Page 40 of Take Me (Cherry Blossom Lake #5)

There’s salad and fruit, and focaccia to die for.

Everyone eases into normal post-wedding chatter.

Jake and Cassidy sit beside Zoe and Cal, all of them laughing and smiling like dopey newlyweds.

Kaleb and Brooke sit moony eyed next to them, planning their wedding in hushed tones.

Parker and Calliope trade bites of bruschetta and laugh over some inside joke.

Hazel sits next to Noah, the only two souls at our table who aren’t coupled up. My cousin lifts her champagne glass toward Noah. “Are you feeling a bit like the odd man out?”

My brother just shrugs. “Haven’t lived here for more than two decades. I’m always the odd man out.”

“Fair enough,” she muses.

“How about you, cuz?”

“Me?” Haze sounds surprised to be asked. “I’m a coldhearted workaholic bitch who sent my own father to prison.”

“That’ll do it.” Noah clinks his glass against hers. “Cheers to being the black sheep.”

Hazel’s mouth twitches. “Baaah.”

Their conversation flows into the others, becoming a buzz that surrounds us. A fuzzy warm blanket of family and laughter and joy. Erika catches my eye with a grin.

“This is fun.” She pops a shrimp puff into her mouth.

My mother moves past on her way to the restroom, pausing by Erika’s chair. “That sweater looks beautiful on you.”

“Thanks.” She smiles a little sheepishly. “You’re sure you don’t want it back?”

“Positive.” Mom pats her shoulder. “It belongs to you now.”

Mom wanders away, and Erika turns back to me. “I’m probably ruining the look of the bridesmaid dress, huh?”

“Not one bit.” She looks absolutely gorgeous. “Want my olives?”

“Yes, please.” She smiles as I sort them out of my salad. “You can have my croutons.”

It’s a routine we know well, this shuffle of foodstuffs. I love it almost as much as I love her. The courses continue, mouthwatering sides and an entrée that leaves us both swooning.

“Having a good time?” I ask Erika.

“I am.” Grinning, she lowers her voice. “Don’t tell, but I think this is the best wedding food so far.”

“Love makes it taste better, huh?”

She gives me a look. “You did not just say that.”

“Too cheesy?”

“Who are you and what have you done with Mason?”

I laugh and squeeze her hand. “Would it help if I made a dumb joke?”

“It helps that you’ve got a piece of spinach on the side of your face.” Grinning, she uses the edge of her napkin to swipe at my mouth.

“Maybe you should get it with your tongue.”

“Gross.” Laughing, she kisses me anyway. “I missed you and your stupid jokes.”

“What about the good jokes?”

“I missed those, too.” She pats my cheek with a little too much enthusiasm. “Just waiting to hear one, that’s all.”

There’s a microphone screech as my sister stands up from her table. She gathers her gown in one hand, Peter behind her as she glides to the front of the room. She catches my eye with an unspoken question, and I nod.

That was our signal. Here’s hoping I don’t have food in my teeth.

“Good evening, everyone.” Lucy handles the mic like a pro. “First, let me say how grateful Peter and I are that you came here today to celebrate with us.” She smiles as she surveys the room. “We are thrilled to have so many people who love us.”

Peter leans into the mic. “Or people who like free meals. We’re glad you’re here, too.”

“Either way,” Lucy continues. “We feel blessed you’re a part of this, and we’re so happy you could be here to celebrate our love as a family.”

That’s Harper’s cue for her turn with the mic. “Thanks for making my maid-of-honor job pretty awesome.” She grins, so at ease in the limelight that there’s no doubt she’s my niece. “If anyone wants to slip me a sip of champagne, I promise I won’t tell.”

“Harper Ann.” Lucy wrestles the mic back. “Anyone giving champagne to our kid will have to face me in the parking lot.”

The crowd laughs, but we know she’s not kidding. Harper’s not getting a drop of bubbly. She’s holding a glass of kombucha anyway, and she throws me a wink as Lucy wades through the rest of her speech. She calls out our mother, who blushes and swipes at her eyes with a tissue.

Erika squeezes my hand. “I love seeing your whole family together like this.”

“So do I.” We’ve lost a few members along the way, but we’ve gained a few, too. That’s all part of life, I guess.

Lucy wraps up the gratitude portion of her toast. It’s time to move on to the next part. “I don’t know about the rest of you,” she says, “but I’m a little wedding-ed out right now.”

