Just Cause (19 page)

Six months later

L
aurel watched the mirror through tear-filled eyes as Judy arranged her veil. Judy caught her gaze in the glass. “Hey, there, the bride’s not supposed to cry.”

Laurel looked down at her ivory satin gown. “I’m just so happy. It seemed like this day would never come.”

“Well, it has, and you need to go out there with a radiant smile.” Judy put a tissue in her hand, and Laurel wiped her eyes.

“Did I ruin my mascara?”

Judy eyed her critically. “Nope. You look super.”

The door to the room opened and Dan’s sister, Becky, came in, holding up the skirt of her rose gown.

“How are you doing, almost-sister?”

Laurel smiled. She and Becky had become close friends over the past few months. “I think I’m ready.”

“Great. You look wonderful.” Becky kissed Laurel’s cheek. “Mom and Dad are being seated. Pastor Newman is in the foyer with Donna, Marissa and the kids, and the church is full and eager.”

Judy laughed. “You and Dan have a lot of friends.”

“Mostly Dan’s friends, but they’ve all been good to me.”

“It’s nice that your old pastor and his wife could come from Maine,” Becky said.

Laurel nodded, wiping away a last tear. “I was thrilled when Pastor Newman said he’d come to give me away and take part in the ceremony.”

Judy lifted Laurel’s bouquet of pink and white roses from its box. “Here you go.”

Laurel held out her arms. “Thanks. Aren’t they beautiful?”

“Everything’s perfect,” Becky said. “Even the weather. I thought yesterday you’d have a terrible day. But it’s sunny and warm out now.”

“Are all of the musicians here?” Judy asked.

“Yep.” Becky grinned. “Musicians and cops. The church is crawling with them.”

Judy laughed and picked up her bouquet. “I’m glad so many of Dan’s friends could come. We’ll have some great music at the reception.”

“We’d better get out there,” Becky said. “Are you ready?”

Laurel nodded and reached to kiss Judy. “Thank you for everything, dear friend.”

Judy winked at her and led the way to the door.

In the foyer, Marissa Ryan was holding Patrick’s hand, and Donna Wyman, Laurel’s other bridesmaid, was helping her four-year-old daughter, Reagan, decide in which hand to hold her basket of flower petals. From inside the auditorium, strains of Beethoven floated to them, and Laurel knew Judy and Dan’s friends were on the job.

She stepped up to embrace Pastor Newman, and he grinned and tucked her hand through his arm. “You look lovely, my dear.”

They waited while the wedding party entered the church. Judy gave her a last smile and went down the aisle.

Laurel took a deep breath and stepped into the doorway with Pastor Newman. The size of the crowd surprised her, but she focused her attention farther away, at the end of the long aisle, where Dan stood with his three brothers and Terry Wyman. He stared at her, and his eyes held a look of such pride and joy that Laurel caught her breath.
Lord, thank You! Help me to measure up to his expectations.

And to think she had almost turned Dan away last spring, too fearful to let him into her chaotic life. As the music cue changed and she stepped forward, she returned his smile. A flash of nervousness hit her, but Pastor Newman patted her hand, and she went on beside him with renewed courage.

God had answered her prayers, and she and Dan would have the future they had dreamed of. She’d won the civil lawsuit against her in-laws, enabling her to pay Jim Hight after all, and they had found an old brick farmhouse five miles from Dan’s parents’ home. Laurel had used part of the remaining money from her settlement to furnish and decorate the house. Now she was ready to start a new stage of her life. Dan had been promoted to detective, and Laurel had set up her studio in an upstairs bedroom in their new home.

She smiled at Dan as she approached the altar, and her groom’s eyes gleamed with love. Life as Mrs. Dan Ryan could only be good!