The Right Thing

I’d had my eyes closed since Taylor and Nicole, branding themselves as my handmaidens, had begun the process of squeezing me into my dress. I squeezed them tight as I held my breath and listened to the zipper slide up my back. I counted buttons as Nicole smoothed them over the zipper. They were for show more than anything and there were twenty in all from the base of my spine to the back of my neck. The line broken by the keyhole cut to the back of the dress, exposing the slight tan I’d been able to achieve over the summer.

I didn’t know why my eyes were closed, what I was afraid of, aside from my nerves kicking in. My veil was pinned in place; a simple birdcage to accompany the loose updo that Nicole had executed flawlessly. I was glad she’d dropped out of the art history program to go to cosmetology school instead.

“Knock, knock,” my father’s voice sounded from the hallway.

He’d spent the night in the men’s wing of the hotel that we’d basically bought out for the week. I hadn’t even realized that the boys had made it to the house, which meant that Jack and Kris couldn’t have been wreaking much havoc. It also meant that our ushers, Sebastian and Marc, were ready to get to work seating the seventy family members and friends that would be filling the backyard and deck.

“Is everyone decent?” he asked.

“Come on in, Chuck,” Taylor said as I kept my eyes squeezed shut, still afraid to look in the mirror.

“You doing okay, Pooh Bear?”

I turned around and finally opened my eyes only to find tears in his.

“I’m fine, Daddy.”

Taylor and Nicole quietly slipped out of the room.

“You look beautiful.”

“I haven’t looked.”

“Trust me, Kiddo, Sid’s not going to know what hit him when you step outside those doors.”

I was wringing my hands. “I don’t know why I’m so nervous.”

“Because regardless of how much you love someone, marrying them is a very big deal. I was terrified the day that your mom and I got married.”

I smiled softly. “Was she?”

“Probably about as nervous as you are. But I didn’t come in here to make you any more nervous than you already are. I just wanted to bring you something.”

He held out a box, small and thin, trimmed in silver ribbon. I doubted he’d wrapped and assumed it was the work of one of the women in the family, perhaps even tied by Vero’s deft fingers.

“I hope you like it.”

I opened the lid and saw several familiar stones in an unfamiliar setting. The sapphire and diamonds from my mother’s engagement ring placed on a white gold chain. The ring she’d worn them in, on a thin band of yellow gold, had gotten so worn she’d stopped wearing the ring for fear she would lose it. But for some reason she’d never simply had it placed in a new setting. She left it in her jewelry box where I would admire it from time to time. My father had kept it there. It never moved, always in the same slot of the box whenever I took the chance to look. The velvet lining of the box smelled like her and the sapphire was nearly the same shade of blue as her eyes.

“It was your mother’s idea. She knew you hated yellow gold so that’s why she never had the ring fixed. She was just waiting to have it made into a necklace for you. You were probably fourteen of fifteen. She said it was old, new, and blue so it could fit into whatever category you wanted. It’s just not borrowed; it’s your gift from us.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“No tears,” he warned. “You’ll mess up that makeup.”

“It’s waterproof,” Nicole called from the hallway, proving that our privacy was just a farce and that she and Taylor were just waiting outside the door.

He hugged me quickly as the girls reentered and Taylor made quick work of the necklace.

“I’ll be waiting whenever you’re ready to walk down the aisle.”

He slipped out and was quickly replaced by Trina. It was if they’d planned it carefully, like a baton handoff in a relay. One was out and the other was in. She held her hand out to me, revealing a pink brooch.

“It’s you’re something borrowed, if you like it. It was Troy’s mother’s. I thought we could pin it to the ribbon on your bouquet. You don’t have to but I know she would have loved for you to use it.”

“It’s beautiful, Trina. Thank you.”

“Mom, are you crying?” Taylor asked.

“So what if I am?”

“If you’re like this for Sid’s wedding, what are you going to be like at mine?”

“That’s college and several Olympics away,” Trina deadpanned before lifting up onto her toes and kissing me on the cheek. “Welcome to the family, sweetheart. We love you.”

“I can’t believe she’s crying,” Taylor muttered as Trina stepped out of the room.

“Weddings are emotional, twerp,” Nicole chided.

I sat down and tried to take a few deep breaths as my bridesmaids bickered playfully back and forth. The nerves were settling in as I heard the guests beginning to arrive and find their places in the back yard.

Nicole and Taylor grew quiet and sat down on either side of me, the side of the bed lowering under the added weight.

“You’re not freaking out, are you?” Nicole asked.