Peter speaks into the mic again. “I’d like to politely point out that ours was the only wedding in recent family history without some major spectacle.”

Lucy grins and glances at me. “How unfortunate.”

That’s my cue. I push back my chair, releasing my grip on Erika’s hand.

She looks up in surprise. “Mason,” she hisses. “What are you doing?”

“Stage two of my declaration of love.”

I stride to the front of the room as my twin keeps talking. “Honestly, I’m feeling a little left out on the wedding shenanigans,” Luce continues. “I don’t suppose we have any experienced spectacle creators in the house?”

We’ve timed it just right so I reach my twin’s side before anyone else can step forward. I hold out my hand and she gives me the mic before bouncing on tiptoe to whisper, “Good luck.”

Here’s hoping I don’t need it. I tug at my tie as my gaze sweeps the crowd, then settles on Erika. She’s looking confused, but maybe some part of her knows what I’m doing.

We’ve always been synced up like that.

Clearing my throat, I speak into the mic.

“Good evening, everyone. For those who don’t know me, I’m the bride’s much smarter and better-looking twin.

” I grunt as Lucy slugs me in the chest, then sits down at the table in front.

Harper and Peter take their seats, too, so now it’s just me sweating in the spotlight.

Here goes nothing.

“My sister requested no toasting this evening, so this isn’t a toast. Nothing against toast—it’s great with huckleberry jam.

Where was I going with this?” The audience chuckles politely.

I glance down at my twin, who’s beaming with pride and breathtaking in her wedding gown. She knows what’s coming.

Maybe not this part.

“I wanted to take just a second to say how lucky I’ve been to have the world’s coolest sister.

It’s weird sometimes, being a twin. Everyone considers you a unit—Lucy and Mason, Mason and Lucy.

It probably set us both up to bond like Krazy Glue to romantic partners, but I’ll leave the psychoanalysis to my future sister-in-law.

” I wink at Brooke, and there’s another small ripple of laughter in the crowd.

“For what it’s worth, I feel really lucky I scored a twin who is patient and clever and funny and supportive and kind and—okay, I’ll admit it—a lot smarter than I am. ”

The audience titters as I turn to Peter.

“When Lucy met Peter, something shifted in our family. I got to witness my sister being the happiest I’ve ever seen her, and that’s saying a lot—Luce and I have literally been hanging out together since before we were born, so I can say, without question, I’ve known my sister longer than anyone.

When I tell you that Peter is her absolute perfect match, you can check my credentials on that.

I know my sister, and I know she’s found the love of her life in Peter Marcus.

He’s a kind man and an amazing stepdad to Harper. I’m honored to call him a brother.”

There’s a smattering of applause and some sweet smiles from guests, but my immediate family knows what comes next. We prepared this last night, after dinner at Lucy’s. Kaleb gives me a subtle thumbs-up as Brooke mouths you’ve got this .

Drawing a breath, I look back at the crowd. “I wouldn’t normally choose to end up in the limelight at somebody else’s wedding—” I pause for the groans we rehearsed. “But Lucy’s given me the floor this evening, along with her blessing to do what I’m about to do.”

I pause to seek out Erika’s face in the crowd. She gives me an uncertain smile. I’m suddenly aware of just how crazy this is. My palms start to sweat and I’m conscious of how dry my mouth is.

From the table in front, I hear Harper whisper, “Here, Uncle Mason.”

She hands me her glass, and I take a big gulp of kombucha. “Thanks, kid.”

“You’re doing great,” she whispers.

That’s all I need to keep going. “For the past twenty-six years, I’ve been lucky enough to call Erika Gentry my best friend.

That beautiful woman right there, in the sunflower sweater and purple dress.

” She blushes as eyes swing to her. “For the past couple months, I’ve also been lucky enough to call her my girlfriend.

There’s a funny story there that I’ll tell you someday over beers at Big One’s—happy hour is from three to five daily, by the way.

” I wait for the ripple of laughter to fade, more nervous than I’ve ever been holding a mic.

“What I’ve realized these past couple months is that I can’t imagine my life without Erika in it.

She’s been there for the hard times, but also the happy times.

More happy than sad, and she brings so much joy to my life.

I don’t think I ever fully realized that until—well—” My throat clogs up and I force myself to swallow.

“Until I thought I might lose her. Don’t worry, though—spoiler alert—she’s not getting rid of me easily.

