Chapter One

Micki

“Stunning. Simply stunning. Going to be another Michaela Dawson masterpiece, eh, Micki?” Gussie McBain, stylist for the Barefoot Brides wedding consultants at Casa Blanca Resort & Spa, cooed over my shoulder as I checked the last few frames I’d shot on my camera.

“With a bride like this, how could I miss? She’s breathtaking.” Chloe, the subject of our shared admiration looked up, blushing furiously.

Gussie stood with legs spread wide and hands on her hips, nodding her head in approval. “She’d look fabulous in a paper bag, let alone this confection of ivory. Hey, Chloe?” she called. “Can I use one of your shots for my fashion blog? My peeps need to see this perfection.” Chloe’s ivory off-the-shoulder dress hugged her petite frame in soft, draping waves that crisscrossed her body, cascading in a small chapel-length train. Not a sequin in sight, yet the slight shimmer to the fabric made the dress almost glow in the sunlight. Simple, yet effortlessly elegant, the effect was goddess-like. Her bouquet of fiery orange roses mixed with apricot-tinged peonies and a myriad of natural greens softened with sprigs of baby’s breath completed her ensemble. It would make a striking Instagram photo.

“You guys are too much and you can use whatever shot you want, Gussie.” Chloe shifted from one foot to the other. “Tell me what happens when I have to go to the bathroom? Because I feel like I’ve got a bladder the size of a peanut.”

“It’s nerves, honey,” Gussie assured her with a knowing smile. “Happens to all brides.”

“But my dress? How do I—?” She looked down at the length of fabric puddling at her feet.

Gussie and I chuckled. “With your bridesmaids or a fellow female’s help, that’s how,” I pointed out. “Just have them grab the dress, lift, and you aim your tushy back and down.”

“Usually more successful with sober brides. The others,” Gussie added, “not so much.”

Chloe chuckled. “Now there’s your money shot, Micki. Ever get one of those?”

I shook my head “Oh, God no. Thanks just the same. I’ve managed to miss those, but don’t worry, Chloe. You’re in the best hands with these ladies, I promise. I’ve never shot a wedding here at Casa Blanca that wasn’t flawless, so expect everything to go beautifully. Including potty breaks.”

Gussie snorted. “She’s right, Chloe. Now,” she clapped her hands together, the movement sending the over-sized gold hoops that hung from her ears swinging. “Enough slacking on my part. I’ve got to run and check everything to perfection, but I’ll be back, checking in on everything, Chloe.” She turned to me. “You need anything Micki?”

“Nope, I’m good. We’re going finish her solo shots then grab the rest of the family and wedding party for the pre-shots. Then it’s on to the main event.” The wedding party was small, which made my job ultra-easy. Just her sister as her maid-of-honor, and each side had only a handful of family members attending.

“Sounds good then. I’m off.” Gussie disappeared around the corner of a thick, meticulously manicured hedge.

I focused my attention back on my bride. “Alright, sweet lady. A couple more shots on the beach. The sun is in great position for the water shots, so let’s get those knocked off our list.” I glanced at my watch, pleased to see my compulsively detailed timeline working like clockwork. “We’re in great shape, kiddo.”

Chloe carefully lifted the train on her dress. “Micki, I know I’ve thanked you a hundred times already, but this,” she waved her artfully arranged bouquet in the general direction of the grounds and buildings of the resort. “This is a dream beyond my wildest dreams come true. I feel like a princess and I’m half afraid to blink, in case I’m going to wake up and find out it was all a dream.”

“Chloe, sweetheart, you’re not asleep and it’s all happening. You’re about to get married to the most amazing man.” We had only taken a few steps together when I pulled up short, letting her continue to walk on a few more feet, snapping several candid shots of her as she went. Pure, unchecked joy glowed from her features. “You’re about to become Mrs. Jason Williams and begin your happily ever after that you so richly deserve.”

Chloe stopped and looked down at the soft fabric she held in one hand. “It’s been a while since I’ve felt—”

“Beautiful? Hopeful? Happy?” I supplied when she paused.

She looked up, her eyes glistening. “Alive.”

