Carter stood at the end of the path that was lined on either side with dozens of vases overflowing with deep purple calla lilies—a reminder of the first time he'd sent me flowers that morning a few weeks ago when he'd given me the Tiffany watch.
My eyes traveled up the grass path to Carter. He wore a light tan suit and a striped white and deep purple tie. He also had a small lily pinned to his lapel. His hair was perfectly floppy and the sun's rays glinted off of the toffee-colored strands. He was breathtaking. A wide smile spread across his face and I'm sure my own equally bright smile met his. When we locked eyes I was lost in his steely blue depths.
A photographer came up with a camera in one hand and a bouquet of the same deep purple calla lilies interwoven with sprigs of baby’s breath. It was all so beautiful and romantic, and the fact that Carter had orchestrated all of it brought tears to my eyes.
The driver led me part of the way to Carter and then let go once he saw that I was well on my way to the beautiful man I'd locked eyes with.
I walked slowly with a smile on my face up the path to where Carter stood, never breaking eye contact. The officiant stood next to him waiting patiently to start the ceremony. When I stepped up, just out of arm's reach of Carter, he mouthed the words, "You are stunning."
I smiled and took the last steps to him, reaching my hand out for his.
His hand was so warm and comforting in my own, all of my fears from the past forty-eight hours slipped away. I was right where I was meant to be, at the top of this mountain, on a beautiful autumn day, marrying the man who made me so happy it felt like my heart could burst. I melted into him for a hug; breaking convention or not, I needed to feel him, to reassure him that he was my dream come true. He squeezed me back and kissed the top of my head.
"I love you," he whispered so only I could hear.
"I love you," I whispered back. I finally pulled away from him and looked at the officiant with a sheepish smile on my face. He smiled back reassuringly and then Carter nodded for him to start.
Chapter Six
Just twenty minutes later and Carter and I had pledged our love and our lives to each other. He kissed me passionately when the officiant said we were allowed, as the photographer snapped away from different angles. I was hardly aware of anything around me as my eyes were locked on Carter's the entire time and the smile was so wide on my face it nearly hurt. Carter held my hand tightly in his as we posed for different pictures and signed the marriage certificate. These moments were exquisite. We lingered for more than an hour, taking in the view, our arms wrapped around each other, exchanging small kisses and holding hands tightly. I couldn't bring myself to let go of his hand.
As the sun began to set we watched the bright rays reflect off the snowy mountain peaks and light up the sunburst orange and yellow leaves of the aspens in the valley. It was a picture of perfection that would remain in my mind for a lifetime. After the sun set behind the mountains we made our way back to the car and the driver drove us down the mountain.
"Was it okay?" Carter asked as we drove down the gravel road.
"Oh, Carter, it was perfect. So breathtaking. I can't believe you did all of this in just a few days." I smiled up at him.
"I’m glad it was perfect for you. I only wanted to make it perfect for you, since your family wouldn't be here, and Cate, I know you missed her." He looked at me with sad eyes.
"I did, but this was beyond perfect Carter." I kissed him long and soft on his perfect lips to show him my appreciation.
"I'm sorry we didn't have time to get rings." He played with my left ring finger, noticeably absent of the ring that normally signified a marriage.
"It's okay." I smiled and twisted our fingers together tightly.
"I thought we could shop around for some when we get back to Boston."
"That sounds perfect." I kissed his lips softly.
"You are breathtaking., so much better than any view on earth. This dress…" he trailed off as he ran one hand around the back and fingered the edge of the fabric against my flesh. "This dress was made for you. And it's lace." He got a devilish look in his eye. I giggled.
"I hope you don't mind that we're just going home. I have dinner planned. I want you to myself tonight." His fingers trailed along the high neckline of the dress seductively and butterflies immediately jumped into my stomach at his innuendo.
"It sounds perfect." I placed a hand on his cheek and kissed him deeply. He ran a hand through my hair gently and then curled his palm around the back of my neck to pull me closer to him.
My body was aching for his touch, I wanted to feel him everywhere, without the barrier of clothing that he'd subjected us to these past few nights. I'd gone nearly insane having him in bed next to me and unable to touch him.