Gabi let out a soft giggle. “Well, from my experience, the ones with more cream in the middle are definitely the better ones.”
“Aha. That's a great way to narrow down my choices.” Ryder picked an éclair with lots of filling and took a big bite, letting out a satisfied groan as he did so. “You steered me in the right direction.”
“Glad to be of help,” Gabi said as she presented the tray to his brothers and waited while they made their selections or passed altogether. As she walked away, Remy let out a loud huffing sound and shot Ryder a disbelieving glance.
“What's your problem?” Ryder asked. “Did I steal your éclair or something?”
Remy's brows knit together. “How did you do that?”
“Do what?” Ryder asked through a mouth full of éclair.
“Make her smile. And laugh. How did you do that?” he asked through gritted teeth.
“Who are you talking about? Gabi?” Ryder asked.
Remy's mouth swung open. “Gabi? You call her Gabi? I've been working here at the bakery with Gabrielle for weeks. She's never once smiled at me like that, nor has she told me to call her Gabi. She's about as cold as the Arctic Circle.”
Gabi, otherwise known as Gabrielle, was a new hire at Sweet Treats bakery.
Blue tried to hide his smile behind his hand while Brandon burst out laughing.
“Maybe you're losing your touch,” Brandon teased with a jab in Remy's side.
“Why do you care anyway?” Mac asked. He folded his brawny arms across his chest. “You trying to date her or something?” The hint of a smile rested on his lips.
Remy looked over at Gabrielle, his gaze lingering a tad longer than necessary. “She intrigues me. She's beautiful. Graceful. Mysterious. And very reserved.” He put his hand on his chin, resembling ‘The Thinker’ by Rodin.
For a moment, Ryder realized, Remy resembled his pint-sized self. As a kid whenever he'd pondered a problem, he'd done the very same thing.
“Maybe she just doesn't like you,” Nick said with a chuckle, “although that would be a first for you.”
Maggie walked over and grabbed Ryder by the arm, effectively breaking up the band of brothers. She looked around at her sons. “I'd like to borrow your brother for a moment. Your father has a few words to say to the happy couple.”
Ryder saw the looks of surprise etched on his brothers' faces. They all knew that Dad still wasn't comfortable speaking, particularly in public. He still had a slight slur to his words and he couldn't always express himself the way he wanted. It led to a lot of frustration. No matter how many positive strides he made, Alec always wanted to do more, accomplish more, push himself to the brink. More than anything, he wanted his life to return to the way it had been before his stroke. It was difficult for him to entertain the notion that things might never return to the way they'd been.
Tess walked up and slid her hand into his. She locked gazes with him, her green eyes sparkling with joy. “I think this is the happiest day of my life, other than the day you told me that you loved me.”
“And I asked you to marry me on that day, too,” he added, feeling euphoric as the memory of that moment washed over him. “I don't know if you could tell, but I was incredibly nervous about proposing. I wasn't one hundred percent certain about your answer.”
“Now that I think about it, I should have made you sweat it out a little. After all, you kind of played hard to get for a while there,” Tess teased.
She smiled up at him, her eyes glinting with contentment, providing reassurance that all was forgiven. For a while there he'd been blind to the possibilities and too filled with doubt and fear to embrace the thought of love with his best friend. Sometimes though, you just had to let faith lead the way.
“I acted all kinds of a fool, didn't I?” He leaned down and nuzzled her nose with his own, staring deeply into her eyes. He saw it all there—trust, devotion, hope, fidelity. And most of all, a love to last a lifetime.
“I forgive you. All's well that ends well,” she said, reaching up and placing a kiss on his lips that cemented every emotion racing through him. Joy. Anticipation. Gratitude. And abiding love. He kissed her back with equal fervor, wanting to show her with his kiss how very much he loved and wanted her as his bride. As the kiss ended, he took a step backward to admire Tess. Every time he saw her she looked more beautiful than the time before. Now, flush with happiness, she was radiant.
Just looking down at Tess' beautiful face centered him. He couldn't even put into words how much happiness Tess had brought into his life. For a man who'd believed love was no longer an option in his life, God had shown him that love was all around him. Love had brought his adoptive parents into his life, as well as his six brothers. And Tess' love had made a believer out of him, showing him in no uncertain terms that there were no limits to the human heart. It stretched and filled and expanded, almost to the point of bursting.
Sweet, lovely Tess. He lowered his head and placed a tender, lingering kiss on her lips. As much as he appreciated this engagement party hosted by his parents, all he really wanted to do was be alone with Tess. It seemed as if there would never be enough alone time to tell her how much he adored her.
He felt a slap on his back. “Enough of that!” his mother barked. “It's time for a toast.” She turned towards the throng of guests. “Everyone grab a champagne flute. There's champagne and sparkling cider.”
Mac was helping to support Alec as he walked towards the center of the room using the support of a cane. Everyone gathered around Ryder and Tess. Blue and Sarah held hands and beamed in their direction. Tess stood in front of Ryder, who had his arms wrapped around her middle from behind her. She rested her head against his chest, tilting her head up so she could smile at him. He brushed his lips against her temple. A hush fell over the room as his father stepped forward with the help of his cane. Mac stood a few steps behind him, ever the watch dog.
“To the happy couple. May your days be filled with love and light. And your nights filled with harmony,” he said with a toothy grin. “May you never forget what brought your hearts...t-t-together.” Maggie walked over and handed him a flute filled with sparkling cider. With his wife holding on to his side he raised his hand in the air and said, “W-wishing you a house full of little Donahues.” A rousing cheer went up inside the bakery.
He looked over at Tess, who was blinking away tears. Tenderly, he swiped away a lone tear that had escaped her lid. “Happy tears, I hope,” he said.
“I'm not crying. Really I'm not,” Tess protested. She wrinkled her nose as she sniffed back some more tears. Her voice went soft. “It's just...I never imagined happiness like this. Even when I dreamed of us being together it was all fuzzy in my mind. I couldn't quite picture it because part of me doubted whether it would ever happen. Reality is oh so much better.”
“I want all of my brothers to find their other halves, just like I did. Then the circle will be complete.”
Tess raised an eyebrow and chuckled. The sound of it was music to his ears. It was rich and infectious, making him want to join right along with her. “Some of them might be harder than others,” she warned. “The Donahue boys are a diverse bunch of personalities.”
“That's okay,” he said. “Each of them has a match out there. They just have to find them.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Like you found me?”
He wrapped his arms around her middle and pulled her towards him. “Exactly like that. And in case I haven't made it clear, I'm never letting you go, Tess. ”
“I wouldn't have it any other way,” Tess said with a sigh as Ryder's lips pressed against hers in a kiss that held the promise of a lifetime.
UNTIL YOU LOVED ME
Book 3, Seven Brides, Seven Brothers
Remy and Gabrielle's story
August 2014
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[KH1]
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
>
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Epilogue
Still the One Page 15