I dropped the camera to my waist, letting it hang from its strap. “I guess chemo does that to a person,” I murmured gently.

She blinked several times before giving me a half smile. “It does way more than attack cancer cells.” She looked off at some point in the distance, and I let her collect her thoughts. “It’s been a long year, plus some. That’s all.”

I moved quickly to her side, pressing my camera out of the way. Wrapping my free arm around her shoulders, I squeezed tightly. “It’s been a helluva long journey, sweet friend. This,” I tipped my head toward the resort behind me. “This just proves you’ve kicked cancer in the ass, straight to the curb, and from this day on, you’re going to live a beautiful life with a beautiful man. And have beautiful babies that I get to play with and spoil horribly with toys. Big, loud, noisy toys. With lots and lots of little pieces, and—”

Her shoulders shook with laughter. “And I’m telling you right now, I’m going to love every single minute of it! And yes, I am marrying an amazing man, aren’t I?”

“That would be a hell to the yes, you landed a one-in-a-million. Would that the world had lots more Jasons, you know?”

Chloe chuckled. “Oh, Micki, there’s a Jason out there in the world for you, too. You’ve just got to be patient.”

I linked my arm through hers and we started back down the path towards the water. “If you say so. My track record, or lack thereof, hasn’t exactly been populated with lots of possibilities. Meh…if truth be told, I haven’t exactly pounded the sidewalk looking for Mr. Right either. My short-lived marriage took some of the punch out of the whole relationship thing, you know?”

“Well, I believe there’s someone out there for you,” she declared in a determined voice. “You just keep a look out. He’ll be along at the right time.”

“Speaking of time,” I said pointedly. “We need to keep moving, love.”

She tugged on my arm. “Micki, as crazy as this sounds, my mother once told me to make a list describing the perfect man in my eyes. All the details. Looks. Hair. Family history. You name it. I shouldn’t leave any detail out. She swore that she and her friends had done that years ago and they all found their ideal men that way. You can call me crazy, but I totally think you should do it. I mean, what the hell? What do you have to lose?”

Quaint theory, but it didn’t quite fit my personality. “Is that how you found Jason?”

She nodded enthusiastically. “I’m not kidding, Micki. I thought it was crazy but one day I figured, why not? Didn’t have anything to lose, so I made a list. Now remember, this was way before my cancer diagnosis. Remember? Jason and I had only been dating like six months at that point? But then, like—bam. Here I am, slapped with a cancer check then one day, during one of my chemo treatments, it hit me. My imaginary guy on paper? He was sitting right next to me…at every single appointment, Micki.” Her voice filled with emotion as her fingers tightened around my wrist. “Who does that? Who wants a twenty-five-year-old girlfriend with baggage like that?”

“Jason did,” I answered simply.

Chloe looked skyward, blinking unshed tears away. After a few moments, she swung her eyes back to me with an expression of determination on her pretty face. “I’m the luckiest girl on the planet and I want you to have the same thing. You will have the same thing. One day. Just you wait and see.”

An hour and a half later, the ceremony completed and remaining wedding party shots in the can, I moved to the banquet room where chefs and wait staff carved, shaved, and put the finishing touches on the sinfully delicious food that awaited the guests. I paused to inhale the rich aromas that wafted to my nostrils, reminding me how far the current array of scrumptious food was from the protein bar that had been my lunch. Willow Hershey, another Barefoot Brides consultant, buzzed around the room at the speed of light. I took an appreciative whiff of something cheesy and buttery rich. A none too subtle rumble came from my stomach.

Willow caught sight of me practically drooling over the sights and smells and sprinted to my side.

“Good lord, Willow, how do you work around all this amazing food and not gain an ounce? You have the willpower of a titan.”

Willow grinned but shook her head. “It was a long time coming for me not to taste test everything, but honestly, I’m used to it now, so it’s just another day at the office.”

Another grumble from my midsection. Taking more shots of the artfully prepared food, I gave a thumbs-up sign to Willow. “Pay no attention to me. I’m just gonna go gnaw on a tree trunk somewhere.”

I’d no sooner stepped outside when Ari McBain, the last of the three bridal consultants, rushed up behind me. “There you are,” she called a little breathlessly. “I’m glad I didn’t have to track you down too far.”