We’d had a friend who was supposed to get married the year after we graduated college, but she’d panicked the week before and called the whole thing off. Something about meeting his grandmother over dinner had sent her over the edge. She’d moved to Florida and started over and had decided that maybe marriage wasn’t her thing.

But I wasn’t in that boat. I wouldn’t be running off to Miami to see if I was more attracted to women. I just needed to take a few deep breaths and get myself together.

“I promise you, Sid is way more nervous. He’ll probably forget to breathe and pass out when he sees you,” Taylor assured me.

“Christ, I hope not,” I muttered.

“I’d laugh.”

“So would I,” Nicole agreed.

“I hate both of you.”

“Look, Sis, at the end of the day you and I will have the same last night. That’s what matters. Just forget about the guests and the party tomorrow. Forget everything and everyone that isn’t Sidney. Because I guarantee, when my big brother sees you, you’ll be the only thing he sees. A bomb could drop on top of this house, and he wouldn’t even notice.”

“You think so?”

“Know so. I’ve seen my brother win and lose the Stanley Cup. I’ve seen him break bones and fight a concussion for over a year. I’ve seen him win Olympic gold and make a huge NHL comeback. But none of those things could make him feel the way you do. There is nothing that makes him happier or more nervous than the thought of marrying you, Wyn.

“Before you, his dreams of getting married and having kids were these far-off, hypothetical things. But when he met you, it all became very real and the way that changed him has been remarkable.”

“You’re good at pep talks,” Nicole interjected.

“I learned from the best.”

I nodded. “Sid is great at them.”

“I can go get him,” Taylor suggested. “Would that help your nerves?”

“Are you insane? Your brother is the most superstitious man on the planet. He cannot see me before I walk down the aisle.”

“There are ways around that.”

“Really, it’s okay. Your uplifting monologue did the job.”

“You’re sure?”

“Positive.”

The minutes ticked down and Sebastian peeked his head into the bedroom where I’d spent the day getting ready.

“Can I have a minute with the bride?”

Taylor and Nicole vacated again.

“You know they’ll just wait outside the door to listen to whatever you have to say,” I said quietly.

“I’m sure they will. I know I would.”

He sat down on the bed next to me, wrapping an arm around my waist. I carefully placed my head on his shoulder, making sure not to muss my hair or makeup.

“Never thought you’d get married before me, Wynnie.”

I smiled. “I guess I just got lucky and met the right guy first.”

“He’s the one who got lucky. Don’t ever forget that.”

He tightened his grasp, pulling me a little tighter to his side. There were a few moments in our friendship, ones where Sebastian had dropped his playful façade and simply been serious. He always seemed like a protective older brother in those moments, though he was a month younger than I was. Still, I could feel him sheltering me in that moment.

“Your dad says the sun is about to start going down and wants to know if you’re ready.”

“Are the guests all here?”

“Present and accounted for.”

“Where’s Sid?”

“Hiding alongside the house. When you say you’re ready, I’ll go let him know.”

“Is he nervous?”

“He looks like he’s a bit woozy to be honest. Not in a bad way, but yeah, I think he’s probably a little nervous.”

I nodded.

“Just remember, I’m your best friend no matter what the brunette in the hallway likes to think. If you ever need anything, I’m only a thirty minutes away. Don’t ever hesitate to call or just show up. I’m sure you won’t need to and I probably won’t see much of you with a dreamboat like that to call your own, but consider me an option for your spare time. Or even if he just pisses you off.”

“I know.”

He kissed me on the cheek. “We doing this?”

“Yeah. I’m ready.”

He helped me to my feet and we met my bridesmaids at the bedroom door. Nicole gave Sebastian a look of disgust, as if his claim as my best friend was even a little untrue. It wasn’t. He called it correctly; he was absolutely, aside from Sidney, the best friend I had ever had.

They were waiting with my flowers and Nicole handed me the bouquet of hot pink daisies and roses. The brooch was pinned to the ribbon wrapped around the stems. It was the perfect addition and I hadn’t expected it to make me emotional, but it did.

My father was waiting near the doorway where I’d first heard Sid say he loved me. A lot of big moments had happened in that doorway. A lot of emotions had hit me in that doorway. Standing there arm in arm with my father on my wedding day was no exception.

Kris and Jack waited for the girls to take their places.

“Tu es tres tres belle,” Kris murmured quietly.

Jack chuckled and let out a soft whistle. Nicole shook her head as she linked arms with him. He sent her a sly smile before she looked away. Taylor stepped in front of Nicole and sidled up to her brother’s teammate.

