Seriously? Why the change of heart?"

  "You're the reason. You told me before that when I met the right person, I'd want it all, and I do. I want it with you. I want to make you happy."

  "I want to make you happy, too. I don't want to force anything on you."

  "You're not. This is my choice. Frankly, I don't know why I took so long to get here."

  "Well, we don't have to rush into anything. We can take our time. Really get to know each other."

  "As long as we're taking our time together, I'm good," he told her. "But I want you to know that I'm willing to go the distance."

  "I can't believe you hired a plane to write our names in the sky."

  He smiled down at her. "You said something once about wanting a man who's willing to make a magnificent gesture of love. I'm hoping this counts."

  "It does. It really does," she said, unbelievable happiness running through her.

  "But I didn't just do this for you, Kate—I did it for me. I needed to tell not just you but also the world how I feel. I needed to stop hiding and declare myself. And if one of us gets hurt, well, at least we won't have to wonder what if."

  "I agree. I've been scared, too. But whatever happens, I'd rather be with you for as long as it works than be without because I'm afraid. My grandparents have always told me that love is worth the risk."

  "Then we're finally on the same page."

  "Kiss him already," Maggie called out, echoed by the other bridesmaids.

  He grinned. "I think the crowd has spoken."

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and lifted her mouth to his, feeling a rush of joy and pleasure as their lips met.

  And then there was a round of applause.

  She pulled away with a somewhat embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry, Maggie and Jessica. This is supposed to be your day."

  The two brides came forward and hugged her.

  "You made our day," Maggie said.

  Jessica nodded. "I couldn't be happier for you, Kate."

  "Looks like we have one more wedding," Andrea said.

  "Hold on," she protested. "Barrett and I just agreed to see where things go."

  "You know where they're going to go," Isabella said with a sweet, knowing smile.

  "She's right," Julie put in. "You've always told us to trust our instincts. Now you need to do the same."

  "And we'll be your bridesmaids," Laurel said.

  "But you can't plan your own wedding, can you?" Liz asked.

  She put up a hand. "Everyone needs to slow down. Let's finish this wedding, before we start worrying about another. The band is playing for another…ten minutes," she said, checking her watch. "I think we should all have one more dance."

  As the crowd wandered back into the building, she turned back to Barrett. "Want to dance with me?"

  "For the rest of my life," he promised, taking her hand in his. "I want us to be like your grandparents."

  "I want that, too," she whispered, kissing him again. "Happy Valentine's Day."

  Epilogue

  Sixteen months later…

  Barrett met his brother's gaze in the mirror, and he was reminded of when they'd done this before. But this time they weren't wearing tuxedos, just dark-gray suits. And this time there was only a crowd of fifty or so waiting in a very small church in the Napa Valley, that would be packed to the rafters, if all fifty showed up. After that, they'd be heading down the street to the inn run by Maggie and Cole, where a summer garden and beautiful patio area were set up for a party that would last well past midnight.

  This time he was marrying the right woman—he was marrying Kate.

  "Ready?" Matt asked, a slightly nervous edge in his voice. "No second thoughts, right?"

  "Don't worry. I'm not going to be a runaway groom," he joked.

  "Good to know. I'd have to come after you and kick your ass, because you will never find anyone better for you than Kate."

  He turned to face his brother. "I knew that the first day I met her. But the last year and a half has made me realize how close I came to missing out on someone very special, just because I was too scared to fail again."

  "You're not going to fail—not this time."

  "I'm not even worried about it. I love Kate, and I can't wait to marry her, because I know what we're both looking forward to the most is the actual marriage."

  Matt smiled and gave a nod. "You've definitely changed since you met Kate. You're more relaxed, more yourself. You've softened. You're fun again."

  "Hard not to have fun when I'm with Kate and her friends."

  "She does have a good group of female friends, and the guys are great, too. We had a hell of a bachelor party. And I still can't believe we were hanging out with Alexander Donovan, the creator of Vertigo."

  "One of these days, I'll have to get you into the private arcade at his house. You will never want to leave."

  "Sounds like a plan, but for now, I think we should get you married."

  "Are our parents here?"

  "Mom and James are in the first row, along with Aunt Joan and Uncle Harry and their two kids. Dad and Tanya are at the end of that row, so hopefully our parents have enough buffers between them. They won't actually have to talk to each other."

  "Well, frankly, I don't care what they do. The only person I want to be happy today is Kate."

  "I like the sound of that," a man said from the doorway.

  Barrett turned to see Kate's grandfather come into the room. His blue eyes were bright and smiling with happiness. "Hello, Lance."

  The older man shook his hand and then nodded to his brother. "Matt—good to see you."

  "You, too. Is your beautiful bride with you?"

  "Bess is headed in to see Kate to wish her well. Not that either of you need luck. You've got love on your side. I've seen it grow every day."

  "Sometimes I can hardly believe how much I love her," he said. "And I hope you know that you and Bess are an inspiration to both Kate and me."

