Free Sunrise by Karen Kingsbury

Matthews.”
    “I’ve played one in the movies.” He grinned and reached for her hand.
    “Never mind the movies. I mean right here in Bloomington in our lake house, with me and whatever kids God blesses us with down the road.”
    His look went deep, to the private areas of her heart where only he was allowed. “Thanks. That means a lot.”
    “It’s true. The boys could’ve been upset all day. You knew just what it would take to make the day fun and still have Cody on their hearts when it was time for bed.”
    “I loved it.” Dayne’s smile faded. “It’s what I would’ve had if I’d grown up here.” The seriousness of his tone, his expression, didn’t last long. The corners of his lips curved again. “But at least I have it now.” He leaned close and gave her a tender kiss, just brief enough to be careful. “And one day we’ll share this same kind of life with our kids.”
    “But first we have to get married.” Katy loved this—the way she and Dayne could tease each other. “I haven’t heard much about the plans.”
    “Ah, my secret weapon.” Dayne turned and brought one leg onto the couch. “Everything came together this morning. I was going to tell you, but, well . . . a football game broke out instead.”
    “And a basketball game.”
    “That too.”
    She laughed. “Okay, so tell me.”
    “Her name’s Wilma Waters, and she’s the best wedding coordinator in Hollywood.”
    A wedding coordinator? Katy gulped and tried not to show a negative reaction. Of course they’d have a wedding coordinator. That’s what people with money did, right? And now that she was marrying Dayne, she fit into that category. But she hadn’t thought about a wedding coordinator. She tried to think of something to say. All she could come up with was “Wow.”
    “I know. I can’t believe she was available.”
    “Lucky for us.” Katy did her best to sound sincere, but she was struggling. She’d figured Dayne was talking to someone who could help them pull off a secret wedding. But a coordinator? It sounded so . . . so impersonal. The people she knew didn’t hire wedding coordinators. They gathered their friends and family and planned a wedding themselves. “Meaning . . . she handles everything?”
    “Everything!” Dayne didn’t pick up on her hesitancy. “She takes care of the guest list and the location, the flowers and the theme colors, the decorations and whatever else you need for the perfect wedding.” He held out his hands. “But the best part is, she’s an expert at keeping the whole thing a secret from the media.”
    Katy reminded herself to exhale. Here was the first piece of good news, news she could relate to. “We’ll need that.”
    “We will.” Dayne rested his arm along the back of the couch. “Wilma agreed the breaking point is usually fifty people. If your list is fifty or fewer guests, she can almost guarantee the press won’t find out. But when it’s more than that, it takes a full-blown plan to pull it off.”
    “But she thinks we can do it?”
    “She does.”
    Katy heard the patter of little feet on the stairs and the muffled sound of tears. Before either of them could ask who was out of bed, Ricky rounded the corner. His blond hair was messy from the pillow, and he was rubbing his eyes. Ricky was a sleepwalker and he slept light, though he’d been doing better lately. But every now and then he found a way back downstairs after lights-out.
    Katy whispered in Dayne’s direction, “He has a hard time getting to sleep.”
    Dayne nodded. “Hey, buddy. What’s wrong?”
    Ricky squinted. He came close and looped his arm around Dayne’s neck. “They won’t let me win.”
    “They won’t . . . ?” Dayne directed a questioning look at Katy.
    “Sleepwalking,” she mouthed.
    Understanding filled his eyes. He put his arm around Ricky’s waist. “They won’t let you win?”
    “No.” Ricky did a dramatic shake of his head. His eyes were open and filled with fear