Epilogue – Cici
The beautiful white lacy dress clings tightly to my body and swishes around my feet. It makes me feel so stunning, I absolutely love it. I wish all of my clothes were as pretty as this… not that I have time for all the fuss, I suppose. I look nice, but it took me hours and a stylist to get me to where I am right now.
“Are you okay?” Michelle asks me curiously. “You aren’t thinking about backing out, are you?”
I let out a hollow laugh. “Of course not. There’s no way! This is the right thing for me to do, I’m just nervous is all. It’s pretty crazy to think that we’re here, on our wedding day, after all this time.”
“What’s crazy is that I didn’t like Will at first,” she muses. “I even tried to talk you out of it. I suppose if I knew what was going to happen with your idiot cousin and her husband, I might have still done that, but if I knew how much he was going to protect and love you, then definitely not.” She straightens down my dress and checks me all over. “I suppose he’s proof that you can change the bad boy after all.”
“I still maintain that he wasn’t ever a bad boy really. He’s a cop after all, but I know what you mean.”
Michelle reaches forward and she rests her hand on my stomach. “Well, you two are proof that anyone can find love, even in the most unsuspecting of places. Maybe Bill the guy from the supermarket will end up being my one.” She shrugs and smiles. “I suppose anything is possible, right?”
I nod, understanding her completely. “Yes, I think you’re right. Anything is possible, although I really don’t think Bill is the one for you. Judging by your tone of voice you’re already bored of him.”
“You know me too well.” Michelle nods quite seriously. “But I will find love eventually. I know that now.”
I hold her hand where it rests on my stomach. “I know that I’ve said it before, but I want to say it again. Thank you so much for everything that you’ve done for me, and I’m so sorry that you got caught up in all that mess.”
“Oh, don’t mention it.” She waves her hand dismissively, as if it’s nothing but I know that it isn’t. It was a nightmare, it left her traumatized for a while. She doesn’t like to speak of it now, but we both know. “It’s fine.” She rubs her hand up and down over the swollen size of it. “Now, let’s get you down that aisle before this baby comes. Your mother will never forgive me if you give birth in the dress that she made especially for you.”
“Michelle, I’m only six months along,” I laugh. “I know I look bigger because it’s twin girls, but I still have a while yet. And Mom didn’t make the dress, she just had to adjust it when we found out.”
Another surprise, but a very happy one. With Will, it’s easy to just go with the flow because we know that we can take on anything. Two more kids are no issue when we’ve faced death and come out the other side.
Michelle slips her arm through mine and she guides me towards the hall where we’re having the wedding. It won’t be a grand affair like the Annabelle and Landon had, we only have a very few people there; my mom and auntie, our friends, some of the police officers, but it’ll be so much more real. It doesn’t need to be fancy, because it’s us and our love shines through. That’s all that matters to us.
As we reach the room and I see Will at the end of the aisle, his face lights up with glee. He’s giving me that look again, the one where I can see the intense love behind his gaze. It always makes me feel incredibly special when he looks at me like that. A shiver runs up and down my spine and I can’t keep the smile off my face.
‘Hi,’ I mouth silently at him with grin.
‘Hey, he mouths back, as if this is a casual conversation. I want to laugh at how ridiculous we can be.
The music starts up and I glide as smoothly as I can down the aisle with my big baby bump while keeping my eyes fixed on him the entire time. He looks so incredibly handsome that I just want to scream. I need to yell out into the world to let them know that this man is going to be my husband. Mine forever.
“Momma!” Jordan bursts free from my mom’s arms and he runs as fast as his little legs can carry him towards me. I extend out my hand and let him walk with me. “Momma, you’re pretty.”
Laughter bursts out around the aisle, which I don’t mind at all. This isn’t a regimented affair where I need eyes to all be on me, this is a family even which involves all of us. If Jordan wants to be with me then so be it. After all, this affects him too. I only don’t have him already because I wasn’t sure that he’d want to. Sometimes he can get a little shy and I didn’t want to put any pressure on him.
“Thank you, sweetie. Are you going to walk with me to daddy?”
He clutches on to me and walks me forwards, taking me nearer and nearer to the man who I’m going to love forever more. Will looks like his whole world is walking towards him, which I suppose we are. Me, Jordan, and our girls. The little family that seemed to come from nowhere and has led to the happiest time of my life. Our animalistic attraction has led to a happy ever after. Who would have thought it?