Page 135 of Sweet Ruin

“I’m not nervous,” he said. “I’m excited.”

“Yeah, Mom is too. Though I think she’s struggling to wrap her head around the fact that today’s already here.”

Matthew released a breathy laugh. “She’s not the only one who feels that way. It’s like this day has come up so fast but also not nearly fast enough,” he said. “I can’t wait until your mother is officially a LaFleur.”

“About that…” I murmured. “I’ve been thinking a lot, and…” I paused, not quite believing what I was about to say. But it felt so right to say it. “I think I want to change my name.”

“What?”

“I want to change my name to LaFleur.”

“Really?” My father’s eyes became glassy, and I was afraid he was going to cry. He had better not start. If he did, I’d probably cry too. And my mom had already warned me about ruining my makeup.

“Really,” I said. “Mom’s changing her name, and it feels right. We’re a family, you’re my family, and I want my name to reflect that.”

He pulled me in for a hug, and I held him tightly. I’d decided a few weeks ago when Mom and I had been talking about whether she’d change her surname. I figured I’d change my name at the same time too, and I was glad I didn’t have to wait too long before they were married. My adult life was just starting, and I wanted to live it as a LaFleur.

When my father stepped back from the hug, he was still beaming.

“I should probably get back to Mom,” I said. “But I’ll see you at the end of the aisle, Dad.”

He’d been trying to hold back tears, but when he heard what I’d called him, one broke free and rolled down his cheek. I shared a smile with him before I left him to finish getting ready. I went down to the kitchen to get my mom her glass of water and then returned to her room.

“How is he?” Mom asked, as I handed her the water.

“Good. Struggling with his cuff links but good.”

Mom smiled. “I never thought I’d see the day Matthew LaFleur was nervous.”

“I think it’s more nervous excitement. He can’t wait to be your husband.”

My mom beamed in response. “Well, the feeling’s mutual,” she murmured.

There was a knock at the door, and the wedding planner poked her head in. “Are you ready?” she asked. “We need to leave for the ceremony in five minutes.”

“I’m ready,” my mom replied. From the easy way the words left her lips, it made me think she’d been ready well before today.

The ceremony took place on the secluded beach down the road from our house. It was a small event, but my parents had extended the invite to my friends from school. They had flown in for the occasion, and it felt so good to have everyone I cared about in one place.

I was my mom’s one and only bridesmaid, and as I walked down the aisle, even though my dad was waiting at the far end, I was watching Noah. He stood at my father’s side, looking devastatingly handsome in his tuxedo. My heart flipped when he saw me, and the corner of his lips lifted in a smile. I was never going to get sick of his smile or the way his eyes lit up when he looked at me.

The ceremony was short but beautiful. And my parents’ love for one another radiated in their smiles as they exchanged their vows. I’d often wondered what my life might have been like if I’d grown up with my father, but in this moment, I knew I wouldn’t change the way things had ended up for anything.

The wedding reception was held in my mom’s old café—well, where my mom’s old café used to be. Matthew had spared no expense renovating the space as quickly as possible, and it was now run by Norma, with Frank at her side, after she had happily stepped up to fill my mom’s absence.

I spent most of the night on the dance floor with my friends. I’d missed Cress and Anna terribly since school had broken up a couple of weeks back, and it was so amazing to have them here. I knew it would only grow harder next year when they both went to different colleges, but we’d made a pact on the last day of our senior year that we would always remain friends, and I had no doubt we were going to keep it. We might be going our separate ways for now, but I had a feeling fate wouldn’t keep us apart for too long.

Wes and Sawyer had both come to the wedding too, and even though Wes despised dancing as much as me, he’d spent the night on the dance floor with the rest of us. Things had never quite been the same with Wes after we broke up, but we had somehow managed to remain friends.

Even Kaden and Luther had come for the wedding. And while neither of them knew my parents all that well, they had charmed my mom so much at her engagement party in New York a few months earlier that she insisted they be here too. The guys spent most of their night by the bar, but Kaden made sure to pull Cress aside for a dance whenever a slow song came on.

“Having fun?” Luther asked as he came to sit beside me.

I was taking a break at one of the tables that had been pushed to the side when everyone converged on the dance floor. I’d been dancing all night, and my feet were killing me so it had seemed like a good time to rest.

“Yeah, tonight’s been perfect,” I said. “Have you been enjoying yourself?”

“Oh yeah, tonight’s been great. Your dad has very good taste in whiskey.”

---