AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He stops then as she appears in the doorway on the arm of our father. Saxon visibly inhales, which makes me smile. She’s wearing a simple white dress and, with her figure on the way to returning to normal after the birth, she looks graceful and gorgeous, blushing lightly as she walks down the aisle toward him with Kennedy behind her.
I glance at Alice, who’s pressing her fingers against her lips, obviously surprised by her sudden emotion. She meets my eyes, and her eyebrows draw together, and I wink at her. She and Catie have become great friends, and both Saxon and I are pleased that the two of them are so supportive of each other.
“Wow,” Saxon says as Catie draws levels with him.
She’s trembling a little, and I know she’s going to be feeling nervous to be the center of attention like this, but her face when she looks up at him makes even my cynical heart melt.
Someone turns down the music, and the celebrant begins the ceremony.
“Good afternoon,” he says, “and welcome to all of you attending this joyful vow-renewal and baby-naming ceremony.”
He talks for a while about marriage, of it being a union founded on mutual respect and affection. He explains how this is a symbolic, sentimental ceremony that Saxon and Catie are holding because they want to declare their love for each other in front of their friends and family. And then he asks them to read out the vows they’ve prepared.
Saxon clears his throat and holds Catie’s hands. “With my whole heart,” he says clearly, his voice ringing out across the terrace, “I promise to remain devoted to you, to continue to grow with you in mind and spirit, and to practice patience, kindness, and understanding. Once more, I vow to cherish you for as long as we both shall live.”
“Oh dear,” I hear Mum say behind me, as tears start rolling down her cheeks, and Penny pats her hand.
Catie takes a deep breath and repeats the words. As she speaks, I look across at Alice again, and I’m not surprised to find her watching me. We both know that we’ll be doing something similar very soon, and I’m sure the thought fills her with as much joy as it fills me.
Once they’re done, the celebrant goes on to do the naming ceremony, saying that Saxon and Catie want to share with everyone they know and love their hopes and dreams for their children’s futures, and that the babies represent a new chapter in their lives, as well as strengthening the bond between them.
He formally names the babies—Aidan and Liam—and then asks the Guide Parents to come forward. Damon, Kennedy, and I approach, and he invites us to pledge our commitment to playing a supportive and caring role in the babies’ upbringing.
We give our promises, and I can tell from the way Kennedy’s voice is little more than a squeak and Damon’s has turned husky that they’re feeling as emotional as I am.
The celebrant wraps things up, and everyone claps and cheers, then gets up to come forward and toss confetti over Saxon and Catie. The two of them look elated, touched to be able to declare their love in front of everyone.
“That was wonderful,” Alice whispers to me, coming up and sliding her arm around my waist.
“Wasn’t it?” I wrap my arms around her and bury my nose in her hair. She smells of lemon and mint. “You make my mouth water.”
“Likewise. But then you always do.” She lifts up and kisses me. “You look so gorgeous in your suit. I truly am the luckiest girl in the world.”
For some reason, her words make my throat tighten. I realize then that love—true love—is wanting to be with that person more than you want to be with anyone else. And it’s about finding someone who feels the same way about you. I’ve never been with anyone who makes me feel like Alice does—that I’m her favorite person on the planet, and that she’d rather spend time with me than any other man. She’d rather kiss me, make love to me, than any other guy. It’s humbling and thrilling in equal measure, and it makes me want to take her home, strip off her clothes, and make love to her for the rest of the day to say thank you for choosing me.
I settle for kissing her lips, and that turns into a long smooch that starts people whistling, until we eventually break apart with a laugh.
“Trying to hog the limelight as usual,” Saxon jokes, clapping me on the back. “I’m glad you got the girl.”
“You too.”
Unusually soppy, we have a bearhug, our two girls watching us with a smile.
“I’m so glad you made up,” Catie says. “Watching you fight was the worst thing in the world.”
“I dunno,” Alice states. “If you stripped them off and threw some custard over them, I can see it being quite a turn on.”
Catie giggles, and Saxon and I exchange a wry look, then laugh.
“Come on,” I say to Alice, throwing an arm around her shoulders. “Time for the photos.”
We take our place next to Saxon and Catie, and smile at the camera, letting him capture us in a shot that I decide I’ll have enlarged and hung on the wall in our new house. The women in our lives have made us both into better men, and I hope the four of us have many happy years together ahead of us.
