Page 48 of Not Part of the Plan
The yard was already overrun with caterers and early arrivals. Niko spotted Franklin directing the catering company into the house. Emma was deep in discussion with the event coordinator, ticking items off the list on her tablet.
She looked like a woodland fairy in her blush pink dress, her red hair down in a riot of curls. Her eyes sparkled with the excitement of the day, and when she spotted him, the smile she sent him from those perfect lips went straight to his gut. When had it happened? When had he fallen for the untouchable girl? Looking at Emma now, Niko couldn’t remember a time that he hadn’t felt this longing, this need.
They had just met. They hadn’t even slept together.How could he have such strong feelings for a woman he barely knew?
She laughed at something the guy in the coveralls said, and Niko’s world tilted. It wasn’t possible, but that didn’t change the fact that itwas.
She came to him, skimming over the grass as her dress floated around her legs like that of a goddess.
“Hi.” Her voice was soft, her eyes bright.
“You look incredible. Stunning,” he breathed.
She twirled for him, kicking up the layers of skirt as the spring air caught beneath them, and before he was even conscious of it, he was raising the camera and snapping the shot.
Emma stopped spinning. “Oh! Save your shots for the bride and groom!”
“This one’s for luck,” Niko said. “Thanks for making me do this.”
She wrinkled her nose at the dig. “You’ll be thanking me sincerely later,” she predicted.
“Let’s hope so or else Phoebe and your father will only have a handful of shitty shots to remember their special day.”
She gave him a playful shove. “You’re going to be just fine, Nikolai. Trust yourself.” She rolled her eyes when he raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Fine, then trust me.”
She tucked her arm through his. “Come on. I’ll take you to the bride.”
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Looking stunning in a simple floor-length gold lace gown, Phoebe Pierce wed Franklin Merill in a pool of afternoon sunshine as their children, grandchildren, and closest friends looked on. Phoebe’s sons, in white button downs and khakis, lined up behind her for the ceremony while Franklin’s daughters in their blush dresses did the same for him. Groomsmaids and bridesmen, they’d called themselves.
Niko snapped a handful of test shots as the ceremony began but didn’t get the tingle of the magic until the moment that Emma discreetly passed Gia a tissue. The happiness of the ceremony, the simplicity of the vows spoken, the bonding of two families was its own magic. There were tears and watery smiles on both sides as two became one.
And when the minister mentioned the joy that those who were gone from this world must certainly feel for the happy couple, the brothers marked the moment spontaneously by laying a hand on the other’s shoulder. Jax to Beckett, Beckett to Carter. Magic. Family. Love.
Niko caught it all, finding the flow in the swooping flight of the butterflies released from their white cardboard prison. The reception bar had opened before the ceremony, and the guests happily lifted their glasses in a spontaneous toast when Phoebe and Franklin were introduced as husband and wife.
Niko felt his own throat tighten just a bit when he watched a tearful Emma blow her father a kiss as he and Phoebe dashed down the aisle to wild cheers.
He caught it again when the bride and groom held their three youngest grandbabies in celebration and then again when Carter reached out to cup Summer’s face in a sweet, private moment.
He was there for the laughter of Jax and Eva’s toasts. He caught Aurora swiping an extra piece of cake and sneaking under the gift table to eat it. Calvin Finestra, Blue Moon’s go-to contractor, and his wife led the guests in a complicated line dance that had the band cranking up the speakers a little louder.
Niko watched Emma twirl around the dance floor laughing in her father’s arms. Here in the Blue Moon sunshine, he found real. He found love.
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“I love seeing you so happy, Dad,” Emma laughed breathlessly as Franklin twirled her in a tight circle. The Wild Nigels, Blue Moon’s favorite garage band, blared out a swing song. Fran, Fitness Freak’s mohawked front desk worker, rocked out on her bass, her wheelchair festively decked in pink and gold ribbons.
Franklin dipped Emma, making her squeal. “I feel like I have everything I ever wanted,” he said, the smile nearly splitting his face.
“I just wish you could have found this the first time around,” Emma told him. She hated that he’d been hurt so badly by her careless mother, hated that he’d had to suffer quietly while putting on a brave front for three scared little girls.
“Emmaline, my girl, let me tell you a secret,” Franklin said, pulling her back into his arms. “I wouldn’t trade a second of that heartache because everything since then has been leading me here to this perfect moment.”
She hugged him tighter, and a tear slipped out between her lashes. “I just wish you could have gotten here without the pain.”
“Don’t be afraid of pain, or less-than-perfect, daughter of mine. That’s where the real joy comes from. Life gets its color from challenges and adversity. You can’t plan your way to happiness, you know.”
