“Not right this minute.” She cuddled closer.
“But when you go back, how are you going to get there?” He sat down on the bed, keeping her in his lap.
“I bought the Fleming’s Blazer. I’m going to drive.”
“No, you’re not,” he contradicted.
“I’m not?”
“I want to take you in the Gulfstream. Will you trust me to take you up?”
He thought she’d refuse straight out.
She drew back to look him in the eye. “It’s irrational, but you know I’m afraid to fly.”
“Hey,” he said, letting her have some space to think about it, “I’m afraid of commitment. You won’t be taking a bigger leap of faith than I am.”
Her tongue peeked out of the corner of her mouth while she considered. Damn, but he’d missed that tongue.
“Is this a condition of the marriage?” she asked. “Fly or be damned?”
“There are no conditions. I love you and want to marry you, no matter what. I have a ring in my pocket and everything.”
He looked around for his pants, but they were in the other room. No way was he letting go of her now. The ring had been in his family for two hundred years, it would keep for a little while longer.
“There will be times in the future,” he said, returning to his original point, “when our schedules won’t sync. Sometimes, we’ll have to decide to do something together or separately, based on logistics. I’d like to think we’ll travel together as much as we can. Sometimes that might mean flying. But the choice is yours. Which will it be? On the ground or in the air? Together or separately?”
She smiled the smile he loved the best, the one he hoped their children would inherit, and she gave him the answer that filled him with optimism and certainty about their future.
“I think,” she said, covering his face with kisses, “the sky’s the limit.”
Epilogue
Four months later…
“Hold still, Dylan!” Natalie accidently pricked him with the hatpin. “The photographer’s trying to get a picture. Somebody went to a lot of trouble to make sure your boutonniere looked just right. You can give me five seconds to get it pinned to your lapel so it doesn’t fall off during the ceremony.”
“I can give you all the time you need.” He smiled down at her, unable to contain his joy at having her with him today. “Thanks for helping. It’s almost like having Mom here.”
“She’s here in spirit.” Natalie tapped a finger on her heart and then on one of his cuff links. “Dad, too.”
“Maybe they are.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze.
From the bridal suite at Liberty House he looked out at the activity below. It had taken three months longer than he wanted it to, but today it was finally happening. A stunning sun beamed down on everything. Tents covered the dance floor and the dinner tables. Wedding planners, florists, caterers, valets, and who knew who else bustled about. The railing from Gracie’s apartment over the carriage house and every stationary object he could see were festooned with ribbons and lace. Her grandfather and Reverend Peterman waited for her at the bottom of the steps.
When he and Gracie had talked about what kind of wedding they wanted, he said she should have whatever she wanted. He only cared about two things. He wanted to kiss the bride at the end of the ceremony. And he wanted the bride to be Gracie.
She wanted a wedding that was small, intimate, fun, and casually elegant. And somehow they had ended up with all this.
Once Gracie’s grandmother, the wedding planner Natalie recommended, and Dylan’s assistant had gotten involved, Dylan had bowed out of the planning unless his input was requested. Gracie had spent most of her weeks in Hartford working, and weekends in East Langden overseeing the wedding decisions. His only contributions were fitting in as much time with Gracie as possible, ordering a new tux, securing Wyatt and Ryan as best men, buying a ring, and planning the honeymoon. Which would be at a location that was remote, luxurious, private, and impossible for anyone but them to find.
Wyatt and Kara were guests at Liberty House for the weekend and had arrived the day before. Ryan had been delayed, but Dylan figured the Maserati roaring up the drive signaled his arrival. Both best men were now present and accounted for.
“You look fabulous.” Natalie smoothed out a non-existent crease in his jacket. “Now I have to make sure my family looks presentable before I check in on the bride. Josh and Maggie are apt to go from fashion plates to throw-up machines at a moment’s notice. If this thing doesn’t start on time, all bets are off.”
“I don’t care who spits up on whom, just make sure you’re all there. I’m not doing this thing without you.” He kissed her cheek. “Take the photographer with you when you go. He should be taking pictures of Gracie not me.”
“She’s got her own team, recording her every move.” When Natalie opened the door, Wyatt, Kara, and Ryan entered. His sister greeted them with a wink. “Stunning. All three of you. You, too, Kara. No wonder the tabloids go crazy when you attend black-tie events together. Let the photographer stay and get a picture of The Brotherhood. Gracie will thank me later.”
“No kidding.” Kara went over to give Dylan a hug. “People trip over me to get to them. But the groom is looking especially handsome today. I may be having second thoughts about my choice.”
“Too late,” Wyatt said, gripping her arm. “Dylan’s taken now, you know. And so are you.”
Dylan shook hands with both men. “I’ll always think of Kara as the one who got away.” He slipped his arm around her waist. “If Wyatt hadn’t shown up to stake his claim when he did, I might have made a play for you myself.”
Wyatt tugged her back to his side. “You did make a play for her, several times, and she always turned you down.”
“I hadn’t turned the full force of my charm on her yet. But once I knew you were interested, I backed off. In honor of The Brotherhood.”
“Speaking of which.” At the bar in the corner of the room, Ryan popped the cork on a bottle of champagne and then filled glasses. He brought the drinks over and passed them around. “To The Brotherhood.”
“Take a picture,” Dylan instructed the photographer, “then wait for us in the foyer.” They all clinked and drank while the photographer snapped away.
After he departed, Kara distributed kisses and hugs for all three men. “Happy day for all of you. I’ll go see if Gracie or her grandmother need help so you guys can talk about manly things.”
Dylan stopped her for a lingering kiss at the door. “Don’t go too far.”
“It’s just you now, buddy,” Dylan said to Ryan. “The last bachelor in the Brotherhood. You’ll have to party-on without us.”
“I always expected Ryan to be the first one of us to get married,” Wyatt said. “And Dylan to be the last.”
“Maybe now that you two are off the market, I’ll have a fighting chance with the ladies.” Ryan refilled their glasses.
“Yeah, that was the problem,” Dylan agreed, returning to the window. “We were too much competition for you.”
“What are you waiting for anyway?” Wyatt asked. “I highly recommend it.”
Ryan joined Dylan at the window. “You and Kara didn’t get married for almost four years after you met. I guess I can take my time.”
“Of course, you can,” Dylan agreed. “Take all the time you need, but when it’s right, you’ll know it. And if you need any help meeting someone, my brother-in-law Linc has a cousin you might like.”
“I’ll do my own hunting.” Ryan turned from the window. “It looks like your Aunt and Uncle have arrived. I’m surprised you invited them.”
Wyatt lifted his eyebrows. “I’m surprised they showed up.”