Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
When Cody proposed to her, Erika had been flabbergasted. But after that, she wanted to get married as soon as possible. It wasn’t to push down rising doubts or because she was flying into some rash decision. No. It was simply because she no longer wanted to waste any time. She felt like she’d done way too much of that already.
Also, if there was to be any baby making happening, they’d need to jump on that post haste.
They had a handful of qualifications they wanted for their wedding. For it to take place quickly so they could start their life together. For it to be simple yet lovely. And most importantly, for Cody’s son to be able to attend. That meant it needed to occur when Gabe had a long enough break from taking classes to fly out to Montana and celebrate with them.
The soonest opening for that came in June, which left her and Cody with a mere two and a half months to plan. Considering they were also in the process of selling their old homes and moving their combined belongings into their new one—not to mention continuing to work their jobs—it proved a challenging task to pull off.
Thankfully, both Erika and Cody were aware of Sensational Soirees and Shindigs due to Lindsey Duncan being its owner and operator. Since Callie had hired Lindsey to put on a party to show off her awesome aunt skills, she’d mentioned her exemplary services more than once. Cody, too, knew Lindsey from working on the ranch, as Bryce, the eldest brother and main owner was her husband.
Sometimes, it was all in who you knew.
It also helped to have less than two degrees of separation. Despite her immensely busy schedule, Lindsey took on the celebration of their nuptials including a small outdoor wedding followed by a laidback outdoor reception. Montana in June was a sight to behold, all the grass tended to be lush and green, the temps warm but not hot, and the wildflowers blooming.
It was the perfect time for two people to tie the knot.
Honestly, due to it being so last-minute, Erika hadn’t expected much. She hoped the beauty of the natural setting would offset any massive holes in their décor or overall plans. What she hadn’t anticipated was the ingenuity and absolute talent Lindsey Duncan had for turning the ordinary into something downright magical.
Not only did she and her crew manage to throw together a picturesque ceremony with an arch constructed of grapevines and decorated with the rainbow of wildflowers that bloomed during that particular season, the Sensational Soirees and Shindigs team timed Erika and Cody’s “I do’s” to take place right at sunset.
Erika didn’t know if that specific plan would work. There was no controlling the weather or nature itself, of course. But as if Lindsey had simply asked the flowers to be at their peak blossoming potential, as Erika strolled up the aisle toward her husband to be, pops of color greeted her not only from the flowers her crew had artfully relocated to the back of the chairs but also throughout the field next to the barn there at the Duncan Ranch.
That was what they’d decided. To get married out at the ranch. It had concerned Erika at first, the idea of linking her life to Cody’s at the site of his workplace.
“That won’t bother you?” she asked him before they finalized everything. “Having such a significant memory tied to the place where you toil so hard every day?”
“I like it, actually,” he told her. “It means a glance in that direction will remind me of you.”
It was a sappy response, as well as a sweet one. Erika knew she shouldn’t have melted into the young girl who’d once dreamed about a man saying such things to her, but she did. Mainly because she could see as plain as day that he wasn’t yanking her chain or teasing her.
Cody meant it.
“I have experience with celebrations taking place on this property,” Lindsey had further allayed her fears. “Throwing a birthday party for Bryce’s dad is how he and I met.”
Erika didn’t mention the scuttlebutt going around town at the time. That the party planner and the heir apparent of the Duncan Ranch didn’t get along. Erika might not know the details, but whether the rumors had been true or not, ultimately the two had fallen for one another. Hard. And their marriage had been rock solid for years now.
Maybe getting married in the same place where that had occurred would bless her and Cody’s nuptials. She would appreciate whatever favor, luck, or smidgen of grace might be sent their way, especially today.
So, as she applied her makeup more carefully than usual and held still so Callie could finish curling her long hair, it only then hit her. She seized her friend’s wrist.
“I’m getting married again today.”
Their eyes met in the mirror. Lindsey—and the rest of the Duncans—had been kind enough to loan her their first-floor bathroom as a dressing room to get ready. Callie could’ve come at her with a snide remark or even a glib, “Yes, silly. Duh.” But she didn’t.
