Page 70 of Zane

Last night had been enjoyable, instead of stiff and uncomfortable. Both Michelle and Zoe had made everyone feel at home.

The dress was a Romano's original. The look of it, the style, made it worth every penny she had spent for it, and that was something she had insisted on when the Stanhope family had ganged up on her and wanted to pay for it. They were funding the wedding, with her mother contributing to a few things. Kara had stood her ground.

"I'm paying for my dress."

Her fiancé had muttered something about being as stubborn as a mule, but she had gotten her way.

The dress was a champagne-colored, stunning Venetian lace all the way from bodice to ankles. Even though the skirt was narrow, the material was so soft and flexible it allowed her to move. The back dipped to the waist and flowed out several feet behind her in soft and filmy chiffon, attached by discreet detachable hooks.

Zane had gifted her with another heirloom. Lifting a hand, she traced the magnificent sapphire and diamond necklace that shimmered and flashed at her throat. Matching earrings were at her lobes. Long gloves, the exact shade of her dress, covered her arms to the elbows. Her hair was professionally styled, teased, and brushed back from her face, the colors brightened.

Zoe had just left after bringing her a glass of champagne to toast the journey. She and Abigail were her only attendants. Zoe had chosen a stunning ice-blue dress, and Abigail plum rose.

A movement inside the doorway caught her eye.

"Mother." She turned to watch the woman hesitating inside the doorway. Katherine Saunders was wearing a tailored suit in teal blue. The suit should have looked severe, but it suited her.

"You look-" Easing out a breath, Katherine shook her head and smiled. "You make a very stunning bride. I have this, something borrowed and blue." She came forward. "It belonged to your father's mother and was given to me on my wedding day. I'm not sure it goes with the rest of the jewelry."

"I'm sure we can make it work." Kara knew she was trying to make amends, but they were not there yet. She knew her mother's attempt at reconciliation had something to do with what Zane had said to her, but questioning had gotten her nowhere. The man was as tight-lipped as a clam and would not budge. "I handled it," he had said. "Leave it at that."

"It's a sapphire pendant. Where-"

"Oh! It's lovely. Let's-" She pointed to her left breast and stood still as her mother pinned it on.

"It suits you." Stepping back, Katherine studied the overall effect and felt a strange twinge inside her heart. She had meant what she said before. Kara made an incredibly lovely bride.

"I would like to walk you down the aisle-"

"The wedding is being held in the ballroom. There's no aisle," Kara reminded her.

"I know that." Katherine waved an impatient hand, still irked that her daughter had refused to have a church wedding. But she had put that behind her. She wanted to mend fences. "I would like to walk you inside that ballroom when you go to meet your groom. Kara-" She had to take a breath.

"I know things have been strained between us for a long time, but I'm trying to make a difference. He loves you." She still wasn't able to say his name just yet. "I've seen the way he looks at you and-" She pressed a hand to her bosom.

The man stared at her daughter as if she were the only one in the room and no one else existed. With all his tattoos and belligerent attitude, Katherine knew that he would always stand with her daughter, no matter what. "He loves you."

Kara's smile bloomed. "He does, and I love him so much it hurts." She pressed a hand to her chest. "If you don't know him, you'd think differently, but he's caring and considerate and always puts my needs first. He's a wonderful man."

"Yes," she acknowledged. "I'm big enough to accept when I'm wrong. And I was." Taking a breath, she held out a hand. "Please allow me the honor of walking with you to take the most important step in your life."

Swallowing the lump, she took the hand and squeezed, just as Zoe came in.

"It's time." Her tawny eyes took in the joined hands, and she nodded in approval. At least they were bridging the gap. "Your groom is chafing at the bit."

With a laugh, Kara declared, "Let's not keep him waiting."

*****

He had thought he was prepared for the first time he saw her walking toward him in her wedding dress, but he was wrong. He briefly took in the mother walking next to her, but he could not take his eyes off the vision floating toward him. She could not be real. He heard the gasp going through the crowd as they stared at her, but as far as he was concerned, she was the only one in the room. No one else mattered.

Leaving his place at the front of the room, he walked toward her with arms outstretched. With a brief nod to Katherine, he took his bride's hands and simply stood there gazing at her.

"Why do I get the feeling you're going to disappear on me? How can you possibly be real?" His voice throbbed with emotions so raw, it threatened to break.

"I'm flesh and blood, and I'm about to marry the man I love."

"Forever, until death. A hundred years will never be enough. You're the most beautiful woman in the world."