“What’s up?”

She caught her breath. “Something big just went down for Jason and Chloe, and they want you go come get some shots of them.”

Anything that made one of these ladies excitable had to be big. “Okaaay,” I drawled, my mind already buzzing with what it could be. As a wedding photographer, I’d long since learned to expect the unexpected and be ready to shift gears at a moment’s notice. “Any clue, so I’m prepared?”

“Sorry, Micki. I’ve no idea. Both sets of parents are there, plus her sister and some other guy. All I know is Jason’s grin was a mile wide and Chloe looked like she was about to faint. Oh, and then she started crying, so who knows?”

“Okay, okay.” I double-checked my battery and debated about retrieving my backup, just in case this “surprise” took more than what I was currently prepared for. I didn’t want to be caught not having access to my backup equipment. Not having any idea of what I was stepping into, I decided to play it safe. “Listen, give me a quick second to get a backup battery and I’ll meet up with you. Where are they?”

“Just inside the lobby. I’ll let them know you’re coming.”

“Okay, I’ll hurry.”

A few minutes later, I stood at the bottom of the stone steps that led up to where Chloe, Jason, her parents, Jason’s parents, Sara—her sister and maid-of-honor—and another man were now standing, just outside the main building of Casa Blanca. Excited chatter filled the air, but I couldn’t catch a long enough thread of conversation to get a clue. Chloe turned and spotted me first, sprinting down the steps, her dress hiked up and carelessly bunched in both hands. She stumbled to a halt in front of me, breathing like she’d just finished a 5K run. “Micki,” she gasped. “You’re never, ever, ever going to believe this!” Her body fairly shook with excitement.

“I can only imagine!” I laughed. “What am I not going to believe?”

She let go of her dress and grabbed my arms, pumping them up and down. “Jason’s cousin made it to the wedding…well, not exactly the ceremony. He just got here a few minutes ago I guess, but…and then…” she struggled to catch her breath and string her words together.

“And then…?” I encouraged.

“Then, no—now! Now, he just told us what our wedding gift is and Jason knew it all along…and I didn’t—even though I thought we were going to the Keys…”

She was babbling now, and I’d totally lost her at this point. Shaking my head, I clasped her wrists, gentling her like a skittish race horse. “Slowly. What are you talking about?”

She glanced over her shoulder to where the rest of the group stood. “It’s Jason’s cousin,” she exclaimed. “He gave us a cruise! A cruise, Micki! But not just a regular cruise, like, you know, on a big ship and all. No! This is on a private yacht his cousin designed and delivered to some client in the Caribbean that added this yacht to their charter business. Oh, my God. I don’t get it all, but it’s ours, Micki! Ours! For a whole week to cruise on! Can you believe that? Can you believe that—that amazing husband…oh my God, I just called him my husband! Oh, God, Micki, I think I’m going to faint.” She stopped, fanning herself with one hand, patting the center of her chest with the other.

Despite her disjointed words, I got the picture and couldn’t have been more thrilled for them.

I looked back to the animated group still enthralled in vibrant conversation and delighted laughter. The mood was contagious until the lone person I hadn’t recognized turned.

One look at his profile was enough. “Oh, my God,” I breathed. My heart promptly pounded painfully in my chest, making me breathless and dizzy. Disoriented, I stood still, the world around me revolving like a surreal drugged dream. I let go of Chloe’s wrists.

“What is it, Micki? What’s wrong?” Chloe’s voice held a clear note of concern.

Words weren’t possible. I opened and closed my mouth, but nothing came. Nothing registered except a time and place twelve years ago. My throat closed, dry as dust.

She took my now cold hands from my sides and pressed them between her warm ones. “You’re scaring me. What’s going on?”

I swallowed hard, struggling to pull in a breath and not choke. “Just someone…from my past…who I never thought I’d see again,” I managed to rasp out.

Chloe looked hard into my face. “I’ll take a scientific, wild-ass guess here and say it didn’t end well?”

Unable to pull my gaze from the broad-shouldered, sandy-haired surfer I’d known so long ago, I could only shake my head and whisper, “No—no, it did not end well at all.”