Lost But Not Forgotten (29 page)

“We’re getting married,” Mitch announced, turning to filter his fingers lovingly through Gillian’s longer, silkier hair.

“This is the real me,” Gilly exclaimed as she noticed Odella eying her from head to toe.

“It suits you,” Regan exclaimed, tugging the couple inside. “And your coloring is perfect for a winter wedding.” She and Odella alternately rattled off possibilities for flowers and dress colors. “Ethan’s mom volunteered her home for the reception. They have a covered patio. If the weather holds, people can easily spill over onto it.” She stopped in midsentence on seeing Mitch and Gilly exchange looks of dismay.

“Am I getting ahead of myself?”

“Would you and Ethan mind driving to Sedona to stand up with us?” Gilly asked. “We’d like to include Odella and Roger, as well. Also Bert and Flo. Bob Hall and some of the other agents. Noreen Malone’s promised to bring Patrick. Mitch’s sisters and their families are coming. Not his parents but that’s no big surprise. And my mom and stepfather said they’d fly in. I can’t believe it, but my mother said they’d look at buying a winter home here, what with the prospect of spending time with their grandchild.” Gilly’s fingers sought and found the bear fetish she wore—the necklace Mitch had bought her. The same one Conrad had broken when he threw her across the room. Having it repaired was the first thing she did when she thought she’d lost Mitch forever. Wearing it daily connected them in a way she couldn’t begin to explain.

“Sedona is where we really fell hopelessly in love,” she added. “This morning, Mitch phoned up there and
found a church able to accommodate a small wedding next weekend.”

“How absolutely perfect,” Odella said, hoisting two wide-eyed toddlers to her hips as she nudged Regan aside to make room for two more who teetered into the room wearing brand-new shoes. “I can’t think of a better place in Arizona to pledge your love and cast aside old grief than among those ancient towering rocks,” she said quietly.

“Exactly,” Mitch and Gilly exclaimed. “You tell them the rest,” she urged Mitch, rising on tiptoes to brush his lips with a feather-soft kiss.

He did so with difficulty, his attention lingering on Gilly’s kissable mouth. “After our wedding service, I’ve arranged for a ceremony to inter Katie’s ashes to a crypt. Bob Hall put me in touch with a stained-glass artist in Sedona. Today, I…we…commissioned her to design a window for the chapel. It’s going to be patterned after Katie’s baby quilt.”

“As a sort of memorial where we can go anytime and always know she’s safe,” Gillian said. “Safe and never forgotten.”

Regan and Odella began to cry openly.

“No tears,” Mitch remonstrated. “We intend Katie’s window to be a place of celebration. After all, she brought Gilly and me together.” The two gazed into each other’s eyes and began to lean closer.

Regan and Odella tiptoed away, leaving the couple engrossed in a not-so-chaste kiss that boded well for the long-term outcome of their love.

“I’m such a sucker for happy endings,” Odella sighed.

“Me, too.” Regan stole one last look at her husband’s best friend. Mitch’s lips were on Gillian’s, while his right hand lightly cradled their unborn child.