There’s so much I wish I could tell you, advice I wish I had the time to give. But none more important than this: never stop growing a love between you that always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. It’s that kind of love, Emma, that’ll never fail.
No tears of sorrow today, kiddo. Give Austin a good ribcage shot for me if he slacks on his job of walking you down the aisle. And be sure to tell that good-looking mom of yours how breathtaking she is.
Congratulations, honey. I’m so sorry I can’t be there in person, but please know how very much I love you. More than words can express.
With all my love, today and always,
Dad
I clutched the letter to my chest and held on to the part of him my heart didn’t have to let go of. Ever. No tears? Mom was right. There was no way I could’ve handled reading his letter tomorrow.
Something jingled behind me, followed by Jake’s wet nose sliding under my arm. He collapsed beside me and rested his head on my thigh. I rubbed his ears. Animals always knew when you needed them.
“Not getting cold feet, are you?” Riley called from the bottom of the stairs.
I turned. My half-hearted smile wasn’t convincing enough to override the tear marks left on my cheeks. Riley was at my side in a heartbeat.
“What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”
I handed him the letter, not quite ready to speak.
One glance at the signature was all it took. His eyes overflowed with a yearning to take all my pain on himself. He hugged me to his side in an enclosure of steady comfort. The kind that clothed me in the truth of every word Dad’d just shared with me. Riley was, and always would be, my evidence that some dreams were worth never giving up on.
Jake wandered back under the porch, and Riley and I stayed on the shore as the summer night’s only remaining audience. A breeze whispered across the lake. Each time the water rippled into the shoreline, minutes drifted a little closer to all we’d been waiting for.
Reaching this point hadn’t handed me a blueprint. I didn’t know where our home in Nashville would be, how opening a center there would play out, or what traveling with Riley would look like. After everything I’d gone through the last couple of years, I still had questions. Even some regrets. But in the very place I’d always gone to look for answers, I sat now, holding on to the only one I needed.
The earlier bustle inside the house had fizzled out completely by the time we headed back up. A bright yellow sticky note greeted us at the sliding door with a message written in very distinct Jaycee-handwriting: Eye mask in freezer!
Riley and I looked from the note to each other and laughed. I shouldn’t have been the least bit surprised Jaycee would know I’d been crying, or that she’d already prepared a remedy.
Eye mask in hand, I tiptoed behind Riley down the quiet hallway toward my bedroom on the backside of the house. We lingered in the doorway. A faint streak of moonlight trickled through the window and highlighted a look in Riley’s eyes that defined everything words couldn’t. My fingers grazed down the front of his T-shirt in search of a way to say goodnight.
Was I really supposed to fall asleep while waiting for tomorrow?
Riley stared at the hardwood floor. “You remember the night we were talking outside your apartment when Jaycee came to pick you up? I never got to finish telling you how I knew that nothing would stop me from marrying you.”
I leaned against the trim.
“When we first met, you asked me if I’d ever thought about pursuing a career as a recording artist, and I told you I did once. A long time ago.”
A clear remembrance of that day in his apartment came to mind.
“Well, there’s more to that story than I first told you.” He kept his voice even, but I sensed a twinge of uneasiness.
“I reached a breaking point the summer before I went off to school. An all-day fight with my dad ended in him storming off, disappearing for hours in some bar. He came home that night angry at the world. Got into it with my mom the second he stepped foot into the kitchen. He didn’t know I was out back on the deck, overhearing every word.”
He tilted his head against the jamb. “I’d tried so hard not to be a disappointment to him. But after that night, I was done. Done trying to please him. Done with music. Done hoping things would change. I busted my guitar in half and ran off to that park where we found Jasmine. I could shut everything else out there, you know?” He shook his head. “But not that night.”
A deep breath broadened his shoulders. “I stood on the edge of that cave and buried my identity as a musician. Said I’d never dream again.”