  "I'm glad. I knew you were the one when I showed you her ballet videos and you watched every minute without even checking your watch."

  "It took me awhile to admit it, but I fell for her fast."

  "She fell just as quickly. I think the two of you are going to make it. You're a lot like Bess and me. You don't just love each other, you laugh together."

  "Is that the secret?" Matt asked. "For a long, happy marriage?"

  "It's one of them."

  "What are the others?" Barrett asked.

  "Well, practically speaking, you should always get your wife a birthday present, even if she says she doesn't want one, always tell her she looks good, and if she asks you to pick an outfit, pick one, otherwise, she'll think you don't care. And be forgiving. Neither of you are perfect. But it's all the imperfections that make life the most interesting."

  "Noted," he said with a smile. "I think I can do all that."

  "You can and you will. Or I'll have something to say about it."

  "Got it," he said.

  "I'll see you in the church."

  As Lance left, Matt smiled at him. "I might have to take some of Lance's advice, too."

  "You and Amy?" he asked with a quirk of his brow.

  "Getting close," Matt replied. "But let's get you married first."

  * * *

  "You look beautiful, honey," her grandmother told her, as she stepped into the dressing room.

  Her friends had all moved into the outer hall to give them a few moments of privacy.

  "Thanks, Grandma," she said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

  "Your mother is in the church. She said she'd talk to you after."

  "That's fine. You're the one who has been the real mo
ther to me all these years, the one who helped me plan this wedding, the one who brought me up to be the best person I can be. I'm so grateful, Grandma."

  Her grandmother's eyes blurred with tears. "Oh, Katie, you're going to make me cry and ruin my makeup."

  "I just want you to know how much I love you."

  "I love you, too. And I love Barrett. He's a good man and he's the right man for you. He'll support you, but he'll also encourage you to be all you can be. And you'll do the same for him."

  She and Barrett had spent a lot of time with her grandparents in the past year and a half, and she'd been pleased at how well they'd all gotten along.

  "Anyway, I'll let you spend the last few minutes with your bridesmaids," her grandmother said. "I'll see you after the ceremony."

  "Thanks."

  As her grandmother left, her bridesmaids came into the room.

  As she looked at the group of her very best friends, the women who would stand by her side not just today but always, she felt incredibly blessed. Maybe her parents had been next to worthless, but she had wonderful grandparents, great friends, and a loving man she would soon call her husband. She was incredibly lucky.

  "Okay, usually you do the champagne, but I am handling it today," Maggie said, passing out champagne glasses to everyone.

  "You all look beautiful," she said.

  She'd put her bridesmaids in dark-blue cocktail dresses that they could definitely wear again, while she'd chosen a beautiful fitted gown with hand-placed beads, a plunging neckline and an open back. It was her biggest splurge. The rest of her wedding was actually quite modest by most standards, and that wasn't because Barrett had wanted things simple. He'd given her free rein to plan everything, but she'd found after planning so many over-the-top weddings that what she wanted for herself was something small and intimate.

  "So do you, Kate," Jessica said. "Maybe the most beautiful bride of all."

  "Well, I'm the last one anyway," she said with a laugh. "What should we toast to?"

  "Let's toast to us," Andrea said. "To eight friends who came together in the first year of college, who navigated the school years with the help of each other and grew up to be amazing women. To Laurel, who started us off on our bridesmaid journey. To Liz, who found love with her first crush and to Julie, who got over her hatred of baseball players to find the love of her life. To Maggie, who took a walk on the wild side with a rebel biker, who turned out to be so much more. To Isabella, who danced her way into Nicholas's heart and to Jessica, who got it right the second time around after getting stuck in a doghouse." Andrea paused, looking at her with a smile. "Finally, to Kate, who helped get us all down the aisle and now it's her turn."

  "And to you, Andrea," Kate put in. "Who put love before career to marry an incredible man and who hosts all of our amazing parties."

  "To us," Andrea said, as they lifted their glasses and then clinked them against each other.

  Kate took a sip of champagne and then set down her glass. She took one last look in the mirror, barely recognizing her reflection. Her blue eyes were lit up, and her skin was glowing. She looked like a woman in love, and that's exactly what she was.

  "I'm ready," she said.

  Maggie gave her a smile. "Then let's get you married."

  * * *

  Barrett had been nervous the first time he'd stood at the altar, but tonight he felt nothing but complete and utter calm as Kate followed her bridesmaids down the aisle.

  She'd opted to walk alone. She wanted to give herself to him. And he wanted to give himself to her. They were surrounded by family and friends, but this moment was theirs.

  As she joined him in front of the altar, she gave him a smile that was filled with love. His heart twisted in his chest. He felt almost knocked out by the look in her eyes and by the feelings running through him.

  He had not felt like this before. He had not felt so absolutely certain of what they were doing.

