we have so much more than so many others. I know I do sometimes, but I never mind being reminded.”
“I’m thankful for Joseph and thankful for everything. There’s nothing in this world I couldn’t handle as long as I have you guys there and, of course, now my beautiful wife and kids,” Finn said.
“I love that the women we’ve been lucky enough to marry have added so much to this family, taking nothing away. I didn’t know life could be this good,” Noah added.
“To family, to friends, and most importantly to Brandon and Chloe. May their marriage be as strong today as it will be in fifty years. And may we all be there for one another the rest of our lives,” Crew said.
They grabbed their beers and clinked them together. It was just another blessed day in a slew of many blessed years.
Chloe tried to catch her breath as she stared in the mirror. She had a moment alone as Sarah and Brooke ran out to grab a few items they’d forgotten. She never needed time apart from her friends, but it was nice to catch a few breaths. It all felt so unreal.
The wedding had taken only three months to plan. It could’ve been done even faster if Joseph had gotten his way, but she’d enjoyed planning the wedding and hadn’t wanted to give up a single moment of it.
The one terrifying thing of marrying an Anderson was the fame that came from it. Everyone wanted to know what it was like to be in the exclusive Anderson family and empire. She’d graciously done a few interviews, as it was now expected of her. Brandon had promised her things would slow down after they were wed. He was going to take her on a monthlong honeymoon to a private island, away from cameras and reporters. She could barely wait.
She’d grown up in the spotlight, and she didn’t want anything to do with it anymore. But you made sacrifices when you loved someone. And the truth about that was that it wasn’t even sacrifice when it was done out of love. You just adapted to a new situation.
She knew there was a flurry of activity going on outside her suite door, but none of that mattered for one moment in time. Getting her ready for the wedding had taken two days, and she missed Brandon desperately. She hadn’t seen him much the past week. Knowing he’d be waiting at the end of the long aisle was the only thought that would get her through the walk.
There was a knock on the door, and she let out the air she hadn’t even known she’d been holding. She was more than ready to meet her fiancé at the head of the aisle. But she wasn’t quite ready to face the crowd of people who’d be watching her take her walk.
“Sorry that took so long,” Brooke said. “But we forgot your something old in the car.”
Brooke and Sarah came into the room and pulled out a very, very old friendship bracelet. The string color had faded, and the first sight of it made her fear disappear and a smile fall on her lips.
“I lost mine before we were out of grade school,” Chloe said.
“I don’t know how I kept mine all these years, but when I got married and was going through all my personal stuff, I found it, and I knew it would be your something old when you got married. We’ve been best friends since grade school. We’ll stay that way for eternity,” Brooke said.
She stood and rushed to her best friends, then threw her arms around them.
“We’re going to mess up your dress,” Sarah said in a scratchy voice.
“I don’t care. I can’t imagine having any of these special moments in our lives without the two of you,” Chloe said. “I also can’t believe I’m the last to marry. I definitely would’ve thought it would be Brooke, and yet she was the first.”
“Trust me—I know!” Brooke said. “I was so set on never marrying. But I guess all it took for all of us was to find the right man.”
“I can’t believe it was brothers,” Sarah said with a laugh.
“We should’ve always known it would be, but in the real world three magnetic brothers for three best friends just doesn’t exist,” Brooke said.
“It’s a good thing we don’t live in the real world, then,” Chloe said.
The three girls laughed before Sarah grabbed their wineglasses. “One last toast before we’re