Page 123 of Romance and Peppermint Lattes
“I wasn’t worried.”
“That wasn’t the impression I got later.”
“All right, all right,” Joe said, drawing his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t think Paul was interested in you. I saw him and Lindy together one night at the office and the electricity between them was so thick it could’ve lit up Seattle.”
“You knew about Lindy and Paul?”
Joe shrugged. “Let me put it this way. I had a sneaking suspicion. But when you started talking about Paul as though you were in love with him, I got worried.”
“You should have been.” Which was a bold-faced lie.
Somehow, without her being quite sure how it happened, Joe maneuvered himself so only a few inches separated them.
“Are you ever going to kiss me?” he demanded.
Meekly Cait nodded and stepped into his arms like a child opening the gate and skipping up the walkway to home. This was the place she belonged. With Joe. This was home and she need never doubt his love again.
With a sigh that seemed to come from the deepest part of him, Joe swept her close. For a breathless moment they looked into each other’s eyes. He was about to kiss her when there was a knock at the door.
Harry, Joe’s foreman, walked in without waiting for a response. “I don’t suppose you’ve seen Joe—” He stopped abruptly. “Oh, sorry,” he said, flustered and eager to make his escape.
“No problem,” Cait assured him. “We’re married. We have been for years and years.”
Joe was chuckling as his mouth settled over hers, and in a single kiss he wiped out all the doubts and misgivings, replacing them with promises and thrills.
Epilogue
The robust sound of organ music surged through the Seattle church as Cait walked slowly down the center aisle, her feet moving in time to the traditional music. As the maid of honor, Lindy stood to one side of the altar while Joe and his brother, who was serving as best man, waited on the other. The church was decorated with poinsettias and Christmas greenery, accented by white roses.
Cait’s brother, Martin, stood directly ahead of her. He smiled at Cait as the assembly rose and she came down the aisle, her heart overflowing with happiness.
Cait and Joe had planned this day, their Christmas wedding, for months. If there’d been any lingering doubts that Joe really loved her, they were long gone. He wasn’t the type of man who expressed his love with flowery words and gifts. But Cait had known that from the first. He’d insisted on building their home before the wedding and they’d spent countless hours going over the architect’s plans. Cait was helping Joe with his accounting and would be taking over the task full-time when they started their family. Which would be soon. The way Cait figured it, she’d be pregnant by next Christmas.
But before they began their real life together, they’d enjoy a perfect honeymoon in New Zealand. He’d wanted to surprise her with the trip, but Cait had needed a passport. They’d only be gone two weeks, which was all the time Joe could afford to take, since he had several large projects coming up.
As the organ concluded the “Wedding March,” Cait handed her bouquet to Lindy and placed her hands in Joe’s. He smiled down on her as if he’d never seen a more beautiful woman in his life. Judging by the look on his face, Cait knew he could hardly keep from kissing her right then and there.
“Dearly beloved,” Martin said, stepping forward, “we are gathered here today in the sight of God and man to celebrate the love of Joseph James Rockwell and Caitlin Rose Marshall.”
Cait’s eyes locked with Joe’s. She did love him, so much that her heart felt close to bursting. After all these months of waiting for this moment, Cait was sure she’d be so nervous her voice would falter. That didn’t happen. She’d never felt more confident of anything than her feelings for Joe and his for her. Cait’s voice rang out strong and clear, as did Joe’s.
As they exchanged the rings, Cait could hear her mother and Joe’s weeping softly in the background. But these were tears of shared happiness. The two women had renewed their friendship and were excited about the prospect of grandchildren.
Cait waited for the moment when Martin would tell Joe he could kiss his bride. Instead he closed his Bible, reverently set it aside, and said, “Joseph James Rockwell, do you have the baseball cards with you?”
“I do.”
Cait looked at the two men as if they’d both lost their minds. Joe reached inside his tuxedo jacket and produced two flashy baseball cards.
“You may give them to your bride.”
With a dramatic flourish, Joe did as Martin instructed. Cait stared down at the two cards and grinned broadly.
“You may now kiss the bride,” Martin declared.
Joe was more than happy to comply.
* * * * *
