words to sink in. Her head started spinning and her heart was racing. She heard Evan say, “What’s wrong with her, Daddy? She hasn’t said anything.”
“Ellie?” Declan was starting to sound a little panicky.
As the implication of what was going on hit her, Ella started laughing. “Oh my God, yes!” She threw her arms around a nervous looking Declan and an excited Evan. “I’d love to marry you guys. I can’t think of anything in this world I would rather do!”
Evan squirmed out of her hold, running to the kitchen to get some plates for the cake, while Declan crushed her against him. “Is this a real yes?” he asked.
She felt tears running down her face as she said, “Yes. I . . . I’m so happy and surprised.”
With a huge grin, Declan said, “I knew you couldn’t say no to Evan.”
“I couldn’t say no to his daddy either.” When Evan came back into the room, they were lost in a long, drugging kiss. He wedged his way between them holding up a ring box.
He held it out to Declan and said, “I got her ring like I was supposed to.” Then looking confused he added, “We really will need plates though, won’t we?”
Declan slid the beautiful princess-cut diamond ring on her finger and asked her formally, “Ella Marie Webber, will you marry me?”
Her tears continued to fall as she said, “I would love to marry you, Declan, and you, Evan.” Father and son beamed, and the three admired the diamond on her finger.
“Ellie, I only have two more things to ask of you. Please don’t make me wait long and please don’t let your mother hurt me.”
She burst out laughing thinking there was something really wrong with her. How could she be crying one moment and laughing the next. Being in love had shown her one thing, she never knew what to expect, even from herself.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The bride was radiant in an off-the-shoulder, white silk gown. And the other bride glowed in an empire waist, organza dress that clearly showed her advanced stage of pregnancy. Flower petals lined the aisle, courtesy of a handsome flower boy named Evan. The bridesmaids consisted of Claire, Suzy, Ava, and Emma. The groomsmen were Jason, Gray, Brant, and Mac.
Declan smiled at Evan as he fidgeted beside him. On the other side of the altar, Nick fidgeted almost as much. Ella and Beth stood inside the double doors at the back of the church waiting for the wedding march to begin.
Declan had to marvel at the changes that falling in love with Ella had brought about in him. He had led such a solitary existence until he met her. Now he had friends he socialized with, and he was marrying the woman of his dreams, in a double ceremony, no less.
A couple weeks after he asked Ella to marry him, she had come to him with a hopeful expression on her sweet face. Beth wanted to marry Nick before their baby was born. She wanted to prove to herself that she could walk down the aisle while she was pregnant and not give in to her need to lose weight first. He didn’t fully understand it, but Ella did. She knew that her friend badly wanted to carry through with her plans, but was very nervous about being the center of attention. Ella had come up with a plan for Beth to have the wedding she wanted, but not have to be alone in the spotlight.
Declan was helpless to deny her anything when she looked at him with those big eyes. She said she had been fully prepared to beg or bribe him if necessary. He had agreed without any need for begging, but enjoyed her enthusiastic thanks just the same.
In true fashion, the idea of a double wedding with her daughter’s pregnant best friend had appalled Ella’s mother, but faced with the possibility of not being a part of her daughter’s wedding, she had given in and taken over a lot of the planning. Originally, Beth had wanted a beach wedding like her sister, but with her pregnancy and Ella still recovering from her surgeries, they had decided it wasn’t a great idea to walk down an aisle made of shifting sand.
Ella’s mother had surprised everyone when she stepped forward and suggested the family church for the wedding. Declan had expected her to suggest a location in another state to make sure none of their friends attended, but he had underestimated her ability to adjust when it was necessary. He had no doubt she was going to be the mother-in-law from hell, but since she had already busted in on them in bed, what was left,
The wedding march started and he felt his eyes start to well up as the best friends clasped hands and started down the aisle. Their fathers had agreed to walk behind them in a nontraditional show of support. At nine months pregnant, Beth waddled a bit, but she was beautiful as her eyes clung to the man beside Declan.
Ella still walked with a slight limp that was hardly noticeable to those who didn’t know about her accident. She was radiant and as always, he felt like he was the only man in the world when she looked at him. He was world-weary and battle scarred, but with her love, he had a fresh thirst for life that he would never have thought possible. He might never forget the traumas he had experienced, but when the shadows came, she was there to push them back with the light.
Even his nightmares had lessened in frequency and intensity over the last few weeks and he knew he owed that partly to Ella and her unconditional acceptance as well as to his sessions with his therapist. Ella had been just as happy as Mac when he finally told her about his weekly meetings. She had even accompanied him to a few of them. Even though he was dealing with his memories better, he still planned to keep seeing Dr. Robertson. He never wanted to return to his darkest days again. He thanked God he no longer had dreams about her dying, but had to wonder if somehow the previous ones had been some sort of a warning. He liked to think that maybe Craig was looking out for them from above. He would always be rough around the edges, but he suspected there was a part of her that loved leaving her straight-laced upbringing to run with him on the wild side.
As the vows were exchanged and Beth became Mrs. Merimon and Ella became Mrs. Stone, there wasn’t a dry eye in the church. Even Suzy, who was usually the tough one, was openly sobbing and looking extremely pissed off about it. She would probably scold them later for making her ruin her makeup. Nick had swept Beth into an elaborate dip and he was pretty sure Beth was going to kill him when he finally got her back up. Declan had Ella tucked safely against his side, where he planned to keep her for at least another fifty or sixty years, and beyond that if he had anything to do with it.
“I love you, Ellie,” he whispered in her ear.
She beamed at him, looking happy and peaceful. “I love you too, husband.” He couldn’t help himself; he bent down and kissed her again . . . and again.
The pastor cleared his throat saying under his breath, “I think we’ve already covered the part where you kiss the bride.”
Declan pulled away and noticed everyone in the church smiling at them and beside him, Nick gave him a nudge, “Save something for the wedding night, bro.”
He chuckled, “There’s plenty more where that came from.” And then the four of them exited the church together with Beth and Ella holding hands in the middle.
The reception was held at a local country club. Servers circulated with champagne or, for those who preferred the nonalcoholic option, sparkling water. After the cocktail hour there would be a full dinner with a choice of prime rib or smoked salmon. There were also options for the guests who were vegetarians. Ella stood beside her new husband smiling as he joked around with Gray, Jason, and Nick. He had come so far from the standoffish man he used to be. He would never be a party animal, but she had no doubt, he would be one of the best friends that these men would have in their lifetime.
Her hip gave a small twinge from all of the activity of the day, but it was minor. She was grateful that her sister had plied her with Advil before the ceremony. Thinking of her sister, she looked around the room until she spotted her standing beside her husband. They were going through a rough spot. Crystal had spent so many years trying to be everything to everyone that she had started to crack under the pressure. She had finally decided that
