My dad leads me toward the door. “Come on. You heard the man. He isn’t going to wait much longer for you.”
We walk down the side hallway which dumps into the main room of the Whitmore. It’s empty, all the guests already inside The Great Hall. I hear the soft music playing behind the closed giant double doors. My mother comes up to me and kisses my cheek before doing the same to my father. Joey moves me to the side, shielding me while Juls opens the door and allows my mother to enter the room and take her seat.
“Okay,” Juls says in a soft voice. “Let’s line up.” She walks over to the side table and grabs my bouquet, handing it to me and taking hers. Joey stands at the front of the line, Juls right behind him. He grabs the door handles, glancing back over his shoulder.
“Ready, cupcake?”
Juls gives me a quick wink and I nod, shifting my weight on my feet.
God, yes. Come on already.
The doors open and the music becomes noticeably louder. I move forward once Joey begins his walk, gripping my bouquet tightly. As Juls makes her way between the rows of chairs, my father takes a few more steps with me. I look around the room, smiling at the familiar faces of family and friends who have joined us today. And then I can’t stand it any longer. I give into the biggest temptation of my life and let my eyes find Reese.
I see his reaction to me immediately. And even though I know this ceremony is being videoed, I won’t need any help remembering the look on his face right now. I know without a doubt I will never forget this moment and the mix of emotion in his eyes.
My dad turns me toward him. “Are you sure I can’t walk you down the aisle, sweetheart? It’s my only job today.”
I smile and look back up at Reese, because it physically pains me to not look at him at this point. “No,” I reply, letting go of his arm. “He’ll come get me.”
My father makes his way down the aisle alone, gaining muffled reactions from the guests. No one knows why I’m standing back here by myself. No one but Reese. And as my father takes his seat next to my mom, Reese begins his walk toward me.
Actually, it’s more like a sprint.
I hear the familiar laughs of our friends from the front of the room as Reese gets to me in record timing. He cradles my face in his hands and drops his forehead to touch mine.
“Thanks for coming to get me,” I whisper for his ears only.
“I’ll always come to get you, you know that.” He leans back and looks down my body. “You have never looked this beautiful, and you always stun me, Dylan. This dress…”
“Wait ‘til you see what’s under it.” My tease gets the reaction I was hoping for out of him. I’m quickly being escorted down the aisle, almost at the same pace with which he reached me moments ago with. The hall becomes filled with everyone’s laughter as they take in my flustered fiancé. Once we reach the front of the room, I hand my bouquet to Juls who can’t seem to stop giggling. Reese positions me across from him, steadying me with his hands on my upper arms before releasing me.
He looks up at the preacher. “Hurry up.”
We run through the majority of the ceremony without any glitches. When it comes to our vow exchange, I turn around and grab a few tissues from Juls. If last night was any indication to how I’m going to react to this, and given the fact Reese has never looked sexier than he does right this moment, I’m going to need these.
I go first, with the steadiest voice I can muster, repeating after the preacher. I only shed a few tears but quickly wipe them away before my makeup is affected. Reese keeps his eyes on me the entire time, giving me the sweetest smile I’ve ever seen as I promise to love him forever.
And then I prepare myself for his turn.