Destined to Love (Starting Over Trilogy Book 3)

by Brenda Kennedy

  A: Good morning, Handsome. Thank you for my beautiful flowers. I hope you slept well on my side of the bed. I love you and I miss you terribly.

  I look down and she is right, I am on her side of the bed. I scoot over to my own side as if she is watching me.

  M: Good morning to you, too, soon-to-be Mrs. Myles, and you are welcome. I slept quite well for being drunk and no, I am not on your side of the bed.

  A: Mmm, you are becoming quite the liar. I love and miss you. Don’t mess up the seating chart for the wedding. I left detailed instructions on where I want everything. I love you. [Symbol]

  M: Don’t worry, I have it under control. Enjoy your day. I love you, more.

  I shower and dress quickly. It’s 11:00 and I should have been up by now. When I walk out into the living room, I am surprised to see everyone is still here. I am more surprised to see everything is cleaned up and in its place.

  “We were instructed to stay here and make sure you don’t forget anything — like showing up for the wedding. Angel can be very intimidating,” Raùl laughs.

  “Who you telling,” I say, walking over to get a cup of coffee. Once we finish off the pot of coffee, I head over to my parents’ house. When I arrive, I am surprised to see the entire yard is being transformed into a fantasy land. The landscapers are bringing in trees, planters, and flowers. The yard is manicured to perfection. They are stringing clear lights in all the trees and bushes. The chairs are all covered in gold chair covers with large bows on the back. It dawns on me that today, I am marrying the girl of my dreams. I run my hands through my hair and sit down.

  Mom walks over to me and bends down to kiss me. “How are you?”

  “Up until a minute ago, I was fine. It’s really happening, isn’t it? In a few hours I am going to marry the girl of my dreams. She’s the best thing that has ever happened to me. What if I screw it up? What if I can’t be what she deserves?”

  Mom sits down beside me and takes my hand. “Mason, you and your sister are my pride and joy. I loved you before I was even pregnant for you. Your father and I gave you a good foundation: We let you succeed, and we let you fail. We guarded you but let you grow. You worked hard to be where you are today. Marrying is a life lesson. Mason, you and Angel will fight and argue, you two will disagree. But in the end none of that will matter. You love her and I have never seen you happier. Be honest with her and never forget, she is your best friend. Mason, you have all the qualities that a man needs to be a good husband and father. I have no worries that you will be anything but wonderful.”

  “Mom, a few months ago I thought she might die. Here I am going to marry her. I just want to protect her and keep her safe.”

  “Mason, you are already a wonderful husband. You have nothing to worry about. Listen to your heart and you will never go wrong.”

  “You make it sound so easy.”

  “I have never lied to you. Your heart will always lead you in the right direction. Just listen to it.”

  “I hope I can live up to your expectations.”

  “Mason, you already have.” Mom pats my hand.

  “Mason, Angel’s pulling in.” Dad yells from the side of the yard.

  “She’ll kill me if I see her.” We both stand and I laugh.

  “Well, you better run.”

  Angel

  “Wow, Angel, your mother’s dress looks amazing on you.” Maria wipes the tears from her eyes. I stare at myself in the mirror and imagine my Momma wearing this dress on her wedding day. I suck in my belly and turn side to side. I stare at the mirror then turn around. I look at the small train in the back of the dress I had added. I didn’t want to make drastic changes to her dress, but I did need to update it a bit.

  Lilly carries over the veil and places it gently on my head. She steps back and looks at me. “Oh, Angel, you look stunning.” She cries and wipes the tears from her cheek.

  “Ten more minutes, girls,” a voice calls from the hallway.

  “That’s our cue. Angel, I love you like a daughter and I am so happy to have you in our family.”

  “Thank you, Lilly. I appreciate that and I love you, too.”

  Lilly hugs me and walks out of the room.

  “It’s show time, Pumpkin,” Uncle Raùl says, walking into the room.

  He stops in his tracks and smiles at me. I can see him swallowing. His eyes well up with tears and I am afraid he is going to cry.

  “Angel, I need to go. You look so beautiful; your mother would be proud.” Aunt Maria walks over and hands me my bouquet of white daisies.

  “Thank you. I love you so much.” I hug Aunt Maria and will the tears not to fall. I play with the small picture charms that have been placed on the ribbon of the bouquet. Aunt Maria looks back at me and walks out the door to meet the usher waiting to take her to her assigned seat.

  “Here, Angel.” Sara dabs my eyes for me. “Don’t you dare ruin your makeup.”

  Brea and Sara hug me. “We’ll give you two a minute. Raùl, if she messes up her makeup, I’m blaming you,” Brea says, laughing.

  “Ok, I’ll do my best not to get her crying.”

  Sara and Brea leave and someone yells, “Five more minutes,” from the hallway.

  Uncle Raùl slowly walks over to me. “Angel, you look just like your mother in that dress. I almost forgot how beautiful Ana was. I know she is smiling down on you and her heart is filled with joy for you today.”

  “Oh, Uncle Raùl, I hope so. I miss her so much.”

  “I know you do, Pumpkin.”

  “I wish she was here and that she could meet Mason. I love him so much.” I begin to cry.