He met my eyes with honest vulnerability. “Right after, I swore someone said, ‘Yes, you will.’”
He kneaded his neck. “I know that sounds crazy. I was the only one out there. Believe me. I checked to make sure.” He laughed but then sobered. “Crazy or not, the only thing I kept thinking was, how? Dreams are too painful.”
His forehead creased as he stared at the floor again. “I’ll never be able to explain this, but I saw a vision of a girl. She didn’t have a name. I couldn’t make out any features except the way she looked at me. With such belief, it negated every doubt I’d ever had about myself.” A long blink lifted his lashes. “And right then, I knew, this girl—whoever she was—was going to help me find the hope to dream again.”
I wrung the eye mask and fought down more tears.
Riley’s fingers found mine. He led me toward the twin bed along the back wall, lifted the covers over top of my legs, and sat beside me. “I convinced myself I’d imagined the whole thing,” he continued. “Until I saw you for the first time on campus that day. You remember?”
Did he really have to ask?
He smiled without missing a beat. “Those eyes. When I saw you again at Nuts and Jolts, I had to meet you. Had to know.”
Starlight peered in behind him. “I kept telling myself I was crazy. But the more time we spent together, the more I couldn’t fight it.”
I brushed my hand over top of his, voice lost.
He inhaled. “That day in the woods after you told me about your dreams and the way you’d been hurt, I went home furious. How could God use you to restore hope in my life but leave me helpless to do the same for you?”
Faint traces of the pain he’d felt then colored his eyes now.
“I couldn’t sleep that night. I sat straight up in bed and demanded an answer. And just like that time at the cave, I heard a response: ‘Because it’s something only I can do.’”
Riley outlined the edges of my sapphire engagement ring with his fingertip. “So, I made a promise that night. I’d let you go. But if God ever brought you back to me, I never would again.”
He lifted my hand to his lips, lowered it back to the sheet, and looked at me with the same assurance that’d kept him grounded since the beginning.
Had God really been leading us to each other all this time? Through everything?
I held on to Riley’s hand and the answer to the prayers Dad had never let me give up on.
“You know,” I said, finding my voice again. “Sometimes I think about how much easier the road could’ve been if we knew the things we know now. But I wouldn’t trade any of it.” Not after seeing how purpose had flowed through every step. Even the pain.
“Does that mean you’re ready for tomorrow?”
“The beginning of always?” I smiled. “Definitely.”
Riley’s grin slanted. “Forever’s kind of a long time. Think you’ll still love me when I keep you up till two in the morning playing the piano?”
“Hmm.” I squinted and scrunched my lips to the side. “Only if you’ll still love me when all I make you for dinner are frozen meals.”
Riley shook the bed with laughter. “Deal.” He leaned in to kiss me, crossed the room, and stopped in the doorway. “This is the last night I have to say goodbye.”
For that reason alone, tomorrow couldn’t come fast enough.
> chapter thirty-one
All Along
I drew back the curtains and absorbed the colors of a new day rushing in. It wasn’t the first time I’d woken up to a sunrise, but today was different. Today, the sunlight filled the room like a faithful friend offering a gift it’d been bursting at the seams to give me.
Outside my window, rows of rustic oak chairs, separated by a single aisle down the middle, lined the beach just beyond where the grass transitioned into the sandy shoreline. Jaycee had obligingly set the scene for no more than a hundred people, to keep the ceremony small and intimate and perfect.
I sat on the sill—eyes closed, bathed in warmth—and breathed.
Jaycee screeched to a stop across the room. “You’re not in the shower yet?”
I tried not to laugh at her militant pose. “Is it okay if I wash my hair all by myself?”
She tapped her watch. “That depends.”
I saluted my commanding officer and marched straight for the bathroom. Steam blanketed around me, but for once, I didn’t need its calming effect. It didn’t matter what length I had to go to to get ready. It didn’t matter how many stairs I had to climb down in my dress or how many pairs of eyes would be glued on me as I walked down the aisle. Nothing could interfere with the joy consuming me today.
