EPILOGUE

Two weeks later, Brian, Paige, Mickey, Gabrielle and Patrick were in Myrtle Beach waiting for Paige and Brian to become husband and wife. What a way to end the summer, by embarking on a new life, Brian thought as he counted down the minutes until Paige would be his.

He and Paige were in separate rooms at Kingston Plantation.

Brian looked up at the clock on the wall in his room for the fifth time in five minutes. He and Mickey needed to get ready.

“Champ, are you done in the bathroom?” Brian hadn’t been nervous when he married Olivia, but something about this wedding was different, magical.

Patrick placed his hand on Brian’s shoulder. “You still have time to run, my brother,” he joked.

“Not on your life,” Brian replied. He and Patrick had been slow to warm to each other during the planning of the wedding, but now they had formed a tentative friendship.

When Brian first contacted Patrick about marrying Paige, Patrick had told him that if he hurt his friend again he was going to have to deal with him.

“You two are rushing into this marriage and I don’t think I can stand by and support this mistake,” Patrick had said.

“This isn’t a mistake.”

“Brian, you didn’t see Paige when she came to Nashville earlier this summer. You had her twisted because she didn’t know if you were going back to your ex-wife. And I’m not convinced that you’re not going to wake up tomorrow and go back to her for the sake of your son.”

Though Brian had understood Patrick’s apprehension, he hadn’t appreciated his attitude.

“Look, man, I love Paige. What happened before was a misunderstanding. She got over it. Why can’t you?” Brian had complained.

“Maybe I need to come down there and see how things are for myself,” Patrick had said.

Sure enough he came and the moment he saw Paige and Brian together, he’d known they were meant to be.

He was pleased that he was going to be a part of the ceremony today, which would unite his best friend with the perfect man for her. Mickey walked out of the bathroom, dressed in khaki shorts and a Hawaiian shirt, looking like a mirror image of his father. Brian buttoned the last button on Mickey’s shirt and then smoothed his son’s shorts.

Standing up, he said, “All right, I think we look good.” Mickey nodded.

“Paige is going to be proud,” Patrick said as he adjusted his own Hawaiian shirt on his broad shoulders.

Brian kneeled down in front of his son and placed his hand on Mickey’s shoulder. “You know what your job is, right?”

The little boy nodded. “When the preacher asks for the ring, I give it to you, right?”

Brian nodded, then kissed his son on the cheek. Glancing down at his watch, Brian sighed. It’s almost time to make Paige mine.

A light tapping on the door jolted Paige awake. She had dozed off while waiting for Gabrielle. Quickly, she opened the door and Gabrielle walked in.

“It’s about that time. Have you gotten the dress back from the cleaners?” she asked, breezing through the room.

“You’re not having second thoughts, are you?”

“Not on your life,” Paige replied. “It’s just, God, I’m so nervous. I keep waiting for Olivia to jump out of a corner and bring everything to a halt.”

“That’s not going to happen because I would bury her deep inside a sand dune if she tried anything. Think happy thoughts.”

Paige took a deep breath. “I’m thinking happy thoughts.”

“Good,” Gabrielle said and walked into the bathroom to get the dress, which was a vintage white sundress that she and Paige had found on a shopping trip to Columbia.

Paige had grown to love Gabrielle like she was her blood sister. They shopped together and spoiled Mickey together. Sometimes they’d gain up on Brian about things —especially when it came to ice cream. Paige had been able to find a friend in Gabrielle who she hadn’t expected.

Crossing over to the mirror on the closet, she looked at her reflection. The woman staring back at her was ready to get married. Her golden eyes were filled with happiness and they sparkled with excitement. She ran her fingers through her wavy hair and smiled. Today was her wedding day.

Gabrielle laid the dress on the bed and removed the plastic covering. “Are you ready to put this on?” she asked.

Paige inhaled sharply as she nodded. She picked the dress up and unzipped it, then in one fluid motion stepped into it. Gabrielle zipped the back and then spun Paige around to see her full reflection.

“You look beautiful. Do you need help with your makeup or anything?”

“I’m fine. You just go and get dressed,” Paige said, needing a few minutes alone to get herself prepared emotionally.

Just as the sun began to set, Paige emerged from the hotel dressed in the white sundress. She had a yellow rose tucked behind her ear. The setting sun cast a glow around her. Brian and Paige locked eyes as she looked to where he, Patrick, Mickey, and Gabrielle were standing. The minister stood in the center of the group with his back to the ocean. The rolling blue water crashed against the shore, turning the brown sand grey.

Slowly, she walked across the sand toward Brian. Each step brought her closer and closer to the man she loved, to the little boy that she would love as her own and to unyielding happiness.

When she reached him, he grabbed her hand and kissed it. “Beautiful,” he whispered.

Heat rose to her cheeks under his compliment. Brian had called her beautiful before, but today it seemed more special. More meaningful.

“Dearly beloved,” the minister began, “we’re gathered here today to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony.”

Paige looked into Brian’s eyes and tears spilled down her cheeks as the minister continued his service. She stroked Brian’s cheek as the minister asked her to repeat the words after him.

“I promise to honor, cherish, and love Brian Jackson with all my heart,” she said. “I will forsake all others and keep only unto him.”

The minister turned to Mickey and smiled. “Young man, the ring, please.”

Mickey pulled the gold band from his pocket and handed it to the minister with a smile on his face. The minister handed the ring to Brian. “Now repeat after me,” the reverend said. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

Looking into Paige’s eyes, Brian smiled, slipped the ring on her finger and said, “With this ring, I thee wed.”

Then he asked Patrick, Paige’s man of honor, for the ring. He took it and handed it to Paige and gave her the same instructions he’d given Brian.

“With this ring, I thee wed.” Her voice wavered with emotion and tears slid down her cheeks as she slipped the ring on his finger.

Before the minister could say, “You may kiss the bride,” Brian had already taken Paige into his massive arms and kissed her long, hard, and deep. Gabrielle and Mickey applauded as Brian lifted his new bride into his arms.