  “No, no tears today, Angel. Why the sad tears?”

  “Uncle Raùl, what if he realizes that I’m not good enough for him? He has power and wealth, and I have nothing. I have brought nothing into this relationship. But I love him more than I have ever loved anyone.”

  “Angel, Mason loves you. He does not care about your money or the lack of it. He loves what’s in your heart and the way you love with everything in you. He loves the fighter and the beautiful woman you are. Lilly just had the same talk with him about the same thing. Angel, he’s afraid he isn’t good enough for you.”

  “He does?”

  “He does, Pumpkin.”

  “It’s show time,” the wedding coordinator yells from the hallway.

  “She really is a bit irritating.” I laugh.

  “You hired her and she is doing her job. Are you ready, Pumpkin?”

  “It’s now or never.”

  “Come on, Angel, Mason is waiting,”

  We walk down the stairs and wait in the back of the line. I stay hidden from view of everyone outside. The house is kept dark and it’s a little difficult to see. James, who is our ring bearer, looks back at me and gives me a thumb’s up. I wave and give him my proudest smile. Madison, Brea, and then Sara walk out. Uncle Raùl and I step up closer to the open lanai doorway. We wait for our cue. The music changes and I can hear shuffling. We get our cue to go and the butterflies come back in my belly full force. I stop and hold my stomach. I take a few cleansing breaths and close my eyes. I can do this.

  I walk with Uncle Raùl out onto the lanei, down the steps and onto the red carpet. Our flower girl, Mercedes, Mason’s cousin, goes first. She is supposed to drop daisy petals along the way to the altar. I hear laughter and I am not sure what that is for. I see all the daisy petals are in one spot. I smile. She must have just dumped them. I keep my eyes down; I’m afraid if I look up I’ll see Mason and then I’ll start crying.

  “Pumpkin?”

  I know, I know. I look up and Mason is smiling his big dimpled smile. I immediately relax and smile back. I have missed him. This is the day I have waited for. Uncle Raùl squeezes my arm and nudges me forward. I look at my uncle to let him know I am fine. I look back at Mason; he is dressed in a black tux, a crisp white shirt with a gold tie, and a cummerbund. He is also wearing a white daisy in his lapel. I smile. The wedding song is “A Thous
and Years” by Christina Perri. I love this song. The white lights are twinkling, and the candles are all glowing. The entire yard is transformed into a fairytale. When we reach Mason, he steps down from the platform and takes my hand.

  I kiss my Uncle, and he takes his seat next to my Aunt.

  “You look beautiful,” Mason says, walking me up to the platform to stand in front of the preacher. I am too scared to speak, so I look up at Mason and he winks at me. I lean into him and I hear laughter. We listen to the preacher and Mason squeezes my hand to let me know he is here.

  Mason and I agreed to make our own vows. I spent last night writing mine from my heart.

  I turn at the instructions of the preacher and Mason does the same. I smile at him and clear my throat.

  “It’s just you and me, Beauty,” Mason whispers and takes both my hands in his. I nod.

  “Mason, I love you. When I was a little girl, I read books about you. You were the hero, the Prince Charming, the knight in shining armor, in all my books. I thought you were made up: make believe. I thought you were only in the fairytales that I read.” I squeeze his hands and a tear falls onto my cheek. “Then I met you and I could not believe you were real. The more time I spent with you, the more I knew you were too good to be true. I have often asked God what I could have done to deserve you. You are kind, loving, sincere, and always a gentleman. You saved me and showed me what it’s like to be loved. You never judged me and you showed more patience than I deserved. You are my heart and my life.” I sniffle and more tears fall. “You make me want to be a better person. I promise you, I will love you with all that I am and I will try my best to be a person you can be proud of. Mason, I love you more than you can imagine.”

  Mason leans in and wipes the tears from my cheeks before he kisses me. “I love you, more.”

  Mason clears his throat, “Beauty, when I first met you I knew you were like no other woman in the world. I knew I had to get to know you and I was right. You are truly like no other. I love you and I want to be with you, forever.” Mason smiles and doesn’t look away. “You make me want to be a better person, and you make me want to see the world through your innocent eyes. You make me want to protect you, care for you, and love you with everything that I am as a man.”

  I lean in and kiss Mason. He smiles and kisses me back.

  “Angel, we still have the rings to exchange,” Mason whispers. The preacher laughs.

  “Yes, I’m sorry.” I straighten my dress and Mason smiles. James walks up and stands between Mason and me. The preacher says a prayer and blesses our rings.

  “Angel, please remove Mason’s rings from the pillow.”

  I nod and bend down to see four rings tied to the pillow that James is holding. I smile at James and stare at the rings. I blink a few times and my heart begins to race. I lean up and look at Mason. I can’t see him through the tears. Sara hands me a tissue and I try to wipe the tears enough to see Mason.

  “Mason, I don’t know what ring to take; there are too many of them on the pillow.”

  Mason takes the pillow from James and holds it up to me. “Angel, I have two different rings for each of us. It’s totally up to you which ones we use. These ones belonged to your parents. With Raùl and Maria’s approval, I had them cleaned and the diamonds tightened. These other ones are the ones I bought; if you would rather not use your parents’ rings, we can use these. It’s up to you, but I wanted you to have a choice.” He smiles and wipes away my tears.

