Page 84 of To Hold and Protect

It was Parker’s turn to snort. “You’re so full of it, Kade.”

“What he said,” Tristan said. “I’ll finish the toast. To the two men I call my brothers. Even if I could choose different men for the role, I wouldn’t. Well, sometimes I would trade Kade, but mostly I’d keep him.”

“Hey, I resemble that remark.” Kade held his snifter up. “To us, the lost little boys who somehow managed to grow up without going to prison.” He glanced at them and winked. “I’m mostly talking about me on that one.”

“It was touch and go for a while there,” Tristan said.

Parker nodded at that piece of truth. “One last toast. This one’s to you, Tris, for stepping up when you were just a boy yourself and raising two messed-up kids. No one could have done it better, brother.”

“Amen to that,” Kade said, then finished off his brandy. “Isn’t it about time to get this show on the road? I’m ready to be a married man.”

A little dynamo dressed in pink barreled out the door, followed by three dogs. The brothers laughed at seeing the silk scarves tied around the dogs’ necks—a lavender one for Duke, a blue for Fuzz, and Ember wearing a pink one.

“Daddy! Mommy said it’s time for us to get married. Is the preacher here yet?” She spun in a circle, searching for a preacher. “Where is he? He’s supposed to be here. What if he doesn’t come? I’m ready for my mommy to be my real mommy. What—”

“Hey, Ladybug, calm down. It’s not quite time to get married, and I promise, he’ll be here. Just try to be patient.” Parker’s heart did that funny bounce thing every time Everly called Willow Mommy. Willow had been promoted to Mommy status the day Parker had put an engagement ring on her finger.

Everly dramatically sighed. “Mommy can’t come out ’cause you can’t see her until the preacher’s here, so I’ll go tell her we have to try to be patient.” She put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him. “But I have to tell you, Daddy, it’s not easy.” She then glared at Tristan and Kade, as if they were also to blame for the wedding not happening when she thought it should. “I’ll tell my aunties they have to be patient, too.”

“Thanks, kiddo,” Kade said. “You look mighty pretty today.”

“I know. Mommy said I was the prettiest flower girl in the history of the world.” She skipped back inside the house, and the dogs that she’d given the title Flower Girl Helpers followed her in.

Tristan chuckled. “You realize she’s the boss of all of us.”

“Pretty much has been since I brought her home, yeah?”

His brothers grunted their agreement, and he smiled at hearing the love for his little girl in their grunts.

The preacher had arrived, along with the photographer, and Parker and his brothers were standing at the edge of the water at sunset. If he wasn’t getting married, he’d have an easel set up on the beach so he could paint the brilliant pinks and oranges of the sky. Instead, he took a mental picture for the painting he’d do when he got home.

They were lined up by birth order as instructed, and Parker turned his attention to the house, waiting (impatiently) to see his bride. The glass door slid open, and their barefoot, dressed-in-pink flower girl walked out with her helpers. In her hand was a basket filled with pink, lavender, and blue flower petals.

As she walked along the sand toward them, instead of dropping the petals, she tossed them into the air, laughing when they caught the breeze and floated around her head. Ember and Fuzz walked with dignity beside her while Duke jumped in the air, snapping at the floating flower petals.

“That’s my boy,” Kade proudly said.

Parker and Tristan chuckled, and Parker thought that his middle brother couldn’t have found a dog that matched him any better than Duke.

Then, three visions in pastels appeared and Parker caught his breath, as he was sure his brothers did. Their brides held hands as they walked across the sand. Skylar in blue was at the end facing Tristan, Harper in lavender was in the middle, and Willow was at the other end. Each was beautiful, but it was the one in pink that he locked eyes on. Her hair was down and wild the way he loved it, and her dress was some kind of gauzy material that swirled around her legs in the breeze. The hem was different lengths, and she was barefoot.

If he died this minute, it would be as a happy man. She was smiling as she gazed back at him, and the smile on his face felt like it was the biggest one he’d ever worn. In a few minutes, she would be his wife, and as difficult and soul-destroying certain times of his life had been, he’d do it all over again if that was what it took to reach this point, to have this woman walking toward him, her eyes filled with love.

“She’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen,” Tristan said.

Kade nodded. “I know, right?”

“Without a doubt,” Parker said, smiling because he knew where his brothers’ gazes were, and they were each right. His girl was the prettiest, though, if only by a little bit. Not that he’d say that unless he wanted Kade to put him facedown on the sand.

When Everly reached them, she looked in her basket. “Oh, no. There’s not supposed to be any left over. I have to go back and do it again.”

He put a hand on top of her head. “No, you’re supposed to drop what’s left on the sand here for the brides to stand on.”

“Oh, goody! I like that.” She dumped the basket over. “Now can we get married?”

The preacher chuckled. “Yes, young lady, it’s time to get married.”

When Willow reached him, he took her hand and squeezed it, then as she had asked him to do—and he’d fallen more deeply in love with her for it—he let go her hand and they put Everly between them, him taking one of his little girl’s hands and Willow the other.

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