In fact, I’d like to make sure of that.”

A few people shift in their seats, maybe guessing what’s about to happen. Does Erika know? Can she tell what I’m planning to ask her?

“It seems wild that Erika and I only said ‘I love you’ to each other for the first time ten minutes ago. Because the thing is, I’ve loved Erika since I was a kid.

I’ve loved her wicked sense of humor and her kindness to strangers.

I’ve loved her great-big laugh and how much trouble we get into together.

I’ve loved that she is one hundred percent her own unique person, unlike any woman I’ve ever met.

I love how she knows more than anyone else about cars—sorry, Kaleb—and how she can kick my ass at darts—er, sorry, kids. ”

Harper pipes up again. “Cursing drives children to drink, Uncle Mason.”

“Thank you, Harps.” Clearing my throat, I nod to my siblings. One at a time, they stand up alongside their partners. Hazel and Noah get up as well, along with some friends I dragged into this so we’d have enough bodies.

Erika watches, tilting her head in confusion. I start talking again, and her gaze swings to me.

“Some of you might have noticed those breathtakingly gorgeous, calligraphy placecards in front of your plate. If I could ask everyone in the audience to pick yours up and flip it so the inside is facing out, I’d be much obliged.”

My family gets into formation. Mom’s at the front of the line, with Peter and Lucy beside her. Harper comes next, turning her place card around to reveal a calligraphy letter.

Hers is an L , same as her mom has, with Zoe beside her holding a Y . Cal has an O and Jake has a U, with Kaleb and Brooke coming next in the lineup with an M and an A . There’s some giggling and shuffling as Calliope and Parker trade places, bringing the words into focus.

Turning away from the chaos, I take in Erika’s face. I watch as she studies the flurry of hearts held up by every last guest. On each card, I’ve written “I love you, Erika,” but those aren’t the cards I most want her to see.

Her gaze swings back to my family as the message gets clearer. The bold, scripted letters form a question.

Will you marry me, Erika?

Her mouth hinges open as I speak into the mic.

“For those of you who can’t read the message, I’ve just asked this beautiful woman to marry me.

” I gesture to Noah and Hazel, who’ve switched spots by mistake.

“Er, I guess technically, I just asked Ekria to marry me. But since I don’t know any Ekrias, and I happen to be madly in love with Erika Gentry, I’d like to pose my question to the beautiful blonde in the purple dress. ”

I wade through the crowd, bringing me right to the edge of her chair.

I drop to one knee and hold out the simple, rose gold band.

“Erika Gentry—You’re my best friend in the world, and I can’t think of anyone else on this earth who brings me more joy or laughter.

Will you please do me the honor of being my wife? ”

“Yes,” she chokes out, extending her hand so I can slide on the ring. “I will absolutely marry you.”

The crowd starts to clap as I lean in and kiss her, brushing my lips over her earlobe. “Grandma’s diamond is yours, too. I thought we could learn about settings together, then pick what you want whenever you’re ready. Or fuck it, put the diamond in a necklace or the handle of a screwdriver.”

“Yes.” Sobbing, she throws her arms around me. “It’s so perfect, Mason. Everything about this is absolutely right.”

“Right?” I wince as my brothers take turns doling out congratulatory shoulder punches. I should probably get up off the floor.

My twin rushes over, pulling me up to my feet. “You did it!” Lucy squeezes me hard. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks.”

She lets go and grabs Erika next. “I know it was kinda unconventional,” Luce tells her. “But Mason and I started our first stage of life together. This felt right, starting our next phase together.”

“It’s perfect.” The simple gold band catches the light as Erika releases my sister. She looks up at me as her arms snare my waist. “I love you so much, Mason.”

Humming the opening bars of “Islands in the Stream,” I sway to the music meant just for us. “They’re playing our song, babe.”

“If you start singing, I’ll kill you.”

“At least I’m not wearing the boobs.”

She laughs as her lips brush my ear. “Should I bust out the chest hair toupee for the wedding?”

“Maybe save it for our honeymoon.” God, we’re getting married.

Married.

How did I get this lucky?

“Think we should elope?” I’m kidding, of course. “That way, no one can make mayhem at our wedding.”

“Come on, Mason.” She slides a hand to my cheek, stroking my cheek with her thumb. “You know as well as I do that the mayhem is the best part.”

I couldn’t agree more.