“So are you ready to go?” Elliot asked. “I’ve got to sneak you in the back way to the stage.”
Dalton walked with Elliot down a hallway. “I hope this ends up the way JD wants it to.”
“It’ll be perfect,” Elliot said, clearly confident in the plan he and JD had devised. “And I know that Danica will lose her mind when she realizes that the song isn’t a recording.”
Dalton thought that might be the case for more than just Danica, but he wanted it to be a special time for the sister he was closest to and the man who had once been his best friend. He wasn’t sure they were back to those relationships just yet, but along with Jesse, JD was one of the people he knew he could trust and confide in.
Now if he could just manage to not mess up the song he’d dreamed of singing at their wedding, ever since they had all been teens.
CHAPTER TWO
Sierra Collins bent to give Emily Callaghan a hug where she sat at the head table, then sank down into her own chair, smoothing the dark purple satin of her bridesmaid dress. It had a flared skirt with a wide sash, all in the dark purple, with a light yellow floral bodice that had small cap sleeves and a v-neck. It was a fifties style that looked better on the girls who had a bit more substance to their figure than Sierra had, but the dress definitely could have been worse.
“Thanks for all your help today, sweetie,” the older woman said, her smile gentle and loving.
“It was definitely my pleasure,” Sierra assured her, but she couldn’t deny that she was glad that the day’s events were almost over.
The months since JD and Danica’s engagement had been a frantic rush to pull the wedding together. It was a good thing they’d had Belle to guide them as they’d gone through the process of finding and ordering dresses. Belle also shared her contacts as JD and Danica had tried to figure out the best location for the wedding and reception. Then they’d needed to decide on a cake, a photographer, and flowers. Not to mention preparing the decorations. The list had seemed endless.
As maid of honor and best friend, Sierra had been more than happy to help Danica with all the planning. Parts of it had actually been fun, but it had also eaten up a lot of her time. At the end of the day, however, the important thing was that JD and Danica were married, and they appeared to have enjoyed their wedding day.
“We have one more special moment for the couple before we end this wonderful day,” Joe, the best man, said from a spot near the stage. “Can we have the bridal couple come to the dance floor, please? JD has requested a special song for their final dance of the evening.”
Sierra watched as JD got to his feet then held out his hand to Danica. She smiled as she took it, her love for JD clear on her face, and allowed him to help her up from her chair. Gathering up a handful of her skirt, Danica followed JD from their seats at the head table to the small dance floor in the center of the hall which was surrounded by the tables where their friends and family sat.
The lights in the hall dimmed as a single spotlight bathed the couple in soft illumination. Sierra found herself blinking back tears as she watched Danica gaze up at JD. She loved both of them so much and was thrilled that they were finally at this moment after so long.
The only thing that would have made the day better would have been if Dalton had been there to celebrate with them. Unfortunately, Dalton had disappeared after Angel’s death. JD had told them that he’d been talking with Jesse, another band member, and he’d said that he’d arranged for Dalton to go into rehab after the funeral, but there hadn’t been any sign that he’d come out. Rumor was that the band was finished, although that hadn’t been confirmed by their management or any of the band members.
Periodically, they’d hear from Jesse through JD that Dalton was doing okay. It wasn’t enough, but they had no other option but to accept the little dribbles of information that came their way. To know that Dalton was getting help with his addictions brought some measure of peace though. It seemed from what JD said that Jesse truly cared for Dalton, so if Jesse said Dalton was doing okay and getting help, it was a bit easier to believe.
The sound of a guitar filled the air, and JD and Danica began to sway together. The rhythm and notes plucked on the strings of the guitar were familiar, and Sierra tried to figure out why. It wasn’t until the first words of the song floated out into the air through the speakers, sung by a voice so achingly familiar, that it registered.
“You turned your gaze to mine, captured, held, my heart was on the line.”
It was a song Dalton had written years ago, promising JD and Danica that he would sing it at their wedding one day. Had Dalton made a recording for them?
About halfway through the song, Emily gasped audibly, and Sierra turned to see her with a hand pressed to her mouth, her gaze on the stage where a shadowy figure stood, a guitar in his hands.
Dalton.
It seemed that Danica came to the realization at the same time as her mom. She stopped dancing and turned toward the stage. Her hands were pressed to her lips as she stood frozen in the spotlight on the dance floor. JD stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Gently they swayed together, watching as Dalton continued singing the song he’d written for them.
Sierra tried to figure out what to do with all the emotions swirling around inside her. She’d hoped and prayed that one day Dalton would come home. Would return to his family. However, she’d held no delusions that he would be returning to her. They weren’t like JD and Danica had been. They had no history as a couple. All they’d ever had was a friendship.
Still, her heart filled with anticipation, and her inner teen swooned with the memory of the crush she’d once had on him. With a pounding heart, she watched as Dalton finished the song then lifted the strap over his head to remove the guitar. He bent to put it on the floor then leaped down off the stage in time to catch Danica in his arms.