“You look lovely, too,” Kris said to her with a grin.

“Don’t let her brother hear you say that,” Jack warned.

“I’m not a threat. You are,” Kris countered.

I felt a smile crawl across my lips. Nervous or not, the presence of a few of our favorite people simply being themselves was enough to lift some of the weight from my shoulders.

“I’ll go tell the groom we’re getting started.”

With that, Sebastian was out the door and we waited for our cue.

After a moment, the music began and Taylor and Kris took their first step out of the house and into the warm summer air.

“You ready?” my father asked.

“Just don’t let me fall.”

“Never.”

Our short processional moved along as the string quartet played a mid-tempo piece that Morgan had selected when I’d told her that the Wedding March and Canon in D weren’t welcome. The key and tempo changed slightly and I felt my father propelling us forward.

I saw a sea of faces that blurred together. I couldn’t tell Sidney’s family from my own as the pink and orange light of the lowering sun bounced off the surface of the lake.

All of that fell away as Sidney came into sight.

My eyes started at his feet, working their way up his grey suit up to his bright pink tie. He was like a beacon pulling me in and I had to be careful not to rush. When my eyes finally found his face, he was beaming. It was the smile of victory and pure bliss. One that I’d never actually seen in person. I’d seen that smile twice before, both on TV. Once when he’d won the Cup and the next February when Canada took home the gold medal. I ranked on the same level with the two biggest prizes he’d ever won.

Top three wasn’t bad when in such company.

I head the minister speak and my father reply but it was all gibberish to me as Sidney and I joined hands and faced each other at the altar.

We’d decided at the last minute to write our own vows. The thought made me mildly nauseous, but Sidney had seemed so sure. I’d made him promise to go first and I finally found focus as he began to speak.

“Bronwyn, I knew the moment I saw you that you were special. I knew after our first date that one dinner with you wouldn’t be enough. And I knew that you were the one the first time I had to stop myself from telling you that I loved you over the phone. You bring out the best in me when I am at my worst and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life being put in my place by the most amazing woman I have ever known.”

I felt the tears gathering as my voice caught in my throat. It was my turn.

“How the hell am I supposed to follow that?” I said more audibly than I’d intended.

My vows wouldn’t measure up and instead of the speech I’d prepared, the one on a folded up piece of paper in my cleavage. I decided to wing it as the laughter of our friends and family tapered off.

“Sidney, I didn’t know what I’d gotten myself into when I agreed to that first date. I wasn’t even sure why I’d said yes after you made yourself at home at my table in that coffee shop. You made me nervous and I never thought the butterflies would go away. Now, I don’t ever want them to. You are the most wonderful man I have ever known, and I love you so much. I will gladly spend the rest of my days putting you in your place.”

I was shaking like a leaf as we exchanged rings. I felt Sidney squeeze my hands in an effort to still them as I took a deep breath. The world faded away once again and it was just the two of us. The minister spoke words that I didn’t quite hear as Sidney’s smile broadened.

His hand was on the exposed skin of my back pulling me towards him. He’d been told to kiss his bride and he wasn’t about to wait for me to get my shit together in order to do so.

He guided me towards him inch by inch. Removing the negative space between us and filling my senses with the scent of his cologne. My hands gravitated up towards his shoulders then slid up to the back of his neck as his lips crashed into mine. I could tell he was holding back thanks to the spectators and especially the presence of our grandmothers.

The world returned in a sudden roar. Jack whistled and our families clapped and whooped. I felt a blush rise onto my cheeks as music started up and we made our way back up the aisle, this time hand in hand. I saw the faces of our loved ones. My aunt was crying and one of his cousins reached out to give him a congratulatory clap on the back.

We took only a moment before they converged on us. There was champagne and the groom’s cake that Morgan had helped me plan as a surprise for Sidney. It was a chocolate and peanut butter concoction in the shape of a puck. Our names and wedding date stood in place of the logo.

I shook so many hands that night that my fingers felt numb. I was ready to collapse when the last guests filtered out and headed back to the hotel. Sidney and I were left alone on the long dock as the moon reflected off the surface of the lake. It was still and quiet, just the sounds of crickets and a few nocturnal birds as background noise.

“You look beautiful,” he murmured as he wrapped himself around me. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you before.”

“Thanks, handsome.”

“One day until the honeymoon.”

His breath brushed the back of my ear, sending a chill down my spine.

