“Oops,” Natalie said, lifting it up. “Just as well,” she noted as she leaned back. “I think we need to save our next kiss for the one at the altar, don’t you?”
* * *
It was entirely possible that Natalie had lost her mind. She wasn’t just getting married, she was getting married on a whim. It was crazy. It was so unlike her.
And she’d never been more excited in her life.
She wanted this more than anything, and getting married quickly was the only thing that would keep her from sabotaging herself.
Natalie rushed toward the bridal suite, reaching out to grab Gretchen’s arm and drag her down the hallway with her.
“Where are we going?” she asked. “I’m supposed to be fetching something for Bree.”
She kept going. “Don’t worry about Bree. I need you to help me get ready.”
“Help you get ready to do what?”
“To marry Colin.”
A sudden resistant weight stopped her forward progress and jerked her back. “Would you like to repeat that, please?”
Natalie sighed and turned toward her. “The bride and groom aren’t coming. Colin and I are getting married instead. I need you to help me get dressed.”
Gretchen’s jaw dropped, but she followed her willingly to the bridal suite in a state of shock. The hair and makeup crew were loitering there, waiting for the missing bride.
“Change of plans, ladies,” Natalie announced, pulling off her headset and tugging the band from her ponytail. “I’m the bride now. I need the best, fastest work you can do.”
She settled down in the chair and the team quickly went to work. A soft knock came a few minutes later and Bree slipped in with her camera. “Are we ready to take some pictures of the bride getting read—?” Bree stopped short when she saw Natalie in the chair. “What’s going on?”
“Natalie is getting married.” Gretchen held up the cell phone picture of their wayward couple. “You’re taking pictures of her and Colin instead.”
Bree took a deep breath and started nervously adjusting the lens on her camera. “Well, okay then. You might want to give Amelia a heads-up in the meantime. She’ll have a fit if she’s in the kitchen and misses the ceremony.”
Gretchen nodded and slipped out. Within about twenty minutes, Natalie was completely transformed. Her ponytail was brushed out, straightened and wrapped into a French twist. She was painted with classic cat eyes, dark lashes and rosy cheeks. They opted for a nude lip with a touch of sparkle.
By the time Gretchen returned, Natalie was ready to slip into the dress. “Colin has spoken to the pastor, so he’s on board. I brought your dad out of the chapel to walk you down the aisle. He’s waiting outside.”
Perfect. That was an important detail she hadn’t considered in her rash proposal. Thank goodness her parents were both here. She’d never hear the end of it if either of them had missed her wedding.
“Let’s get you in this gown,” Gretchen said.
It took a few minutes to get Natalie laced and buttoned into her wedding dress. The hairdresser positioned the veil in her hair and turned her toward the full-length mirror to look at herself.
Her heart stuttered in her chest when she saw her reflection. She made for a beautiful bride. And this time, unlike at the bridal salon, she was really going to be the bride. This was suddenly her day, and her gown. She was so happy they’d chosen this dress. Any other one just wouldn’t have suited her.
“Wow, honey,” Gretchen said. “You look amazing. Do you have heels?”
Natalie looked down at her sensible black flats and shook her head. That was one thing she didn’t have. “I guess I’ll just go barefoot,” she replied, kicking out of her shoes.
Gretchen picked up the bridal bouquet that was waiting in a vase on the side table. She handed it over to Natalie with a touch of glassy tears in her eyes. “I can’t believe this is happening. I’m so happy for you and Colin.”
Natalie took a deep breath and nodded. “I can’t believe it either, really. But let’s make it happen before reality sets in and I launch into a panic attack. Go tell everyone the bride is ready and cue the musicians.”
Gretchen disappeared and Natalie waited a few moments until she knew the doors to the chapel were closed. She stepped out to find her father, looking dumbfounded, on the bench outside. “Hi, Daddy.”
He shot up from his seat, freezing as he saw her in her dress. “You look amazing. I’m not sure what’s going on, but you look more beautiful than any bride I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Natalie leaned in to hug him. “It’s a long story, but I’m glad you’re here.”
The music grew louder, cueing up the bride. Natalie nearly reached for her headset before she remembered she was the bride this time. “Let’s go get married, Daddy.”
They walked to the doors and waited for them to swing open. The chapel was filled with people, all of them standing at the bride’s arrival. It was hard for her to focus on any of them, though. Her eyes instantly went to the front of the chapel.
Colin stood there in his tuxedo, looking as handsome as ever. There wasn’t a touch of nervousness on his face as he watched her walk down the aisle. There was nothing but adoration and love on his face. Looking into his eyes, she felt her own anxiety slip away. It was just like at the rehearsal. Everything faded away but the two of them.