Emily and Steve had jumped to their feet and quickly made their way to where their wayward son stood embracing Danica. Sierra blinked back tears as she witnessed a reunion that she knew was many years and many prayers in the making. Though she wasn’t physically part of the reconnection happening on that dance floor, Sierra certainly was there emotionally.
She had no idea what Dalton’s reappearance meant—if he was home to stay, or if he’d just come for the wedding. For the sake of his family, Sierra hoped that he was home to stay. That was probably unrealistic considering that his life and career were based in Toronto, but given the recent events with Angel, maybe Dalton’s return to Winnipeg was more of a possibility than it had ever been before.
Since the Callaghan and McFadden family was so large, there were a lot of empty tables surrounding the dance floor as they all gathered around Dalton. She was the only bridesmaid left at the head table while there were just Joe and Elliot left on the groomsmen side of the table along with JD’s parents.
A few minutes into the reunion, Joe got up and went to the stage, stepping up to the mic Dalton had used. “As you can see, we have a surprise guest for JD, Danica, and their family. While they are busy getting reacquainted, I’d like to thank you all for coming and sharing in JD and Danica’s joy as they pledged their vows to each other. This concludes their wedding reception this evening, but please feel free to hang around and visit.”
Part of Sierra wanted to join the family, but even though she was related by marriage, courtesy of her brother, Ethan, marrying Danica’s oldest sister, Makayla, she really wasn’t family. Instead, since it was the end of the reception, she began to collect the things she was responsible for.
Instead of settling, her emotions continued to stir, even with the distraction of talking to people who were getting ready to leave. This wasn’t the traditional end to a wedding reception, but it seemed the guests understood.
When Sierra returned to the head table, she eyed the two bouquets that lay side by side in front of her seat. She hadn’t wanted to participate in the bouquet toss, but Danica had refused to toss it until Sierra
had joined the other women there. It seemed that everyone—including Sierra—had known what Danica was going to do.
Danica had stolen a quick glance over her shoulder and then flipped the bouquet right to Sierra. Her reflexes had had her grabbing the flowers when they hit her in the face. The other women teased her good-naturedly about the “fixed toss.”
She tried not to be too aggravated by it, but at the same time, Sierra knew that Danica wouldn’t have appreciated it if their roles had been reversed. Maybe it would have been different if she was in a serious relationship, but she wasn’t. She never had been. And she’d accepted that it was possible she never would be.
If she’d voiced that to anyone she was close to, Sierra knew they’d all hurry to assure her that one day she’d get married. But what if that wasn’t God’s will for her life? Not everyone was destined to get married. Plus, she wasn’t altogether sure she even wanted to take that step. There was certainly no one in her life right then that she could envision being in a romantic relationship with, let alone married to.
Because of that, she’d resolved to just focus on friendships and loving those around her to the best of her abilities. She was thrilled that Danica and JD had managed to work things out, resulting in their marriage.
“Did you know about this?”
Sierra turned to see Danica standing behind her, her eyes still damp with tears. With a smile, Sierra hugged her friend as she shook her head. “I had no clue, but what a wonderful surprise for you and your family.”
Danica stepped back, a huge grin on her face. “I don’t know if he’s here to stay or what, but he looks healthy. Don’t you think?”
“Yes, he does. I guess wherever he was for rehab worked for him.” Sierra looked over to where Dalton stood talking with his parents. She wondered how difficult it was for him to be around his family again after having been gone for so long and with so much unresolved stuff between them.
“I almost hate to go on our honeymoon now. What if he’s only here for a few days? I’d hate to not be able to spend time with him before he leaves again.”
Sierra shook her head. “I think that if he made the effort to be here like this, he’s not going to cut relationships off again. I would assume that this is probably the first step to opening the lines of communication with you all.”
“I hope you’re right.” Danica looked around then back at Sierra. “Wow. We made it. JD and I are married, and we couldn’t have done it without you. Thank you so much.”
“You know I’m only too happy to have been a part of this with you, but I will say that I’m very happy that you two are now married. And not just because it means that the craziness we’ve lived with for the past several months is finally over.”
Danica laughed. “It was kind of crazy, wasn’t it? Even with Belle’s help. I’m sure she’s wishing she’d never volunteered to help us.”
Sierra could kind of understand why certain women became bridezillas. The stress of trying to plan the perfect wedding for their special day would no doubt drive a lot of people crazy.
Some of the catering staff began to move around them picking up dirty dishes and clearing away the used linens. She’d thought Danica would have wanted a big send-off, but she seemed perfectly content to be hanging around with them as they cleaned up.
“Why don’t you and JD head to the apartment?” Sierra suggested. “You don’t need to stay here. We’ll take care of everything.”
“I know, but I want to spend more time with Dalton,” Danica said with a frown.
“I think you should ask Dalton what his plans are, so you have peace of mind when you leave.”
Danica sighed. “You’re right, that’s what I should do, but I don’t want to pressure him.”
Sierra rubbed her arm. “I think when you look at the bigger picture, he might be ready to have you ask that question. It’s probably the easiest of the ones you could be asking him.”
