Page 61 of The Shift Between Us (Covewood #2)

Four Months Later

Olivia

T here was a moment of peace just before a gust of wind swept over the Wiley farm and brought a downpour of rain with it.

I pull back the lace curtains to peek out the living room window to see that the storm has finally slowed down, leaving behind a hazy, ethereal-type atmosphere.

There is a fine mist cloaking everything in a soft veil that I normally would find beautiful… if it wasn’t ruining the big day.

My two best friends are about to get married, and everything is soaking wet.

We spent all day yesterday decorating the round arch that Ryland and Zane built together in a cluster of wildflowers.

It’s sitting underneath the large oak tree in front of the farmhouse.

We’ve set up two long rows of chairs that are currently drenched in rainwater.

There are several townsfolk outside the house, clutching their umbrellas, working hard to try to dry off the seats and put everything back together that the wind has blown away.

I’m panicking inside. I already reapplied my deodorant once before, but I’m going to have to do it again, along with my mascara, because when I called Luke earlier, who’s with the other groomsmen in Raine’s Papaw’s cabin, I started crying because I don’t know how to make sure our best friends have a perfect wedding day.

They deserve the best, and even though I can’t control the weather, it feels like I’m letting them down somehow.

Annabelle runs past me, stealing one of the cookies that’s on the coffee table, and twirls, acting as if nothing is falling apart right now. It must be nice to not have a worry in the world like a child. I start crying again as I watch my little niece, who looks so beautiful in her dress.

“Pull yourself together!” Wren snaps at me and reaches into her bra to hand me a tissue.

I quirk a brow. “Why did you stuff your bra?”

“For moments like this!” She waves her hand around, gesturing to me. “Where’s Raine? We need to make sure she’s calm and assure her that everything is going to be okay instead of literally blowing away.”

I open my mouth to say that she’s touching up her makeup in her bedroom, but I’m cut off by Annabelle’s ear-piercing squeal.

Everyone in the room turns to see Raine making her way into the living room.

She’s had her dress on for the last thirty minutes, but tears well in my eyes every time I see her in it.

“You look like a rainbow princess,” Annabelle says as she gives Raine a hug.

Raine found the perfect sleeveless dress that dips into a sweetheart neckline and flows down in a cathedral train.

She had it dip-dyed in pastel rainbow colors and did the same for Annabelle’s flower girl dress.

Hanging from her neck is the rainbow necklace that Ryland gifted to her when they first fell in love, and on her ears sits a pair of diamonds that belonged to her Mamaw .

“Raine—” I try to say, but the words are lodged in my throat.

She smiles softly, understanding everything that I want to say to her without me needing to speak a word. “You look beautiful too.”

I look down at the cream-colored, off-the-shoulder-style bridesmaid dress. I love that she chose for the colors to be highlighted on her and Annabelle’s dresses. Enchanted Petals, the local florist, did an incredible job on our bouquets of wildflowers, creating a beautiful array of rainbow colors.

Everything is perfect.

Except for the storm that blew through, which I’m quickly reminded of as Wren touches Raine’s shoulder to ask how she’s holding up. I watch her, waiting for her response, preparing to fill her with as much optimism as I can muster. But none of it is needed.

Raine beams, radiating peace, as she says, “I’m fine, I promise. Everything is going to work out.”

Wren looks over at me, her eyes widening as if silently saying, ‘ She’s in denial. ’

“Yes, it will.” I grab her elbow and start leading her to the couch. “How about you go relax for a minute? Can I get you something?”

“I promise, I really am okay. I don’t know how to explain it, but as I saw that storm rolling through, I didn’t panic. I just had this overwhelming sense of calm rush over me. Rain or shine, I’m marrying the love of my life today.”

Raine steps away to have a few photos captured of herself before the ceremony, and I’m left alone in the living room, staring at the soft glow of string lights dancing against the window, rain still clinging to the glass like pearls.

I exhale slowly, pressing a hand over my heart, trying to hold myself together.

