Page 47 of The Heir Arrangement

All her life, she’d dreamed of falling in love. She had dreamed of starting a family with someone. Those dreams had come true. And when she had pictured those things, she had always imagined being married — although that was a point she had been willing to compromise on. But now, hearing Miles call her his wife, she was overwhelmed.

I am his. He is mine. We belong to each other, and we always will.

She hadn’t known that she’d felt this longing to be someone’s wife.

Not someone’s. His. That’s why it’s special. That’s what makes me feel like this.

She passed Silas over to Heather. The baby went willingly enough — he had gotten used to being spoiled by “Auntie Heather,” as the family affectionately referred to her. Chelsea reached out and took Miles’s hand, allowing him to help her to her feet.

He led her over to the dance floor, and as the band began to play again, he took her into his arms.

Miles’s ability to dance was an unexpected treat that Chelsea had discovered in the last few months. As they had prepared for the big day, he’d taken advantage of several moments when the two of them had just been standing around in the kitchen or the living room to sweep Chelsea into his arms and spin her around. So, she had known, coming into the wedding day, what she could expect from him.

But even so, there was something special about this moment, now that she was dressed in her wedding dress, now that she was surrounded by friends and family. Their first dance together had been like something out of a dream, and Chelsea wouldn’t have been any more enchanted if they had lifted right off the ground and spun around on the surface of a cloud. And now, as they began another dance, she felt just the same.

I wonder if this is how I’ll feel every time he puts his arms around me for the rest of my life? I wonder if it will always be like magic?

Right now, it was hard to imagine that it ever wouldn’t feel magical to be held by Miles.

He kept her close — close enough that he hardly had to speak above a whisper to be heard. “You look beautiful today,” he murmured. “I think I must be the luckiest man in the world.”

“That’s funny, because I was just thinking how luckyIam,” she said with a smile. “I can’t believe this has all happened. That everything worked out so perfectly.”

“Well, it wasn’t without considerable effort,” Miles said.

“I don’t know,” Chelsea countered. “It seems to me that things started going right the moment we stopped worrying so much and just let them be. When we were trying to control the outcome… that’s when we were pushing ourselves apart from one another. I knowIwas. I was just too in my head, too determined that I knew what was best and that it was my responsibility to make things turn out the way I believed they should. It was only when I turned off my mind and allowed myself to follow my heart that everything became clear. I belong with you, and I always did. I just wasn’t smart enough to see it.”

“Thank God my father was smart enough to see it,” Miles said with a smile. “He knew exactly what we needed all along. Sometimes I think he could always see where things were heading, from the moment he met you. Maybe even before that. Maybe he knew that telling me to find love, to start a family, was going to be the boost I needed to finally find the happiness he always wanted for me.”

He raised a hand and slowly stroked her cheek, his fingertips so gentle against her skin that for a moment she was in awe. How could this be the same gruff, no-nonsense man she had met that day in the fertility clinic? Right now, he struck Chelsea as the most tender person she had ever met in her life.

And he’s mine. He’s mine forever. My husband, the father of my child, my companion on the journey of life. Everything we do, we’ll do side by side. Every challenge we face will be tackled together, and every joy will be shared.

The song ended and faded into another, and Miles and Chelsea kept dancing.

“You know,” Miles said, “this is a beautiful party, but I can’t help wishing it was over.”

“You’re not having fun?”

“No, I’m having a great time. It’s amazing to have everyone here to celebrate with us, and you…” he sighed and shook his head, “you look so beautiful I can hardly stand it, Chelsea.”

“The dress is so simple…”

“And that’s perfect.You’rethe real beauty. The dress is lovely, but I’m glad it doesn’t overwhelm you.” He smiled. “I’m just ready for the party to end so that we can return to our lives. As special as today is… every day with you and Silas is evenmorespecial to me. Every day, I wake up feeling excited about what we have, and what the day will bring. It’s hard to imagine being any happier.”

“I know what you mean,” she murmured. “Watching him grow up… there’s nothing like it. And the most insignificant moments are charmed because you’re a part of them. When I think of the fact that we almost missed out on this…”

“It would have been the greatest mistake of our lives,” Miles agreed.

The sun was beginning to go down. From somewhere in the distance, Chelsea heard the sound of their son’s laughter, and it warmed her heart. Miles spun her, catching her gently against his chest as he pulled her back in.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you,” he said.

“Ask me what?”

“Well, Silas has improved our lives in so many ways,” Miles said. “In every way. And now that we’re married — now that we’re officially a family — all I can think about is what more we mightbe able to build.” His eyebrows furrowed in obvious concern. “Do you think… that is, I wondered…”

“If we might have another?” Chelsea asked.

“Have you thought about it?”

“I would love that,” Chelsea beamed. “And this time, we’ll do it the old-fashioned way.”

A grin broke across Miles’s face. He pulled her close, gazing into her eyes, and bent to kiss her.

Chelsea lost herself in the pleasure of his kiss and the knowledge that, this time, no one would feel the need to pull away. This time, there would be as many kisses as she wanted for the rest of her life.