“Like I give a fuck,” I said wryly, and Claire giggled.
“Behave,” she ordered, and I straightened.
Abby looked amused and irritated in equal measure.
“If you're quite finished,” she said to me with a severe look, “we can get on with it, hmm?”
She went through the usual ceremony, and then we exchanged vows to love and care for each other always. I beamed as I slipped my mother’s wedding ring on Claire’s finger, and then, as soon as it’d started, it was over.
“You’re now husband and wife, for as long as you both shall live. You may kiss the bride.”
“Finally,” I muttered.
I grabbed Claire around the waist, and she squeaked in surprise as I dipped her low and kissed her like it was our last. She kissed me back through giggles, and the cheers and applause were deafening.
I lowered my lips to her ear, murmuring words meant only for her.
“I could live a thousand lifetimes, baby, and it wouldn’t be enough with you.”
Chapter 44
Claire
The wedding was everything I’d hoped for and more.
After the ceremony, we moved away all the chairs to create a makeshift dance floor. Jenna and Liam played songs all evening long, and to my surprise, John’s dancing had actually improved—something that hadn’t happened since I’d met him.
“I practiced,” he admitted sheepishly when I asked. “With Kimmy. Just a little bit.”
I laughed. “She probably loved that.”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure I’m never hearing the end of that one,” he replied with a grin.
Sarah had been kind enough to cook a generous buffet for everyone, and John made sure that the drink was well-stocked. I danced with most everyone, including Danny, who pretended to step on my feet as Allie watched and laughed. Sarah gave me an enormous hug before taking the baby home to bed, and it seemed like everyone stopped to tell me how pretty I looked, which made me flush. Kimmy and Dannyribbed John relentlessly, and he responded with his usual wry humour, which made for a lot of laughter throughout the evening.
It felt like being home—at long last.
A part of me had worried about this day. Despite my excitement, I’d still felt a sense of loss leading up to it. My father wouldn’t walk me down the aisle. My mother wouldn’t cry in the front row, and my sister wouldn’t watch my first dance. Asha wouldn’t be there to tease me about my nerves. As deeply as I felt their betrayal, those had been the important people in my life, and they were all—in one way or another—lost to me forever.
But seeing John, and Kimmy, and the people of the Valley…I knew that whatever I’d lost, I’d also gained so much. I’d married a good man that I loved more than anything. I’d become part of a community I’d grown to adore over these past months. Young Claire, trapped inside that compound, mourning her father’s death and enduring her mother’s wrath, could never have imagined such a moment.
I hoped she’d be proud.
We ate, drank, and danced all night long, until fireflies glowed in the darkness, and the party had begun to wind down.
“I love you,” I said softly to John as he held me, gently turning us to a slow song. Only a couple others remained on the dance floor. “Thank you for saving me off that rooftop last year.”
He chuckled and tightened his hold around my waist.
“Love you too, Claire Madigan,” he murmured, and my heart tugged at my new name. “And for what it’s worth, rescuing a pretty girl off a factory roof turned out to be the most important thing I ever did.”
I kissed him thoroughly, a symphony of crickets serenading us.
After most people had left, John led me back to the farmhouse. The light had been left on in the foyer, and he opened the front door, gesturing for me to go ahead of him.
I stayed where I was.
“Technically,” I said with a smile, “the groom is supposed to carry the bride over the threshold.”
