31 Days of Summer (31 Days #2) (55 page)

‘Time,’ called Jenny as she opened the door.

‘Ok?’ asked Brooke as she mopped her eyes. I
nodded with a sad smile. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘I wish Dad was here to give me away.’

‘He’d have been so proud, Ellie. I only hope that
you’ll feel it fitting for me to stand in his place,’ came John’s voice. I spun
around to see he’d changed into a suit with tails and emerald tie, matching
Oliver’s outfit.

‘Are you all trying to make me look hideous by making
me cry my eyes out?’ I moaned, as I ran over and hugged him. ‘I’d be honoured
to have you give me away, you’ve been such a father figure to me.’

‘Then let’s make a move, we have a not so patient
groom awaiting us.’

‘I’m your bridesmaid by the way,’ interjected
Brooke. ‘I assumed you’d return the favour.’

‘Of course I would have, do we need a toilet break
before we make a move?’

‘Shit! Sorry, bad choice of phrase, but no we
don’t, I have nothing left to give thank God. Thanks for reminding me about the
bathroom though,’ she nodded. She ran off and returned with a small hand bound
bouquet of pink and white gerbera’s, my favourite flowers.

‘You?’ I sighed as I looked at her touched.

‘No, all Superdan, I’m this,’ she grinned as she
dropped to her feet and instructed me to lift up a foot. I watched as she slid
on a blue garter for me. ‘So you have your locket as your old, your engagement
ring and dress as your something new, the wedding day as your something
borrowed,’ she giggled, ‘then now your blue garter.’

‘Perfect, we’d better go, my man is a stickler for
punctuality.’

Brooke headed in, with a cheeky wink at me as she
did and I linked arms with John and took a deep breath.

‘Ready?’

‘Ready,’ I smiled.

‘You’ll take his breath away, more than normal.’

‘Don’t make me cry, I’m trying really hard not
to.’

‘He’s a good man, Ellie. He’ll take excellent care
of you.’

‘He
is
a good man and he already does,
John. I really should thank Zac, if he hadn’t cheated on me that day, I’d never
have met Dan or had my beautiful boy.’

‘Do you ever hear from him?’ John asked, as he
opened the outer doors.

‘No,’ I smiled. ‘Last I heard he was selling
shares in The Philippines.’

‘Chairs?’ he looked at me surprised.

‘You’re spending too much time with Brooke,’ I
laughed.

Dan

I sighed with relief as I saw Brooke come through
the door and give me the thumbs up. I was worried that Ellie wouldn’t want to
get married today, that she’d feel cheated not having a wedding day all to
herself. She deserved it, she deserved so much more than I could ever offer to
her.

‘You can relax now, mate,’ Logan advised, as he
patted my back. ‘She’s coming and this time you’re not going to blow it with a
lame arse excuse for romance. I’ve never seen you tank like that before.’

‘You’ve only seen me turning on the charm when it
was all about sex, this is so much more,’ I said seriously. I looked over at my
parents, at Oliver bouncing on my mother’s knee, she was crying already, as was
Magda. Next to them were Theo and Florie, I’d made sure I’d asked their
approval, I didn’t want them to feel I was disrespecting their daughter, but
they were more than happy for me to ask Ellie. They’d let go of Moira long
before I did, I guess they had one another to help pull them through it and I
was up here alone, until my blonde bombshell crashed into my life. I blinked a
couple of times as the door opened and John walked in with her on his arm. If I
thought she was stunning before, now she’d outdone herself. She looked like a
movie star with her hair up in that sexy way, exposing her slender neck. A neck
I wanted to lick, kiss, bite and mark to show everyone she was mine. She
was
mine, in about ten minutes she’d be completely mine and everyone was going
to know it. If I so much as caught another guy looking at her the wrong way …
so help me God. Her skin was just radiant and I’d never seen her so happy.
Almost as happy as I was and
that
dress, it was sexy yet classy all at
the same time, just like my woman. I blew out a quick breath, I was getting
choked up and I’d be damned if I was going to cry in front of everyone.

‘You’re one lucky son of a bitch,’ Logan muttered
in my ear.

‘Biggest understatement you’ve ever made.’

‘You’re damn lucky I prefer brunettes or you
wouldn’t have got a look in,’ he chuckled. I ignored his jesting for once, as
Ellie drew level and lifted her shining eyes to mine. We just stared at each
other for a moment, lost in each other. I watched her pupils dilate and her
chest heave. She wanted me, fuck did I want her back just as much. I just
wanted to crush her to me and kiss her like I’d never kissed her before.

‘You’re perfection,’ I whispered.

‘I was thinking the same about you,’ she smiled as
she reached up and adjusted my emerald tie, before giving Brooke her flowers
and kissing John on the cheek. All the men had changed into morning suits with
tails while she was getting ready, I’d wanted it to be formal. Brooke had said
tails were in Ellie’s wedding mood board, whatever the hell one of those was. As
soon as she turned back towards me I grabbed her hand and everyone burst out
laughing, including us, as Oliver squealed “Mama, Dada.” I watched her look
over at him and blow him a kiss and heard him giggle. Every time I thought I’d
fallen for her as hard as I could, she did something that made me fall even
further. ‘Thank you so much for doing this for me,’ she whispered as she kissed
my cheek.

