“Oh, my,” Claire breathed. “They’re getting married! I can’t believe it. Hey, she picked out a dress without us.”

Everyone slowly made their way forward. Beth could see tears rolling down Gray’s mother’s cheeks as she clasped her husband’s hand tightly.

Suzy stood next to a white arbor with white tulle woven through it. She was simply breathtaking. Her long red hair was loose and the wind made it look like a halo around her. She was wearing a white lace gown with spaghetti straps and a sweetheart neckline. A long train flowed behind the fitted dress and the detailed beadwork glistened in the early evening sunset. Beth smiled as she saw Suzy’s bare feet peeping from beneath the hem of the dress. She had never seen her beautiful sister more radiant.

A man whom Beth didn’t recognize stood beside Suzy, smiling as they all came forward.

“Since Suzy and I have never done anything in our relationship in the normal way, why start now?” Gray said, and laughed. “You are our dearest friends and family and we want to share this moment with you and no one else. Suzy’s parents had a previous engagement and we regret that they couldn’t be here to round out the circle.”

Nick choked. “I can’t believe he got that last part out with a straight face.”

Beth elbowed him in the ribs and continued to listen to Gray. “We apologize that we sprung this on you, but I think you know that Suzy loves surprises and, truthfully, I love her and this idea. I hope that the men in the group will be my unofficial groomsmen, and I know Suzy wants the women to be her bridesmaids.”

Beth ran forward and gave her sister a hug. “I’m going to kill you for not telling me.”

“Me, too,” Claire chimed in. “How could you deny us the torture . . . um, I mean pleasure of planning your wedding?”

Ella stepped forward and gave Suzy a tentative hug next. “You look so beautiful. Your dress is so—”

“Not me?” Suzy asked.

Ella stammered, “No, I mean, it’s just so . . . soft.”

Claire stepped in to bail out Ella. “I believe Ella means that the dress is different from your usual style, but I love it. You make a beautiful bride and I’m so happy for you.”

Suzy did a twirl in the dress, saying, “I don’t know why, but I loved this dress as soon as I saw it. I wanted to look different for my wedding day and this is drastic for me. Ella was right, the dress is soft and that’s why I liked it so much. Gray makes me a softer version of myself, so it’s fitting.”

Gray’s parents stepped forward to hug Suzy, and they all lined up for the informal ceremony.

Mr. Maxwell, the justice of the peace and the man Beth hadn’t recognized, had agreed to perform the private ceremony. He started with the standard wedding passages, and then said, “Grayson and Suzanna have written their own vows and will be exchanging them now.”

Suzy looked into Gray’s eyes while holding on to his hands and said, “I, Suzanna Denton, take thee, Grayson Merimon, to be my lawfully wedded husband. I promise that from this day forward, your life will never be predictable or boring. I promise to limit our family dinners and rescue you anytime my parents have you cornered, and I promise to tell you when you are being uptight, and forgive you when you apologize. You are every fairy tale that I dreamed of and the forever after that I never dared to hope for. My heart is finally at home with yours, and it will remain there as long as we both shall live and into the beyond.”

Gray brushed a tear from Suzy’s cheek with his thumb as he looked into her eyes. “I, Grayson Merimon, take thee, Suzanna Denton, to be my lawfully wedded wife. I promise never to use starch in my underwear again. I promise to attend all the Gamecock football games with you, and I promise to learn all of the words to every Bon Jovi song. You are my soul mate, the love of my life, and the woman of my dreams. Never will there be another woman for me. Our hearts and our paths will forever be intertwined.”

Beth sobbed quietly as she watched her sister marry the man of her dreams and was relieved to feel Nick gently slip in behind her and pull her back into his arms. “Shhh, it’s okay, princess,” he whispered into her ear as his lips gently grazed her neck.

When the couple were pronounced husband and wife, Gray swept Suzy into his arms in an elaborate dip and kissed her until Mr. Maxwell cleared his throat and said, “I am pleased to present Mr. and Mrs. Grayson Merimon. May every happiness in life be bestowed upon your union.”

Tears and hugs flowed freely as everyone rushed to congratulate the happy couple. Beth threw her arms around her sister, whispering in her ear, “I’m so happy for you, sis, and I’m sorry that Mom and Dad didn’t come.”

Suzy looked at her with a smile. “Hey, it doesn’t matter. If we had parents like Gray’s, then I would have been upset, but our parents would have ruined the day and you know it. Besides,” she joked, “they gave me some funny lines for my vows, so it’s all good.”

Leave it to Suzy to see the bright side of anything. Gray had mellowed her wild-child sister and it was amazing. She was still the same outspoken, edgy person, but Gray had softened those edges to where they were no longer razor sharp. He had finally shown her the unconditional love that Beth had come to think was a myth. Looking at them now, so deeply in love and so at peace with each other, caused a pang of emptiness in Beth’s heart. Would that ever happen to her? Her relationship with Nick was both exciting and comfortable, but would it ever grow to be love?

* * *

Nick made it a point to be the first in line to kiss the bride at any wedding he attended, but the bride’s sister beat him today. But if he had to lose, then who better to prevail over him? Beth’s eyes were still misty from the ceremony. She was a lot more emotional these days than when they had first met. He found that he secretly liked this softer side she had started to show him. She had never been jarring like Suzy, but she could cut you off at the knees when she wanted to.

Nick still worried about the situation with her parents. There had been no contact since he had blown up at them at the last dinner, and although he didn’t miss them, he wasn’t so sure about Beth. She usually changed the subject when he brought them up. She assured him that she wasn’t bothered by their ugly words about her, but he wasn’t sure about that. Her eating habits had changed since then and he suspected that her parents were the reason. He never saw her eat anymore. She seemed to avoid meals with him altogether, and the few times they did eat together, he couldn’t recall anything actually going in her mouth.

