29. Lori
29
Lori
Tomorrow was Saturday, and I was determined to get home to fix everything for my wedding. Gage told me that Samantha and Helen had taken care of everything for me and that I should not worry about it.
Now, I needed to find my dress. I was back to normal, and I wanted to leave the hospital as soon as possible. I was tired of lying in bed. I’d been here for three days, and that was longer than I even needed.
Matthew was kind enough to take me to find a dress since my vehicle was in the garage when my dad’s home burnt down.
Hey, honey, are you ready?” Gage said, pulling me into his arms and kissing me.
“I love kissing,” I whispered against his lips. “Your lips are always so soft unless we are in the middle of making love, and then you devour my lips. We are getting married tomorrow, and I want you to devour my entire body.”
“Sweetheart, I will devour all of you as soon as we get home,” he whispered against my ear.
“Excuse me. You’ll have to wait for that. Lori and I are going dress shopping. I’ll bring her home when we find her the perfect dress,” Matthew said, smiling.
Matthew it’s good to see you again. How’s your brother doing? We’ll see if both of you tomorrow Brian is going to marry us. I decided I would tag along with you guys,” Gage said looking at me.
I shook my head nope not going with us it’s bad luck I don’t see the dress until I’m walking down the aisle. If if you don’t have anything to do right now you can go help move the tables and chairs outside.
They chased me away from there they think that I’m not doing it right. Then go have a beer with your buddies and I’ll be home after I find my dress.”
I don’t think you should be walking that much you aren’t haven’t even left the hospital yet I think shopping isn’t good for you right now,” Gage said.
I kissed his lips and smiled. “I will see you later. This shouldn’t take that long,” I explained, wrapping my arms around him.
Okay,” Gage said. He looked at Matthew and spoke, “Drive carefully with Lori in the car.”
Matthew took my hand and pulled me from the room. Two hours later, I still hadn’t found the dress I wanted to wear to my wedding. It breaks my heart that my mom’s wedding dress was destroyed in the fire, but I was determined to buy the one I wanted. The only one I will wear is one that speaks to my heart. I know that sounds stupid, but that’s how I am.
We were walking down the sidewalk and passed a Thrift store. Let’s go in here and look. You never know what you’re going to find in a thrift store. Remember that couch I had when I went away to college? I found that in a thrift store.
Yeah, I remember that couch. It stunk. Do you remember when you wanted me to sleep on that stinky couch? I ended up sleeping on the floor, and then I convinced you that we had to take it to the dump the next day.”
“Well, besides the smell, it was a great-looking couch,” I teased. “Come on, let’s go inside. I can’t keep walking around in circles.” I grabbed Matthew’s arm and pulled him into the thrift store.
Approaching the counter, I asked, “Do you have any wedding dresses? I’m getting married tomorrow and need to find the perfect dress. I’ve looked everywhere, but nothing feels right. I need a dress that speaks to me.”
The woman behind the counter smiled warmly and stepped around to take my arm. “Follow me, dear. We just got two new wedding dresses in. One of them—if I were ever to get married again—I would wear. It’s absolutely beautiful. Just wait until you see it.”
I watched as she pulled out an elegant wedding box, its vintage design making it look like it hadn’t been touched in a hundred years. My heart raced. Before she even opened the lid, I knew this was the one.
The moment she lifted the dress and held it in front of me, a single tear slipped down my cheek.
I turned to Matthew, my voice full of certainty. “This is it. This is the one. And I think it’s my size, too.”
Matthew smiled. “It’s beautiful. You’re right—this is the one . Do you want to try it on?”
I shook my head. “I don’t even need to. I can tell just by looking at it that it’s perfect.” I turned to the woman, beaming. “Thank you so much. There was a reason I walked past this thrift store today. This dress was meant for me. I’ll take it.”
“Wait! The original shoes and gloves came with it,” she said excitedly. “Let me grab them.”
When she returned, I nearly cried out loud . The shoes and gloves were in pristine condition, almost brand new. They had been so well cared for.
“These are perfect. Thank you so much.” I turned to Matthew. “Let’s pay for this and go home.”
I sighed with relief, happiness radiating through me. I had found—my dress. And it was beautiful. I knew it would fit me perfectly, but I wasn’t going to try it on until the morning.
The entire drive home, I couldn’t stop smiling.
Matthew glanced over at me, grinning. “Are you ever going to stop smiling?”
“Nope.” I laughed. “Three days ago, I thought I was going to die . Now, I have the dress of my dreams, and I’m getting married tomorrow . I’ll probably be smiling for the rest of the day.”
We both burst into laughter.
Gage was sitting out on the deck when we arrived. I rushed the dress into a spare room where he wouldn’t see it and sighed in exhaustion. I was completely worn out. I needed just a minute to rest.
I sank onto the bed, closed my eyes… and didn’t wake up until six in the morning.
I bolted out of bed, panic surging through me. Where’s Gage?
I ran to our room—empty.
I searched the house—nothing.
Finally, I rushed outside and spotted him swimming in the ocean. My racing heart slowed, and I let out a breath.
Smiling to myself, I made a cup of coffee and sat on the deck, watching him swim further out. This was his routine. He had told me before that he swam every morning.
Maybe I’d start joining him.
As he swam back toward shore, I walked down to the water’s edge to meet him. My heart soared watching him—this strong, beautiful man was mine. He loved me, and I loved him.
Who would have thought that when I met him in Afghanistan eight years ago, we’d end up here—about to get married?
If we’d been together back then, I never would have gone on that trip. I never would have discovered the serial killers. They would still be out there killing women.
Maybe everything had happened exactly the way it was meant to.
“Hey, sweetheart,” Gage called as he waded toward me. “Do you wanna shower with me?”
Before I could answer, he pulled me close, shaking his wet hair all over me. I squealed as the cold water soaked through my clothes.
I laughed, wrapping my arms around his neck. “Yes, I want to shower with you—especially since I fell asleep on you last night. I’m sorry about that. I guess I was really tired.”
Gage pressed a kiss to my lips. “Sweetheart, you just got out of the hospital yesterday and then went dress shopping. Of course, you were tired. Besides , we have the rest of our lives to be together.”
He leaned down, kissing me again. Hmm, he tastes good.
Laughing, we raced back to the house. But when we reached the porch, we both stopped short.
Samantha and the girls were standing there, smiling.
“Are we too early?” Samantha asked, raising a brow.
I grinned. “Nope. You’re just in time. Come see my dress—you’re going to love it. While you and the girls admire it, I’m going to take a quick shower.”
I hugged each of them before slipping inside, my heart pounding with excitement.
Tomorrow, I would be Mrs. Gage Sparrow.