Epilogue
Grace
One year later
“Where’s her veil?” Emilia said.
“It was in that red box,” Ivy said. “Where’d you put it? I handed it to you this morning.”
“I put it in the trunk of the limo. Did we not get that stuff out of the limo?” Emilia asked.
“I’ll go check,” Ivy said. “But help her get into her dress. We’ve only got fifteen minutes.”
Like the calm in the middle of the storm, I stood looking at myself in the mirror. Ivy ran out of the room to go check the trunk of the limo and Emilia was unzipping the fabric lining that held my wedding dress. It had finally come. I was going to talk down the aisle towards the man I had fallen desperately in love with and take him as my husband.
Today, I would become Mrs. Hayden Lowell.
“All right. That what you’re wearing under your wedding dress?” Emilia asked.
“It is,” I said with a smile. “Do you like it?”
“I think the question is, will Hayden like it?”
I ran my hands over the silk slip that fell delicately against my body. I had on a pair of lacy underwear with stockings attached to little clips and a garter that had been slid up onto my left thigh. My hair was curled and piled high on my head, with smaller curls dangling down next to my ears and the sides of my neck. The makeup Ivy had put on me earlier was perfect. Not too much, but just enough to make him stare.
And the only jewelry besides my earrings would be my wedding rings.
“I think he’ll love it,” I said with a smile.
“Then let’s get you in this thing. Hold onto my shoulders.”
Emilia held the dress out for me as I stepped in with my heels. It was a champagne-colored dress with a beautiful strapless neckline. It clung to my bosom and dipped in at my waist. Then it flared out into this beautiful princess gown. There was a bow at the side of the dress, decorated with beautiful beading and pearls. It was simple, but elegant, with just a smidge of dreamy princess charm.
It was perfect, and I felt like the bride I’d always wanted to be.
“I found it,” Ivy said as she rushed down the hallway. “It wasn’t in the trunk. It was in my-”
She came around the corner and froze. Her lips parted as her eyes raked down my form and I gave her a little twirl. I held my arms out and came back around, my eyes connecting with hers.
And I saw them lined with tears.
“Don’t do that. You’ll make me do that,” I said.
“You have no idea how beautiful you look,” Ivy said.
“Is that the veil?” I asked.
“It is. You ready to put it on?”
“I am,” I said with a smile.
She dabbed at her tears and sniffled before taking the veil out of its box. She pinned it into the curls of my hair, then flipped it over to let it shroud my face. It fell just beyond my shoulders, covering the part of my body exposed by the dress.
I turned around and looked at myself in the mirror and I began tearing up myself.
“Don’t do that. It took me over an hour to get that makeup right,” Ivy said.
“Then you shouldn’t have started the trend,” Emilia said.
“Knock knock.”
I turned around at the sound of Clarisse’s voice. She gasped when I turned around to look at her, and she came at me with her arms open wide. I embraced my soon-to-be mother-in-law and held her tightly, trying to keep my tears at bay.
“You look gorgeous, Grace.”
“Thanks. How’s everything on Hayden’s end?”
“He looks phenomenal, just like you. And he’s ready to go,” she said.
“Then we should get a move on. I’m ready for that reception,” Ivy said.
“You’re ready for the open bar,” I said.
“Same difference?”
I shook my head and giggled before I took Clarisse’s hands within mine. “And my mom?”
“She’s just outside the door fixing the flowers. Emilia, you have some competition.”
“Yeah I know, that’s why Grace was so good at it. She failed to mention her mother knows plants too. My flowers are totally safe in her hands.”
“Your dad is waiting outside the door to walk you down the aisle.”
I sighed, “Tell him I’m ready.”
Ivy handed me my bouquet and I grabbed it as Clarisse was pulling away from me.
Then she cupped my cheeks within her hands and smiled.
“It would be an honor,” she said.
I couldn’t remember the ceremony. I honestly couldn’t remember the vows, either. All I could see was Hayden’s beautiful blue eyes as they, too, misted over with happiness. He flipped my veil over after it was all said and done, then cupped my cheek lovingly. Tenderly. Stroking my thumb with his skin like he always did when he was losing himself in me.
Then he pressed his lips to mine and the audience erupted into applause.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I give you to… Mr. and Mrs. Hayden Lowell!”
Everyone at the reception clapped their hands as Hayden and I ran into the room. Our fingers were intertwined and I tossed my bouquet out into the crowd. I rejoiced when Ivy caught it, then winked at her as Hayden twirled me around on the floor.
It was time for our first dance as husband and wife.
And holy hell, was Hayden terrible.
“Ouch.”
“Sorry,” he said.
“Oof.”
“I told you this wasn’t a good idea,” he said as he wrapped his arm around my waist.
