“It felt right,” I murmured.
I enjoyed her sudden speechlessness way too much.
“I…You…You’re kidding, right? This is a prank?” Ellie let out a slightly hysterical laugh. “A crazy, elaborate prank. There’s no way this is real.”
She pinched her arm, whispered “ouch,” and stared at the yacht in frozen shock.
“It’s real,” I assured her, squeezing her shoulders. “And it’s ours now.”
“He gave us his yacht?” Ellie shook her head and took a step back, bumping into me. “Nope. No way. This is way too much. I wouldn’t even know what to do with it!”
I wrapped my arms around her waist and planted my chin on top of her head. “We’ll start by taking our honeymoon on it. Then we’ll take it out every summer. Share it with our friends. Bring our future children on it. There’s plenty to do with it.”
Shocked silence lingered for a moment before Ellie promptly burst into tears, catching me off guard. She turned in my arms and buried her face in my chest to hide.
I rubbed a soothing hand against her back. “Don’t cry, Darling.”
“I swear they’re happy tears,” she insisted, muffled against my chest. “And it’s my wedding, so I can cry if I want to.”
Breathing a laugh, I held her close until the tears slowed and her breathing calmed. And then I held her for longer, because she was my wife and this was the first moment we’d had alone all day.
“Hey, Cade?” Ellie eventually whispered.
“Yeah?”
One last sniffle escaped. “Do you think Sunshine Cuddle Cats could host a cat cruise on the yacht?”
My hand froze against her back. I didn’t know what acat cruisewas, but what I could imagine didn’t sound good. I cleared my throat. “We’d need to look into the legalities. It sounds like an insurance nightmare. And the logistics alone…”
I rattled off every excuse I could think of, but I already knew how this would end.
If Ellie wanted a cat cruise, I’d make sure she got the best damn cat cruise there was.
Ellie insisted on staying put and staring at the yacht’s new name, so that was what we did for the next twenty minutes. I didn’t mind. It was a beautiful night, and I had my cuddly wife in my arms.
Eventually, a few stragglers moseyed down the gangway, with Grandfather breaking away from the pack to join us.
“Sorry to interrupt,” he said as he approached, “but I wanted to give one more congratulations to the happy couple.”
Ellie peeled away from me and launched herself at him—almost bowling him over in her enthusiasm.
“Thank you!” she cried, squeezing him tightly. “I can’t believe you gave us your yacht.”
He hugged her back with a chuckle. “It’s a great deal for me, too. I get to enjoy the benefits without any of the maintenance or property taxes or docking fees. I’m happy to let Cade’s financial manager handle all that.”
I let out a wry laugh, and Ellie wiped her tearstained cheeks.
“We’ll have your cabin ready for you anytime you want to use it,” she promised. “You can live there if you want to. You’re always welcome?—”
I cleared my throat and wrapped an arm around Ellie’s waist. “Maybe not until after our honeymoon, though.”
Like I’d been hoping, Ellie’s face turned a pretty shade of pink as she jabbed a finger into my side. “Cade.”
I wasn’t sure who was more amused between me and Grandfather.
“I appreciate it, Ellie. And I’ll be happy to take you up on that very kind offer,” the old man said, smiling before turning to me. The sharp arch of his brow spoke volumes. “You better be taking a decent amount of time off for the honeymoon.”
I grinned. “You don’t have to convince me this time. My phone is off for the next three months.”