Jaycee got to work on me the second I emerged from the bathroom.
What would’ve taken me days to accomplish only took her a mere two hours. Before I knew it, I was standing in the middle of the bedroom, surrounded by the glistening eyes of my mom, aunt, soon-to-be mother-in-law, and my best friend.
Simple, yet elegant. That was the goal, and Jaycee’d pulled it off magnificently. Including the dress. Aside from the lace embellishments along the straps and a thin border garnishing the neckline, a simple satin layer coated my body in a floor-length, A-line fit. And the best part was, I didn’t have to wear heels.
Mom covered her mouth. “Oh, sweetheart.”
“No crying before the ceremony.” Jaycee fluttered her fingers in front of her own eyes. “Okay, ladies, it’s time for everyone to take their places.”
She squeezed my hands and offered a final proud smile at her work of art before flitting off to join the rest of the wedding party. The door that’d turned into a revolving turntable all morning now stood still.
In front of an oversized mirror, I straightened out the single pearl on the necklace Dad had given me all those years ago. And for the slightest moment, I thought I saw him standing beside me with a smile that held my heart. “I love you, Daddy.”
A knock at the door rippled over my shoulders. “The prince kindly requests an audience with the . . .” Austin stopped halfway through the door, staring as though he didn’t recognize me. “. . . Princess,” he finished slowly.
I looked down at my dress. “What?”
He shook his head, for perhaps the first time in his life, speechless. Smiling, he extended his arm to me. “Your chariot awaits, my lady.”
I took his arm and poked him in the side. “Yards of satin fabric, and I can still take you down.”
“You wish,” he said from the corner of his mouth. “I think you should just concentrate on making it down those steps without tripping.”
I gripped his sleeve. “What do you think you’re here for?”
“Really? ‘Cause I was planning on leaning on you.” He cocked his chin. “You know. The whole bum leg thing.”
I gave him that rib shot Dad had mentioned in his letter.
He laughed but covered my hand on his arm and looked at me with the same tenderness Dad would’ve if he were there. “Don’t worry, Em. I won’t let you fall.”
I batted away the tears Jaycee would’ve killed me for shedding before we’d made it through pictures. We rounded the corner into the dining room where Jasmine swayed in front of the sliding glass door. Wearing an iridescent flower girl dress and tiny butterfly barrettes to match a darling necklace, she couldn’t have looked more precious. Lost in a fairy tale of glass slippers, she dangled her clear shoe on the tip of her foot at different angles in the sunlight.
Austin cleared his throat.
She dropped her shoe and ran straight for us. “Emma!”
Austin intercepted her right in time. “I’m sorry,” he said in a stellar robot impersonation. “You’ve just entered a no-touching zone. All hugs are reserved for after the ceremony.”
I glared at him.
He offered an apologetic shrug. “Jaycee’s orders.”
Of course.
I twirled Jasmine around by the hand to showcase her dress. “Great pick.”
Eyes sparking, she returned my wink.
“You’re up, kiddo.” Austin pointed at the door and the processional already underway.
A silent squeal spread across every inch of her little face as she spun and raced for the door. She stole a minute to smooth out her hair before counting her steps onto the deck.
I leaned over to Austin. “I think she might steal the show.”
He laughed in full agreement and offered his arm again.
Outside, a gentle breeze carrying the scent of fresh flowers swirled around the edges of my hair, danced across my bare shoulders, and flittered to the opposite side of the deck.
“Ready?” Austin whispered.
Like never before. I lifted the hem of my dress off the ground.
He kept me close on the way down the stairs, just as Dad would’ve. Behind the stretch of chairs, Melody manned a makeshift soundboard. She’d exchanged her miniature ear buds for a much larger headset. Everything about the context fit her perfectly.