“Geez. That’s my pinky toe,” I said.
“I warned you,” he said with a grin. “I had to completely relearn how to dance just for this moment.”
“Then maybe we should’ve pushed the wedding out a couple more months,” I said with a smile.
“Ah, so you got jokes. All right. I see where this is going. You wait until it’s time to cut the cake.”
“Don’t you dare,” I said. “This makeup took a very long time to get on.”
“But it won’t take me anytime to take it off tonight,” he said with a wink.
“You’re bad.”
“And you’ve been a naughty girl. You think I don’t know you have stockings underneath that gown? And to think my best man will have to fish that garter off your leg later.”
“I still can’t believe you asked Zander to be your best man,” I said.
“He’s helped me a lot with this new foundation. When I found out his passion for helping children rehabilitate, I knew I could fuse his ideas with mine.”
“Well he seems to be getting on with Ivy. Look.”
I nodded my head over to the corner and I watched Hayden smile. Zander had his hand pressed against the wall, smiling down at Ivy. She was talking on and on about something and he seemed completely entranced with her.
It was about time she found herself a man to spend some time with.
The song came to an end and my feet were ecstatic over it. Hayden dipped me down before wrapping his arms around me and coming in for another kiss. I threaded my arms around his neck as he picked me up, then twirled me around the floor. All the way over to the D.J.
Then he took the microphone, set me down, and drew in a deep breath.
“Thank you, everyone, for coming to this joyous occasion. Grace and I couldn't be happier to celebrate this wonderful day with all of you whom we love so dearly, and we want to thank you for attending.”
The crowd applauded his words as his hand fell to the small of my back.
“Over the course of the past year, I’ve been working on my newest venture in life. It started out with a passion to make wheelchairs more accessible and more user-friendly for those recovering from accidents, but it morphed into something greater. A man who helped me during my recuperation, who also happens to be my best man tonight, brought to my attention the need for a wheelchair for children. Children whose lives have been affected by tragedy, permanent illness, or a combination of both. And so started a journey that would lead me to founding Chairing Is Caring.”
I wrapped my arm around my newly-wedded husband and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
“My foundation is both a research and a charity foundation. The donations we receive go towards researchers and engineers who make not only affordable wheelchairs for children, but accessible wheelchairs for children. Then, we purchase those wheelchairs and donate them to children’s hospitals and families that couldn't otherwise afford even the cheapest chair we can create. In my mind, there’s no reason why a child should have to go without a wheelchair because they can’t afford it. And there is no reason why anyone should have to fight with an instrument originally designed to help them during tough times in their lives.”
The crowd erupted into applause and whistles of satisfaction, rising up within me a slew of emotions that were beginning to get harder to choke down.
“So here is what I ask of you. Whatever you can give-- whatever your wallets will allow-- that is your wedding gift to us. We didn’t want crystal or new plates or silverware or a new coffee maker. What my wife and I want is for you to give from the bottom of your heart to Chairing Is Caring. Your donations will help fund the engineers that are working on ways to make wheelchairs cheaper in the marketplace without reducing their capability as a tool for living a full and promising life. And from the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for your charity.”
Hayden handed the microphone back to the D.J. As everyone rummaged around in their purses. People were whooping and hollering, but tears were streaming down my cheeks. I couldn’t help it. This past year had been filled with so many ups and downs. Late nights and arguments about grants and designs. But seeing the look of pride on Hayden’s face as he announced his foundation to those he loved most?
It was worth every sleepless night.
“I love you,” I said breathlessly as tears slipped down my cheeks.
Hayden’s thumb caught each and every one of them before kissing my forehead.
“I love you too, my beautiful bride.”
We danced the night away before Hayden whisked me to the limo in his arms. Zander was in charge of counting the donations and making sure everything made it into the right places. And we knew we could trust him. He was an equal partner in the founding of the charity. Hayden and I sat in the limo as we rode to our hotel suite for the weekend where we would then leave to fly out to Italy for two weeks.
Two weeks in a vineyard villa with wine, country sunsets, and decadent homemade foods.
“Holy shit,” Hayden said.
“What?” I asked. “Is everything okay?”
“It’s Zander,” he said.
“What happened?”
Hayden turned his phone around to me and showed me the text message. It was a picture of all the money and the checks, held together by a rubber band that look like it was going to burst any second.
And there was one single number below the picture in the message.
4.2 million
I threw my arms around Hayden and planted my lips against his. I heard his phone clatter to the floor as he pulled me into his lap. The limo slowed to a stop in front of the hotel as my mouth encompassed his, rejoicing in the first round of fundraising for his new foundation.
“Let’s go celebrate,” I said with a whisper.
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” he said.