Page 151 of The Other Side

His looks never had to be enhanced or supplemented. Brant was always just beautiful.

But the best part? His inner and outer beauty tie for first place.

I was fortunate enough to fall for every single part of someone from the very beginning.

My eyes follow Brant’s steps, my mouth tipping higher with every inch he crosses. I’m cherishing this moment, fully here with him. And the elegant linens and clothes begin to blur around us.

Somewhere inside the man before me is the boy I grew up with. Fingerless gloves and a navy puffer coat—it’s what he’s dressed in from my angle.

The broken boy who dreamed just as big as me and refused to accept failure as an option. The boy who was chained to the same heartache as me, only to wear the same scars.

The boy who was set free by love.

It was love that did this. It was love that brought us here.

Brant strolls off, posing for a group photo in front of the backdrop that’s set up. My eyes lick his every motion, and I stare in wonder.

He’s charismatic, successful, and he doesn’t look a hair out of place. Because this is who Brant always was and will be. This was the beauty I always saw within. The only difference now is his wardrobe.

In the end, he kept his end of the deal.

In the end, we’re the destination.

We’re the dream we’ve been chasing our entire lives. Without us, this side doesn’t know peace.

And I think it’s about time we released a couple white doves into the sky.

Chapter 45

Brant

When all the recipients are done posing for photos, we journey our way back to our tables.

“Congratulations!” Jared pulls me in for a hug, Debra following suit.

Heidi announces that dessert will be served soon, and a collection of people stand from their seats to mingle. I rest my plaque on the table before congratulating Steve, and then I’m accepting other people’s well wishes.

I shed a tiny smile when a cover of Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” ripples through the speakers. My head veers left to the closed double doors, the weight of my heart too heavy to suspend any longer.

Needing to shake it off, I braid through a couple bodies to head to the garden. My eyes swing around, landing on the corner of the ballroom on the other side. A blur of yellow steals my attention, and my legs pause their mission.

It’s so bright.

So shiny.

So … damn vibrant in the sea of neutral tones.

The weight of my heart lifts just as my eyes catch the hem of her satin, yellow dress. It glints under the dim lighting, flowing against the elegant ankle straps of her gold heels.

My eyes drag upward, appreciating the snug bodice. Then I land on her chestnut waves. Admiring how they cascade over the thin straps on her shoulders. I meet those berry lips and sage-green eyes, and she lifts the last brick off my heart.

Like a dove flying away with the last remnant of chaos.

We’re on different sides of the room. In opposite corners. Callie swallows through a lump, and I notice her hand lift to her collarbone. Her fingers delicately grab something, but its identity is concealed.

Until she raises the tiny pendant of her necklace. And kisses the sunflower charm.

The same way she did when she left in that Jeep ten years ago.