“Still a secret?” I asked as his chin dropped to the crook of my neck.

“Top secret. But that doesn’t mean we can’t get started tonight.”

“What if I told you I was tired?”

“I’d find a way to wake you up.”

I felt his lips working up my neck, his teeth grazing my earlobe.

I was suddenly no longer tired as my nerves stood at attention.

“Well we can’t start here. And you have to help me get out of this dress.”

“I was sort of hoping you’d leave it on. At least for a while.”

“Wedding night fantasies?”

“Something like that,” he whispered in my ear.

“I have to wear it again tomorrow.”

“Then I can rip it off with my teeth?”

“If you so choose.”

“I think I can wait until then.”

“Good,” I replied. “Now let’s go inside.”

I turned towards the house but he stopped me in my tracks, sweeping me off my feet and into his arms. I wrapped my arms around his neck, working on instinct as the ground fell away.

“Not so fast,” he growled as I let out a startled squeak.

“What are you doing?”

“I’ve got to carry you over the threshold.”

“Sid, that’s silly and archaic. I’m perfectly capab—“

He silenced me with is lips.

“Don’t argue. It’s tradition.”

“It’s ridiculous.”

“So are you sometimes, but I think you’re perfect.”

He didn’t put me down until we had crossed the threshold from the deck to the kitchen. He was smiling as he lowered me to my feet.

“I’ll have to do this when we get back to Pittsburgh, you know,” he teased with the same grin still playing at his lips.

“You always look like you won something when you smile like that.”

The smiled didn’t falter and his tone became wistful. “You married me tonight.”

“You’re such a dork.”

“But I’m your dork. Now, I want to consummate this marriage so let’s get you out of that dress.”

“Romantic.”

“Oh, I can be romantic.”

His eyes were dark as he moved towards me.

“I can be so fucking romantic that dress will just fall off.”

I could smell the champagne on his breath, sweet and floral.

Intoxicating.

“On second thought,” I replied. “Let’s just get this dress off me. Gently.”

“I know. No teeth until tomorrow.”

“No hickey’s either, we aren’t seventeen and this isn’t prom night.”

“The things I would’ve done to you if you were my prom date.”

“You talk a big game.”

“I play big,” He replied, beginning the process of unzipping my dress in the middle of the kitchen. I pressed my hands to his chest, propelling him towards the bedroom in virtual darkness. We stumbled down the hallway.

He was careful with the dress, but as soon as the fabric was gone, all bets were off.

It was amazing that we weren’t passed out naked on the pool table when Nicole and Jack came to retrieve us for pictures the next afternoon.

Though there were any number of surfaces where they could have found us after our first night as man and wife.

There was our bed, the guest bed, the floor near the sofa in the living room, the shower, or the kitchen island. All areas that we’d chosen to christen as a married couple not that they hadn’t seen similar use before.

But we happened to wind up in bed, beneath rumpled covers looking like tornado survivors who’d been tossed about by gale force winds.

“Christ,” Nicole muttered as she walked into the bedroom.

“You just walk in?” Jack asked as he came in behind her. “They could be naked or something.”

“They are.”

Jack turned towards the wall. “Sorry guys.”

“We’re covered, Jack,” I replied.

He slowly turned back around, looking sheepish.

“We’ve got an hour before the photographer gets here. You’ve got five minutes to get out of bed.” Her eyes fell to me. “Is there a move in the Kama Sutra where you standing on your fucking head, because it looks like you’ve been spinning around on that rat’s nest. What a mess.”

They turned and left.

Sid chuckled next to me, shaking his side of the bed. I turned to look at him and couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the silver band on his finger. I wasn’t much for staking claim to another person. It wasn’t as if I owned him, but he was mine and he was mine forever. My heart thundered in my chest like a herd of elephants.

“Good morning, Mrs. Crosby.”

“Good morning, Mr. Crosby.”

“It like the sound of that.”

“Me too.”

He kissed me like he hadn’t seen me in ages though we’d only been asleep for a few hours not counting the naps we managed between rounds throughout the night.

“Four minutes or I’m coming in and taking your blankets away!” Nicole shouted from the kitchen. “Time to find out if you’re really as big as Wynnie says you are.”

Jack laughed heartily as Sidney sent me a sideways glance.

“Really?”

“Oh, come on! I have never talked to my friends about your penis.”

“Really? Because I’ve described your boobs in great detail to Jack.”

I slapped him across the chest as he chuckled.

“I’m kidding, babe. And I know Nicole is just being herself.”

