Orion pulled him into another hug, and I heard him say quietly, “Always, brother. Always.”
Sarah came bursting out of the house then, not even bothering with the porch steps, just running straight across the lawn to us. She
was already crying happy tears, not even trying to hide them.
“Let me see it,” she demanded, reaching for me even as tears streamed down her face. “Let me see the certificate. Tell me he signed it. Tell me everything.”
I pulled it carefully from my purse, and she took it with reverent hands, opening it like it was the most precious thing in the world.
“Oh my God,” she whispered, her fingers tracing over both our signatures. “It’s real. You’re really married. Well, almost married.
Tomorrow you’ll be really really married.”
“Tomorrow,” I confirmed, smiling at her excitement.
She looked up at me, tears still flowing freely, and pulled me into a fierce hug. “I’m so happy for you,” she said into my hair. “So incredibly happy. You two are perfect together, and watching you plan this, seeing how much you love him… it was an honor to be part of
it.”
“Thank you for helping,” I said, hugging her back just as tightly. “For keeping it secret, for being there when I was freaking out about whether I was doing the right thing, for everything.”
“Are you kidding?” She pulled back, wiping at her eyes even though new tears were already replacing the ones she’d cleared away. “It was the most romantic thing I’ve ever been part of. And his reaction…” She looked over at Tristan, who was still talking with Orion. “You should have texted me his reaction. I’ve been dying to know.”
“He cried,” I said softly. “Happy tears. And he couldn’t stop shaking when he signed it.”
Sarah pressed a hand to her heart. “I’m going to cry again.”
“You’re already crying,” I pointed out with a laugh.
“I’m going to cry more,” she corrected.
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She turned to Tristan then, and he immediately opened his arms to hug her. She went to him, and I watched as she told him how happy she was for us, how perfect we were together, how she knew this was exactly right.
“Thank you,” Tristan told her. “For helping Athena with all of this, for being such a good friend to her. For being a not a family but a friend and mother.” Both of them laughed.
“I didn’t have a choice,” they laughed again. “But if I was asked to make a choice, I’ll choose this a million times. I used my hands to clean the tears that had escaped from my eyes.
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18:34 Thu, Jan 29
Chapter 360
:
A68
The front door opened again, and I looked up to see Derek stepping out onto the porch. My eyes widened in surprise, I hadn’t known
he was here, hadn’t expected to see him tonight.
“Derek!” I said, surprised but pleased. “What are you doing here?”
He walked down the steps with a slight smile on his face. “Orion called me after you two left for the restaurant. Said I needed to be
here when you got back.” He glanced at Orion. “Told me I was part of this, so I should be here for the celebration.”
My heart clenched at that. Orion was right, Derek had been part of this. He’d helped me too, made phone calls, used his connections
to help expedite the license paperwork. He’d been just as invested in making this surprise perfect as Orion had been.
“I’m glad you’re here,” I said, going over to hug him. “Thank you for everything you did to help make this happen.”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
