“Kate Clark, I love you with all my heart. Will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me again—this time in a more traditional setting—and spend the rest of your life with me?”
With happy tears streaming down her cheeks, Kate nodded and watched as Aidan slid a gorgeous emerald cut diamond on the ring finger of her left hand. It struck her that even though her father might have lived in her head and affected all of her past relationships, he hadn’t hijacked her subconscious. Suddenly she realized that maybe part of the reason she had blocked their Vegas wedding was because that part of her knew it was the right thing to do.
If she and Aidan hadn’t eloped in Vegas, maybe they would not be standing here like this now, with him on one knee and her heart overflowing with love for her...her husband.
“It is beautiful, Aidan. When did you get the ring?”
“I bought it right after you moved in with Chloe and me. I was waiting for the right time to propose, because I wanted to give you the proposal you deserve. I know how important it is to you. Maybe it could have been grander—”
“No. It is perfect.”
“And we can start over and plan a traditional wedding,” he said.
“You really do know me, don’t you? Better than my own mother. Oh my gosh! Speaking of, my mother and Stephen got engaged tonight. I’ll have to ask her, but what would you think of us having a double wedding? Chloe could be our flower girl.”
“I think it would be a perfect wedding. I’m up for anything as long it makes you happy and we get to spend the rest of our lives together. I love you, Mrs. Quindlin.”
Epilogue
One month later
On a perfect day in April at the Forsyth Galloway Inn, Kate and Aidan and Zelda and Stephen prepared to stand in front of Gigi, who had become an ordained minister for the occasion, and exchange wedding vows.
Zelda had been thrilled with the idea of a double, because she would finally get her wish of seeing her third daughter get married.
“Thank you for wanting to share this special day with Aidan and me.”
“For Stephen and me, having a double wedding is the best of both worlds. We get to share our special day with you and Aidan,” she said as she straightened Kate’s veil. She smiled, blinking back tears, then she kissed her daughter on the cheek.
“Oh, Mom, you’re making me tear up, too. We’re going to ruin our makeup.”
They laughed, holding on to each other’s forearms.
Zelda looked gorgeous in a sleek, sleeveless, blush satin A-line gown. It skimmed her slender body, showcasing her toned figure and all her best features. Instead of a veil, she had opted to wear a spray of orange blossoms tucked into her classic chignon.
Kate, on the other hand, had chosen to go traditional, with a beaded champagne-colored strapless fit-and-flare gown. Her baby bump was just starting to show, and Kate accentuated it like a badge of honor. Kerrigan Karol had done Kate’s hair, taming her long red curls into a sophisticated updo fashioned around the chapel-length veil, which sat on the back of her head.
Jane and Elle entered the bridal room looking beautiful in silk tea-length dresses that were a shade darker than Zelda’s gown. Each of them held one of Chloe’s hands. The little girl wore a champagne silk shantung dress with a wide pink sash that tied into a large bow in the back. Elle had Zelda’s puppy, Bear, on a crystal-studded pale pink leash.
They handed Kate and Zelda beautiful bouquets of white and blush pink roses, hydrangeas, peonies and freesia. The long green stems were cut blunt at the end and tied with a satin ribbon. Zelda bent down and loved on Bear before taking the leash so the puppy could accompany her down the aisle.
“Mommy and Grandma Zelda, you look so pretty,” Chloe said, holding her little basket.
Together, the brides and their attendants moved from the bridal room into the dining room, which looked out into the garden where the ceremony would take place.
Since they had been able to make the plans for the double wedding come together so quickly, they had delayed construction on the spa. It would start as soon as the couples returned from their respective honeymoons, which they were taking separately.
Kate had agreed to assume ownership and move her clients over. In the meantime, she was going to put the chairs she had purchased from Kerrigan in an empty guest room. She and a handful of the colleagues she had worked with at Kerrigan Karol’s would be able to operate until the spa was fully operational and open for business.
Elle, Jane, Chloe, Kate and Zelda stood at the French doors in the dining room, hugging and blinking back tears and remarking about how beautiful the garden looked. The camellias in white, peach and pink were splendid, and the azaleas, which were usually at the height of their glory in March, were still flourishing. It was as if they had stayed just to bless the wedding with their brilliant tones of red and fuchsia, which popped against the green vines spilling over the wrought iron fence surrounding the Forsyth Galloway Inn’s garden. Delicate white dogwood blossoms dotted the trees and stood out resplendently against the brilliant blue sky.
The most creative florist in all of Savannah could not have offered wedding flowers that were more beautiful.
Through the sheers on the French doors, Kate could see Aidan standing by the fountain at the other end of the garden. Her gaze homed in on him like a light guiding her home. Could there be any greater honor than to be Aidan’s wife and a mother to Chloe and their unborn child?
Remarkably, she wasn’t nervous—at least, not in the negative sense of the word. A calm excitement had her heart beating at the same rate as Pachelbel’s