  “Really, you did that?”

  “It’s your choice.”

  I look at the rings and untie my father’s ring from the pillow for Mason. Mason smiles and hands the pillow back to James. I say a few words and slip the ring on Mason’s finger. To my surprise, it is a perfect fit. I look up and Mason nods at me. He puts my mother’s ring on my finger, and it is also a perfect fit.

  “Now you may kiss your bride.”

  Everyone laughs as Mason swoops me up in his arms and I wrap my arms around his neck. We kiss like we are the only two people in the room.

  We turn around and smile. The preacher announces, “I would like to introduce you to Dr. and Mrs. Mason Alexander Myles.”

  I smile and look over at Mason. “Mason, I love you.”

  “Angel, I will always love you, more.”

  The End

  •••

  NOTE

  Destined to Love is Book 3 of the Starting Over trilogy:

  Book 1: A New Beginning

  Book 2: Saving Angel

  Book 3: Destined to Love

  You can follow Mason and Angel and the other characters in Shattered Dreams: a spinoff of the Starting Over Trilogy, featuring Emma, James, and Dr. Alec Collins.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Writing has always come easy for me. When I finally put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, I had no idea the direction my books would take me, or the roller coaster ride I would be on. My characters figuratively spoke to me day and night. I was shocked by the direction these books traveled. I hope you love Mason and Angel as much as I do.

  My husband Rex: Thank you for all you do for me and our family. You have truly been a blessing every day. I don’t know where I would be without you. I love you, more.

  Carey, John, Derek, Nikki, Chastidy, Rex, Brittany, Amanda, and Katie: Thank you for keeping me grounded and being who you are. Thank you for reminding me what is important every single day. I love you.

  Desmond, Samantha, Autumn, Evan, Derek, Dayquan, Darius, Draden, Alyssa, Hailey, Lucca, Tanner, Giovanni, Cain, Lelila, Kylie, DeVonte’, Adrienne, Amaya, Dominic, Damien, Caden, and Gemma: Thank you for reminding me that I am somebody; I am your grandma and nothing else matters. I love you all.

  My sisters, Martha, Rosa, and Carla: Thank you for loving Mason and Angel as much as I did. Thank you for listening to me go on and on. I love you.

  My brothers, George and Frank: Thank you for believing in me. I love you.

  My other brother, David: Thank you for believing in me and making these books even better. Thank you for your dedication and hard work. I truly appreciate everything you do. I love you.

  Dave Grether, my Business Manager and co-worker: I sold more books than I gave away. All because of you. Thank you.

  Thank you, Julie Veitas, Kelly Lanford, Cathy Stotts, Lorraine McDonald, Natalie Neck, Rose Grether, Nichole Taggart, Brittany Kennedy, and Rosa Jones for always having my back, pimping my books, helping me at book signings or assisting with the proofreading and editing. I love and appreciate you, more than you know.

  All my family, friends, internet friends, and the Manatee County Jail nursing and corrections staff: Thank you all for your support and ideas. I hope I didn’t disappoint you.

  My close family and very close friends: You may recognize many names and places in Destined to Love. I had so much fun incorporating family names and some of my favorite places into this book. You all have definitely helped inspire many of the characters in this book.

  To my supporters, readers, and fans. Thank you a million times over. I truly love and read every single review, comment, and piece of advice you leave. I love hearing from you and interacting with you. Your comments and feedback make my day.

  Eric Laudenbacher, thank you for allowing me to mention your handcrafted and unique artwork in my book as Angel’s Christmas pen set to Mason. I love your handcrafted, wooden pens. To see more of Eric’s work, you can go online to Turning Red Wood Turnings by Eric Laudenbacher, or contact him via Facebook.

  Missy MacKenzie Swain, owner of Noodle Noo Jewelry/Watches, thank you for allowing me to mention your unique and handcrafted artwork as Mason’s Christmas gift to Angel. I love your framed charms. To see more of Missy’s designs go to Noodle Noo via Facebook.

  Thank you to Cakes and Cups Bakery for making Arturo’s mini birthday cupcakes for the Tampa Mashup Book Signing.

  I support Indie Authors. If you read this book, please take the time to go on the purchasing site and give it a review. Indepen
dent authors count on your reviews to get the word out about our books. Thank you for taking the time to read our books and taking the extra time to review them. We all appreciate it very much.

  Disclaimer: People and places in this book have been used fictitiously and without malice.

  About the Author: First and foremost I am a wife, mother and grandmother.

  I am also a nurse and a new author.

  I moved to sunny Florida in 2006 and never looked back. I love fresh squeezed lemonade, crushed ice, teacups, wineglasses, non-franchise restaurants, ice cream cones, boating, picnics, cookouts, throwing parties, lace, white wine, mojitos, strawberry margaritas, white linen tablecloths, fresh flowers and Pinterest. I also love to read and write and to spend time with my family.

  My books, thus far, have been inspired by the things I love and the people who influence me, every single day to be a better person.

  You may follow me on:

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