Chapter 33: Forever With The CEO: First Epilogue

“Are you ready, Auntie Allison?” Annie asked. “I can walk in front of you. I’m a big girl.”

“I want to walk too,” Jack said.

Nick and I decided to have our real wedding on the anniversary of our first one. There just seemed something magical about the twelve-month mark. The twins were big enough that I could trust them to walk with the rings, although I couldn’t really trust them not to fight all the way.

So much had changed over these past few months. Nick and I were closer than ever. Once we’d decided that our marriage was real, we somehow became even more in sync, especially when it came to raising the kids. I’d already told Derek that I was ready to take on an M&A whenever the company decided to acquire a new venture. He was glad after I’d turned the last one down. And Nick was going to open the very first gym location in Texas next year.

In between all of that, we’d also organized our wedding. Of course, the Whitleys helped.

The ceremony was taking place at Maddox and Gabe’s hotel. The party was inside the restaurant, and the vow renewal ceremony was in the gorgeous forest adjacent to it. Nick and I had been thinking forever about where to have the event. One day I came here with his family for a picnic, and I completely fell in love with those old trees.

I was currently waiting for Mom’s sign that it was time for me to walk out. She and Dad had insisted that they had to travel for this occasion. They did seem much healthier than ever before. True to his word, Nick flew us out to see them with the kids after we got custody and all the paperwork was filed and official. Now Nick was talking about adopting them too.

God, I loved this man so much.

Mom poked her head in. “All right, everyone’s ready, honey. Annie, Jack, you’re coming with me,” she told the little ones. “And your dad will walk with you.”

I nodded as a knot formed in my throat.

Dad stepped into the room a moment later, looking at me with tears in his eyes. “You’re so beautiful, my girl.” I was wearing a gorgeous dress. This one was red with black accents on the hem. Neither of my parents had expressed any surprise that I was wearing something like this.

“Thank you, Dad. I’m so happy you’re here.”

We walked behind Mom and the twins. I’d been given a hotel room to get ready in on the ground floor. All we had to do was literally walk through the door into the yard. Then we’d step into the common area where the pathway to the forest was. Dad was walking very slowly, but that was okay. There was no need to hurry.

“I’m so glad you found happiness, my girl.”

“Me, too, Dad.”

“You, Nick, Jack, and Annie are a beautiful family.”

A lump caught in my throat. “Yes, we are. But I miss Nora so much.”

“We all do. But we have these two little ones to remind us of her.”

I leaned my head on Dad’s shoulder, soaking in his warmth. He used to be a strong man when I was a little girl. His arms always made me feel safe. And even now in his old age, and although he was frail, he still made me feel that way. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world.

We could hear the twins bickering even though they were quite far in front of us, and that made me smile.

“They remind me of you and Nora,” Dad said. “You two used to fight all the time too.”

“I remember that. Even when we got the exact same toy, we fought over which one was prettier.” I squeezed his arm. “I’m so glad you and Mom could make it.”

“We wouldn’t miss this for the world, baby.”

When we reached the forest, I gave a mighty sigh. Initially, I figured the ceremony would be small. Then I remembered how many Whitleys there were. My friends Violet and Danielle did come this time. They apologized profusely for missing the ceremony last year. I didn’t want to hold a grudge, but it would take me a bit to get over that.

Nick was already waiting at the end of the pathway. There were benches on either side. The twins finally stopped bickering as Mom lowered herself to their level and told them to move slowly down the aisle. Then she sat down, beaming at us. She was right next to Helen, who had tears in her eyes. I truly liked the woman. I’d only seen her a handful of times over the past year, but it warmed my heart that she loved Annie and Jack as if they were her own blood.

As the music started, I only had eyes for Nick. He was wearing a gorgeous tux. The pastor behind him was a man similar in age to us. He was smiling from ear to ear. What a difference from the previous grumpy officiant.

Nick looked me up and down shamelessly as I approached. Fortunately, the trees were tall, and the light between them was a game of shadows. I didn’t think anyone could tell except me.

Jack and Annie stood on one side, as I’d instructed them a few times. They looked at us with big, expectant eyes.

I loved these two munchkins so damn much.

Nick leaned in, kissed my cheek, and whispered, “You’re fucking sexy and gorgeous.”

I instantly blushed.

The pastor cleared his throat. “Shall we begin?”

I nodded, as did Nick. The whispers among the guests died down.

“We’re gathered here today to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Allison and Nick’s wedding.” He’d been a bit surprised that we wanted a vow renewal only a year after the wedding, and his voice still held a bit of amazement. “These two love each other so much that they decided the anniversary deserved to be celebrated in style.”

Someone whistled—I thought it might be Leo.

“Without further ado, I’d like to ask Nick to say a few words.”

Nick beamed at me, wiggling his eyebrows lightly.

Oh, he wouldn’t dare put anything dirty in his vows, would he? I mean, I wouldn’t put anything past this man, but still, my parents were in the audience… and his mom… and his grandparents.

“Allison, last year when we walked into city hall, I knew it was more than just signing papers. At least for me.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the poor pastor frowning. I could see how someone would be extremely confused by that if they didn’t know the details.

“All I wanted was to make you happy. That’s all I want today as well—to see you content, happy, in love with me,” he added, as if there could be any doubt. “I promise to make you the happiest woman for as long as I live. To be the best husband and the best father figure to Jack and Annie.”