Rows filled with smiling faces and tear-stained cheeks bordered the shoreline as music cued our turn down the aisle. I recognized the song Melody had chosen as the one Riley’d been working on when I’d visited him in Nashville. Except in this rendition, the elegant resonance of violins complemented the piano’s rich tenor.
Friends and family all rose to their feet. I tightened my fingers around Austin’s sleeve again. With more poise than I’d ever seen from him, he led me along the sandy path toward a simple arbor where Riley waited for me.
In front of Jaycee, Jasmine clicked her heels together in a twitch of visible excitement. Riley’s dad stood by his side, tall and proud.
Halfway down the aisle, I flashed a peek at my bare feet beneath the bottom of my dress. Riley laughed with his eyes and beamed at me the exact way Dad said he would.
When we reached the front, he tore his gaze from mine just long enough to nod at Austin with gratefulness and promise.
Austin kissed my cheek and sat in the front row beside Mom, who immediately took my place latching on to his arm for stability.
I transferred my bouquet to Jaycee and joined hands with Riley. For the slightest second, I worried we should’ve asked the pastor to prompt our vows for us. But as soon as I heard Riley’s voice, everything else dissolved. Right then, it was only him and me.
“I, Riley Preston, take you, Emma Matthews, to be my wife. I promise to love you faithfully, to stand by your side through the certainty of today and the questions of tomorrow, and to sing you home if you ever lose your way. I promise to protect your heart, share your hopes and dreams, and cherish you as my best friend each and every day for as long as we both shall live.”
His eyes, as clear blue as the water beside us, gleamed with the fullness of his promise. And after everything we’d gone through—all the ways we’d grown—it was a promise I was confident I could finally offer him in return.
“I, Emma Matthews, take you, Riley Preston, to be my husband. I promise to spend every day learning to love you through the best and worst of what’s to come. I promise never to let you lose sight of who you are or doubt who you’re becoming. I promise to honor and respect you, comfort and support you, and love and cherish you without condition. From this day forward, I unite my heart, my dreams, my life with yours for as long as we both shall live.”
With the sacred vow of exchanged rings and
a kiss that, thanks to Trevor, solicited enough whoops from the audience to make me blush, the ceremony ended.
Announced as Mr. and Mrs. Preston for the first time, Riley and I ran down the center aisle under a shower of birdseed, holding on to everything we’d thought had been out of reach. All the broken pieces of the past came together. There was no rewinding time, only looking forward with an unyielding certainty that the best was yet to come.
If I ever had any doubt whatsoever about Jaycee becoming a wedding planner, it vanished the second we crossed the threshold leading to the outdoor reception.
A series of white and fuchsia magnolia trees fenced in a field along Lake Tahoe’s stunning backdrop. Green branches with clusters of purple blooms wept like open umbrellas over the path ushering us toward a sheer canopy tent.
Strings of lights hung from intertwined tree branches stretched across the enchanting ceiling above tables decorated with Jaycee’s artistic touch. I clung to Riley’s side, overwhelmed by how magical it all seemed.
I’d doubted anything could’ve surpassed the feeling of sharing our vows. But standing here in this picture of elegance, my heart told me this was only the beginning.
From toasts, to dinner, to dessert, Jaycee’d arranged the flow of the evening to match the soft ambience perfectly.
While waiters made subsequent rounds across the floor, Austin slipped up to the front of the tent and tapped the microphone. “Excuse me, everyone.”
The hum of conversations transitioned into an expectant silence, every eye fixed on him.
Except mine.
I studied the mischievous grin Riley was failing to hide.
He leaned over. “Remember that surprise I was telling you about?”
He kissed the bottom of my ear, pushed his chair back, and hustled up to the corner of the stage.
Austin tilted the microphone to the side and cleared his throat. I wasn’t used to seeing him nervous. That wasn’t a good sign. I stole a glance at Mom across several tables. Her gaze flittered in my direction, but she looked just as surprised.
Hope Unbroken (Unveiled Series Book 3) Page 21