I didn’t have time to draw any conclusions because the music changed and there she was.
Lina appeared at the end of the aisle in scarlet that draped over her like paint from the brush of an enchanted artist. She had a black eye not quite hidden by makeup, ruby-red lips, a bandage on her arm, and a halo of flowers in her hair.
I’d never seen anything more beautiful in my entire life.
My throat closed up on me as she sauntered my way. And I knew for certain I couldn’t wait for her to be walking down a different aisle to me. Our aisle.
I wanted to go to her. To touch her. To drag her up to Justice and make it official. But there’d be time for that. After. We had all the time in the world now.
Her eyes were on me, and that sly, knowing smile of hers warmed every corner of my soul.
Mine.
She tore her gaze away from me and stopped in front of Knox. “Congratulations, Knox,” she whispered. He reached out and pulled her in for a hard hug, his throat working hard to swallow.
The crowd “awwed” as my brother managed to whisper a broken, “Thanks, Leens.”
She pulled back. “They’re both so beautiful,” she added. And then she was standing in front of me.
“Looking good, hotshot,” she said. It was lily of the valley in her hair. For the first time in a long time, I felt the presence of both my parents.
I shocked the hell out of her and everyone else by hooking her around the back of her neck and pulling her in for a fast, hard kiss. The crowd twittered with sighs and laughter.
“Right back at you, Angel,” I said after breaking the kiss.
She grinned up at me with a thousand promises in her eyes before she moved on to high-five Lucian and Jeremiah. Lucian made room for her between the two of us and I felt her hand stroke my back.
Fi strutted down the aisle next in a fitted gold dress like it was a runway. She wore her thick, dark hair down in wild curls tamed by a headband of flowers. She blew Knox a kiss before peeling off toward the opposite side of the arbor. Stef and Sloane were next in the processional. Stef, in a suit, tossed Jeremiah a flirty wink before pointing two fingers at his own eyes before pointing them at Knox.
Sloane, in a rust-colored gown with a full skirt, floated toward us looking like a forest fairy. Her blond hair was swept up and back. A headband of white blossoms perched on her head. She kept her eyes straight ahead until she got to us.
Then she gave Knox a watery smile filled with so much love and hope. I heard Lucian’s sharp intake of breath behind me and wondered if seeing that smile had pierced through his armor somehow.
And then there was Waylay. That brave, beautiful girl was happier than I’d ever seen her as she all but skipped down the aisle in yellow tulle. Her hair was curled into princess ringlets with daisies woven throughout.
In front of me, Knox’s shoulders shuddered once as he fought back a wave of emotions. He held out as long as he could, breaking rank when his daughter reached the front row. Knox picked her up in a crushing bear hug. Waylay’s arms came around his neck and held tight. Two tears slipped down her cheeks before she buried her face in Knox’s shoulder.
After everything the kid had been through, it was the first time I’d ever seen her cry.
Amanda let out a hiccupping sob and started handing out tissues like they were candy.
“Love you, kid,” Knox murmured, his voice cracking.
He set her back on her feet and she swiped the tears away. “Yeah. I guess I kinda love you too and stuff.”
Fi blew her nose noisily while Sloane stared up at the trees and tried not to blink.
“You and your aunt are the two best things that ever happened to me,” Knox said, tipping her chin to look up at him.
For a second, I thought she was going to burst into tears, but Waylay mustered an inner stubborn strength and smothered the emotion. She was going to make a fine Morgan. “Don’t get all mushy. If you get all mushy, this is gonna take forever, and I want cake,” she instructed.
“Got it,” Knox croaked.
She started to move away from him and then gave in to some impulse and wrapped her arms around his waist.
I wasn’t sure if I heard her correctly, but it sounded like she said, “Thank you for loving me.”
Lucian, Jeremiah, and I took turns clearing our throats in a manly attempt to suffocate any feelings.
“Shit.” Lina sniffled behind me. I pulled a wad of tissues out of my jacket pocket and handed them to her. Her eyes were glassy with unshed tears. “Thank you,” she mouthed.
My girl cried at weddings.
Lina Solavita was full of surprises.
When Waylay finally let go of Knox and took her place, my brother looked up at the sky, trying to get control of himself. Dad tentatively rose from his seat. He hesitated—twice—then made the short journey to the arbor and pressed something into Knox’s hand before returning to his seat.
It was a handkerchief. For once in his life, Duke Morgan had shown up when he was needed.
Knox looked down at it, then nodded his thanks.
Comedic relief came next in the form of Waylon in a doggie tux galloping down the aisle as the official ring bearer.
Once the dog plopped his ass down at my feet, courtesy of the fancy dog treat I bribed him with, the music changed again. As the guitarist strummed the first chords of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’，” the crowd got to its feet.
I heard the sigh run through the guests as Naomi, a vision in white lace, appeared on Lou’s arm.
Knox took one look at her and dropped to a crouch, his hands shaking as they clutched the handkerchief to his face.
From then on, there wasn’t a dry fucking eye in the yard.
Even Liza J had to wipe her nose on her sleeve between nips from her flask. When Knox all but wrestled Naomi out of her father’s grip, when he held her to him like she was the most precious thing in the world, I had to turn around to thumb away a stray tear.
Lina was waving her hands in front of her eyes as if the breeze would help her tears dry.
Lucian stood with red-rimmed eyes, looking like his heart had been shattered into pieces. But he wasn’t looking at the bride and groom. He was looking past them at Sloane, who was openly crying.
“Don’t you dare fuckin’ cry, Daisy,” Knox ordered his bride.
Naomi grinned through her tears of joy. “Too late, Viking. I love you so damn much.”
The muscles in Knox’s jaw and throat worked. “You’re everything I always wanted and never thought I deserved.”
Naomi’s broken sob was echoed by Lina and Sloane. I couldn’t take it anymore. I shifted and put my arm around Lina, pulling her into my side. The delicate blooms in her hair tickled my face like a caress.
Naomi looked up at Justice, who was brushing away a tear or two of his own, and grinned. “I always knew I’d get you to marry me somehow, Justice.”
With the I dos said, the tears dried, and the drinks served, there was nothing left to do but enjoy the day.
Waylay held court next to the creek with a huge slab of cake, her friends from the soccer team, and the dogs.
Lina was in the photo booth again with Sloane and Fi. The photographer was still frantically looking for Naomi and Knox, who had been suspiciously absent for the last twenty minutes or so. No one had the heart to tell her the bride and groom were probably getting it on somewhere in the house.