It’s not just the dress, or the music, or the fact that the sky is finally clearing just in time…it’s her. It’s watching my best friend, the girl who used to braid my hair and stayed up all night wi th me during sleepovers, standing on the edge of her new beginning.

I can’t stop thinking about how far she’s come.

How far we’ve come. There was a time she didn’t believe this day would ever happen.

I think about how long it took for Raine and Ryland to get here after everything that almost kept them apart.

How sometimes love is about holding on, no matter how hard things get, and trusting that it’ll lead you to where you’re meant to be.

I think of Luke. I remember the storm we weathered, the mess we made of everything, all the times we pretended, and the ways we almost lost each other. But somewhere in the middle of all that, we found our way back to each other.

Once the rain finally stops, the music starts, a beam of sun shines through the clouds, and as if it’s a gift from God himself, a rainbow appears.

It stretches over the sky right as Raine’s Papaw begins to lead her down the aisle.

It stays in the sky for most of the ceremony, a graceful arch right above where Raine and Ryland stand and share their vows together.

“Most of you might not know this about our story, but when Raine and I were teenagers, I had given Raine the rainbow necklace that she’s wearing today.”

I hear the snap of a camera and am thankful the photographer captured this moment. The way they are looking at one another is something from a fairy tale. My heart swells at the sight of them.

Ryland continues, “You might wonder ‘ Why the rainbow? ’ A rainbow is a symbol of hope. It appears to us as a delicate promise from God that, even in the darkest of storms, light will always prevail. I didn’t realize just how much a rainbow would define Raine’s and my story.

“The rainbow sitting above us right now only gives me more confirmation that this is exactly where God intended us to be. No matter what storms life will try to throw at us, I promise to hold on to that hope and stand firm until the sunshine reappears again. I’m more than ready to spend the rest of my life loving you, my rainbow. ”

I don’t think there is a dry eye amongst the crowd. I search through the faces, taking in all the love and support that’s here for Raine and Ryland, and I’m swept away by a wave of peace, especially when I look over toward the groomsmen and find Luke already staring at me.

We share a grin, silently speaking to each other’s hearts.

There’s something in the way he looks at me, like he’s not just seeing me in this moment but every version of me he’s ever known. The childhood best friend. The awkward teen. The girl pretending not to fall for him. The woman who finally did.

In his eyes, I see it all reflected back at me.

There’s no fear or doubt. Only love. I press my lips together to keep from smiling too hard, but it’s impossible because, somehow, this man—the one who knew my locker combination by heart and always dared me to cannonball into the lake—is also the person who knows how to hold my heart without even touching it.

Once the ceremony is over and we take what feels like a million photographs, we enter the reception, which is being held in a huge white tent that’s displayed in the center of the farm.

We gather together, eat, laugh, give toasts, and at the end of the night, I end up on the dance floor, wrapped within Luke’s arms.

My cheek is pressed against his chest, my ear listening to the beating of his heart, and I’m thankful that he’s chosen to love me.

It has been pure magic between us for the last four months.

We also found out that Buttercream is actually a female when we noticed that she started to get very fat, extra sassy, and eventually gave birth to a litter of kittens.

I’m not sure why I trusted Luke’s anatomy skills, but now we have five cats: Buttercream, Snickerdoodle, Ginger, Pumpkin, and Peanut.

If there’s one thing these past four months have taught me, it’s how powerful love can be when it’s intentional. Luke chooses to love me in the ways that speak to my heart. He listens, he learns, he leans in, even when it would be easier to do what’s familiar to him.

He prays and asks God how to love me right, and that alone means everything to me. I never imagined I’d end up with someone who asks God to help him protect my heart, not just hold it. Who sees every fractured piece of me and holds it gently, reminding me that I’m already whole.

Being loved by Luke has been healing in the most unexpected ways.

“I can’t wait for our wedding day,” I whisper without thinking and quickly press my lips together because it feels way too soon to say something like that.

He’s not smiling as I peek up at him through the fringe of my lashes. I swallow loudly, waiting for him to say something—anything—to help pop the tension I created. He slides his hand up my arm until he cups the side of my face. “I was thinking the same thing.”

