Chapter 37
Daniela
People are arriving outside. The men are waiting by the altar, all looking handsome in their black suits, but my eyes stay glued on one.
One who stands out with his towering stature and dark, beautiful hair.
I enjoy watching him when he doesn’t know I’m looking.
He talks with Liam and another man with salt-and-pepper hair, who I’m guessing is the mystery groomsman, finally showing his face.
He seems pretty good-looking from here. Might not be a bad option for Kylie.
Dex makes his way up and down the aisle, talking with different people.
I see him hug a woman and man who I suspect are his parents.
The woman is tall, with long, beautiful waves of black hair, and she wears a flower behind her ear.
She’s beautiful. The man is also tall, with pale skin and light grey hair.
I can see his wide, bright smile from here. I’ve seen that smile before.
A pit forms in my stomach when I recognize a certain blonde approaching Dex.
I shouldn’t watch this. It’s not my business.
And yet, I can’t tear my eyes away. When she reaches him she places a hand on his lower back, walking around to greet him along with his parents.
She grins widely in her pink dress as she says something I can’t decipher.
I can only see the back of him, so I have no idea what he says in return, or what his expression looks like.
His parents seem to exchange pleasantries with her.
They remain talking for a minute or two before Dex turns to talk to someone else. Marny seems to linger, but eventually, Dex makes his way farther down the aisle, talking to other guests. Marny takes a seat next to his parents, and I want to vomit.
My gaze returns to Dex, who is talking to another man, and suddenly his eyes shoot up to the window, and he locks eyes with me. I panic and turn around before I can think about what I’m doing. What an idiot move that was.
“How’s it going down there?” Layla walks up beside me. She’s dressed and ready to go, complete with her long, beautiful veil. Her dress is white, whimsical, lacy, and flowing, and she wears her hair down the back, pulled up in small sections at the sides. She looks beautiful .
“Looks perfect.” I smile, hugging her for the twentieth time today. “Love you.”
“Love you too.” She smiles, and I’m impressed by her strength, how she’s keeping it together today.
“I’m sorry they couldn’t be here.”
“I know. Me too.” Her eyes start to mist a little, but she waves at her face and exhales. “The thing is, I know without a doubt that they would want me to be happy today. They wouldn’t want me to waste a second crying over them. So, I’m trying my best. I had a good cry about it last night.”
“You did?” I ask gently.
She nods. “I’m okay now. Promise. And again, thank you so much for being here with me all summer so I didn’t have to do it alone.”
“I really wasn’t that much help,” I laugh.
“It meant everything to me.” Her smile is sad now. “You know my mom would have been all over this, so you helped fill that void.”
I hug her again, trying to fight back my own tears.
“Okay. We’re done.” I point toward the window. “There’s an amazing family down there waiting for you. This is a happy day.”
“Yes, it is.”
I watch Layla and Sandy embrace, sharing a quiet conversation.
Then Sandy directs us downstairs and out into the front yard, where we’ll walk around the house to the backyard and down the aisle.
She’s handling most of the logistics today and loving every second of it. She’s beaming with pride and happiness.
The guys are all waiting for us in the front yard now, except for Liam, who is waiting at the altar, of course. I see Dex, who grins at Layla and gives her a hug. I make my way over to him, smiling from ear to ear.
“Is this Jameson?” I ask, smiling at the man next to Dex.
“Pleasure to meet you.” Jameson offers a firm handshake accompanied by a very subtle smile.
He has piercing light blue eyes that are complimented by his brown and grey hair, and he looks to be in very good shape—for any man, let alone a forty-year-old.
I get the sense that he’s a very serious man, but not rude. Guarded, maybe.
“You too.”
“Okay, let’s get ready,” Sandy orders everyone.
Dex and I move to the back, just in front of Layla, and he hooks my arm with his. I get a whiff of his scent, and it fills me with a warm, comforting feeling. I smile to myself.
It’s a good day.
The walk down the aisle is long and painful, to be honest. It’s not my cup of tea, having all those eyes on you. I think if I ever got married, I’d keep it super small. Maybe even elope.
That’s weird .
I guess being in this environment is inspiring the thoughts in me. Even as an adult, I still have never thought about having a wedding one day.
When we reach the end, Liam grins at us both, and we go our separate ways. Then everyone rises for the bride, and the acoustic guitarist changes the song.
Layla begins her walk down the aisle, and all eyes are on her. Well, except for mine, since my gaze keeps wandering. Liam’s dad walks with her, and I almost tear up but manage to keep it together.
I sneak a glance over at Liam, and he’s wiping a single tear from his cheek, beaming at his bride. And suddenly, I don’t want to cry. I smile.
She makes her way to him, and they stand together. The priest begins with some sweet words about love, and I try my best to stay focused on what he’s saying, but, of course, my mind strays. You’d think I’d be better at this as a teacher, but no, I’m just as bad as my students.
I stifle a laugh as I look around, finding Jackson in the front row staring across the aisle and back at Carly’s daughter.
And then I look over to where I’ve been purposely avoiding—and his eyes are already on me. I can’t read the look on his face, but I freeze under his gaze, and I can’t pull away. He has a way of making me completely weak when he looks at me the way he does .
My stomach begins to feel sick, and I start to sweat. I can’t keep holding onto this secret. I’m drowning in it. And things between us are getting…deeper.
I finally break away from his gaze in shame and I don’t look his way again. Not even when I occasionally sense his eyes on me.
When my gaze drifts back to the audience, I spot Marny scowling at me. She looks away when my eyes land on her, but I know what I saw.
I lock back in on the priest, and finally, he pronounces them husband and wife. They kiss, and the crowd goes wild.