Dottie cackled with glee. “Hang on. Let me get my purse.”
Stan—dear, sweet, wounded Stan—sang the Jeopardy thinking music. Arnie flipped him off and Ned? Ned was beaming with joy.
Dottie came toward her with a mirror. Summer fished out her lipstick and swiped it on. She looked at Arnie’s second mom, and asked, “Do I look okay?”
“Honey, you look like someone holding the winning ticket to a life few people live but many dream of.” She leaned in and whispered, “Well done, Summer. Well done.”
When Dottie pulled back, she gazed down at Arnie and chuckled. “This is a good look. On your knees.”
Arnie said, “Seriously, Quickie?”
She patted his cheek twice. The second pat was more like a slap. “I’m writing this up for the newsletter.”
Looking handsomely resplendent in his dress blues, Reed returned to the terrace with Ari in his arms. In a weird nod to the only family she knew until this moment, she, her brother, and her daughter were all wearing dark blue.
The baby smiled at her. Summer watched her little eyes search and stop when she found Daddy. Her smile, swear to god, got bigger.
Reed kissed Ari’s cheek, and then looked at Arnie, and drawled, “Okay, you’re up, baby daddy. Better make this good. I’m only giving my blessing this once, so don’t mess up.”
Arnie looked at her. “Yep, before you ask, I got the bastard’s okay for this.”
She glanced around, making eye contact and pausing at every person. When she arrived at Darnell Senior, he was wiping his nose with a handkerchief. It touched her heart to see him so visibly overcome by his grandson’s happiness.
Dottie insinuated herself at the perfect spot to get the best angle of shots. “Fairy-tale endings, take one,” she boomed.
Chuckling, Ned clapped his hands to mimic a movie clapperboard. “And scene,” he called out merrily.
Summer smoothed her hands down her gown and stood straighter. She stroked the side of her beloved’s face and smiled.
“This is your big moment. Are you ready?”
He sniggered and shook like a dog covered in water. “Sorry, what? I fell asleep.”
Clearing his throat and taking a deep breath, he squared his shoulders and gave her a wink.
Even though she knew what was coming, Summer wasn’t prepared for the emotional impact of how things went down.
He asked for her hand. She gave it. Holding it in both of his, he brought his version of a remarkably romantic Prince Charming to the occasion.
“Summer, I started falling when a pretty, smart-mouthed waitress challenged my worldview with a frank appraisal of some questionable footwear.”
She smiled big.
“The fall was completed when she nearly ripped my throat out for over tipping.”
Stan grimaced, and groaned, “Ooh, bro. Really?”
“I know, right? A hundred-dollar tip for a twenty-six-dollar dinner check. Sheesh,” she croaked.
“Arnie! Shame on you,” Dottie barked.
“Son, what were you thinking?” Ned chided with a shaking head.
Reed tsk’ed. “Bad form, dude.”
Ari thought her daddy’s humiliation was funny and added some baby bubbles to the conversation.
Darnell Senior, however, slapped his knee and honked with laughter. “Showed her what an idiot you were right out of the gate.”
Summer laughed, and with her free hand held up, she said, “High five, Pops.”
“Are you all finished?” Arnie asked.
There was another round of sniggering catcalls and a few hissing boos before the rabble died down, and he could continue.
“As I was saying,” he snarled with a glare for every individual witness. “Well, damn. Now I don’t remember what I was saying.”
Good grief. They were never going to get there if she didn’t step in.
“Arnie.”
He sighed and looked at her.
“Focus.”
“Right, right. Focus.” He squeezed her hand and started again. “I wish I could stop time, roll it back, and have this moment play out a year ago. I’ve spent a lot of time regretting things I couldn’t change, didn’t know about, and had no power over, but it occurred to me about a minute ago that things happened the way they did for a reason. Maybe lots of reasons.”
She swallowed and prayed the torrent of tears waiting to fall held back a little longer.
“I love that you’re you. I love that you’re my destiny. I love that you’re my daughter’s mother. I love the way you love and how your first thought is always positive.” He gently squeezed her hand. “And I love that you’re willing to stand there, after everything that’s happened, and take my hand in front of our families.”
A single tear escaped and slid down her cheek. She didn’t care if her makeup got