“Leandro,” Drea laughed.
“Call me Leo.”
“I can do that.”
Nodding at the priest, I said, “Alright padre, time’s ticking.”
“Uh, yes, repeat after me. I, Leandro…” Flustered, he said, “I’m sorry. I wasn’t prepared.”
“No problem. It’s Gabriele.”
“I, Leandro Gabriele Neretti, take you, Andrea Cecilia Caruso, to be my wife. I promise to be faithful to you, in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love you and to honor you all the days of my life.”
“I do.”
“You’re supposed to repeat it,” Drea whispered with a smile.
“Oh, my bad.” I quickly recited the words the priest had given me.
He nodded before turning to Drea. Staring into my eyes, she repeated her vows.
When it was time for the giving and receiving of the rings, I frowned. “These will have to do for today, but I want us to have new ones.”
“I agree,” Drea said with a smile.
As soon as we’d done the rings and the final blessing was given, the priest smiled. “For those whom God has joined together, let no man put asunder. You may now kiss the bride.”
Momentary fear flashed in Drea’s eyes. I knew she was worried how we would pull off the illusion of never kissing before. With a reassuring smile, I cupped her cheeks. Dipping my head to meet hers, I brushed my lips against hers in the most reverently chaste kiss I’d ever given.
The moment our lips met, applause rang out around us. Despite wanting to give the crowd a real showstopper, I cut the kiss off.
With the blare of the organ, Drea’s eyelids fluttered open to stare appreciatively at me. I held my arm out, and she slipped hers through mine. Facing the thinned crowd, we started down the aisle.
Turning to Drea, I stared into her wide eyes. “Did that really just happen?”
Drea laughed. “I think so.”
Reaching for her hand, I brought it up to stare at the platinum band. “Yep. I think we’re married.”
When she started giggling uncontrollably, I asked, “What?”
“It’s so corny, but I feel like I just woke up from a long nightmare into the most wonderful dream.”
“I feel the same fucking way.”
But the longer we walked the more the adrenaline that had been pumping within me began to fade. I started to feel like I was coming apart at the seams. I knew there was only one person who could help to put me back together.
Once we got to the end, I kept going past the atrium and to the door. “Leo, what are you doing?”
“I need to be with you alone.”
She tugged at my arm. “But the photographer wants to take pictures.”
“You want this fuckery of a wedding day to be immortalized in photographs?”
Her lips turned down in a pout. “I didn’t when it was me and Rafe. But now it's us…it’sourwedding day.”
Shaking my head, I said, “Not really. It’s all still tainted. I mean, you’re wearing the dress you bought for him.”
