Magic Kiss (Hope Falls Book 11) (30 page)

Lauren stepped forward and took over. “Okay, everybody. Let’s get started. First of all, I think everyone knows my cousin, Pastor Harrison.”

Emma looked where Lauren was pointing and saw a good-looking man in probably his mid-fifties. He was also wearing a suit, waving from the back of the yard near the translucent Plexiglas fence that looked out over the Hope Falls valley.

Lauren continued. “So, if everyone could take a seat, that would be great. We’re about ready to begin.”

The crowd quickly dispersed, and Logan led Emma across the grass to the white folding chairs. She immediately scanned the crowd to find Drew. He waved from where he and Noah were sitting beside Charlie and Rick, Justin and Noah’s father. She and Logan sat in the same row as Shelby, Levi, Adam, and Jane. In front of them, Nikki, Amy, and Lily were all seated with their significant others.

They were all saying quick hellos when Pachelbel’s “Canon in D” began playing through the sound system. Emma started getting misty. The opening strains of that piece always did her in, and when they were combined with a romantic occasion such as this, well… She hadn’t become a romance writer because she
wasn’t
sentimental.

One by one, the couples slowly marched down the center aisle, smiling and waving to the crowd. First, Amanda and Justin, then Sam and Luke, then Lauren and Ben. Next, a man and woman Emma didn’t recognize walked down.

Logan leaned over, placing his arm around her shoulder as he whispered, “That’s Henry, the town’s mayor, and Ryan’s grandmother, Sue Ann.”

Emma nodded as the pair walked to the front of the group of chairs and settled in.

Next, a woman Emma recognized as Karina’s grandmother, Renata, because she’d seen her on a Behind the Music TV special, was escorted down the aisle by a stooped, balding, old man with Coke-bottle glasses and two tufts of white hair sticking out over his ears.

“Who is that with Karina’s grandmother?” she whispered to Logan.

He shrugged and shook his head.

Nikki, who was seated in front of them, must’ve overheard, because she turned around and said quietly, “Oh, that’s Karina’s manager, Bernie! He has the most hopeless crush on Renata. It’s really cute!”

Emma smiled at the pair. They were an unlikely duo, but sometimes, that made the most interesting kind.

Next, Ryan Perkins himself appeared at the back of the house. Emma had seen him on YouTube and always thought that he was good-looking, but the small screen on her computer had not done him justice. He was much taller and much better looking in person. As he walked, the crowd applauded, and there were even a few whistles. He took his place at the front, next to Pastor Harrison, and gave a small wave.

Emma held her breath as she waited for the main event. That was just the opening act—wedding foreplay, if you will. The bride was always the big show. She would bet six months of royalty checks that Karina was going to be the most breathtaking bride she’d ever seen.

The tranquil strains of Pachelbel faded out, and after a few seconds of silence, the electrifying chords of “The Wedding March” filled the air. As one, all of the attendees turned and looked at the door leading out from the house, and there was Karina, a vision in bridal white.

Unlike her pop-star persona, when she wore over-the-top costumes, Karina’s wedding attire was more like Emma had seen her the past couple of years since she’d gone back to the basics; just her and an acoustic guitar. She looked simple, elegant, and perfect. The dress was a sleeveless, silk, A-line ball gown with a simple, thin, diamond-encrusted belt at the waist. She reminded Emma of the classic, elegant beauty of Jackie O.

Bernie had circled back around and stepped to Karina’s side, holding his arm out to her. Once she’d slipped her hand under his elbow, the two of them began the slow march down the aisle.

When they reached the front, the music faded away, and Pastor Harrison said, “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the joining together of two people we all love so very much, Karina Blackstone and Ryan Perkins.”

After thunderous applause, it took a moment for the crowd to quiet down. Tears slipped down Emma’s cheeks. It was an emotional reaction to all the love in the air—Karina’s and Ryan’s for each other, but also the love the whole town had for them. For an outsider looking in, it felt like more than just a tight-knit community. It was like they were all family. It warmed her heart at the same time as it highlighted the loneliness she’d felt for the past six years in Seattle.

When the crowd grew silent, Pastor Harrison said to Bernie, “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

Bernie grinned and said, “Well, I’ll tell you, Padre. I could say her grandmother, who raised her from the time she was a little girl. I could say me, because she’s been like a daughter. But I think anyone who knows Karina knows she’s got a mind of her own. So I’ll say, she gives herself, but with all of our blessings, to this fine, upstanding young man.”

The applause was again deafening and long, and Karina laughed as she stepped up and took Ryan’s hands with tears shining in her eyes.

Pastor Harrison affectionately looked between Karina and Ryan before he began speaking again. “Karina and Ryan share a special love, one that is as unique as they are. In keeping with that, they have written their own vows, which they will exchange now.”

Ryan took a deep breath and dove in. With shining eyes, he said, “Karina, my life didn’t start until the day I met you, sitting at that table in my grandmother’s café. I could have never imagined that, by moving to such a tiny town, I would be getting such a gigantic gift. Life is funny that way. I came here thinking I would escape from the world, but I actually gained the whole world.

“You are the most surprising woman I’ve ever met. Your wit is razor sharp, but your heart is as soft as silk. Your loyalty is unmatched. Your generosity of spirit, your willingness to give everything in your heart to the people you love, inspires me every single day to be the best man I can be. I know I could never be worthy of you. Who could? You’re a goddess, and I’m just a mere mortal man.”

The crowd chuckled.

“But it’s striving for that ideal, to be worthy of your love even though you give it to me so freely, that keeps me waking up every day, keeps me working to be the best I can be. And it always will.

“I love you, Karina Blackstone. With everything in my heart. I love you.”

