Taming Lucinda by Normandie Alleman

Chapter 19

Lucinda

Dynassy whistled as she got a look around the dressing room in the back of the chapel.

"Never thought you'd be the one having a church wedding, Ivy," she laughed, her voice slightly distorted through the iPad speakers. She'd had her baby—a precious little boy they were naming Archer—two days ago. Considering how difficult her pregnancy had been, none of us should have expected an uneventful delivery. The complications were minor, but the outcome was a few days of doctor-mandated bedrest for the new mom.

It was probably for the best that she didn't try to juggle two infants at the wedding anyway. Barbara was at their place to help while Bridger came to show his support for the happy couple.

"Yeah, well, Russ has put up with a lot of nonsense that comes from being with a Barnes. It seemed like the least I could do," Ivy answered tartly, carefully applying eyeliner with her mouth slightly open. Her hair was a lovely shade of seafoam green to go with the dress she'd picked out on our shopping trip. The dress started at a pale harvest yellow and blended into light teal ending in a dark stormy seas blue—not the traditional choice for a bride, but nothing about my Ivy was traditional.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Can you help with my make-up?" Jaci asked Russ's Aunt Maude.

Maude had her hands full with helping Eden keep her kids clothed and still, and I could see from the other side of the room that make-up wasn't her strong suit.

"I can help you," I offered, waving Jaci over. We hadn't had much of a chance to spend time together, but maybe that could change. Every time Russ talked about his rugged mountain life Cole got a faraway look that made me think he'd enjoy an extended vacation out in the Utah wilderness. Nothing permanent, of course—he wanted to be close to the ocean and I needed to be near civilization—but a visit could be nice. Maybe we could make an annual tradition of it.

Maybe we could get everyone to come out for a family reunion type of thing. It seemed way more possible now than it had a few months ago. A lot of things seemed more possible since Cole had come into my life.

Our engagement still wasn't common knowledge. With all the excitement of everyone else's lives, I didn't want to distract. Cole and I would have our moment in the spotlight eventually. And if we didn't? That was okay too. He was happy to never be on stage and I was becoming more and more comfortable taking a supporting role.

"Ivy normally helps me," Jaci said, plopping down onto the stool in front of one of the mirrors.

"Well, who do you think taught Ivy?" I asked, digging through the make-up bag.

Her eyes widened. "Can you show me how to do eyes? When I try, I can't see what I'm doing."

"There's a trick for that," I said, diving right into the same make-up lessons that I'd given both my girls, and Leo when he went through that dark and brooding phase. Jaci was a quick study and a riot to boot. I'd never met a ten-year-old with so much wit and I had to stop myself from considering the show possibilities. Jaci had lost enough of her childhood to kidney disease, she didn't need to lose what was left of it to show biz.

"Are we all ready?" Maude asked, glancing at the silver watch on her wrist. "We should probably start heading out there."

"You guys ready to do your part?" Eden asked, taking each one of her twins by the hand. Annabelle and Albert were going to make the cutest little ring bearer and flower girl. They'd offered the flower girl spot to Jaci first, but she thought she was a little old for that and opted to be a junior bridesmaid instead. Chloe and Dynassy were the matrons of honor, but they'd only be taking up one spot on the bride's side since Chloe would be holding the iPad.

While everyone else trickled out, I stayed behind to talk to Ivy.

"I'm so glad you let me be a part of your big day," I said, taking one last moment to admire how beautiful she was.

"Of course," she said. "I know we fight and have our differences, but you're family. I love you and I couldn't turn my back—" She stopped and cleared her throat, quickly plastering on a big smile that didn't make it all the way to her eyes.

I knew it wasn't about the wedding. She was thrilled for her big day. She'd been looking forward to it for so long.

But something was missing.

Someone.

I didn't have to say anything about it. There was nothing left to say. We'd all held out hope that Leo would come around, but no one had heard from him lately. Even Eduardo had failed to get through to him.

Ivy jumped at the knock on the door, her eyes suddenly brightening with fresh hope. It faded the moment Nick opened the door.

"You ready for me to give you away?" he asked, holding out his arm for her. It was an honor he'd been happy to accept, but one he'd hoped he wouldn't have to fulfill.

"Yeah," Ivy answered with a small, sad smile. "Let's go."

I kept off to the side while Nick and Ivy took their places behind the door, the organist playing through the last bars of the flower girl's music.

"Mind if I cut in?"

Nick whirled at the tap on his shoulder, and time stopped for all of us.

Ivy was the first one to react—with a shriek loud enough to stop the music in the church.

"LEO!" she cried, flinging herself at him, squeezing him so tight he probably had trouble breathing. "I can't believe you're here! I can't believe you didn't tell me you were coming!" she added, smacking his shoulder.

He chuckled, ducking her swings but taking it all in stride.

He looked good. Tan. Healthy.

Happy.

"I couldn't miss my twin getting married, could I?"

Nearby, his gorgeous wife Honoré stood with their groggy-looking toddler in tow. It didn't feel real.

"A church, though?" Leo teased. "I'm surprised you didn't burst into flames when you walked in."

"I think I've spent enough time with Bishop to avoid that," she answered, the two of them clicking back together like no time was lost at all.

"Well are we doing this damn thing or not?" Leo asked.

Nick gave him a quick hug, clapping him on the back. "It's good to see you, man."

"You too," Leo answered.

"Come on," I said to Honoré, gesturing for her to follow me. "You can come sit with the rest of the family."

She smiled and suddenly looked more relaxed. Even for an actual royal, it seemed the Barnes family was intimidating.

Or maybe that was just me. There was no telling the horror stories Leo had told her about me. She might expect me to start breathing fire any moment.

I hoped I'd have a chance to speak with him, but it could wait. I wasn't going to make the mistake of forcing things too soon and ruining another wedding. It wasn't something I'd done often in my life, but I did occasionally learn my lesson.

The whole congregation murmured as the doors opened to reveal Leo and Ivy arm in arm. Soon, the surprise of seeing Leo wore off and everyone was captivated by Ivy and the ceremony.

Eduardo had such a way with words. His ability to understand couples and offer encouraging, hopeful words was unparalleled. He may have been drawn to the cloth but officiating seemed to be his real calling. He had a light about him when he spoke about two people coming together through hardships and struggles. Even the restless little ones stopped their squirming to listen to his parts of the service.

When the time came, I wanted him to officiate my wedding too.

I didn't think Cole and I would be getting married in a church, though. He didn't seem the type, but it was something we needed to talk about.

Later.

For now, I was happy to sit back and think about nothing but the wedding. All my babies were grown up and married now. They all had families of their own. We were all embarking on new chapters of our lives, and I was so excited that mine included Cole.

We all stood and cheered when Russ and Ivy kissed. As they left the church, some people tossed flower petals while others blew bubbles instead of the traditional rice-throw. Later that night, there were some breathtaking pictures of Ivy, Jaci, and Russ through a field of rainbow bubbles, the three of them looking like royalty from one of those fantasy franchises. Ivy especially looked like a fairy princess—I knew it was just what she would have wanted.

There was time for more pictures before we left the church. The photographer managed to get a few group shots and some with just the couple. As important as those photos were, Ivy wasn't in it for the pictures.

She posed again and again, and then finally, she said, "That's enough for now." Then, turning to the crowd, she threw her arms in the air and shouted, "Let's party!"