Swipe for a Cosmo by Megan Wade

Jade

“Iknow I should be standing here telling you how insane this is,” Charity starts as she pins flowers into my hair with a sigh.

“You really don’t need to. My mom covered that already. I think she took up smoking just so she had something to do while she paced the carpark.”

“Understandable, I guess. But, I do think I need to tell you how exciting I think this is. I mean, I’ve read books and seen movies where this crazy love-at-first-sight thing happens, but I never thought I’d see it play out in real life. It feels very Disney princess.”

“That’s what I said to Kellen earlier,” I say, grinning brightly as I meet her blue eyes in the mirror. “This is all very ‘once upon a dream’.”

“Right?” Charity gasps as she attaches a veil to my up-do. “It’s fucking romantic.” Spinning me by the shoulders, she slides one hand in mine and the other around my waist as she hums the classic tune, waltzing us around Kellen’s bedroom while we both laugh and allow ourselves to get swept away in the excitement of a sudden wedding.

“Sorry to interrupt,” a deep voice says from the doorway as Vaughn raps his knuckles against the open door, an amused smirk tugging at the side of his mouth when we yelp and jump apart like we weren’t dancing at all—even though we all know damn well we were just acting like giddy little kids.

“Nothing to apologize for,” I say, smoothing a hand down the long white dress with beaded swirls all over it that Charity sourced from a thrift store as soon as I called this morning to tell her the news. She spent all day making sure it was clean and ready for this evening—now that’s a best friend!

“Yeah,” she adds. “We were just…uh…testing the length of her dress!” Charity says the last part like she’s suddenly remembered the answers to a pop quiz she didn’t study for.

Vaughn chuckles as he meets her eyes for a beat too long, making me wonder if the sudden attraction Kellen and I experienced is somehow catching.

“Did you need something?” I ask, fighting a smile as he blinks a few times, as if clearing his mind of a spell.

“Yeah. Everything downstairs is ready to go.”

“Oh, gosh.” Nervous butterflies jump to life in my stomach. “I guess it’s time then, huh?”

Vaughn smiles and nods. “I’ll see you down there then.” His gaze flicks from mine to Charity’s, and then they just kind of smile at each other until he backs out of the apartment and heads downstairs ahead of us.

I stare at Charity with a massive smile on my face.

“What?” she asks finally, her cheeks going bright red as she meets my eyes.

“Did your soul just reach out and wink at his soul?” I ask, delight in my voice.

“What?” She laughs and shakes her head. “No way. Lightning doesn’t strike twice. And certainly not as convenient as that.”

“What’s convenient about Vaughn?”

“Just that he’s the brother of my best friend’s almost-husband. It’d be kind of like twins falling in love with twins and just as unlikely.” She rolls her eyes and moves back over to the chest of drawers where a small bouquet of wildflowers sits.

“Well, as of today, I happen to be a big believer in miracles…or even better—soulwinks. Yeah. I think I like that term better.”

“Soulwinks?”

“Yeah. Like what just happened between you and Vaughn. You had this big moment where you both just looked at each other and the rest of the world fell away around you. That moment is when your souls winked at each other. Like, a little ‘how you doin’ from the spirit realm.”

Charity laughs and hands me the bouquet. “You, my dear, spontaneous friend, have read far too much paranormal romance. That stuff does not happen in real life.”

“Then how do you explain what happened between Kellen and me?”

“Luck,” she says, placing her hands on my upper arms as she smiles up at me. “Sometimes, two people just get really lucky, and when they find each other, they know it’s right straight away.”

“Yeah,” I say with a chuckle. “Because our souls winked at each other.”

“OK,” she says, obviously dismissing me as she steers me toward the door. “Well, if that’s what happened to you, I think it’s beautiful. But that’s not a thing that’s gonna happen to me. In fact, now that you’re getting married, I’m probably gonna start collecting cats for company.”

“You won’t need cats,” I say as we reach the front door. “You’ll have Vaughn.”

Charity rolls her eyes. “How about we get you married first? Then we can worry about me later.”

“Deal,” I say with a giggle before we head downstairs to where my dad is waiting to walk me down the makeshift aisle.

And as I look around at the transformed bar filled with a small collection of Kellen’s and my friends and family, I can’t help but mist up. This really does feel like a dream, except it’s not. It’s real. And for once in my life, I’m living it.

“Ready, Jadey?” Dad asks as I slip my hand into the crook of his arm and take a deep breath.

“Yeah, Dad. I’m ready,” I whisper, just as he kisses my cheek and nods toward Kellen’s brother Otis, who hits a button on the jukebox and You Had Me From Hello starts playing.

“I can’t believe my little girl is getting married,” Dad says with a tear in his eyes. “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you, Dad. And thank you so much for dropping everything to come out here last minute. I know it’s nuts but—”

“No. Don’t explain yourself, sweet girl. You’re following your heart. Sometimes, our hearts are in a rush, and that’s OK.”

I lean in and press a kiss against his jowly cheek. “I love you, Dad.”

“Right back at ‘cha, Jadey.”

As the intro to the song finishes, Dad and I walk arm-in-arm around the bar, getting my first look at my tall and handsome groom, who’s waiting between a row of chairs at the end of the dancefloor with Vaughn standing in as best man across from Charity who is of course, my maid of honor.

The moment Kellen sees me, it’s as if he completely lights up. His shoulders straighten and his lips curve while his eyes drink in every part of me. There’s a special something in his gaze that makes me feel so damn beautiful. It’s addictive, and something I hope continues throughout what I feel sure will be a long and happy marriage.

“Hey there, handsome,” I say as Dad shakes his hand and transfers my hand to Kellen’s.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more stunning sight than you walkin’ toward me in a white dress, sweetheart.”

My chest fills with emotion as I look up into his eyes. “I love you, Kellen.”

He lifts his free hand and touches my cheeks. “Feelin’s mutual.”

“If we can begin,” the minister says, his voice clear as it rings out around the room, taking us through our marriage vows as we promise to love each other with everything we have, in sickness and in health, till death do us part, forever and ever.

“I do,” we both say, embracing and kissing to seal our words with actions as our friends and family cheer around us, showing us just how blessed we both truly are. Because, not only did we find each other, but we also managed to bring together a room full of people who love us both enough to rearrange their days and bear witness to our perfect, spontaneous and beautiful union.

“I’m gonna spend the rest of my life loving on you, Mrs. Valentine,” Kellen whispers against my lips as he holds me close.

“And I you, Mr. Valentine. You will be the happiest man on the planet.”

His grip around me tightens. “I already am,” he says, kissing me again.