Chapter 25
Hannah
I had been married before.
My wedding with Nathan had been an extreme—too many invited, too much attention, too much of everything for a relationship with nothing. Now, as I waited with Derek hand in hand with no one else but our daughters, I realized none of that had mattered. The attention, the luxury, the beautiful dress, it had meant nothing because I hadn’t been in love.
It wasn’t with the right person.
Derek had dressed up, wearing a tie even though I knew he hated them, and I...I’d worn the only white dress that I’d found at a boutique on our way to the courthouse and though my mother would have had a heart attack had she seen me getting married there, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
This was perfect because it was us two.
It was perfect because this decision was made out of love and pain, and everything that united us. It was because of everything we had been through, the good and the bad, that I was finally making the decision to be with him forever...with no reservations. We didn’t even have rings, and yet, I wouldn’t change a thing.
Time was a fickle thing—It had slipped through our fingers many times before and I wouldn’t let it happen...not again.
“Mr. Derek Hensley and Ms. Hannah Carson?”
I let out a shaky breath as the judge called our names and my chest bubbled with excitement at the thought of this new life we were about to begin together. I knew it wouldn’t be perfect, I knew there were still many things we needed to work on together, but this...it meant forever. It meant no more turning back.
We had done that enough.
Derek pushed the stroller toward the judge and we walked together into a new life. I didn’t hear much of what the judge said, didn’t pay attention until Derek squeezed my hand, leaning in to place a kiss on my cheek.
“Rings?” The judge asked, his soft blue eyes twinkling with amusement. My mouth opened and closed but Derek opened the diaper bag, taking out two small boxes.
He must have seen the confusion on my face but he shrugged, offering me a small wink. “It’s a day of surprises.”
The judge chuckled, and within a few minutes, Derek took my hands in his, his thumb drawing circles over my skin as the time came for our vows.
He cleared his throat, his green eyes so bright...so full of life my heart could barely handle it.
“The last few days have been both the hardest and the best of my life,” he began. “I don’t know what the future brings, I am not sure what will happen in a few days when we go back to New York, or in a few months when the reality of what we’re doing now sets in...but Hannah, my promise to you is that I will be here, for you, with you, standing by your side from this moment on, for the rest of our lives. For however long I am living, for however long I have the blessing of being your husband, I vow to love you, to cherish you and to be there when you need a hand, even when you don’t ask for it.” I laughed, wiping away a tear that managed to escape. Derek’s gaze softened, and he reached up, caressing my face tenderly. “Hannah, I vow to love you beyond my last breath, for the rest of eternity.”
Derek slid a rose gold wedding band on to my finger, several small diamonds surrounding it. My breath caught in my throat at the surprise of it all and though I knew there wouldn’t be enough words to say what I felt, I would try my best.
“This is crazy,” I laughed softly. “But I’ve never been more sure of anything than I am now, standing with you here today. I vow to stand next to you, supporting you in everything you do. I vow to be your best friend, just like you’ve been mine and more than anything, Derek, I vow to love you even when things get hard. I vow to never give up on us and when life knocks us down, I promise to be with you until we get back up and to be the person who carries you whenever you don’t have the strength to keep going. I love you for forever.”
I took a black wedding band from the judge, admiring the rose gold center detail for only a few seconds before sliding it on to Derek’s finger.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”
He did, without hesitating, without overthinking. Derek took my face in his hands, whispering a quiet “my wife,” before pressing his lips against mine and in that moment, everything else ceased to exist. The past didn’t matter anymore and in my future, all I saw was him.
“I love you,” I whispered.
“Always,” he replied. “Forever.”
***
“Uncover my eyes,” I laughed, trying to wiggle myself out of Derek’s embrace. We had pulled up to the cabin resort and he’d handed off the babies to Deborah before he covered my eyes with a blindfold.
“Stay still,” he chuckled, his lips brushing the back of my ear, sending shivers down my spine like he did everytime. “You deserve the world, you know that, baby?” I hummed when he pressed another small kiss at the nape of my neck, his arms surrounding my waist and holding me against him. “And I would give it to you, in a heartbeat if I could.”
“Mm...right...” I felt him smile against my skin, but he didn’t pull away. “So what are your plans with this blindfold?”
