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I gripped his shirt, breathing through the cramps and excitement warring inside me.
The babies were coming.
As Robert carried me, I looked up at him, his face determined and protective. We were ready for this.
Well, sort of. No one was ever really ready.
Epilogue: Delia
A Year Later
The sun beamed down on us through a soft veil of clouds, clouds that seemed to keep the stifling heat at bay for my special day. It felt like the kind of day someone would write about in a fairy tale—clear, calm, and perfect.
I stood in front of the full-length mirror, adjusting the lace on my wedding dress as my heart thudded with a rhythm that felt entirely foreign.
Behind me, Kassandra fussed with my veil. “I swear, Delia, if you cry and mess up all the hard work I’ve done on your makeup, I’m making you do it over yourself.”
“I’m not crying,” I replied, but my voice betrayed me with its slight tremble. My reflection didn’t lie, either. My eyes glistened, ready to spill over at any second.
Kassandra snorted. “Uh-huh. Sure, you’re not. You look like a walking Hallmark commercial. Honestly, I’ve never seen you this happy.”
Her words made me pause. I stared at myself a little longer, taking it all in. The woman in the mirror didn’t look like the version of me I’d seen just over a year ago.
Back then, I’d been lost, unsure of myself, carrying so much weight I didn’t even know how to name it. Now, my skin glowed, my smile was easy, and my posture was upright.
I didn’t look like I was bracing for the world to knock me down anymore.
“You’re right,” I whispered. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.”
Kassandra grinned, satisfied. “Good. You deserve it. And you lookstunning, by the way.”
She stood back, admiring the dress one last time. It was soft ivory and classic silk with buttons that trickled down the bodice and sleeves, fitted just enough to show the curve of my waist. And my ass. That part was for Robert. I’d never felt more beautiful.
“I want to wear this everywhere. I wish I never had to take it off.”
“The makeup looks good, too, right,” Kassandra asked, with a wink, fishing for compliments.
“Oh, of course. The makeup is the star of the show. Thanks, Kassie,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Don’t thank me,” she shot back with a smirk. “Thank Robert. He’s the one who insisted on the custom dress. Honestly, the man has better taste than I do, and that’s saying something.”
At the mention of Robert, my heart gave a little flutter.Robert.My fiancé, about to be my husband. The man who had saved me in more ways than I could count – figuratively and literally. The man who had somehow loved me through every messy piece of the past year.
I thought about how far we’d come, from our rocky start to this day, where nothing felt uncertain anymore.
Kassandra checked her phone and said, “Okay, it’s almost time. Tyler’s probably pacing outside like a lunatic waiting to walk you down the aisle.”
My brother had been my rock through so much of my life, and I knew walking me down the aisle was as big for him as it was for me. I’d agonized over the decision to ask him, knowing that I had planned to ask my dad to come to the wedding.
At different times, I’d considered not asking my dad at all, then asking him to walk me down the aisle. Finally, when I’d made the decision to send him the invitation, I knew the truth of who deserved to hold my arm in that moment. When I asked Tyler, he’d told me, “I don’t care how old we are. You’ll always be my baby sister.”
A knock sounded at the door, and then my mother stepped in. Her expression softened the moment she saw me.
“Oh, Delia,” she breathed, bringing her hand up to her mouth as her eyes welled with tears. “You look beautiful.”
“Mom,” I said, moving toward her as she embraced me.
Her hug lingered longer than usual, and I could feel the unspoken words in her touch. My mother had changed over the past year. She showed up more. She tried harder. She smiled more. And she loved my babies with a fierceness I hadn’t expected from her.