AN: Bella's wedding dress was chosen by bgwillis. Lily's dress was chosen by 84gemma. You can see both on my blog - sydneyalice5. blogspot. com

Chapter 37

I Now Pronounce You…

I was just finishing getting dressed in the choir room when my father stepped inside.

"Nervous?"

"Not at all," I answered honestly as I finished adjusting my tie. Grooms had it so easy. It really wasn't fair.

My dad smiled and joined me at the mirror, glancing at his own reflection and straightening his tie. My father was a brilliant doctor but he'd never learned how to fix his tie. Long ago, he'd told my mother that leaving the job to her ensured that he'd get the chance to stare into her lovely eyes at least once a day for the rest of their lives.

Yes, Carlisle Cullen was a charmer.

"How's my girl?" I asked.

The parents had decided that some traditions needed to be upheld, so Bella and I had spent the night apart. That hadn't kept us from texting until nearly three in the morning. I knew she was in the church somewhere, but other than that, I didn't have a clue.

"Your mother assures me that Bella is on cloud nine," my father chuckled lightly. "Lily keeps telling everyone that her mommy looks like a princess."

"Everyone?"

Dad laughed loudly. "Almost every pew in this tiny church is filled with people."

Finding the church had been a happy accident. At first, Bella had wanted an outdoor wedding, but the weather was just too unpredictable. Pastor Weber was a frequent customer at Newton's and a friend of Charlie's, and he'd suggested that we use his little country church. He had even offered to officiate the ceremony. I wasn't surprised that the church was nearly filled. Forks was Bella's home, and everyone in this town loved Charlie Swan.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and Emmett peeked inside.

"There's a little princess out here who would like to see her daddy," my brother grinned at me. "Her words, not mine."

Daddy.

It was a title I'd never expected to crave so desperately. Last night, Bella and I had sat down with Lily and talked about all of the changes that would occur after the wedding, the most important one being that Bella's last name would change to had pouted that she wanted her name to change, too, which had opened the door for a discussion about the adoption. Bella actually did all of the talking. I was rendered speechless by the fact that this amazing little girl wanted me to be her daddy and that her beautiful mother was going to be my wife.

The door opened, and Lily literally danced inside the room with Jasper holding her hand. Her dress was white with a big red sash around her waist and little red butterflies along the fabric. She was adorable, and my eyes welled with tears. I cleared my throat and smiled at my little girl.

"Hi," Lily grinned at me shyly.

"You look so pretty," I murmured as I sat down on a nearby chair. She immediately raced toward me and I had to caution her not to jump into my lap.

"We might mess up your pretty dress," I reminded her as I leaned down to hug her. She wrapped her arms around my neck and squeezed tightly.

"Mommy told me to give you a kiss from her," Lily said just before kissing my cheek. "And Alice says it's time!"

My heart began to race, and I felt my father's reassuring hand on my shoulder as my little girl took me by the hand and led me out of the choir room.

The church was indeed full of people, many of which I recognized. The Newtons were sitting up close, as was Bree, the nurse from the hospital and Bella's friend. My parents were on the front row, along with the rest of my family. Everyone looked so happy, and it filled my heart with happiness.

This was my hometown, and we were so loved.

I was standing at the altar with the pastor. We'd decided not to have attendants. It would just be the three of us, standing in front of our family and friends, pledging our lives to one another.

The pianist began to play Canon in D, and I took a deep breath as I watched my little girl – my daughter – walk down the aisle toward me. She was dropping little red rose petals along the way, and the crowd hummed with joy. Lily made her way to my side and took my hand. She smiled up at me, and I winked down at her just as the song changed and everyone rose to their feet.

At the end of the aisle was a beaming Charlie, and on his arm was my very own princess in the flesh.

By the time Charlie placed her hand in mine, I was weeping.

Smiling through her own tears, Bella lifted her hand and gently brushed her fingers across my wet cheek. She handed Lily her bouquet of red roses and placed both of her hands in mine as Pastor Weber welcomed the guests to the ceremony. I missed most of his speech. I was too mesmerized by the happiness shining in Bella's eyes to really concentrate on anything he was saying.

"Edward and Bella have chosen to recite their own vows," the pastor announced.

