I could feel all eyes on me, could see all the smiles and teary eyes out of the corner of my eyes as I walked down the aisle, but I didn’t trip once. Max kept me steady, being the rock for me that he had always been. By the time I reached the gazebo, we were both grinning.
I looked at Marcus, the love of my life, and smiled.
“You look like an angel,” he whispered as I joined him.
I blushed, looking him up and down. “So do you.”
He winked at me as we joined the minister in the gazebo, and the rest of the wedding party gathered in around us.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, choking on his own words, with tears glistening in his eyes. “You’re my soulmate, and I can’t wait to make you my wife.”
I couldn’t stop my own tears from flowing; my makeup didn’t stand a chance.
“You’re my soulmate too,” I whispered.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…” the minister began, but the words just washed over me for the most part as I looked into Marcus’s face again. I was just so happy to be there with him, so happy we were finally going to be a family and start our lives together.
“Jerry,” the minister said, drawing our attention back to him, “have you a ring?”
“I do.” Jerry pulled a gold band from the inside pocket of his tuxedo jacket and handed it to Marcus. I didn’t know Jerry at all, had just met him once briefly.
“Excellent. Marcus, are you ready for your vows?” the minister asked.
Marcus nodded, then took my left hand in both of his before speaking. After reciting the standard vows, Marcus melted my heart with some words of his own. He stared deeply into my eyes and said, “Bex, you know me better than anyone else in this world, yet you still you manage to love me. You are my best friend, my one true love. I can’t believe I’m the lucky guy who gets to marry you. I’ll never forget the moment we first made eye contact in that coffee shop. You truly stole my heart that day, and I want you to keep it forever.”
I held it together until his lip began to quiver. As he continued his vows, the emotion brewing in his eyes made mine pool up again. Even the most immovable people in the crowd were crying. We all were, and it was beautiful, the happiest moment of my life.
He wiped his eyes and continued, “I promise to be your lover, companion, and friend, your partner in parenthood, your ally in conflict, your greatest fan, your comrade in adventure, your consolation in disappointment, and your accomplice in mischief. On this day, I give you my heart, my promise that I will walk with you, hand in hand, wherever our journey leads us, living, learning, and loving together forever. You are the love of my life, and you make me happier than I could ever imagine. You make me feel more loved than I ever thought possible. I promise to be loving, patient, and faithful. I will be the very best husband I can be to you and the very best father I can be to our baby.” With that, Marcus slipped the ring on my finger.
At that moment, I felt like I was going to explode with overwhelming emotion. I knew Marcus loved me more than anything or anyone in the world, and I loved him just the same. The guy had chosen to stick by me for the rest of his life, and that feeling was so powerful and humbling. I had never felt more blessed. I was so happy, and I felt so lucky to call him my husband.
Fate seemed to be playing a very fair hand for us, and that day marked the real beginning of the rest of my life with my beloved spouse. Finally, all my dreams, hopes, and that elusive happily-ever-after seemed possible.
There really wasn’t a word for the emotion I felt at that moment. Nothing in the dictionary could encompass all the excitement, humility, happiness, speechlessness, joyfulness, and love I felt. I only knew I loved Marcus with all my heart, and I knew he felt the same about me.
I blinked away the tears that insisted on welling up at Marcus’s heartfelt declaration of devotion. It was such an intense, moving moment. When he reached up to wipe the tears from my cheeks, “Aw…” rippled through the crowd, lessening some of my embarrassment for crying at the proverbial altar.
Between Marcus’s comforting touch and the encouraging smiles of my wedding party, I was able to recite the traditional vows, with some guidance from the minister. After that, I just couldn’t resist speaking from my heart as well. “Baby,” I started, “over the past year, I’ve learned how tough life can be. We’ve been to hell and back. So many twists and turns and crazy rollercoaster rides tested us, but when most guys would’ve run, you stuck loyally by my
side. You never gave up on us.” I couldn’t make it through the words without my voice cracking. “I-I learned that when life gets crazy around us, all we have to do is look at each other and remember that we are perfect together. I am not perfect alone, but you complete me. Today, I promise that I will never take that for granted. I will give you all my love for the rest of eternity. I want to wrap my arms around you and never let go. I promise to love and care for you, and I will try, in every way, to be worthy of your love and to be the best wife I can be. I will love you, hold you, and honor you, Marcus. I will respect you, encourage you, and cherish you, in health and sickness, through sorrow and success, for all the days of my life.”
When I finished, I slipped the ring Amanda had given me onto Marcus’s finger. Though I didn’t think it was possible, my heart swelled even bigger with emotion as I finished saying the words. I felt so full, so complete after pledging myself to Marcus and hearing his pledge to me.
“And now, with God and these fine people as my witnesses, I pronounce you husband and wife,” the minister proclaimed. With a smile, he added, “You may now kiss the bride.”
Laughing, Marcus swept me into his arms and gave me a long, deep kiss that made my head spin. I clung to him, giddy with laughter and emotion, ignoring all the whoops and catcalls and cheers as I held on to him, and the crowd erupted as we pulled together, and Marcus’s lips met mine again. My arms wound up around him without restraint as a feeling of the utmost relief washed over me.
It was done. We were together now. Forever.
When we pulled away, he had tears in his eyes. At this point, we were supposed to turn and face the crowd, but he wouldn’t let me go. In fact, he didn’t let me go the entire walk down the aisle. He just picked me up and walked us both down himself.
“I can’t believe we just did that,” I whispered in his ear. “I can’t believe I’m a wife.”
A beaming smile lit up his whole face as he heard the word for the first time. “You better believe it, lady. I’m all yours now. You’re all mine.”
He twisted the ring around my finger and kissed me again.
This time, the crowd leaped to their feet, and a hundred flashbulbs went off at once. I knew it was going to be front-page news. I knew the press was waiting just on the other side of the garden gate, along with about five hundred other people who would require us to smile, and wave, and pose like it was their day too. I even knew that logistically, at some point or another, I was going to have to let go of Marcus’s hand.