“How are you doing?” she asked instead, all solicitousness.
Erika studied herself in the mirror wondering if the full weight of what she was about to do would crush her into the ground. If she’d experience the worst case of cold feet ever recorded in Montana. But she didn’t.
“I’m solid. Good.” She took a deep breath in through her nose and recognized a rain fresh scent, Blake’s scent. And she knew. She knew he was here with her now, that he’d always been with her, and then as it dissipated, that he was distancing himself. Or maybe just passing on the torch to another man. Her new husband.
Tears stung her eyes.
“Now, now, none of that,” Callie chided her. “You’ll ruin your face.”
“It’s just that I…” she paused, knowing this might sound utterly insane. “I felt Blake come and go. Like he wanted me to know that he approves and is leaving Cody to pick up where he left off.”
Her friend’s eyes widened and suddenly, Erika wasn’t the only one with damp eyes. “Okay, now I’m about to lose it.”
“You believe me?”
“Of course, I do. I’ve never told anyone this, but once in the middle of the night, I felt this soothing female presence in our bedroom with me when Zeke was sound asleep. I’ve never met her, but I’m certain it was Essie. I felt this incredible sense of peace as if she knew I was there taking care of Zeke now. Maybe I read way too much into a few errant feelings but?—”
“No,” Erika gently cut her off, grasping her hand. “I don’t think you read too much into anything.”
They said nothing else, merely held each other’s gazes in the mirror. Then, after a few heartbeats, Callie said, “Well, let’s get this show on the road.”
Walking, step by step down the aisle, the tangerine of the setting sun lighting her gossamer ankle-length ivory gown aglow, Erika approached her groom. He stood by the grapevine arch, his face radiant with joy, as Gabe stood next to him and Boone on his opposite side. The bridesmaids, Julie and Callie as her matron of honor, stood waiting on Erika’s side of the aisle, the officiate between them.
Erika took Cody’s hand the second she reached him, glad to find it not clammy in the least. Just strong and warm. Sturdy, just like he was.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to unite Erika Cantrell and Cody Stiers in holy matrimony.”
Even despite having been a bride before—just like Cody had been a husband before—the experience felt different this time around. Not only because she was marrying a different man, but because through her courtship with Cody, she’d grown into a different woman. A woman less confined by her past. And a woman much more inspired by her present and future.
She grinned back at Cody, knowing however many years they might have together, she’d make sure they were as happy as she could make them.
The vows whisked by at the speed of light, and before she knew it, they were kissing in front of a small audience of their friends and loved ones. Her parents were there, looking both gleeful and relieved. She understood now how hard it must’ve been for them to stand by and watch her stagnate and struggle.
All the Duncans were there, as were Zeke, Aaron, and several of the other people Cody worked with here on the ranch. Tim, an exceptionally pregnant Amanda, and their three kids were there, as well. Erika tried not to notice two of the most notable absences, however. Feeling like it would be wrong not to invite them, she’d sent a formal wedding invitation to Nikki and Bruce’s, but she’d never heard back.
Not a single word.
She hadn’t seen either of them in months now. It hurt to lose them, to lose that connection, but knowing that their link to their son hadn’t been healthy helped her to release her hold on them. And on him. Besides, if the presence she felt earlier meant anything at all, moving on had actually allowed her late husband to rest better anyway.
The reception table was only a few yards from where the wedding had been held, and while the twilight lingered long enough for people to find their ways over to where Lindsey’s team had hung a multitude of patio lights, another spot of light made itself known.
“Look,” said one of Tim and Amanda’s daughters, Kimmie, if Erika wasn’t mistaken. “A firefly.”
Cody leaned over to whisper in his new wife’s ear. “I didn’t think we’d get fireflies this far north.”
“Oh, we do sometimes,” she assured him, and as if it’d been her announcement that awakened that single firefly’s sisters and brothers, several more of them lit up the field, tiny sparks of magic all around them.
It was magic. This evening. This day. Her entire life.
All of it.