I find myself drawn to each word, as though something invisible and powerful is gently urging me closer to him. Luke’s eyes are heated, like a warm brownie smothered in hot fudge, which sounds absolutely delicious.

“You’re wearing your thoughts on your face,” he whispers, his voice husky and deep.

“I’m not that easy to read.” I scrunch my nose, earning a grin from him.

“You were thinking about dessert.”

“Lucky guess. I’m always thinking about dessert.”

The warmth of his hands seep through the fabric of my dress, and as his fingers gently press into the curve of my spine, it causes a pulsing ache beneath my skin, a buzzing hum of awareness at his touch. I suddenly wish we were alone so that I could kiss him like I’ve been craving to do all day .

“Now you’re coming up with an escape plan to get me alone,” he leans in and whispers into my ear.

I can feel the warmth from his breath everywhere.

A hot blush races across my skin, and I can see the moment he notices.

His smile grows into something bigger and fuller that has me melting into a puddle.

I lean forward and kiss the curve of his smile. “I guess you can read me after all. What am I thinking now?”

He looks at me like he’s hungry, like I'm the rose-honey cupcakes he devoured moments before we started dancing. He’s about to lean in and kiss me when we're interrupted by Edna.

“Oh, get a room, you two!” Edna grins at us. She’s one of our biggest supporters since we’ve made everything official. She’s dancing with an older gentleman who twirls her and gives us a wink before they shuffle away.

I glance over at the table near the edge of the dance floor.

Zane and Ashton are sitting there, mirroring each other in that quiet, broody way only two men with cracks in their hearts can.

Zane is chowing down on more wedding cake, like it personally offended him, while Ashton stares at the ground, seeming as if he’s trying to rewrite the past with the weight of a single thought.

They both look completely uninterested in the romance surrounding them—detached, even—as if they’ve already made up their minds that love isn’t for them.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it's that love has a funny way of showing up when you least expect it—even for the ones who’ve stopped believing in it.

“They’ve not been themselves tonight,” Luke says, his gaze landing on Zane and Ashton, reading my thoughts again.

“I was just thinking that.”

“Ashton at least has an excuse with his dad just having a stroke. He’s been under a lot of stress, poor guy. But I’m not sure what’s gotten into Zane.”

“I do. If you haven’t forgotten, he thought he’d be married by now, but when he proposed to Lily, she completely broke his heart. I can’t imagine how hard that must have been for him.”

“Oh yeah,” Luke says, rubbing the back of his neck like the memory just landed with new weight. “Man, I forgot how serious he was about her.”

I glance back at their table again, at the two of them sitting there like the world’s most tragic bachelors club. Neither of them seems to notice the magic in the air or the way Raine and Ryland can’t stop smiling at each other.

“They both look like they’ve given up,” I say quietly.

Luke slips his hand into mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Maybe. Or they’re just waiting for the right woman to come along and shake things up.”

I glance up at him, smiling. “Like someone pretending to be in love with their best friend?”

His grin deepens, that mischievous glint I know too well dancing in his eyes. “Exactly like that.”

I look back at Zane and Ashton, still lost in their own shadows. They don’t know it yet, but their stories are just getting started.

“If we can find our happily ever after, so can they,” I say, returning my attention back to Luke.

I nuzzle into his chest, wrapping both arms around him. My nerves spark to life, not with anxiety but with awe, because my heart still can’t quite believe he is mine. His hands move gently along my back, slow circles that anchor me right here, in this moment.

“I’m so thankful that God brought us together,” he murmurs, his voice soft as silk.

I lift my chin to look at him, and for a moment, the noise of the reception fades. It’s just us. It’s hard to put into words what I feel for Luke. I’ve said I love you more times than I can count, but somehow, it’s never enough, because it’s more than love.

He reads my thoughts like he always does, offering me that crooked smirk I’ve known since childhood. The one that somehow still makes my knees a little weak.

“I love you too.” His words sound like a promise.

I close my eyes for a beat, letting it sink in. We could’ve missed this, and we almost did, but I’m so thankful we embraced the shift between us.