Chapter Twenty-Nine Dane
‘… So if you’ll all join me in raising a toast to the new Mr and Mrs Reid!’
The entire terrace erupts into a loud cheer of congratulations as everyone holds up their glasses and toasts the ridiculously giddy newlyweds sitting up front.
Cash has an arm draped around Bailey’s shoulders and both their cheeks are flushed red with excitement and probably more than a little champagne.
‘Thank you, Dane,’ Cash says as I hand him back the microphone. He momentarily lets go of his new wife and pulls me into a tight hug. ‘That was an amazing speech.’
‘ Beautiful ,’ Bailey says, standing up to give me a hug of her own. I have no idea what kind of sorcery her make-up artist performed earlier, but despite her tears, she still looks immaculate. ‘Didn’t know you had it in you.’
‘Come on,’ I snort. ‘I’ve always been good with words. That’s my whole thing.’
My attention wavers for a moment as I spot Eliott creeping round the back of the tables, her camera pointed in our direction. Bailey follows my gaze and her smile turns into something a little more smug.
‘Maybe you should use that talent of yours with someone else.’
I know exactly what she’s getting at, but we don’t have time to get into it because suddenly our parents and Cash’s mum are all approaching the table to give their congratulations to the happy newlyweds.
I slip out from the throng once I hear Mum say, ‘ It’ll be Dane’s turn next ’ and head back towards my table.
I’m sitting with Amber and Finn and they both grin at me as I drop down into my seat.
Amber’s leaning against Finn’s chest and he, just like Cash, has a protective arm wrapped around her shoulders.
‘Good speech,’ Finn says with a nod.
‘Definitely made me tear up a little,’ Amber says, dabbing at the corners of her eyes with a napkin. ‘It’s not going to beat mine , of course, but you did a good job.’
‘Ha ha,’ I deadpan, reaching for a handful of breadsticks from the bowl between us. ‘Did everyone think I’d get my speech from the internet or something?’
‘It definitely crossed my mind,’ Amber admits. ‘Ooh! It’s time for the bouquet toss.’
I watch a handful of the guests hop up from their seats and form a small cluster near where Bailey is now standing.
Amber doesn’t make a move and I nod my head in the direction of the growing crowd. ‘You’re not going for the bouquet?’
Amber arches a brow and tilts her head up so she can catch Finn’s eye. ‘Do I need to?’
‘Nope,’ Finn says immediately, an easy smile taking over his face as his free hand comes to rest on Amber’s stomach. ‘You’re good.’
I vaguely remember Bailey getting excited about the prospect of back-to-back weddings. I give them two months before they’re planning a wedding. To be honest, I’m surprised Amber doesn’t already have a ring on her finger, but I suppose they’re doing things in their own time.
Not that it matters.
Anyone can tell, just by looking at the two of them, that they’re made for each other.
Bailey suddenly hurls the bouquet as high as she can, but instead of landing amongst the crowd of eager and waiting women in front of her, it goes sailing through the air and lands straight in my lap.
Everyone roars with laughter but I stare, unblinking, at the colourful bouquet.
‘Looks like you’re up next,’ Amber laughs.
I glance around the room. It takes me half a second to find Eliott. She’s standing close to Cash and Bailey’s table, her camera pointed in my direction, and she’s laughing too.
I push up from my seat, the flowers skittering to the floor as I move. Someone calls my name, but I barely hear it as I make a beeline for my sister.
She’s still cackling as I approach her. ‘Your face ,’ she laughs. ‘Oh, I hope Eliott caught that on camera.’
‘Speaking of Eliott,’ I murmur, all too aware that other guests are milling around us. ‘Can I borrow her for ten minutes?’
Bailey raises a brow. ‘You want to borrow my wedding photographer at my wedding?’
‘Just for ten minutes.’
Her mouth splits into a wide grin that lights up her whole face. ‘Make it thirty.’
It takes me less than a minute to cross through the cheering and dancing crowd to find Eliott. She’s in the middle of photographing Cash’s mum and my dad enjoying a quick dance and I feel a little bad about interrupting but…
‘Hey.’
She pulls away from the camera and gives me a look. ‘I’m working, Dane.’
‘And I,’ I say, pressing my hand against the small of her back so I can guide her to a secluded part of the terrace where we won’t be overheard. ‘I’ve got explicit permission from the bride to borrow you for thirty minutes.’
Eliott shoots me a look of disbelief.
‘I do!’ I insist. ‘Bailey’s promised not to do anything worthy of a photograph for the next half an hour.’
‘And why would she do that?’ Eliott asks.
We turn a corner and find ourselves tucked away in a little alcove. I can hear the sounds of the wedding reception waging on behind us, but it’s muted enough that I can pretend we’re far away. It’s just me and Eliott now and I can finally say what I need to say.
‘Because Bailey, and everyone else apparently, can see what I’ve been too stubborn to see.’
‘Dane, what’re you—’
I take a step closer and bring my hands up to cup her face. ‘I’m not built for love.’
She swallows thickly. ‘Right. You’ve said that before.’
‘I have.’ I lean in slightly. ‘That’s what I’ve always thought. And, up until recently, I didn’t think that would ever change.’
Something sparks behind her eyes. ‘Until recently?’
I nod as I run my thumb along her lip, enjoying the way her lips part to let out a soft, keening sigh. ‘Until I met you. You make me want to be so much more than whatever I’ve been for the last decade.’
Her hands slide against the fabric of my shirt. ‘Dane. What’re you saying?’
‘I’m saying that when I wake up in the morning, you’re the first thing on my mind and when I go to sleep at night, you’re the last thing I see behind my eyes.
Matter of fact, you don’t leave my mind at any point in the day.
’ I tilt her face upwards and hold her stare.
‘You consume every last one of my thoughts and I wouldn’t have it any other way. ’
She lets out another shuddery sigh.
‘All I can think about it how I want to be there for you. How I want to be the best version of myself for you . How I can be enough for you to want me the way I want you.’
Her hands fist my shirt and pull me in even closer. ‘I already told you, you’re enough for me. I don’t want anything else. I just want— I just need — I just need you .’
She stands on her tiptoes and tries to press her lips against mine, but there’s something else I need to say. Something else she needs to know.
‘Eliott.’ I hold her face between my hands and take a deep breath before I say the three words that are going to change everything between us. ‘I love you.’
And then I close the gap between us. Her lips slant against mine perfectly, just like they always do, and I find myself wondering how I ever lived in a world where the feel of Eliott’s tongue against mine wasn’t a sensation I was intimately familiar with.
‘Are you sure?’ she whispers as we pull away from each other.
‘I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.’
She brings her arms up to swing around my neck, and she’s wearing my favourite smile – the soft one, that’s just for me. ‘I love you too.’
Call me the Grinch, because my heart is growing about five sizes too big for my ribcage right now.
‘I love you so fucking much,’ she laughs and shakes her head. ‘I have for a while.’
‘I think I have too.’
She huffs out a happy sounding sigh. ‘We’ve probably wasted so much time, haven’t we?’
‘Probably,’ I say with a shrug. ‘But we’ve got all the time in the world to make up for it now.’
Her smile turns mischievous. ‘How long do we have left from Bailey’s thirty minutes?’
I glance at my watch. ‘Another fifteen, maybe?’
She pulls me deeper into the alcove and hitches her leg around my waist, a devilish smirk tugging at her lips. ‘Let’s get started then.’