Page 63 of The Chances We Take

I looked at him in confusion, and he pulled his hand away, mumbling, “Sorry,” before putting a bit of distance between us as we walked to the cabin in silence.

“Okay, this is me,” I said when we arrived at the cabin. I was sharing with Erin, and I swore I saw the curtains shift as we approached.

Do we hug? Why is this so weird?

I settled for a nod. “Well…goodnight,” I mumbled as I opened the door.

He held one hand up in a wave as he backed away, the other tucked into his pocket. “Goodnight, Isa.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

isabelle

Today was the day. My best friend was going to marry the love of her life.

The morning of the wedding was as hectic as you would expect it to be, with all of us girls getting ready in the small bridal suite at the venue.

We’d hired someone to style our hair and do Ellison’s makeup, but Erin had volunteered to do everyone else’s. All throughout college, Erin had been the one to do our makeup when we went out or had events to go to. She just had an eye for it, and I truly couldn’t believe she never wanted to be a cosmetologist or makeup artist. Even though we were all different, she was able to enhance everyone’s natural beauty—her youthful green eyes, Sloane’s flawless, bronzed skin, Caitlin’s naturally bold eyebrows, my freckles and light hair. Erin always chose the right colors to enhance our features—even the ones we thought we didn’t love—and ensure we didn’t look washed out.

The stylist we hired spun Ellison around so we could see her finished look, and a collective gasp filledthe room. Her makeup was natural, but still gave her a dewy, glowing look. Her baby-blue eyes—what I knew was her favorite feature—sparkled and were brighter than they’d ever been and, in thinking about it, my eyes started to water.

“Isa, you can’t cry!” Erin stopped what she was doing and dabbed at my eyes, causing everyone to laugh.

“Just wait until the dress is on,” Ellison teased.

“I can’t wait to see you in the dress, but I also can’t wait to see Colter’s reaction,” Caitlin cooed.

Ellison and Colter had decided not to do a first look, leaving it for when Ellison walked down the aisle, and I was sure Colter would cry.

“I already know Colter’s going to cry,” she said with a laugh. “Is it horrible of me to be more excited to see Isa’s reaction and Erin’s reaction when Isa cries?”

I’d cried when we went dress shopping, probably more than Ellison and her mom did, so I knew she had a point. I was not a pretty crier.

“I’m not going to cry!” I protested as everyone laughed even harder.

When she finally put on the dress, showing us the final look, I did, in fact, cry. It was inevitable, but seeing her in her wedding dress for the last time was bittersweet. I remembered what it was like to go dress shopping with her and how big that moment truly was.

When we’d gone shopping, it took about eight dresses before Ellison found what she wanted, and I could tell she was getting discouraged. Sloane, Erin, Hanna, and I had all reassured her it was normal to go to more than one bridal shop, but the consultant convinced her to try on one last dress and the rest was history. Ellison herself even cried, and I had never known her as a crier.

The dress was different from what she’d originallyenvisioned, but it suited her perfectly and we all knew the moment we saw it that it was the one. It had a V-neck with thin straps and was cinched at the waist, tulle fabric billowing out in an A-line pattern with a slit coming halfway up her left thigh. Although she had wanted a plain dress, the lace wasn’t gaudy or overpowering; it added something extra to the design—a classic elegance.

“Come here, you guys.” She sniffed, seemingly trying to hold back tears herself.

We all rushed over to her, pulling her into a group hug. It was moments like this that I wanted to tuck away in my mind forever.

“Let’s get our girl married!” Sloane beamed.

We lined up in the order of how we’d walk down the aisle. It wasn’t a large wedding by any means, only about a hundred people in attendance, if that. I was sure more people would show up for the reception, though.

It was mid-July, so Ellison and Colter decided they wanted to have a tented wedding ceremony. That way they could provide some shade for their guests in the Montana summer heat. Tulle draped from the apex of the tent, providing an elegant look alongside the greenery that weaved through the fabric and cascaded down the walls. The tent wasn’t fully enclosed, either, so you still got a beautiful view of the venue. At the end of the aisle sat a wooden arch decorated with florals and a cow skull from Colter’s family ranch.

However, no one could have expected it would rain.

“Aren’t you glad you decided to have a tentedceremony?” Sloane had asked Ellison, seeming quite relieved we wouldn’t have to scramble to move everything indoors.

“I’m definitely glad the guests won’t have to deal with the rain, but to be honest, I wouldn’t have been upset about it even if we didn’t have a tent. I’m almost glad it started raining.”

We had all looked at her in confusion.

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