“We are not having hot dogs for dinner. I’m telling you, that’s one of the makeup artists on the phone.”
“Yeah, likely telling Honor no. We should have eloped. I suggested eloping last week and Jason said, ‘No, babe. Everything will work out fine.’ Shows you what he knows. Who’s the wedding expert around here? Is it him? Nope. It’s me. But did he listen and hop a flight to Vegas with me? He did not. And now look. Everything is falling apart.”
Brenna sighed. She was going to have to do something to keep Erin’s spirits up.
Or maybe get her drunk. Tequila was the great equalizer.
“Great news,” Honor said as she walked back into the room. “Ellen Pinkston has a client right now, but after that she’s free and will gather her crew and be here by one p.m. to do makeup.”
Erin blew out a breath. “Oh, bless her. Remind me to give Ellen a very generous tip.”
“Noted,” Honor said.
When Erin’s phone rang, Brenna glanced at the display and saw that it was Jason. Brenna and Honor looked quickly at each other.
He wouldn’t. Not Jason.
Erin put it on speaker. “Hey.”
“Hi, babe. Happy wedding day. You doing okay?”
“I’m only mildly hyperventilating. How are you?”
“I’m good. Look, we have a slight . . . issue.”
Erin took in a deep breath. “As long as you aren’t bailing on me, we’ll deal with it.”
Jason laughed. “I’m marrying you today, no matter what happens.”
Their sister exhaled, and Brenna felt a little bit of that relief herself. Not that she doubted Jason at all.
“What’s the problem?” Erin asked.
“Leo has food poisoning.”
Erin straightened. “What? What happened?”
“I don’t know. Some bad oysters, I guess. But he’s sick and he can’t be in the wedding.”
Erin blew out a breath. “Poor Leo. I hope he’s going to be all right.”
“He will be. But not today.”
“Okay,” Erin said. “We’ll make this work. Get Owen. He’s the same size as Leo so he can fit in the tux.”
“Erin,” Jason said. “Are you sure about this?”
“Of course. He should have been one of your groomsmen anyway.”
“Okay. Take a minute. Think about this before you decide.”
Erin looked up at her sisters. Brenna shrugged and so did Honor.
“It’s up to you, Erin,” Brenna said. “You and Jason.”
“Jason and I have discussed this ad nauseam. Owen and I have put that whole debacle to rest. It’s all in the past, isn’t it, Jason?”
“For me it is. But he didn’t break up with me. He broke up with you.”
“Owen and I dealt with it. And now we’re all friends again. Call Owen, Jason. See if he’s willing to do it. And if he’s okay with it and doesn’t feel uncomfortable, let me know?”
“I’ll do that. And Erin?”
“Yes?”
“I love you.”
Brenna was so relieved by her sister’s warm smile.
“I love you, too. Bye.”
Erin clicked off and looked up at Honor and Brenna. “We can only hope that’s the last disaster of the day.”
“Since I was the one who was paired off with Leo,” Honor said, “I can always walk down the aisle alone. It won’t be a big deal.”
Brenna shook her head. “If Owen isn’t comfortable doing it, we’ll find someone else. Don’t worry.”
A few minutes later Jason texted. Erin looked down at her phone. “Owen’s happy to fill in for Leo. We’re set.”
Brenna’s heart did a leap at that.
“Okay, let’s get you married.”
Several hours and fortunately no further disasters later, they were all made up, dressed up and ready to walk down the aisle. Honor had explained to Mom and Dad about why Owen was filling in for Leo, and they were both fine with it, both of them saying the only important thing today was Erin and Jason.
Brenna took a last look in the mirror. The dress was perfect, her hair was tamed and she couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day for her sister’s wedding.
Everything had come together perfectly.
It was a small gathering, with only close family and friends—along with Agatha and Puddy, Erin and Jason’s dogs, who looked adorable in their bows and bow tie today. Brenna liked the intimacy of it as she walked down the aisle, spying Finn standing at the altar looking gorgeous in his dark tux. And when he smiled at her, her heart did a quick jolt.
That man did things to her.
She met up with Honor along with Erin’s best friend Alice Weatherford at the vineyard altar, which had been decorated beautifully with an overflow of fall flowers on the top and sides of the arch.
Everyone stood as Dad walked down the aisle with Erin, who looked radiant and as happy as Brenna had ever seen her. She peeked over at Jason, whose eyes glistened with tears. Even Owen was smiling widely and Brenna realized that having Owen here was the best form of closure for everyone. He truly was happy for his best friends, and it was a step in the right direction for all their futures.
Dad handed Erin off to Jason, and then the pastor began the ceremony.
Brenna couldn’t believe her little sister was getting married. She’d been prepared for this for a while now, but hearing Erin say her vows and listening to Jason promise to always love and care for Erin made her heart squeeze.
She’d always been the one to watch out for and take care of Erin. Now that responsibility would fall to Jason. She knew her sister had found the right man, and that Jason would love her forever.
And when the pastor pronounced them husband and wife, Brenna’s eyes filled with happy tears.
She believed in their happily-ever-after. Maybe it hadn’t happened for her, and she’d been cynical about love ever since. But she could see it with Erin and Jason. These two truly loved each other.
As they left the altar, she slipped her arm into Finn’s, his smile infectious.
“You look like a cat eyeing a tasty snack,” Finn said.
“Maybe you’re the tasty snack.”
He arched a brow, then laid his hand over hers. “Filing that away for later.”
She couldn’t hold back the grin. “You do that.”