The Ninth Wedding, the Right Man

Erin's POV: Only 15 minutes remained before the ceremony. Nathan Walker and I had finally finished greeting our guests. Backstage, my bridesmaids urged me to change into my ceremony gown. "After 10 years together and eight failed weddings, the ninth one is finally happening!" My makeup artist teared up as she secured my veil. I was about to leave the dressing room when Nathan's childhood friend, Leah Miller, spoke from the couch. "Wait. The sapphire bracelet I made for you is tangled. I need to fix it." I stopped. So did Nathan. "That's fine. Take your time." Leah smiled at me as she worked on the delicate chain. "Don't worry, Erin. I'll be quick. I commissioned this bracelet especially for you. Sapphires symbolize loyalty and eternity." Then she casually handed my bouquet to Nathan. "Hold this for me." He took it. The dressing room fell silent. My bridesmaids' smiles disappeared. "Nathan, the ceremony is about to begin. All our guests are waiting." He frowned. "I'm already here. A few more minutes won't matter." I looked at him in his tuxedo, waiting while Leah untangled her bracelet, and suddenly smiled. Then I picked up my phone and texted another number. Erin: Didn't you say that if my ninth wedding fell through, I should consider you? Erin: Get to the hotel before noon and steal the bride. My screen lit up. Julian Reed replied instantly. Julian: Good. Just like him: decisive, direct, and never one word more than necessary. I locked my phone and looked at the clock on the dressing-room wall. It was 11:48 a.m. The ceremony began at noon. We had 12 minutes. My bridesmaid Mia, close to tears, rushed over and tugged Nathan's sleeve. "Nathan, more than 300 people are sitting out there. The host has asked for you three times. Please go change into your ceremony tux." Nathan shifted easily out of her reach. He crouched beside Leah and loosened a knot in the chain. "Take it slowly. Don't hurt your fingers." Mia froze with her hand still raised. I stepped forward and took my bouquet from Nathan. "I've surrendered eight weddings. I'm not surrendering my bouquet." Leah's smile stiffened. I moved away without looking at her again. My best friend Zoe finally stepped between them. Her voice shook with anger. "Nathan, do you have any sense of priority? This is your wedding. Your bride is standing right here, along with more than 300 guests and several of your firm's partners, and you're fussing over another woman's bracelet. "Your mother came back here herself. I made an excuse for you. The host has played the opening music five times. What are you thinking?" Nathan merely sighed. "Erin, a tangled wedding bracelet is a bad omen. Leah spent three nights designing this gift by hand. She meant well." His voice softened. "I'm waiting because I want our marriage to last." Leah kept smiling down at the chain. "Nathan, does this part loop through here? Take a look." "Yes." Nathan nodded. Zoe was speechless. I no longer had the strength to argue. I stared into the eyes that had told me I love you countless times over 10 years, and old memories began to surface. At our first wedding, the procession had already left when Leah suffered an asthma attack. Nathan, still in his tuxedo, carried her into an ambulance. He sent one message back through his best man, "Erin will understand. She always does." I stood alone in the chapel, wearing my gown from morning until afternoon. Later, he apologized with 99 roses. He told me it had been a matter of life and death, praised me for being kind and generous, and promised there would be another wedding. I believed him. The second time, we flew to the Valora Isles for a lawn ceremony. 40 minutes before our vows, Leah called in tears, claiming a local man was following and harassing her. Nathan left the rings with the minister and patted my shoulder. "You're brave, Erin. She isn't. I have to check on her." He spent five hours with Leah filing a police report. By the time he returned, the ocean wind had scattered half the flowers. He held me, apologized in a hoarse voice, and looked exhausted. I believed him again. The third wedding failed because a pipe burst at Leah's house and she couldn't move the furniture alone. The fourth, because the dog she'd had for seven years went missing and she collapsed crying by the roadside. The fifth, because she said her depression had returned and threatened to jump from a rooftop. Every time, Nathan said the same thing. "We can hold another wedding, Erin. A life is irreplaceable. Isn't my sense of responsibility one of the reasons you fell in love with me?" And every time, his tenderness afterward weakened my resolve. He remembered my period every month, that I drank my Americano ice and black, and that thunderstorms frightened me, so he closed the windows before they arrived. He remembered everything except the endless hours I'd spent abandoned in wedding gowns. The clock reached 11:49 a.m. Leah's fingers jerked, tangling the chain she'd just freed. Her eyes reddened. "Nathan, I'm sorry. Did I ruin everything?" He immediately pulled a silk handkerchief from his inside pocket. I recognized the initials of his name I'd embroidered on it for Valentine's Day the year before. He gave it to Leah to dry her tears. "It's all right. Even if the ceremony starts a few minutes late, Erin and I still love each other. The time doesn't matter. Don't blame yourself." 'Erin and I still love each other.' Such a beautiful excuse. Zoe looked at me, her eyes full of pain. I checked Julian's reply once more and stood. Nathan was still bent over the chain. He didn't notice. In his world, I would always wait. The clock reached 11:50 a.m. 10 minutes remained.