Maybe he was worrying over nothing. Her parents may have made her too self-conscious to eat in front of him now, which was a damn shame. She said she was just trying to lessen her morning sickness and he hoped that was all it was, although something about it gave him a feeling of unease. This was a tough time for a woman and she probably needed more support and compliments from him. He could definitely step things up in that area. He would ask Suzy to keep an eye on her as well. There was no way he was going to allow the poisonous words of her parents to shed a single doubt on what a beautiful woman she was.

* * *

The women finally had a moment to themselves. A catering service had arrived a few moments after the wedding and, by the time they reached the patio, a buffet and tables had been set up for the guests. Beth wanted to groan when she saw the array of mouthwatering food.

She loaded a small plate with a piece of fish and some green beans. Beside her, Suzy was on her second plate of food. Oh, how she envied her sister’s ability to eat anything and never worry about it.

Like Beth, Ella seemed barely to be nibbling at her food, but for altogether different reasons. Declan had yet to seek her out and she was starting to despair that it would ever happen. Beth hated to think it, but maybe it was for the best. She didn’t like imagining how badly he could hurt her friend, if given the chance. Ella was a very special person but Beth still felt like she would be out of her league with someone as worldly wise as Declan. He wasn’t the right man for her.

“So I made sure Gray got Declan here just for you, Ella. I made a special effort, despite all the wedding planning, to get that man here, and you’re still sitting in the corner. You’re wearing the dress and he’s looked at the merchandise, so what the hell are you waiting on, an engraved invitation?” Suzy asked.

“Every time I get near him, he goes the other way. I don’t know what else to do. He doesn’t want anything to do with me and I might as well accept it.”

“Oh, horseshit! Do I have to do everything around here? I’m going to set up some dancing and you are going to dance with him. Leave the details to me. I will make sure it happens. You just push those girls up there in his face and give it all you’ve got.”

Claire burst out laughing. “Only you could be at your own wedding, Suzy, and be trying to hook up your friend. Shouldn’t you be basking in the moment with your groom and not worrying about Ella’s girls being on display?”

“It might be my wedding, but when someone is so obviously in need of my expert services, I can’t turn them away. Just hang on, Ella, and I’ll take care of it as soon as we cut that big-ass cake that Gray ordered. There are only a few of us; what does he think we’re going to do with the rest of it?”

“Hey, Beth,” Claire said. “How are things working out with Operation Clinger? Has Nick resorted to begging yet?”

Beth turned a shade of red usually reserved for Ella. “Um . . . I couldn’t make it past the second day. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I want sex all the time. I don’t want to cuddle with him; I want to jump his bones . . . all the time.”

“Ugh,” Suzy interjected. “That’s wrong. Shouldn’t you be nesting or something and not doing our boss nine ways ’til Sunday?”

“I knew you would never make it.” Claire laughed. “I was the same way when I was pregnant. Jason refers to it as the glory days. I didn’t even need him around to get off.”

Looking from Claire to Beth, Suzy asked, “When did you both turn into me? If Ella suddenly starts talking about sex and orgasms, I will know the world is on the verge of collapse.”

Suddenly, Beth had a thought. “Hey, where are you two going on your honeymoon? Since we didn’t know anything about the wedding, I think we at least deserve to know where you’re going ahead of time.”

“Well, I really hate to admit this, but I don’t know. Gray wanted to surprise me. I just hope it doesn’t horrify me instead. It had better not be some hiking trip somewhere. I like to chill in my downtime and put forth very little effort.” Then, giving a saucy grin, she added, “Well, unless it’s between the sheets, and then it’s my pleasure.”

Beth and Claire laughed and Ella turned her usual shade of crimson, but gave a shy smile. The poor girl would probably be high-fiving them soon if she continued to spend so much time around Suzy.

Gray walked over at that moment and leaned down to kiss Suzy on the top of her head. “I don’t even want to know what you three are laughing about. I think it’s time for our dance, Mrs. Merimon.” Suzy took the hand that Gray extended and pulled him aside. Beth saw Gray shake his head and give her an indulgent smile. They walked to the center of the patio and Gray said, “Excuse me for a moment, everyone.” When all eyes were on him, he continued. “As you all know, my wife is very shy and doesn’t like to be the center of attention.” As the hoots of laughter finally died down, Gray continued. “Since my wife is so shy, we would both love it if everyone would join us in our first dance as a married couple. So Mom and Dad, Jason and Claire, Nick and Beth, and Declan and Ella, we would consider this the perfect wedding if you would join in as well.”

“Oh, brother,” Claire murmured. “That girl is evil and she even has Gray in on the action. All right, Ella, don’t just stare at him, get up and make your move. Suzy probably had to promise Gray something illegal tonight in order to pull this off for you.”

“What if he doesn’t want to dance with me?” Ella asked timidly.

“Trust me, Ella,” Beth added, “he does. I caught him staring at you at least a dozen times tonight, so go for it. Give him a chance to see or feel what he’s missing.”

Beth smiled as the opening notes of a song from one of her sister’s favorite bands started up. “Thank You for Loving Me,” by Bon Jovi began to play as Suzy and Gray wrapped their arms around each other. Nick pulled Beth from her chair and swung her into his arms, joining his parents who were obviously experienced dancers. Claire and Jason followed them, leaving only one couple who had yet to join the dancing. Beth looked over her shoulder to see Declan offer his hand to a shy Ella. She could see the beaming smile that Ella bestowed on Declan as he too pulled her onto the patio’s informal dance floor.