We'll Always Have Paris Page 7
It took a long moment before she found her voice. “Why?” One word with their entire future wrapped up in it.
She held her breath as he reached into the breast pocket of his tux.
“I went back for this.”
He held out his hand and there in the palm was a small circle of gold.
She met his eyes. “My wedding ring?”
“It was in your sock drawer. Took me three hours to find it.”
“How did you even know it was in the house?”
He told her about the letter from Alexis right after the engagement party.
“And you remembered.”
He nodded. “I remembered.”
“I love you,” she said, choking back her tears. “I never stopped.”
“I’ve loved you from the first day we met, Katie. Without you life doesn’t make sense.”
She looked at the ring on his left hand and smiled. “You never took yours off?” she asked. “Not even once?”
“Why would I? I’m a married man.”
She held out her own left hand and he slid the ring back onto her finger. “And I’m a married woman.”
“For better or for worse,” he said.
“Until death do us part,” she whispered.
He drew her into his arms and they were about to seal the promise with a kiss when they realized their three daughters were watching them from the doorway.
“Well, it’s about time,” Shannon said.
“Took you long enough,” Taylor chimed in. “We were wondering when you two would realize how much you loved each other.”
“This is the best wedding present in the world.” Alexis was radiant with joy. “I knew Paris would work its magic on you.”
They didn’t have the heart to tell her that Paris had had a little help from Aunt Celeste.
“It’s time, everyone! Let’s hurry!” the wedding coordinator called out. “The flower girls are already moving.”
This was the reason for everything, Kate thought. This was why men and women fell in love, why they married, why they endured the tough times and the disappointments. You did it for your children, so they could grow up knowing the wonderful safety net called family and have the courage to walk out into the world with an open heart, fall in love and start the whole wonderful cycle all over again.
And if you were very lucky, when the kids were gone and the house was quiet once again, your best friend and lover was still there, waiting to discover what wonderful surprises the future held in store for the two of you. It could be Boston. It could be New York. It could even be Paris. Maybe they would buy a boat and sail away together to some tropical paradise where she would paint and he would write. Anything was possible. The future was theirs for the taking and Kate couldn’t wait to see where it would lead them.
Shannon and Taylor joined the other bridesmaids for the long walk down the aisle. Alexis took her place between her parents and squeezed their hands.
“I can’t believe this is really happening,” she said.
“Well, it is,” Kate said. “It’s your wedding day.”
“Not that,” Alexis said. “I mean, I can’t believe you and Daddy are finally back together.”
Kate and Ryan looked at each other and thirty years of shared history passed between them in an instant and with it the promise of at least thirty more.
“We’re back together,” Ryan said.
“Forever,” Kate said.
“But there’s one more thing,” Alexis said.
“Honey, the music started out there. We have to—”
Alexis was her mother’s daughter and she stopped Kate mid-sentence. “I’m the bride. They can’t start without me. You two renewed your vows before, but you didn’t seal it with a kiss.”
They were in each other’s arms in an instant.
The kiss was sweet and it held within it everything they were and all they would become. The two years apart seemed to vanish as if they had never happened and for the first time Kate felt happy again. She was back where she belonged.
The strains of the “Wedding March” flooded the small room and they moved away from each other to flank their daughter. Through the open door they saw a handsome and very nervous Gabe Fellini waiting at the altar for his first glimpse of his bride.
And that was how a family began. A nervous groom, a radiant bride, sweet promises that took years to fully understand and a lifetime to keep. Friends come and friends go. Your children grow up and move away. Careers soar and then fall apart. But through it all, the one you loved was right there by your side, sharing the sorrows and multiplying the joys.
If Alexis and Gabe had that, they would have everything.
Just like Kate and Ryan.
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ISBN: 9781460395622
WE’LL ALWAYS HAVE PARIS
Copyright © 2007 by Barbara Bretton
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