Page 60 of The Score

Chapter 20

Pen

Too many emotions run through me to fully understand why I'm shaking. It's a soft tremor, but if anyone looks at my bouquet with too much attention, they'll see it.

I'm around the corner of the building with my dad, waiting. I take a deep breath. It's a secluded area, designated for the bride-to-be to prepare to walk down the aisle. Soon, the harp playing inside will go quiet for a minute, to announce the moment I will appear on my dad's arm.

With my eyes closed, I visualize what's to come. It will help bring down the nerves. It's a trick I learned from Bear, that he uses for games sometimes.

The venue is beautiful, and it shows clear in my mind's eye. We liked it the moment we saw the pictures online. The whole property has a cozy, old village look that we loved. Bear said it was romantic. Then he used his influence and fame to shamelessly outbid other couples trying to book the venue when a cancellation came through.

An old greenhouse will frame the ceremony. The wrought iron structure has gone a seafoam color with the passage of time, renovated to look like alarge gazebo. They kept the ceiling glass to protect from the weather, while removing it from the sides. This way, the walls are open to the outdoors, the many flowering bushes at the edges, and the trees behind them. Fifty chairs, full with friends and family, wait for me. At the end of the aisle, Leon and the bridal party wait as well against a flower arch.

After we're married, we'll go to an outdoor patio for cocktail hour, while they reset the gazebo for dinner. We won't pose for staged portraits. Instead, we asked the photographer to keep snapping pictures to grasp hundreds of tiny, special moments. The background will be beautiful every time. Large flagstones with candles, flower pots of different sizes and shapes, leafy garlands with white ribbons and sparkling lights, will be the backdrop for us and our guests. The old state house that overlooks the venue from a hill nearby will set the tone, too. It's gorgeous and airy and perfect for a summer wedding.

I open my eyes and lick my lips. The time has come. Leon and I will sign papers that hold real promises. We'll be legally bound. We didn't have time for a prenup, but we agreed to look into a postnup— apparently a real thing— to make sure this is fair to both of us and the decisions we make while married.

I take another deep breath.

"Don't be nervous," my dad whispers. "You're marrying your best friend. Do you know how many people dream of that?"

I gaze at him for a beat. When I was little, I loved looking at old pictures of my parents. There was an old album for their wedding alone. I can't remember my mom's dress or what the cake looked like. All I paid attention to was their smiling eyes, and the way they seemed so light and happy that day.

Today, my dad looks very much like an older version of the man in their wedding pictures. It brings that same lightness right to my chest. My heart turns calm, until my blood itself runs like the cutest little prairie creek.

He smiles. It centers me. Nerves are unnecessary, when I'm marrying Bear.

The music in the building pauses, and it changes into an arrangement of an old song Bear and I used to love.

"Lista, hija?"

"Areyouready?" I smile. "You've been waiting for this moment for a long time."

My dad keeps going through medical tests,and being told he needs to remain low stress and optimistic. The happier he is, the better it will all be.

"I'm more than ready." He offers me his arm. "I'm ecstatic."

I grin. "Perfect."

With certain steps, he guides me around the building. A small turn later, and we take our place at the main entrance to the gazebo. It looks just like in my mind, except fifty-plus smiling faces gaze my way.

I can't pay much attention to them. My eyes are on Leon at the end of the aisle.

He looks incredible. His suit is the perfect shade of tan for the summer, with a white shirt and a chocolate-brown tie and pocket handkerchief. The shades were picked by a very smart someone, who must have known it would make his eyes look more blue than usual.

His hair is styled to perfection. His beard is dark and his scar is an intriguing notch on his lip. His eyes shine as he gazes at me.

My stomach flips. I smile and barely stop myself from waving at him, as my dad and I take the first step toward my groom.

Bear takes a long look at my dress. Even from this distance, I see the small reactions to it— the twitch on his eyebrow, the curl to his lips— that tell me he likes it too.

What's not to like? I never thought I'd like lace but, in this dress, it works. Little feather-like designs in off-white thread decorate the crop top I wear, with a boat neckline, half-sleeves, and a scalloped waist line. Below it, an A-line tulle skirt falls to just a few inches below my knees, full of volume and movement as I walk. It shows off my new favorite pair of shoes, a low heel blue set with studded straps. The stilettos and lingerie he saw me in were both too much for today.

Leon shakes his head like he can't believe what he sees. I grin. Dad and I reach the officiant, and Bear gives me a small smile.

After all these years, we're here.

I turn to my dad like we planned. He's tearing up. I was so focused on Leon that I hadn't noticed.