Chapter 23

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Josie peered through the crowd of their wedding guests, wondering what Wesley was telling her to look at. And then all at once she knew.

"It's my mom," she whispered, feeling her heart leap up.

Behind her, Wesley squeezed her shoulders, and she blinked back tears of happiness. She was thrilled to see her mother there—and looking so well! Josie watched as her mother looked around the room with a quiet smile on her face.

I can't believe she's here , she thought, feeling her heart swell. I kept telling myself it wasn't going to work out, and she wasn't going to be here.

When Josie was younger, her mother had been unreliable, and she hadn't been able to convince herself that her mother was going to come to her wedding. Now that she saw her mother standing there, a weight of tension that she hadn't realized she'd been carrying evaporated.

"You should go talk to her," Wesley said, squeezing her hand. "I'll come by soon—I'm guessing you'd rather talk to her by yourself for a minute."

She kissed his cheek. "Well—not quite by myself." Across the room, she could see that Paige had also noticed that their mother was there, and her heart warmed to see the way her sister's eyes had lit up.

He grinned at her, understanding what she meant, and gave her hand a final squeeze before she started to hurry across the room toward Paige.

"Mom is here!" her sister gushed, folding her into a hug the moment she reached her side. "Let's go talk to her!"

"Definitely," Josie said, feeling her heart flutter with nervousness in spite of how excited she was.

They started to walk toward their mother, and she noticed them approaching in the next few moments. She turned toward them with a smile, and hugged both of them when they reached her side.

"Oh, my girls," she said warmly. "It's so wonderful to see you both."

"It's good to see you too, Mom," Josie said, feeling her eyes fill with tears. "I'm really glad you're here."

"I wouldn't miss it," her mother insisted. "It was such a beautiful wedding. It's clear how much you two love each other. I'm so happy for you."

Josie swallowed hard, feeling a surge of happiness fill her chest. She could sense a difference in her mother—she seemed more grounded and mature.

She seems more stable now, she thought. She's calmer, and she seems kinder than she used to be.

The three of them went to sit together at a bench by a window, partially tucked away behind some potted plants. They spent some time catching up, updating each other about their lives.

"I wanted to apologize for asking Paige to steal from Josie," their mom said after a short pause, taking a deep breath. "That was wrong of me. It was wrong to ask for it, and it was wrong of me to try to get out of rehab. I stuck with the program I was in, and it really helped me."

"I'm glad to hear that, Mom," Paige said, squeezing her hands.

"I'm still a work in progress," their mother said, laughing a little, "but I'm putting in the work and putting my life back together."

Josie listened to her mother's words with a full heart. She strongly got the impression that what her mother was saying was true—she could see evidence in her mother's demeanor that suggested she was changing for the better.

"Thank you again for coming, Mom," Josie said. "It means the world to me that you're here."

Her mother nodded, smiling. "I love you girls."

"We love you too," Josie and Paige said at the same time, and the three of them wrapped their arms around each other in a group hug. Josie felt hopeful that the rift between them was beginning to heal, since their mom seemed to finally have taken control over her issues.

"Well, all these emotions are making me hungry," her mother said, wiping away a tear. "I'm going to go get some hors d'oeuvres to munch on."

"I'll come with you," Paige said, standing up. "You want to come too, Josie?"

"I'll catch you both later," Josie said, smiling warmly. "I'd better go find my husband and get back to greeting the rest of our guests."

She smiled at her mother and sister as they walked over to the hors d'oeuvres table together. At that moment, Wesley stepped up to her.

"Hey," she said, standing up and folding him into a hug.

"I didn't want to interrupt," he said, kissing her nose. "It looked like an important conversation you three were having."

"It was," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "Mom really seems to be doing better. I'm so happy about it."

"I'm so happy for you," he said, wrapping his arms around her again and holding her tightly. "That's incredible news. I'm excited to get to talk to her later."

She nodded, taking a deep breath. She felt so happy, she didn't quite know what to do with herself.

"Well, my husband," she said playfully. "Would you like to finish greeting all of our guests?"

"I would love to, my wife," he said, lacing his fingers with hers.

They shared a sweet kiss, and then started back toward the reception tables, holding hands.