Before she knew it, they’d walked the long aisle and were standing at the front of the chapel. Her father gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek before passing her hand off to the waiting Colin. “Take care of my girl,” he warned his future son-in-law before taking his seat.
They stepped up onto the raised platform together and waited for the pastor to start the ceremony.
“Dearly beloved, we gather here today to celebrate the blessed union of Frank and Lily.”
Colin cleared his throat, interrupting the pastor as a rumble of voices traveled through the chapel. “Colin and Natalie,” he corrected in a whisper.
The pastor’s eyes widened in panic when he realized his mistake. Natalie had worked with this pastor before and knew that he had the names typed into his text. “Oh yes, so sorry. To celebrate the blessed union of Colin and Natalie.”
The pastor continued on, but all Natalie could hear was the beating of her own heart. All she could feel was Colin’s warm hand enveloping hers. When the pastor prompted them to turn and face each other, they did, and Natalie felt a sense of peace in Colin’s gaze. He smiled at her, brushing his thumbs across the backs of her hands in a soothing motion.
“Are you okay?” he whispered.
Natalie nodded. She had never been better.
“Do you, Colin Edward Russell, take Natalie Lynn Sharpe to be your lawfully wedded wife? Will you love and respect her? Will you be honest with her? Will you stand by her through whatever may come until your days on this Earth come to an end?”
“I will.”
“And do you, Natalie Lynn Sharpe, take Colin Edward Russell to be your lawfully wedded husband? Will you love and respect him? Will you be honest with him? Will you stand by him through whatever may come until your days on this Earth come to an end?”
She took a deep breath, a momentary flash of panic lighting in Colin’s eyes. “I will,” she said with a grin.
“Fra-Colin,” the pastor stuttered. “What token do you give of the vows you have made?”
“A ring,” Colin replied, pulling the same ring box from his coat pocket that he’d presented her with on the stage Wednesday night.
“You had the ring with you?” Natalie whispered.
“I was mad, but I hadn’t given up on you yet.” Colin opened the box and settled the exquisite diamond ring over the tip of her finger.
“Repeat after me. I give you this ring as a token of my vow.” He paused, al
lowing Colin to respond. “With all that I am and all that I have, I honor you, and with this ring, I thee wed.”
“...and with this ring, I thee wed,” Colin repeated, slipping the ring onto her finger and squeezing her hand reassuringly.
“Natalie,” the pastor asked, “what token do you give of the vows you have made?”
In an instant, Natalie’s blood ran cold. She’d planned every moment, every aspect of this wedding. Everything but the rings. She had no ring. “I don’t have anything,” she whispered to the pastor.
The pastor hesitated, looking around the room for an answer to the problem as though there would be rings dangling from the ceiling on threads. This was probably the most stressful ceremony he’d ever done.
Even though she was the bride, Natalie was still a problem solver. She turned to the pews and the faces looking up at them. “Does anyone have a man’s ring we can borrow for the ceremony?”
“I have a ring,” a man said, getting up from Frankie’s side of the chapel.
He was obviously a friend of Frankie’s. They both shared a common love of bushy beards, tattoos and bow ties with matching suspenders. He jogged up the aisle, slipping a ring off his finger and handing it to Natalie.
“Thank you,” she said. “We’ll give it back as soon as we get a replacement.”
“That’s okay, you can keep it.”
He returned to his seat and Natalie looked down at the ring in her hand. It was a heavy silver band with a skull centered on it. There were glittering red stones in the eye sockets. Natalie bit her lip to keep from laughing. A ring was a ring and that was what she needed. There was no being picky right now. She placed it on the tip of Colin’s finger and repeated after the pastor.
It wasn’t until the ring was firmly seated on his finger that Colin looked down. He snorted in a short burst of laughter and shook his head. Skulls must not be his thing.
The pastor didn’t notice. He was probably just happy they had rings and it was time to wrap up the ceremony. “Colin and Natalie, as you have both affirmed your love for each other and have made a promise to each other to live in this union, I challenge you both to remember to cherish each other, to respect each other’s thoughts and ideas, and most important, to forgive each other. May you live each day in love, always being there to give love, comfort and refuge in the good times and the bad.
“As Colin and Natalie have now exchanged vows and rings, and pledged their love and faith for each other, it is my pleasure and honor to pronounce them Man and Wife. You may kiss the bride.”
“This is the part I’ve been waiting for,” Colin said with a wide smile. He took a step forward, cradling her cheeks in his hands and lifting her lips to his own.
“Wait,” Natalie whispered just before their lips touched. “I need to tell you something.”
Colin hesitated, his eyes wide with panic. She realized then that he thought she was changing her mind. “You won,” she said quickly.
“Won what?” he asked.
“You won the bet,” she admitted with a smile. “Merry Christmas, Mr. Russell. It’s time to claim your prize.”