I heard little sighs of surprise from the twins—they probably hadn’t expected to hear their names—but they thankfully remained silent.

“The three of you changed my life completely. Even though we started out on this journey with an entirely different goal. I couldn’t be happier with how things turned out, with the life we have together now. I love you.”

“And I love you,” I whispered.

Nick looked at the pastor and nodded.

“Now, it’s time for Allison’s vows,” the pastor said.

I swallowed hard, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear, only to remember that it was pulled back in a bun.

“Nick, I’ve never loved someone the way I love you, with all my heart and every cell in my body. It’s as if my soul had just been wandering around all this time, waiting and waiting. I’d never realized that. Then, when you came into our lives, I didn’t realize it in the beginning either,” I confessed. “But as we spent more time together and I discovered what an amazing person you are, I fell for you completely, and—” My voice cracked, and I stopped for a moment to collect myself.

Nick squeezed my hand, and I managed to continue. “And I know that I will fall more and more in love with you every single day. Every time I think my love for you can’t grow more, you prove me wrong, and I can’t wait for every single day for the rest of our lives. I know it’s going to be epic.”

“Hell yes, it will,” Nick said, and the crowd laughed. The pastor just smiled.

I’d debated making my vows longer, but I knew I couldn’t do it without bursting into tears.

“You two are clearly more in love than ever,” the pastor said. “I hope we’ll see each other again whenever you feel the need to renew these vows. I wish you both a very happy marriage and a wonderful life along with these two children. Are you ready to give the rings?” he asked the twins, who nodded enthusiastically.

Even though we had rings already, Nick insisted that we needed new ones. I couldn’t disagree with him. This time, we both obsessed over it—well, me more than Nick. When I showed him the five-hundredth option, I could practically feel his eyes glazing over. He very eloquently told me that he’d be happy with whatever I chose. We decided on platinum wedding bands that had a simple design along the middle—interlaced leaves.

“Repeat after me,” the pastor said, and I heard confusion slip into his voice once again. We’d told him exactly what we wanted him to say for the ring exchange.

“With this ring, I take you to be my wife,” he said, and Nick repeated after him in a strong voice. As he put the ring on my finger, I could feel our bond grow stronger. Logically, I knew it was impossible, but that was how I felt.

Then I took the ring from Jack, and the pastor said, “With this ring, I take you to be my husband.”

“With this ring, I take you to be my husband,” I repeated. My voice was a mere whisper.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

I grinned as Nick tilted closer to kiss me. “I think we completely confused him,” I whispered.

“Yes, we did,” he said right before kissing me. To my surprise, it was a much, much tamer one than the one he’d given me at city hall a year ago. Then I felt him grab both my hands, putting them on his shoulders. I immediately wrapped my arms around his neck, and then he deepened the kiss.

Oh, I realized his strategy. He’d wanted my arms to cover us up. Then he kissed me shamelessly, tongue and all, until I nearly forgot we were surrounded by our families.

When we finally paused, I heard clapping and realized everyone was already on their feet. Someone was whistling again. I was right; it was Leo. The pastor was also clapping and smiling.

I felt something tug at my dress and glanced down to see the twins looking up at us with big eyes.

“We want to ask you something,” Annie said. I crouched to their level, as did Nick. The two of them looked at each other. “We talked to Gran.” They referred to Nick’s grandmother as Gran just like he did. “She helped.”

“What is it?” I asked.

“We know Mommy and Daddy loved us very much and that they’re up there.” Annie pointed to the sky.

“But you’re our mommy and daddy too,” Jack said.

Annie frowned at him. “No, Jack.” She then quickly looked at us. “We’re asking.”

Oh my God, my heart was melting.

Nick cleared his throat and said, “What do you want to ask, Annie?”

“Can you be our mom and dad?”

Oh my goodness! I’d been doing so well, but now I was certain that I’d simply burst into tears. These two were adorable.

I pulled both of them into me, and they put their little hands on my shoulder and my back. Then I felt Nick encompass us all in a bear hug.

“Yes, we’ll be your parents,” he replied.

“Yes,” I added, but it was strangled.

They both shouted, “Yay!”

When they pulled back, Nick and I rose to our feet. I noticed that his eyes were glassy. He kissed the back of my hand, interlacing our fingers. “Our life is so fucking epic every day, just as you said, babe.”

“I know,” I whispered.

Our guests were clapping as they came to congratulate us. Even though we’d already done this last year, it had a completely different meaning right now, and I soaked up every hug. I didn’t overthink anything; it was simply blissful.

Helen waited until the very end. “My darlings, you two certainly know how to keep me on my toes. I’m very, very happy for you. You’re such a wonderful little family.”

“Thank you, Mom,” Nick said.

“Not to put any pressure on anything, but I’m ready to move to Boston anytime you tell me that you need help with the little ones—or with any more little ones you’re planning.”

I started to laugh. “No pressure,” I whispered.

Nick kissed my temple. “Bah, don’t listen to my family. They have their own ideas and timelines.”

“But they work, don’t they?” Jeannie said, then hugged us.

“I have to say they do,” I replied.

As the twins launched themselves at my mom, Nick said, “Ready to start celebrating?”

I beamed at him. “Yes. I can’t wait. This will be a day to remember.”