“Yeah, well let’s not give her anymore opportunity to be the way she is. We have to get going.”

I showered quickly and left Sidney to get ready.

“It’s been more than five minutes,” Nicole said as I sat down at the kitchen island.

“Just get to work.”

She did as she was told; recreating the look she’d given me the night before as the rest of the wedding party and our immediate family arrived. My father ushered my grandmother in and they all made themselves comfortable in the living room while Troy set out to make sure Sidney was getting ready.

“What have you been doing all day?” I asked, trying to fill the quiet.

It turned out that Taylor had decided to play tour guide and had taken them all to Citadel Hill, one of Sidney’s favorite places. They’d been spending most of their time at the hotel, and I couldn’t blame them. It had all the amenities they could ever need and there weren’t many guests besides our wedding guests to be had. They were within walking distance to bars and restaurants, there was a pool, a spa, and plenty of other things to do while they stayed in Halifax.

I probably wouldn’t have left either if I’d spent more than the night before the wedding in the place.

“Ready for the reception?” my father asked.

“You know how I feel about dancing in public.”

I hated it. I always had. I didn’t like attention, but being the woman in the white dress would get me plenty of it. I was fine with it though. I’d danced with Sidney plenty of times but only a few when there were eyes on us.

The thought took me back to the night before I’d met his father. The night I’d been so wrapped up in the feeling of his hips swaying in time with mine that I’d forgotten that I was dancing in a club with Sidney Crosby. It was a marvelous feeling, one that I reveled in even if we had crossed a line.

Sidney came out to join us. He’d managed to do something with his hair and was straightening his tie as he entered the kitchen. He slipped between me and Nicole to press a quick kiss to my lips before she pulled me away to get me back into my dress.

“I’m amazed it’s in one piece,” Nicole commented as I stepped into it.

“Stop,” Taylor muttered.

“Yes, please do,” Trina added as she joined us in the room.

I blushed and put my head down but Trina simply laughed. Like Nicole had said during the bachelorette party, my mother-in-law had children and she knew how sex worked. Still, I didn’t think she needed to spend any of her time with ideas of my sex life with her son in her head.

No mother could ever need that information.

Trina began working the zipper up the dress, securing me back in the frock that Sidney had promised he would rip off with his teeth after the reception. A part of me couldn’t wait.

“Thank you for deciding to get married up here. It’s meant a lot to the family for Sidney to get married so close to home.”

I turned towards her. “There were no other considerations, really. I love it up here and I know that Sid feels at peace when he’s here. I couldn’t think of a better place.”

“I think your family has enjoyed themselves as well.”

“I do too. But how could they not?”

I wasn’t trying to flatter her, we were beyond that point. I had simply grown to love Sidney’s hometown in the way that he did. I could see us spending our summers there through his career, building a family in the place that we loved.

I’d truly fallen in love with Sidney in that lake house. I’d been flirting with the idea of it until he’d hauled me up to Canada and shown me the man that he was. I couldn’t have imagined a better way to start our lives as a married couple.

“Still, thank you.”

I nodded and stood still as my veil was pinned into place.

I hated getting my picture taken. I’d always loved being the one behind the camera, the one being asked to capture the moments. But I wasn’t nearly as comfortable locked within the frame. I never felt genuine. But our photographer, who’d been present the day before as well, managed to alleviate that for me.

She was a treasure, to be honest and I was glad that I’d left her selection up to the coordinator. I certainly couldn’t have found better. She sped through the posed photos with our friends and family allowing them to go back to the hotel and get comfortable for the reception. There was no need for our parents to be so formal and my grandmother simply needed a time to rest.

It left us alone with the photographer as she looked around waiting to capture the right moments. I was surprised when she asked us where we wanted pictures taken.

“It’s your house. Tell me where the most meaningful pictures could be taken.”

I smiled as the ideas flooded me.

“You know she’s an artist, right?” Sidney asked in warning.

She laughed. “Morgan told me. I’m prepared.”

I led the way into the kitchen and pushed Sidney into the chair where he’d been when he’d argued with his father so loudly in my defense. Then I went to stand in the doorway. It was an incredibly important doorway and both Sidney and I would know what that picture represented.

We took photos on the dock and risked involving Sam in a couple of them as well. We curled up on the couch, played a quick game of pool and sat at the island in the kitchen. They were posed, but they read differently than the shots taken with our family and attendants.

They were just for us.

We made a grand entrance that night before dinner was served to our legion of guests. The rest of the evening, aside from a few specific moments in time, was a complete blur of faces and dancing.

