Epilogue #2
"We're all gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of Beatrice and John. They both asked me to keep this short, so I'm just going to welcome all of you. The two of them prepared vows, which they will share now,” the officiant said.
John went first. "Beatrice, I’m the luckiest man on the planet. The first time we met, I knew this was special. I knew this was forever. You are special, and so is your family. I'm honored to be part of it."
The officiant turned to Gran, who touched an earring with her right hand. She put the left one on her chest, over the pendant. "John, I love you, and I'm the lucky one for meeting you. I promise to cherish our relationship every day."
Drake squeezed my hand, then brought it to his lips, kissing it. He looked at me with affection.
Guess who couldn't listen to one word for the rest of the ceremony? Me. I was giddy. And here I'd thought I couldn't get any happier today.
John gave Gran a peck on the forehead when the officiant said, "The bride can kiss the groom." And then we all rushed to our feet, clapping excitedly as Gran and John walked down the aisle as newlyweds.
The waiters were carrying trays of champagne, and everyone helped themselves to a glass.
Before we got the chance to congratulate them, John cleared his throat.
"I made my vows to my beautiful Beatrice, but now I would like to say a few words to all the friends and family gathered here.
I'm grateful to all of you for being so welcoming and taking me in as family.
I know Beatrice is dear to all of you, and I want to make a promise to you all.
I will take care of her and cherish her the way she deserves. "
"Oh, how can he be so sweet?" Reese said. She had tears in her eyes. I kissed her cheek, putting an arm around her shoulders.
"Come on. Let's congratulate your grandmother," Drake said.
We weren't quick enough. Everyone else had edged closer to Gran before us, but it was okay. We had a lot of time.
The party was in the restaurant, and the music was already filtering from it. The day was beautiful, the sun warm but not blistering hot.
When the three of us finally reached Gran and John, it seemed that everyone else had already congratulated them.
Paisley was beside herself taking pictures on her fancy camera.
She was getting really good at it. For previous weddings, she'd insisted that she wanted to bear the rings, but when Gran asked her to do it for her wedding, she declared that she was getting too old for it.
Luckily, there were plenty of little Maxwells in the family. We just had to wait for them to be able to walk straight and not be at the age where there was still a real risk that they might swallow the rings.
"My darling girls," Gran said. "And Drake.”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
“Congratulations, Beatrice and John. I wish you all the happiness in the world," Drake said.
"And so do we," Reese added.
She and I hugged Gran at the same time, and then I hugged John as well. He seemed a bit surprised—everyone else had just shaken his hand—but then he hugged me too. I sniffled when I stepped back.
"What did I tell you, girls? The right one will always come along. You don’t have to chase after him." Putting an arm around my sister's shoulder, she added, "And don't worry, Reese. If love found this old bag of bones, it will find you too."
Reese laughed, and as we walked to the reception room to find our seats, she looked straight at me. “Well, I just may have found the one after all.”
“What!” I exclaimed. “And you’ve been keeping this from me, your sister?”
“That’s all I can say now. I don’t want to jinx myself.”
Reese had some explaining to do, but I let her off the hook for now, as it was Gran's day.
The entire event was superb. I loved seeing the whole family together and for Gran to get her happily ever after.
I couldn’t wait for my own big day with Drake. We hadn’t yet set a date, but it would happen very soon, and I knew it would be just as magical as this one.