Hero For the Asking (Reed Sisters: Holding out for a Hero 2) - Page 62

She groaned and hid her face in his shoulder. By the time she came up for air, he had grown serious, looking steadily at her, as he spoke. "I'm not going to be all that easy to live with, Spring. I get so wrapped up in young people's problems sometimes that I tend to ignore everything else, and I can't promise you that won't ever happen with you. It's a part of me that I can't seem to change, and I don't know that I even want to try."

"I don't want you to change, Clay. I love you exactly the way you are. You are a caring, loving, sensitive man, and your concern for young people is one of the reasons I fell in love with you. I care about them, too. I'd like to help you, if I can. I won't feel neglected if I'm involved, too."

"That sounds wonderful," he told her with a smile. "I promise, though, that I'll always be there for you and our children when you need me. All you have to do is ask and I'll drop everything else. Got that?"

"Got it. And I believe you, darling. You're already giving up so much to move here to be with me."

/> "I'm not giving up a fraction as much as I'm gaining," he returned firmly. "Remember that, will you?"

"Just keep reminding me, darling." She gave him a brilliant smile as she reached for her clothes.

"I intend to." He reached out and caught her hand, tugging her back down in a sprawl across his chest. "Believe me, sweetheart. I intend to."

Epilogue

Her mother's antique lace gown fell in soft folds to strike Spring at midcalf—it had fallen almost to Summer's ankles, when Summer had worn it for her wedding ten months earlier. Fortunately, the sisters were almost the same size except in height, so the dress hadn't needed altering. A white hat and her grandmother's pearl earrings—returned to her earlier that day by Kelsey—completed her wedding outfit. Spring checked her appearance one last time in the full-length mirror in the bedroom that had been hers while growing up. In only a few minutes her wedding would begin.

As Spring had wished, it was to be a relatively small, informal affair on her mother's beautifully kept, flower-decorated back lawn. They'd waited until early evening so that the August heat would have dissipated a bit, though it was still very warm. Her parents, relatives and close friends—some fifty people in all—would make up the audience. Summer and Autumn were to serve as bridesmaids, while Derek and Dr. Gil Random, Clay's new partner, would stand beside the groom.

"Are you nervous, honey?" Lila Reed asked softly, faded violet eyes focused on her eldest daughter's serene face.

"A little. But I don't have one doubt that I'm doing the right thing," Spring assured her mother. "Clay is the best thing that ever happened to me, Mom."

"Just be happy, Spring." Lila hugged her daughter, then stepped back, surreptitiously wiping her eyes.

"I will be." Spring picked up the bouquet of colorful flowers that Clay had provided for her—a beautiful but unusual mixture, of course—and turned toward the door. "I'm ready. Is Daddy waiting in the hall?"

"Yes, and he's ready to get this over with. He's just as nervous this time as he was when he gave Summer away."

"Tell him to take heart. Autumn swears shell never go through this 'archaic and obsolete ceremony,' so maybe this will be his last time."

"Autumn's young yet. We'll see how she feels when she meets someone as special as your Clay and Summer's Derek."

"Speaking of my Clay, what is he wearing, Mom? I can't stand the suspense." Spring had cheerfully given Clay free rein to wear whatever he wanted to their wedding, but he had refused to tell her what he'd chosen. She hadn't seen him since he'd gone off to change for the ceremony an hour earlier.

Lila shook her gray head, smiling girlishly. "He made me promise that I wouldn't tell you. That boy is sure going to liven up our lives, honey. I'm glad ya'll decided to settle in Little Rock so your dad and I can see you often."

"So am I, Mom. Okay, let's get on with this."

Her hand tucked into the crook of her father's work-muscled arm, the fabric of his favorite brown suit crisp under her fingers, Spring walked down the aisle formed by rows of folding metal chairs, her eyes sparkling with happiness and amusement. Flanked by Autumn and Summer in their jewel-toned summery dresses and Derek and Gil in their conservative suits, Clay fit in surprisingly well. His suit was dark blue, hand tailored, European cut. His shirt was white, his tie a muted stripe. He looked as breathtakingly handsome in his conservative attire as he did in tropical-print shorts. Spring's heart swelled with love for him.

He stepped forward to meet her, catching her hand in his as his eyes glowed warmly into hers.

"A blue suit, Clay?" she murmured.

"In honor of this serious occasion, my love," he replied softly.

"Clay, I told you that I didn't want you to change for me. I love you exactly the way you are."

He stared down at her for a moment, then gave her a smile that competed with the August sun in intensity. "I love you, Spring," he murmured, then caught her to him for a long, passionate kiss, much to the amusement of their small audience.

"You're supposed to wait until after the ceremony, Clay," Derek pointed out from his position as best man.

Clay chuckled and released her, though he directed her attention downward as he lifted the hem of his beautifully cut pants. "I haven't changed, Spring. I'm still the man who loves you more than life itself. Just wait until you see what I have on under the suit."

Glancing at his bare ankles, Spring smiled and turned with him toward the perplexed minister, toward their future. The next time Clay kissed her, they were husband and wife.

Tags: Gina Wilkins Reed Sisters: Holding out for a Hero Romance
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