I met Sidney’s friends from childhood and he met mine from college. There were pals from the NHL that I’d never encountered, all present and accounted for. There were jokes about him dragging them back to the Maritimes after having already attended Dion Phaneuf’s wedding on Prince Edward Island. There were cousins who hadn’t made it to Christmas the previous year and my father’s brother and his family making the trip from Alaska.

I danced with my father and his. I managed to snag only three bites of the salmon that our guests were raving about and ate so quickly that I didn’t even manage to taste what I was eating. It was as if I didn’t have time to be in one place for more than a few seconds at a time.

Sidney danced with my aunt Maggie while I was dancing with his father. I heard her admit that she was a sorry stand-in for a woman like my mother, but that she was certain Melody Doyle would have adored her new son-in-law.

I tried not to cry as Troy spun me nimbly away. He’d heard it too.

“No daughter of mine gets to be sad on her wedding day. Well…day after her wedding day.”

I gave him a questioning look.

“What? Do you think my son gets all of his sap from my wife? You’re the best thing that has ever happened to Sidney and I am proud to call you my daughter.”

“Does this mean I have to start calling you dad?”

He threw his head back in a laugh much like Sidney’s. “No, you’ve got a father of your own. I wouldn’t mind though. And Trina would probably cry if you called her ‘Mom.’”

It was a title that felt fitting. She’d fluidly stepped into the places my mother would have been if she could. I appreciated all of it. Just the feeling of having a figure like that in my life after so many years without touched me. Frankly, I just appreciated having his family and the way they’d invited me in with such little hesitation.

“May I cut in?” Sidney asked with a smile.

Troy relinquished his grasp without a word and went to mingle with our guests. I smiled up at Sidney as he pulled me in and began to move in time with the music.

“How are you doing?”

“My feet hurt.”

“Then take those damn heels off.”

I was wearing Sid’s favorite pair and had reasons for wanting to keep them on.

“I can handle it.”

“Crazy girl,” he muttered.

“You love it.”

“I love those shoes,” he smirked.

Before long, we were pulled in separate directions only to converge a while later to cut the cake. He’d been warned against trying to smash any of it in my face and instead fed me a hearty bite as I did the same for him. He kissed me quickly, using a bit of frosting on my lip as an excuse.

By the time our guests sent us off, tossing birdseed as we ran for our limp, we were both exhausted and a little drunk on champagne. We collapsed into the deep leather seats and the car carried us in the direction of the airport. I finally kicked off my shoes and sat back.

“Where are we going?” I asked as I picked birdseed out of my bra.

“Honeymoon.”

He shook a few pieces of shrapnel from his curls.

I looked down at my dress. “Right now?”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it all under control.”

I watched as he took his tie off and flinched as he moved it toward my face.

“What are you doing?”

“Blindfolding you. Sit still.”

“Why are you blindfolding me?”

“To keep the secret a little longer. Relax,” he replied as he pulled me into his side.

I felt uneasy not being able to see, but the slow rise and fall of his chest as we drove was enough to keep me calm. We rode quietly for longer than I expected and the road turned from smooth pavement to gravel. He played with my fingers in an effort to distract me from thinking too much about where he was taking me.

I got anxious as the car came to a stop and Sidney slid away from me. He pulled me out of the limo and I followed his lead as we walked straight ahead before he guided me up several steps. I heard him unlock a door, deadbolt giving way a key.

Just as he had the night before, he swept my feet out from under me and gathered me in his arms.

“Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

He stepped forward. “Okay, take off the blindfold.”

I did as I was told and took in my surroundings. I couldn’t help but let out a slight gasp as I realized where we were.

We weren’t at some fancy private cabin and we were nowhere near a classy hotel in the middle of Halifax. We were in the living room of the house, the entire house cast in the glow of warm candlelight.

“I racked my brain trying to find some paradise worthy of our honeymoon and I couldn’t figure it out. But I thought about it and really, this place, when it’s just the two of us; this is paradise.”

I pulled his face towards mine, my lips seeking contact with his.

There was no better place than the place where we’d fallen in love. It was the place where we’d first made love; crossing the line from “item” to “couple” in the course of one slice of a vacation.

“It’s perfect,” I replied as I broke our kiss.

He set me on my feet. “Now what?”

“Well, I believe the right thing to do would be for you to start taking this dress off with your teeth.”

He chuckled then sent me a grin that said he would do just that.

Without a second of hesitation, our honeymoon had begun.