With that, Ryan pulled a gorgeous ring from his pocket and slipped it onto Karina’s trembling finger.

Tears were streaming down Karina’s face, and Emma loved that she didn’t even try to wipe them away or coyly hide them, as most women probably would’ve done. She just let them flow uninhibited. Her face shone with her love for Ryan, and there was nothing to be ashamed of in that. Emma found it inspiring.

Amanda handed Karina a ring, and Karina took a deep breath that matched Ryan’s own before starting to speak. “Ryan. My amazing, sweet, pure-hearted,
hot
cowboy.”

Again, there was a rumble of laughter in the crowd.

Sniffing, she continued with a wide smile on her beautiful face. “I love you with a love that goes deeper than words. Deeper than melody and harmony. I could write ten songs a day, every day, for the rest of my life, and never scratch the surface of what I feel for you.

“It goes deeper than my body. Deeper than my mind. Deeper than my soul. Deeper than my heart, even. I know this is true, because every time I give you all the love I have in me, every last drop, every iota of love, extended to you and given freely…the next day, I wake up and I love you even more than before. There’s a well of love so deep within me that it could never, never run dry. It never will.

“So, Ryan, here’s my promise to you—even though I realize the futility of trying to reach the depth of my love for you, and I realize that it’s a fool’s errand to even try to express what I feel for you in words or music because it’s too powerful and rich to be expressed at all—I am still going to try. Every day of my life, I’m going to spend all day, every day, just trying to tell you, to show you, how much I love you. I may never get it perfect. But it’s the only thing in the world worth doing, and I’m going to do it with everything I have. For now, though, let me just say it like this and leave it at that: I love you.”

With that, she slipped the ring onto Ryan’s finger. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house, and the roar of applause and cheers was so loud that Emma barely heard Pastor Harrison say, “Well, I guess the only thing left to say is: I now pronounce you husband and wife!”

Logan’s thumb rubbed up and down her shoulder, and she had to remind herself that this wasn’t real. They weren’t on a date. They’d come to a friend’s barbeque that had ended up being a wedding. That was all it was.

No matter what it felt like.

*

Logan was having a hard time keeping his hands off Emma. He kept finding reasons to place his hand on her lower back to guide her somewhere or, when they were seated, put his arm around her. Normally, he wasn’t real big on public displays of affection, mainly because he’d never really moved past the hookup portion of relationships. Before he’d been to Hope Falls, most PDA had appeared forced to him, like people were putting on a show.

After seeing his brother and his new bride, and his cousin and his fiancée, not to mention the numerous other couples in this town, he decided to reserve his judgment to a case-by-case basis, because all of these people were genuine people who really loved each other. Still, he’d known he would never behave like that. But, from being at the wedding with Emma, he’d realized he’d never been so wrong about anything in his life.

He was only keeping the distance as he was because they weren’t a couple. She wasn’t his to kiss. He didn’t have those privileges. But if he did, it would be happening. A lot.

“Oh my gosh!” Emma gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. “Kyle Austen Reed is here.”

Logan looked up and saw that, indeed, one of the biggest movie stars in the world, Kyle Austen Reed, was walking up to the microphone on the small stage in the corner of the yard. Levi had told him that he was practically a resident of Hope Falls, but Logan had yet to run into him.

Lifting up on her toes, Emma whispered in Logan’s ear, “Karina told me the funniest story about how Kyle showed up here when she and Ryan had first started dating because Kyle thought that he and Karina were a couple. It’s really funny and pretty sweet. Remind me to tell you later.”

As she lowered back down, her blue eyes sparkled up at him, and it took everything in his power not to lean down and kiss her.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I want to thank you all for coming to join in the celebration of the union of two of my nearest and dearest friends, Karina Blackstone and Ryan Jackson Perkins.”

The crowd erupted in cheers, and Emma shifted closer to Logan to make room for some of the other guests who’d gathered to get a better view of the stage. He took the opportunity to rest his hand on her hip and move her directly in front of him. For the sake of space, of course.

“For those of you who don’t know, I am Kyle Austen Reed.”

There were more cheers.

“I thought long and hard for what to give my two best friends to celebrate their love. When inspiration struck, I called my friends and asked if I could have the honor of announcing their first dance. So here I am. Ladies and gentleman, Karina and Ryan, my gift to you. Eric Benét.”

The crowd turned, and sure enough, Eric Benét was walking from the house up to the stage. The applause was almost deafening. When he stepped up to the mic, a slow song Logan didn’t recognize began. Karina and Ryan made their way to the center of the dance floor, and the crowd pushed in to watch.

Emma looked over her shoulder, her hands clutching at her chest. “Aww! ‘Spend My Life With You!’ I love this song! It’s one of the most romantic songs ever written.”

As she looked back, Logan felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Eric Maguire behind him.

“Hey, man. Do you have a sec?”

The last thing he wanted to do was leave Emma, but Eric was a good guy and he didn’t want to be a dick.

“Yeah, sure.”

He patted Emma on her hip, and she glanced over her shoulder.

“I’m going to go talk to Eric for a sec.”

“Okay,” she said then quickly turned around to watch the first dance.

He and Eric walked away from the crowd, and Eric offered him a beer. As he took it and popped the top, he asked, “What’s up?”

“I was just wondering if you’d given any more thought to the job offer. The budget got approved and I can bring on someone full time and someone part time. I totally understand if you’re not interested, but since you’re my first choice, I wanted to see where you were at with it.”

Taking a swig from the longneck, Logan tried to clear his head. He hadn’t given it any thought. All of his thoughts had been taken up by the blonde he’d just left.

“I am interested,” Logan answered. “How much time do I have before you need an answer?”

“I can give you a week, but then I’m going to need to move forward with contestant number two.”