A Wedding on Lilac Lane by Hope Ramsay (best book clubs .txt) 📕

the hospital when he’d thought he’d lost Brenda. Or that night, all those years ago, when Dad had lost Mom forever.

But that’s what the tears were for. Because loss and love were simply different sides of the same coin. It had taken Dad forever to find someone new. That’s how much he’d loved Mom.

It would take him years to get over Ella. Because she was the girl his father had told him repeatedly that he needed to find. But he’d already found her.

“I want you to love me the same way I love you,” he said to Ella, not caring at all what Dad or Brenda thought. He was done trying to please everyone else. The only person who mattered was Ella. “I want you to be mine forever. I want you to stay here in Magnolia Harbor. And I don’t give a damn what anyone thinks about the way I feel. Please don’t leave me. Please stay here with me. Forever.”

*  *  *

Dylan’s amber-flecked blue eyes glistened with tears shed and unshed. Beyond him, Mom was openly weeping, her mascara a mess as tears flowed like a waterfall from her eyes.

Granny wasn’t crying. She stood at the end of the couch with her arms across her chest and a gleam in her eyes. Say yes, she mouthed.

Ella pushed herself up on the chaise to give Dylan a little more room. She was feeling much better, cooler and clearheaded.

“How are you doing, Mom? You okay?” she asked, and braced for the explosion or the frown-of-death.

But instead Mom said, “I’m fine, sweetie. I think you just got asked an important question that you need to answer.”

“Amen to that,” Granny muttered in a louder-than-normal voice. For a quiet woman, Granny had certainly used her voice to wreak havoc today. But then, maybe Granny’s interruption had been a blessing, because Ella would probably have fainted either way.

She finally gazed at Dylan, who was still waiting patiently. Which, now that she thought about it, was one of the things she loved most about him.

“Why didn’t you tell me before this?” she asked. Funny how Cody had always used the L-word like a weapon against her. It slipped off his tongue whenever he got himself into a tight spot.

But Dylan didn’t do that kind of thing. When he said something, he meant it. He’d proved that over and over again. He always told the truth.

“Look,” he said into her continuing silence. “If you need to go on the road to make a living, I get it. I don’t want to pin you down or own you or whatever. I just want you in my life.”

“Oh, bless his heart,” Granny said.

“I hate being on tour,” Ella managed.

His eyes widened. Had she not told him that before? Maybe not.

“I didn’t know that. But you know I heard you were leaving town because of your career.”

“I was going to go to Nashville and see if I could start over there.”

“Could you start over here?”

“Yes, she can. Absolutely,” Ashley said.

Ella stared up at her boss, landlady, and friend. “Uh, well, Ashley, I need to do more than wait on tables.”

“I know that. Which is why I was hoping the symphony would ask you to audition.”

“They did. But I haven’t heard back from them. It’s been almost two weeks. And I need to get my life together. So I’m going to Nashville.”

Dylan nodded. “That makes perfect sense. You are incredibly talented,” he said in a small voice. “And I guess I’ve always known that this town was probably too small for you.”

He visibly swallowed, then looked up at his father. “Dad, I’m really sorry. I know you want to back off on the practice and all. But if Ella is going to Nashville to pursue her career in music, and if she’ll have me, then I’m going with her. I love you with all my heart, but you know, ever since Mom died, I’ve been working overtime to make you happy. It’s time to make myself happy. I’m sure I can find a small country practice somewhere outside Nashville.”

“What? No.” Mom took Jim by the arm. Both of them looked gobsmacked.

“Micah?” Ashley said, lifting her eyebrow in some silent communication. What was up with that?

The preacher turned toward Brenda and Jim and spoke again. “I’ll get around to marrying y’all in a minute, but I think Dylan and Ella need a little time, okay?” The minister ushered everyone through the doorway, where Ashley grinned at him like a demented cherub as she closed the pocket doors.

The minister turned toward Ella. “So you love Dylan?” he asked.

Suddenly the library felt like a confessional. Did she love Dylan? Of course she did. She hadn’t even let herself think the word for such a long time. But what else could this feeling be?

“Yes,” she said, her vision suddenly smearing with tears.

“Good. Dylan, you love Ella?”

“I do,” he said. He sounded so strong and sure and in control.

“I see no impediment,” the minister said. “Love is a wonderful gift. It’s a sin to squander it. So I’m saying that if you want to please the man upstairs, you’ll stop sneaking around, pretending you don’t care, or living your life for your parents’ benefit. They love you. And they will adjust to you loving each other. Trust me on this. It’s all going to work out whether you live here or in Nashville or on the Moon.”

They stared at the minister. He stared back, then cleared his throat. “So, are we good?”

“Uh, yeah,” Dylan said.

“Ella?” Rev. St. Pierre turned his deep brown gaze on her. You could not lie to him.

She nodded. “I’m good.”

“You may kiss the girl,” he said, giving Dylan a little half smile.

And Dylan did as he was told for once. The kiss he gave Ella melted her down again. It tasted a little like mint chewing gum with overtones of lavender and eucalyptus. And suddenly the sun came out from behind the personal rain cloud she’d been living under. The kiss lasted a