Page 129 of Dear Mr. Brody

Parker chuckled at my side, and I laid my arm across the back of his chair. I leaned in and whispered, “Are you having fun yet?”

Eventually the rest of the guest list showed up, and by some sort of miracle the rain stopped long enough for the ceremony to start. Ethan’s cheeks were flushed as Anders leaned down to kiss him, their hands together, he said, “You ready to do this?”

“I think I was ready the day I watched you sleep on the plane.” Anders pushed a strand of hair from Ethan’s forehead and nodded at the officiator. “We’re ready.”

The woman held up her hand and the small crowd went silent. Even the wind stopped. The only sound came from the river, the white noise muted as she spoke. “Anders and Ethan asked me to be here today, but only to bear witness to their union. They have written their own vows and asked you all here to share in this special day. And if I may,” she said, and Parker rested his hand on my thigh. “I’d like to say thank you for allowing us all to be here with you as you embark on this new journey together.”

“I’m getting married on a cruise,” Marcos whispered, and Parker lightly kicked him in the leg.

“Word of the day,” Anders said. “Ours, defined as which belongs to me and you.”

“Love.” Ethan let go of Anders’s hand and reached into his pocket. “Defined as a deep affection for someone.”

He slid a ring on Anders’s finger. Anders did the same for Ethan as he spoke. “Commitment… defined as a pledge… a dedication.”

“Forever,” Ethan said, staring down at their joined hands. “Defined as an infinite number of days, for always.”

Anders lifted his chin with two fingers and bent down, pressing a kiss to Ethan’s lips. My face heated, the moment too private for all of these prying eyes. When he pulled away, Ethan spoke low enough that I didn’t think anyone could hear what he’d said. Anders nodded, his throat bobbing as he swallowed, and when they turned to face us, Anders’s lashes were wet.

The officiator stood at their side, a huge smile on her face. “Please welcome, for the first time, Anders and Ethan Lowe.”

Everyone clapped and cheered in celebration. Anders lifted their raised hands, his smile sheepish, his cheeks pink. People started to stand, hurrying over to congratulate the happy couple. I didn’t know when, or if, I wanted to get married again. But seeing the smiling faces before me, the joy radiating from the two men under the tent, I couldn’t rule it out.

As if he could read my mind, Parker asked, “You think you’ll ever be ready for picket fences again, professor?”

“I don’t know,” I said, my eyes landing on his mouth.

Our lips met and the rain fell harder. Marcos squealed, or maybe it was Wilder. I couldn’t be sure. I slid my hand into Parker’s hair, and his hand slid to the back of my neck. Movement flickered in my peripheral vision, and I should have been worried that we were being rude, but after last semester ended, any time I had a chance to kiss my boyfriend in public, I took it. I didn’t know how Parker would have ever been okay with hiding. Getting to have him like this meant everything. Having him meet my family, meeting his, watching him flourish in his new classes this spring, getting to read all of his work, and watch how much he’d grown as a writer in such a short time, I didn’t think we’d be here if I’d stayed at Winchester.

Parker breathed and I breathed, and I bathed in the heat of his touch.

“Mhm.” He broke away from my lips. “I think it’s raining.”

Little rivulets of water dripped from his hair. “We should probably get under the tent.”

“Probably,” he said, but neither of us moved. “I don’t need any of this, you know.”

“Marriage?”

“Yeah…”

“It’s not so bad,” I said. “But I might have to settle for a kiss, and a dog named Chuck.”

“And a fish named Tony.”

“I could get on board with that,” I said and gripped the wet fabric of his shirt, kissing him without worrying who was watching.

THE END