He nodded toward me and I took a deep breath. I'd probably written my vows over a thousand times, trying to say exactly what I wanted to say and to say it right. It was the most important speech I'd ever make, and it had to be absolutely perfect.

"My Bella," I whispered. She smiled and squeezed my hand in encouragement. "When I think of everything we've been through…when I think of the events that brought us both to this moment…I can't help but be thankful for every single moment because I know it was all meant to be. I was meant to find you. You were meant to find me. I was meant to be Lily's father. People can call it karma, or the stars aligning, or divine intervention, or whatever they want to name it. All I know is that every bad thing that has ever happened to us has led us to this moment, in this little church, in front of all of our family and friends."

I watched in fascination as a lone tear trickled down her cheek, and I gently brushed it away.

"You were my friend when I had no one else. You welcomed me into your home…into your life. Into your heart. I love you so much, Bella, and today, you're giving me the greatest gift that I could ever receive. You're becoming my wife, and you are trusting me to be a father to your daughter."

Letting go of her hands, I reached into my pocket and pulled out Lily's gift. I kneeled to the ground in front of the little girl and placed the necklace over her head. Dangling from the chain was the replica of Bella's ring that I'd bought in the jewelry store. Lily's eyes widened as she noticed the halo ring as it settled against her dress.

"It's just like Mommy's ring," Lily murmured in amazement.

"It is," I nodded as the emotion of the moment threatened to overwhelm me. "I wanted to give you something today, too. Every time you look at your necklace, I want you to remember how much I love you. I love you so much, Lily, and I can't wait to be your daddy."

"I love you…Daddy," Lily whispered, and tears welled in my eyes as I kissed her forehead. I rose to my feet and turned back toward Bella who was crying uncontrollably, and without thinking, I pulled her into my arms and pressed my forehead against hers.

Pastor Weber wiped at his own eyes before asking Bella if she was ready to recite her vows.

"Seriously?" Bella asked him tearfully. "You actually expect me to speak after that?"

The congregation laughed through their own tears, and suddenly, Alice was there, offering us both tissues. Bella wiped my face as I wiped hers.

"You don't have to say anything, baby," I assured her with a smile. "He can pronounce us husband and wife and then I can kiss you and it will all be official."

Bella was shaking her head.

"No, no…I want to recite my vows to you," she said. She sniffled quietly and took a long, steadying breath before placing her hands in mine once again.

"Just before she passed away, my mother gave me some instructions for life," Bella began. "She knew she wouldn't be here to teach me, so the days leading up to her passing, she gave me these little life lessons and told me to follow them. Of course, I was a teenage girl, and as I lived my life without her, there were times when I didn't follow her advice. But there was one thing she said that always stuck with me, and it was that when it came to love, I should never settle for less than the kind of love that she had with my father."

Bella bowed her head and tried to collect herself before continuing.

"If you asked my dad, he would try to convince you that he wasn't the perfect husband, but to my mother, he was a prince. He worshipped her. He adored her. I grew up knowing that my parents were head over heels in love with each other. They were always hugging and kissing, and when I was little I thought it was so gross…"

The congregation laughed.

"…but as I grew older, and especially once she was diagnosed with cancer, I saw the evidence of that love. Just before she passed away, she made me promise that when I said my wedding vows, that I would say them to a man who loved me just as much as she was loved by my father." Bella smiled brightly through her tears. "I'll be honest. I didn't think it was possible. But I didn't know that you were out there, and from the moment we met, I felt so connected to you. It was as if I could see into your soul, and you could see into mine. The fact that my daughter is completely in love with you just proves that this is meant to be. I love you with all my heart."

We exchanged rings, and when Pastor Weber announced that I could kiss the bride, I didn't hesitate for one second because that kiss signified that she was officially and legally my wife.

The pastor introduced us as Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen, and with our daughter in the middle and holding each of our hands, the three of us walked down the aisle as a family.

This is the last official chapter.

The rest of the chapters will be futuretakes – little snippets of their life. Mostly fluff, but some drama too because life is full of both. I'm not marking this as complete. I'll just keep adding chapters until I'm done with the outtakes. Again, if there's something you really want to see (I've had suggestions of more babies and an adventure involving Bella's goody drawer), don't hesitate to let me know, and I'll see what I can do.

See you next week!