‘I did it for me too, for totally selfish
reasons,’ I whispered back, as I let my lips slowly graze hers before we turned
to face the registrar. I could feel her trembling next to me and kept giving
her reassuring glances. Last time I got married I’d said the standard vows, and
even though I didn’t want to get married, or mean them, I’d tried to live by
them. This time was different and I wanted to reflect the importance of it this
time around. We turned to face each other and I was about to start when Oliver
started chanting for me and everyone laughed again. I looked over and he was
writhing in my mother’s arms like a floundering fish. I looked at Ellie and
raised my eyebrows and she nodded. He wanted to be with us, he should be with
us, this was an important day for him too, he was going to become a Davenport
at last. I crouched down and called to him, so mother set him down and he made
a beeline straight for me. I threw him up in the air, caught him and kissed him
as he giggled. Then he held out his arms for Ellie to give him a cuddle and a
kiss, before she handed him back to me and I supported him in one hand against
my shoulder, as I took her left one with the other and took a second to compose
myself.

‘Ok?’ she whispered, as we just gazed at each
other. I nodded, suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of emotion at the look
of love on her face. Love for me. Love I’d somehow doubted that I deserved,
until she said yes last night. Her acceptance of my proposal had squashed those
doubts for good.

‘Ellie Baxter, you came into my life at a time
when I’d given up on it, on the prospect of ever finding happiness again.
Somehow you saw inside me, past the protective defences I’d built. You saw the
man inside, you saw good inside, something even I didn’t know existed. I was
too scared to let you know how I felt, but the sense of loss I felt when you
left, told me that you were the woman for me. I stayed away because I doubted that
I was the man for you, which made me even more miserable than before I met you.
Somehow we found each other once more, but my stubbornness drove you away
again. Losing you that second time was the low point in my life. Those months
without you, imagining how life could have been with you at my side were hell.
I don’t think I can ever repay Brooke for bringing you and my wonderful son
back into my life,’ I nodded and blew out a deep breath, as I felt salt
stinging my eyes. God damn it I was going to cry.

‘It’s ok,’ she said quietly, a few solitary tears
rolling down her face too.

‘You both bring me so much happiness, happiness I
never even imagined existed. You’re my rock, my anchor and my tether. Without
you by my side I feel lost in an endless ocean. Your beauty takes my breath
away every time I see you, your huge heart has stretched mine to the point that
it may burst, because holds that much love inside it for you and my children.
Your happiness is now my primary mission, you’ll never want for anything. You
make me want to be a better man, the
best
man, father and husband that
ever lived, and I promise I’m never going to let you down again. You’re my soul
mate, Ellie. The love of my life. The woman who owns my fragile heart in her
hands and it will never belong to another.
Never
,’ I whispered, as emotion
got the better of me and she had to reach up to wipe away my tears, before her
own. ‘I love you, Ellie Baxter.’

‘I love you, so much,’ she nodded and kissed me,
before giving Oliver a kiss too. ‘I thought I knew what love was, I thought I’d
known happiness, but meeting you, even when you weren’t at your best,
completely shattered those illusions. Somehow I could see past those walls
you’d built up, see the man inside, the one you’d given up on. He’s the most
giving, loving and protective partner and father a woman could ever hope for.
That I ever dreamed of. I feel so blessed to have you in my life, no one makes
me feel more safe, cherished or loved,’ she nodded. I let go of her hand to
drag my handkerchief from my pocket to wipe our eyes, before clasping her hand
tightly in mine again. Every word she spoke plucked at my heart strings, it was
painful I loved her that much. ‘Every time I think
I’ve
reached my
capacity for loving you, you go and do something that makes me fall for you even
harder. With you I know that my children and I will never be lacking for any
love. Even if you had nothing, if you were just that woodcutter I fell in love
with, I’d never have any regrets. You’re the love of my life Oliver Daniel
Davenport, I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you, to grow old with
you, to see our children flourish, find love and have children of their own.
You own me, I’m yours, without reservation, for life.’

‘Mine,’ I nodded as I kissed her. I barely
registered the formal vows, I spoke them in a daze, I couldn’t take my eyes off
her as she looked up at me with that dreamy distant look in her eyes. Knowing
she was mine now, officially, made me want to devour her on the spot. Logan
took Oliver off me so that Ellie and I could exchange rings. My hands were
clasping her face and my lips were on hers before the registrar even said the
words. Ellie let out a small gasp of surprise and I took the opportunity to
sink my tongue deep into her mouth, to taste her for the first time, as my
wife. My woman.
All
mine. At last. I kissed her until my need for oxygen
forced me to break away as everyone clapped and cheered and my chest swelled
with unimaginable pride. There’d been darkness in my heart, deeply embedded,
but she was the light that obliterated it, sent the shadows scurrying away
until no black remained. She made me whole, complete. Happy.

Ellie

The power of his kiss took my breath away, had me
sag against his strong frame and hardened slabs of muscle in an effort to stay
upright. It was done, I was his wife, nothing was ever going to come between us
again. He was my priority now, him, our gorgeous little boy and our unborn
child. They were everything I’d ever wished for, I had no more wishes to make,
he’d made them all come true. He held me against his chest as he gazed down at
me lovingly while I tried to gather some semblance of thought. My man. My
wonderful man.
My husband
. I smiled as he grinned down at me, before he
turned to take Oliver off Logan again and placed his free arm around my waist,
as I placed my hand on my stomach, over our new life. Our family of four was properly
connected now, complete.