The assembly of people made their way along the path through the trees. Some were dressed formally, but a few were also dressed quite casually as they walked alone, in pairs or small groups. Massive sequoia trees towered over the area, and sunlight from the blue skies broke through in scattered shafts as it filtered from nature's canopy hundreds of feet in the air.

Bob exited his rental car and followed behind the group. His attire straddled the two extremes he saw ahead of him - a casual suit that spoke both comfort and a passing homage to formality. He allowed himself a pair of black athletic shoes that matched his dark glasses, just in case the trail got a little rough, but it was paved and no more challenging than a city sidewalk. At least one outside of San Francisco, that is. Up ahead, he could see the venue as the path gave way to an open area that had chairs lined up and facing a slightly raised mound. The people seemed to be waiting here, milling about and chatting. He glanced at his watch and saw that things must be running late - not unusual for a wedding.

He wandered off to one side and stood staring out through the trees; he could make out the drop to a valley below but the sight was spectacular. A deep breath confirmed that those air fresheners they put in cars were a cheap imitation of the real thing. It was a beautiful day.

"Mr. Harris?" a voice asked behind him. He turned and looked at a younger man that was dressed in a tuxedo.

They had never met, but he had seen his face many times in pictures. He stuck out his hand. "Call me Bob. Denny, if I'm not mistaken?" he asked, although he was certain he was talking to the groom.

"Yeah. Thanks for coming. We really appreciate it. I know you weren't sure if you'd come but I know Charlotte will be thrilled."

Bob turned back to the vista. "It's a beautiful place. As much time as I spent in California, and I never came up here." Hollywood was pretty well insulated from the rest of the state, much less the country. If a studio could get away with not filming on location, they preferred the controlled confines of a sound stage lot. But there was just something missing by recreating a location. It wasn't real. It wasn't alive.

"We love this place. Charlotte and I used to come up here before we moved. It never gets old." Both men stared at the scenery. "I better get going. Thanks for all that you've done for her. She told me that you suggested her father walk her down the aisle. I think that really made him happy."

"It's his place to do it, not mine. I know her relationship with him hasn't been the best, and I hope he'll appreciate the honor. One thing, Denny," Bob said as he swallowed and steadied himself at the railing. This Denny seemed like a really nice guy; it was good to talk to someone who treated him as a person and not a famous face. "She said that she's told you everything, but I haven't told her everything - so I'll tell you. Well, that's a lie - I don't think I could organize my thoughts enough for that and you don't have time to hang around while I try, so I'll boil it down to the basics. You will never love her MORE than I do; deep down I think she's somehow become hopelessly part of my DNA, as much as I hate to admit it. That doesn't mean you can't go ahead and love her JUST as much, and I hope you do for all our sakes. But the biggest thing is, you can make her happier than I ever could and that's the most important thing in the world to me. I'll never understand why it became that important to me, but I'm just telling you the truth." Bob turned back to face Denny and asked, "Can you do that for me?" He didn't care that a tear was running down his cheek when he asked.

Denny noticed and seemed to understand. "I'll try my best, Bob."

"That's all I ask," he said as he shook hands again. "Whether you ever tell Charlotte what I just told you or not is your call. I think you should, but it's up to you to pick the right time. Now you better get up front there. If Charlotte beats you somewhere then you KNOW you're running late," he added with a smile.

"Right." Denny hurried toward the front of the group, who were now getting to their seats. There was a sound of a bell from the front and everyone stood. Bob stayed back, leaning against a tree. He didn't look up as Charlotte made her way down the aisle toward the front, arm in arm with her father. Once at the front, the wedding commenced after a couple of minutes of whispers between bride and groom. It was a beautiful service, short and reverent, touching on the love of God, nature, and each other. They were a beautiful couple just like they were supposed to be, Bob thought as he watched. He had avoided looking until they were together up front because that's how he had to force himself to think of her to heal himself. He hadn't seen her in person since Japan.

At the conclusion, there was a cheer after the Reverend announced the couple, and Charlotte and Denny strode back along the aisle towards the rear, with a slightly dazed look that might have been interpreted as 'We finally did it'. After clearing the last row of chairs, Charlotte looked around and caught a glimpse of Bob by the tree and froze in her tracks for a moment before fully recognizing him, then let out a gasp before running over to him in tears and embracing him, her gown wrapping around both. "Oh Bob, I don't think I could stand it if you didn't come," she said crying.

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world," he said as he savored the hug, his voice a little shaky. It was only the second time they had ever really embraced, the first being when they left Japan. The other hundreds of times had been entirely in his imagination. He savored the one moment of bliss he wished he could have frozen in time forever but allowed himself no further indulgence and took a moment to gather his emotions up.

"For what it's worth, you're more of a man than anybody I know," she whispered.

"Denny seems to be a good man too. You picked a winner," he whispered back before raising his voice again. "Thanks for not having it on the top of Mr. Shasta," he said as he pulled away, as much as he didn't want to. Denny sensed that their private moment was over and came to stand silently by his wife. "Now your wedding present is running a little late. I searched all over for a devotional that ties in with nature and travel but came up with nothing unless you happen to be hanging around in Israel."

"Thank you for trying, anyway. It would have been great to take along with us", she said.

"Oh, I didn't give up. I know a lot of writers, so I twisted a few arms, called in a few favors and started interviewing people before finding someone to tie it all together - I wrote up a section myself on a trip to Crater Lake and Wizard Island that I went on recently although my accountant prefers me to refer to as 'location scouting'. There are a lot of nice places in Oregon, and I always wanted to go inside a volcano. I was working with the deadline of the wedding date you set, but there was a delay getting the book out because of some of the photographs we used. It should be coming from the printers in the next week or two. I'll send you the second copy, autographed right under the dedication to you and Denny."

"Dedicated to us?" Charlotte blushed. "Really?"

Bob recited from memory:

Dedicated to Charlotte and Denny
You will seek God in all the hills and vales and find Who you sought was with you all along.
You will seek to become one with nature only to find you have become one with each other.
You will seek your home in cabin, tent, boat, trailer or house but find it in yourselves.
You will seek a pair of dry socks and find it's always best to pack an extra pair.

"That's wonderful," Charlotte said, chuckling a little.

"And SO true about the socks," Denny added as he held her hand.

"I don't know what...wait, not the first copy?" she asked.

"No, I'm keeping that one for myself. I can't hike along with you two in the flesh, but I can hike along in spirit. Just let me know which ones you do and I'll check them off on my copy. The trick is going to be figuring out how to get rid of the other 9,998 copies I had to pay for."

"That's not the only trick you're going to have to figure out," Charlotte said with a little laugh as she looked over at Denny, who nodded. "You're coming to the reception, right?"

"Uh, I dunno. I didn't really plan on it."

"We want you to. But to get a piece of wedding cake, you have to come out on a paddleboard on the lake like everyone else. We're going to have the reception on an island spot already set up for us."

"I don't..."

"No, you're going and that's final. We reserved a board just for you, and a pair of swimming trunks too. Denny will tow you himself if he has to. Bob, you have to come. Please?"

"I mean, how could I say no now? But listen - if I'm going to drown, at least let me live long enough to get some of that cake first."

The End