I heard him laugh behind me, his arm surrounding my body as a door creaked open. “I agreed to an impromptu wedding...and that was ours, for us...you know? But you deserve to have your family with you. To celebrate with everyone you love and I want you to have that. I want you to have everything you’ve ever wanted.”
With a gentle pull the blindfold came off my eyes. The sight in front of me took my breath away—my family, Evie and Nathan, Carter and Deborah and Frank and Dylan and Carina stood in the event room of the resort. Even Blake was there with Lisa, standing to the side, a huge smile on their faces at my shocked expression.
“Congratulations!” everyone exclaimed, clapping for us and if my heart was full before, now it was about to burst with happiness.
“How did...how did you do all this?” I blinked as I turned around in his arms. “How did you even manage to have Lisa and Blake here? I don’t understand.”
“I didn’t get much sleep last night.” Derek brushed my hair away from my face, taking my hands in his and kissing the back of them. “They all helped get this ready for you. We love you, baby. All of us. You deserve this. A celebration with your family, with everyone who cares for you and wants your happiness.”
I nodded, cupping his face in my hands and kissing him. “I love you, so so much.”
“I love you too. Now, go celebrate.”
Everyone showered me with hugs and kisses, with congratulations and support but Evie”s was the one I cherished the most. She gave me a long hug, one that lasted for minutes in which she told me how happy and proud she was of me...how much I deserved it.
“I still can’t believe you’re married,” she squealed, her genuine happiness comforting me. I was afraid she’d be upset I hadn’t said a word, but instead, all she had to show was excitement and pride.
“Me neither,” I replied. Blake approached us and Evie excused herself, squeezing his shoulder before leaving. He opened his arms and I accepted his embrace like always.
Neither of us said a single word.
He’d seen me at my worst, helped me stand back up when I didn’t think it was possible and there he was, sharing one of the most important moments of my life with me...again.
Blake was the Lisa to my Derek.
“I was afraid I’d never see you happy again.”
“I was afraid I would never feel happy again.”
Blake pulled away with his hands on my shoulders, blue eyes shining. “Are you, Hannah? Are you really happy now?”
I glanced over to Derek who still received congratulations from our family, embracing everyone with such unrestrained happiness, the same I was sure that was written all over my face.
“I am, Blake. I am so happy I think my heart could burst.”
Blake sighed; a sound full of...relief. It tugged at my insides, knowing he had been so worried about me. He was my friend and confidant unconditionally, even when I felt lonelier than ever. “Well, I am glad. When I saw him calling at midnight, I was worried. And then when he told me you two were getting married...I wasn’t sure what the hell to say other than I would be here.”
“Happened out of nowhere, huh?”
“Massive understatement.”
I laughed, looking around and embracing the joy. It wasn’t easy for me to do it, to ignore all the ways things could go wrong, to appreciate everything that was right in that moment, but I did it. There was no point in dwelling in the uncertainty because the only thing that was certain, was that I was Derek’s, and he was mine.
“Lisa is here, too.” I pointed out, watching her as she played with Blake’s son. “I know things aren’t easy, but maybe you could try to talk to her?”
Blake scoffed, giving me a humorless chuckle. “We were on the same flight. Believe me, we talked plenty.”
“Oh?”
“All is forgiven,” he continued with a shrug. I didn’t miss the hint of bitterness in his tone, or the way he tensed when he spoke about forgiveness and the past, but I didn”t mention it, leaning on his shoulder as we watched everyone gathered, talking. “Well, I think our last minute catering service is ready. Are you hungry?”
***
The sound of someone clearing their throat exaggeratedly loud, quieted everyone down in the small reception room. Dylan stood, holding a glass of champagne up with one hand and the other held Carina’s hand firmly, as if getting her support steadied him. I glanced at Derek who had stiffened next to me.
“I’d like to say a few words before we get this party started,” Dylan said. “There are many things I didn’t think I would ever see in this life, and one of them was Derek as a married man.” Everyone gave a small laugh, even Derek, though I knew his heart was torn and full of mixed emotions. ”And yet, when one day he brought this girl to Pennsylvania and I saw how he treated her, how smitten he was with her, I knew he”d found his one.” Derek placed his arm over my shoulders, pulling me close to him.