“That I will. Merry Christmas, Mrs. Russell.”
The kiss was soft and tender, holding the promise of a lifetime together and a thousand more kisses to come. It sent a thrill through her whole body, both from his touch and from the knowledge that they were now husband and wife. He had promised her a life-changing kiss and that’s what he had delivered in more ways than one.
“I love you,” he whispered as he pulled away, careful not to smear her lipstick before they took pictures.
She could barely hear him over the applause of the crowd, but she would know the sound of those words coming from his lips anywhere. “I love you,” she said.
“Please turn and face your family and friends,” the pastor said, and they complied. “I am pleased to present for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Colin Russell.”
They stepped down the stairs together as man and wife while the crowd cheered. Hand in hand, they went down the aisle as their guests showered them with tiny bits of glittery white-and-silver confetti that looked like snow falling down on them.
They stepped through the doorway into the lobby. Waiting for them was Gretchen. She had picked up Natalie’s headset, stepping in as wedding planner. “Congratulations.” She held out a tray of champagne to them both and escorted them to the bridal suite to wait while the guests moved to the reception hall.
Alone in the suite, Colin wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her tight against him. “You’re all mine now,” he growled into her ear.
“And you’re all mine. For this Christmas and every one to follow.”
Epilogue
One year later, Christmas Eve
Natalie slowly made her way through the renovated kitchen carrying the glazed Christmas ham. She intended to put it on the dining room table, but Colin was quick to intercept her and snatch the platter from her hands.
“What are you doing? You don’t need to be carrying heavy things.”
Natalie sighed and planted her hands on her hips. Being seven months pregnant was certainly a bigger challenge than she’d expected it to be, but she was making do. “I’m just pregnant. I’m perfectly capable of doing a lot of things.”
Colin put the plate on the table and turned around. “I know you are. You’re capable of amazing things, my wife.” He kissed her on the lips. “I’d just much rather you enjoy yourself and your friends instead of being in the kitchen.”
“Okay,” she agreed, “but you come with me. All the food is out and we’re ready to eat.”
Hand in hand, they walked into the great room in what had once been the childhood home of Lily and Colin. When Frankie and Lily had returned from Vegas, Colin had still wanted to give them the house despite everything, but Lily hadn’t wanted it. Just like the wedding, she was happy with the simple apartment and less hassle.
Instead, after they got married, Colin and Natalie took up residence there. She was all too happy to call the old house her home. He sold the supermodern mansion and she sold her townhouse. After a few renovations to update some things to their liking, they moved into the house. It was where she’d had her happiest childhood memories and once she found out she was pregnant, she wanted her child to have those kinds of memories in this home, too.
The rest of the From This Moment business partners and their spouses were loitering around the seating area, warming themselves by the fireplace. Newlyweds Bree and Ian were snuggling on the couch with glasses of wine. They’d finally tied the knot in October—oddly enough, the first of the group to get engaged and the last to wed.
Gretchen was feeding a chocolate petit four to Julian as they stood at the front window admiring the extensive Christmas lights display Colin had put together outside. They had married in the spring in a small chapel in Tuscany, fulfilling Gretchen’s dream of seeing Italy at last.
“The food is ready,” Natalie announced from the entryway.
Amelia was the first to get up from her seat by the fire. “I wish you would’ve let me help you with that. There’s no need for you to manage the whole dinner by yourself. I know what it’s like to cook at seven months pregnant.”
“I’m fine. You’re always doing the cooking. I wanted to do it. Besides, you’ve got baby Hope to worry about.”
Amelia gestured over her shoulder to her husband Tyler. He was standing by the Christmas tree, letting their six-month-old look at the lights and shiny ornaments. “Not really. He’s hardly put her down since the day she was born.”
“Still. I’m fine. I might be out of practice when it comes to Christmas, but I can still manage cooking dinner.”
“Okay, but we’re doing the dishes,” Amelia argued.
“Absolutely,” Gretchen chimed in. “You’re
not lifting a single fork.”
“I won’t fight you on that. I hate doing the dishes.”
The crowd all migrated into the dining room in a chaotic rumble of conversation and laughter. They took their places around the table, with Tyler slipping Hope into her high chair.
It was hard for Natalie to believe how much their lives had all changed in the past two years. They had all found amazing men and fallen madly in love. Each of them had married, and soon, there would be two babies playing in the new chapel nursery. It was enough to make her start tearing up at the dinner table.
Damn hormones.
“I’d like to thank everyone for joining us tonight for Christmas Eve dinner. The holidays are times to be spent with friends and family and I know how important all of you are to Natalie, and to me.” Colin raised his glass to the group. “Merry Christmas, everyone.”
The four couples sitting around the table each raised their glasses to toast a festive holiday season. “Merry Christmas,” they all cheered.
* * * * *
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