“True,” Danica said. “Okay. I’ll go talk to him and then, if he’s going to be around for a bit, JD and I will take off.”
“That’s a great plan,” Sierra said. “I’m surprised I didn’t think of it.”
“Oh, be quiet.” Danica gave her a gentle punch to her shoulder. “Honestly, if you weren’t my best friend—”
“You’d love me anyway.” Sierra gave her another hug.
“Yes. Yes, I would.” Danica wrapped her arms tightly around Sierra and squeezed.
Sierra tried to keep her emotions at bay, but it was hard. In as much as this day had signaled a change in Danica and JD’s lives, it would also be a change for Sierra. For the first time since they’d moved in together when she’d started university, she and Danica wouldn’t be living in the same apartment.
Sure, Danica would just be upstairs, but it wouldn’t be the same. Sierra would be coming home to an empty house at the end of her shift. Not that Danica had always been there, but Sierra had known that she would be coming home at some point. Now, that was no longer the case.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Sierra said, trying to keep her smile steady as they stepped back from each other. “You just go and enjoy your time with your husband.”
“My husband.” Danica’s smile grew at the word. “This time last year, I would never have imagined this to be possible.”
And wasn’t that the truth. So much could change in the space of a year. It was simultaneously an exciting and scary thought.
CHAPTER THREE
Makayla and Belle appeared next to them, and as they spoke with Danica, Sierra drifted away to help put the décor back into the boxes they’d used to bring it all to the reception hall. Glancing around, she noticed that JD was talking to Emily and Steve. She had a feeling that they wanted to know a few more details about Dalton’s return.
Like, how long had JD known about this plan?
Sierra hoped that people would leave details of Dalton’s return alone for now and just be thankful that he was there because she had a feeling that JD had known where Dalton was longer than just a couple of days. As she lifted a box of centerpieces to put it on the table that had been cleared off already, near the exit, she looked around to see where Dalton was.
It didn’t take her long to spot him standing with his brothers. Though most of them stood a couple of inches taller than Dalton, he and Tristan were close to the same height, which told her that he’d grown even more after he’d left. Not much, mind you, but he was still taller than the last time she’d seen him.
Sierra had no doubt that it was just one of a million ways he’d changed over the years. And that wasn’t even counting his shorter hair and the scruff he now sported. It was weird to see the man who’d returned in the place of the boy who had left.
She’d always thought that when she saw Dalton again, all the feelings she’d had for him as a teen would rush to the surface. But as she kept an eye on him while she made her way around the room collecting more table centerpieces, Sierra realized that she might have felt that way if the man had resembled the boy more. Instead, the man was a stranger to her. A familiar stranger, in some ways, but she figured that in the most important ways, he was truly unknown to her now.
After she’d picked up the last of the centerpieces, Sierra returned with the box to put it with the others. She noticed that Danica now stood with JD as they spoke to her parents.
“Do you think everything’s okay?” Belle murmured as she put another box on the table.
“I don’t know. I just hope they’re not giving JD grief for having been in contact with Dalton without letting them know.”
Belle nodded as she began to close up the boxes. “At this point, I think we should just be grateful he showed up at all.”
That was Sierra’s thought too, but she knew that Emily and Steve had suffered the most of all of their family when Dalton had left. Because of that, it wasn’t too surprising that they might want more answers while everyone else was just glad that Dalton was home.
Soon Mitch
joined them and, after signaling to Gabe, they began to carry the boxes out of the hall. Danica had asked that Sierra be responsible for any cards they received, so she put those in her “just in case the bride needs something” bag, then made one more loop around the room at Belle’s request to make sure they had collected everything that was theirs.
She caught up with Ethan who was trying to keep his daughter and her cousins from running wildly around the hall now that it had emptied out some. He gave Sierra a smile as he slipped his arm around her shoulders to give her a hug.
“Taking care of you didn’t prepare me for these three,” Ethan said with a weary laugh. “And I’ve discovered that giving them candy the way I used to give it to you is a big mistake. I mean, epic. Why didn’t you ever react to sugar the way these kids do so I would have been prepared?”
Sierra laughed, taking a small measure of delight in her brother’s lament. She truly appreciated all he’d done for her, and she knew he was the best dad, even if he couldn’t give his kids candy on a regular basis to brighten their day. In some ways, it was kind of nice to think that candy exchange would always be their thing. Well, he gave candy to Makayla too, but not as often as he did to Sierra because Makayla seemed to be on a perpetual diet after having kids.
“Since I refuse to give them any more sugar tonight, I might as well give it to you,” Ethan said as he held out his hand, clearly trying to keep it hidden from the girls running around them.
In his palm lay the familiar red and green wrapped strawberry candy she loved so much. Sierra snatched it from him then went up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thanks, Ethan.”
“Daddy, did you just give Auntie Sierra a candy?” His daughter, Stephanie, stood there with her hands on her hips.
“You know that I keep those ones just for her,” Ethan said.
“And Mommy says you can’t give us any candy,” she said, a resigned tone in her voice.
When He Returns Page 2