”I missed a lot of things in his life, a lot of things I should have been there for but brother, if you found someone who loves you like Hannah does, you must have done something right. Both of you.” He raised his glass and everyone did the same, a tender smile on his face as Derek squeezed me tight. ”So, I wish you two the best. A life full of happiness, an abundance of patience, and a world so full of love that nothing can tear you guys apart. ”
Derek pulled me closer to his side, a smile full of pride resting on his face while Dylan raised his glass, and everyone else did the same.
I had no idea how the hell I’d gotten this lucky either.
But this love, this family, I would love and protect forever.
I managed to dance with everyone in the family until I ended up in Derek’s arms again. It was late and the day had flown by, yet all I wanted to do was be in his arms, away from everyone. And as he held me, his intense eyes piercing through my soul, I knew he felt the same way.
I wasn”t sure if I would ever get used to him knowing me so well...or if I would ever grow accustomed to not being able to hide my emotions from him, but I realized I didn”t want to. I craved it with him. I didn”t have to explain myself, I didn”t have to give Derek reasons...he simply knew. He”d said it time and time again, and I’d found it was true, he knew me better than I knew myself.
”You”re mine forever, now,” he broke the silence between us, his hand lowering just over the curve of my ass, possessive, like he owned me.
”I always have been,” I whispered. ”Since the moment I met you.”
Derek leaned in, pressing his lips against mine with so much control there was no point in fighting it. My eyes closed as he kissed me, gentle enough that I knew he remembered we were in public still, but the way his fingers dug into my skin told me all he would do to me once we were alone.
”You”re perfect, Hannah.”
”Yeah?”
”Absolutely.”
I placed my hands on his chest, feeling his heart, savoring his warmth as we moved with the music. It didn”t matter what played, he held me in his arms as if I was the air he breathed. I glanced around, looking at all the other couples dancing with us, then my gaze landed on our daughters who had finally, after such a long and eventful day, fallen asleep in Lisa’s arms.
“They must be exhausted,” I pointed out.
Derek gave a small chuckle, following my gaze. “It’s been a crazy day.” He cleared his throat, getting my attention. “I’ve asked Lisa to watch the girls overnight so it could just be the two of us.”
I raised an eyebrow and though my cheeks reddened, I tried to hide my nervousness. This was nothing new, it was something we’d done before but it was our wedding night. I wanted it to be special.
Clearly, he did too.
”Do you still have that blindfold?” I asked, feeling him still at my question. His eyes narrowed and I enjoyed the shift of power, even if it was only temporary.
Derek tilted his head to the side.
“You’re already going over everything we’ll do tonight, aren’t you?”
I shrugged, holding his gaze as my arms surrounded his neck. I wasn’t sure we were dancing anymore, but it didn’t seem to matter, not as he held me tight against his body, his warmth radiating into every pore of mine. “You can’t tell me you haven’t.”
I could feel his muscles tensing at my words, the way his grip around my body tightened told me all I needed to know. Yet he didn’t say a word. My hands dropped to his chest, always trying to see if his heart was beating any faster like mine was, but his kept a steady pace. I reached up, pressing my lips against his, needing to feel him closer to me...wanting to feel all of him and finally, he caved.
“We should head out, now,” he whispered against my lips. I nodded as a rush of excitement traveled through my body. I left first, heading to the cabin where I rushed to the restroom so I could change.
I wasn’t one to wear lingerie...but it was our wedding night.
I picked up the white lingerie set, touching the soft lace material for a few seconds before taking a deep breath and starting to change into it. The minimal clothing still made my body feel like it was on fire—like even the lace against my skin was too tight around me. I took a deep breath as I slid on the stockings and adjusted the garter straps.
My reflection in the mirror made me laugh.
Jesus Christ.
My cheeks were red and my hands trembled but I knew Derek would like it.
I just hoped he didn’t take too long to get me out of it.
The last twenty-four hours had changed everything...much faster than I thought possible but I didn’t regret it. For the first time in a very long time, I was sure of what I was doing, and giving myself to Derek was the best decision I could make.