  The minister began the ceremony, making it personal, and even a little amusing. He related the story of their first meeting, relating it to divine intervention or perhaps even Cupid.

  And maybe the minister was right, because that arrow had struck him right before he'd met Kate. Maybe that's exactly what he'd needed to get him out of the rut he'd been in.

  They exchanged vows that were also unique to them and ended the ceremony with a long, tender kiss that was filled with their promises to each other.

  They walked down the aisle to applause from their guests, and once they reached the outside steps, he pulled her into his arms and gave her another kiss.

  "There will be time for that later," Maggie chided as the bridesmaids and ushers surrounded them.

  "Picture time," Liz declared.

  "Let's get everyone in the photos," Kate said, as the group gathered on the steps. "Including all the kids."

  Barrett laughed as Isabella's new baby girl, who was barely two months old, was placed in her arms, while Liz, Andrea and Julie wrangled in their toddlers and Jessica and her budding preteen huddled with Reid. He hadn't just gained a wife, he'd gained a group of friends. He'd gained a family. But he didn't want just this family; he wanted the one he would have with Kate.

  He looked down at his beautiful wife. "Happy?"

  "More than I could have ever imagined. And last single girl standing no more," she murmured with a smile. "You were worth the wait, Barrett."

  "I agree. We're going to make it, Kate. At least fifty or sixty years."

  "Or forever," she said.

  "I just hope that's long enough."

  She took his hand, and then they turned and smiled for the camera.

  # # #

  I hope you enjoyed DREAMING OF YOU!

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  If you've completed the Bachelors & Bridesmaids Series, I hope you'll check out my romance family series, the Callaways, which begins with ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS. Read on for an excerpt!

  ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS - Excerpt

  Chapter One

  As a teenager, seeing her father’s car in the driveway when she came home from school had always made Sara Davidson uneasy. She would steel herself for the evening to come, never quite sure why she felt afraid. Stephen Davidson had never physically abused her, but he had been demanding, and his words cut like a knife. It wasn’t always what he said that was the worst part; it was the rejection in his gaze, and the cold quiet that usually followed his disappointment in her.

  It would be different now, Sara told herself as she got out of her rental car. She was twenty-nine years old, a successful lawyer, and she hadn't lived at home in ten years. So why did she feel trepidation?

  Because her relationship with her father had never been quite right.

  They were biologically connected, but emotionally they were as distant as two people could be. Her mother, Valerie, had been the buffer between them, but her mom had died when Sara was nineteen years old. For the past decade it had been just her and her dad. Actually, it had mostly been just her.

  While her father had paid for her education and living expenses, he hadn’t come to her graduations—not from college or from law school. The last time she’d seen him in person had been five years ago when they’d both attended the funeral of her grandmother, her father's mother.

  She walked up the path, pausing at the bottom of the stairs, her hand tightening around the bottle of wine she’d brought for her dad’s sixty-fifth birthday on Sunday. She’d tried her best to get him something a wine connoisseur would appreciate – a bottle of 1989 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Bordeaux. The wine had cost as much as her monthly car payment; she hoped it would be worth it. Her father was her only living relative, and she still, probably foolishly, wanted to believe they could find a way to connect with each other.

  Her nerves tightened, and she had to fight back the urge to flee. She'd flown all the way across the country to see
him; she couldn’t back down. Trying to calm her racing heart, she looked around, reminding herself that this had once been home.

  Her father’s two-story house with the white paint and dark brown trim was located in the middle of the block in a San Francisco neighborhood known as St. Francis Wood. Not far from the ocean, the houses in this part of the city were detached and had yards, unlike much of the city where the homes shared common walls.

  Her family had moved into this house when she was nine years old, and one of her favorite places to be was sitting in the swing on the front porch. She’d spent many hours reading or watching the kids who lived next door. The Callaways were a big, Irish-Catholic blended family. Jack Callaway, a widower with four boys, had married Lynda Kane, a divorcee with two girls. Together, they’d had fraternal twins, a boy and a girl, rounding out the family at eight kids.

  As an only child, Sara had been fascinated by the Callaways and a little envious. Jack Callaway was a gregarious Irishman who told great stories and had never met a stranger. Jack was a San Francisco firefighter, following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps. The Callaways had been born to serve and protect, and all of the kids had been encouraged to follow the family tradition. At least two of the boys had become firefighters, and last she'd heard her friend Emma had done the same, but she hadn't spoken to Emma in a long time.

  A wave of nostalgia hit her as her gaze drifted down the block. She'd let her childhood friends go—not that there had been that many, but she could still hear the sounds of the past, kids laughing and playing. The Callaway boys had run the neighborhood, taking over the street on summer nights to play baseball, football, or any other game they'd invent. She'd occasionally been part of those games, but not often.

  She might have grown up next door to the Callaways, but she'd lived in an entirely different world—a world of quiet structure and discipline, a world where expectations for grades and achievement were high and having fun didn't factor into any equation.