Page 234 of Staying Selfless

“Don’t cry,” is all I can manage to say.

“Can’t help it.” Jack eyes turn glossy. He presses his lips together, trying to hold it all in.

Ali situates my train before taking her spot in front of me, Cam in front of her, all lined up and ready to walk down the aisle ahead of me.

“Logan, you look beautiful.” Jack wraps me up in a hug. I squeeze him right back, thankful for all the words of wisdom he’s given me over the years. I genuinely don’t know if I’d be here, happy and free, without my relationship with Jack. He’s become one of my closest friends and a second father to me.

Which is why I didn’t hesitate to ask him if he’d walk me down the aisle. To which, he completely bawled his eyes out. Eli too.

“Thank you for everything,” I whisper while in his embrace, not elaborating on the words because he knows what I mean.

“I’m so proud of you,” he tells me, his brown eyes welling with pride. “I’m proud of everything you’ve overcome, and I’m proud of the life that you and EJ have built together.”

I bite my lower lip, trying to keep it from trembling.

“And your parents would be just as proud of you, Logan.”

“Jacky boy, I need you to keep it together back there,” Ali requests in front of me, refusing to turn around and face us. “I’m going to lose it up here if you keep going.”

As the music begins to fill the space, my nerves turn up full blast. I sense the energy taking up space in my chest, filling my stomach with butterflies before it tingles down my arms, electrifying every one of my fingertips.

It’s happening.

I’m about to marry Eli. I’m about to become Logan Maddison.

Cam walks out first, and I try my best not to sneak a peek at Eli through the door, even though I’m tempted to see just how handsome he looks up there at the altar. Next is Ali, then Ian and Seth as our ring bearers. We don’t have a flower girl because we don’t have any little girls in our lives, but that’s okay. In true Maddison-Jones family fashion, the majority of the guests and wedding party are men.

Jack holds his arm out for me to slip mine through. “How much do you want to bet that EJ is going to cry his eyes out?” he quietly asks when it’s just him and I alone in the house.

“You know I can’t take that bet, Jack. Have you met your son?”

The music switches to the song I’m going to walk down the aisle to, indicating our turn.

I run my thumb over the charm dangling on my bouquet, then adjust my engagement ring as I take a deep breath.

“Let’s go officially make you part of the family,” Jack says as the back door opens.

Chapter 58

Eli

I know how our story ends, and I’m sure you do too. I’ve had the image stuck in my head for a while now. Logan, in a white dress, red hair falling past her shoulders, walking towards me. I was sure that was our ending, or our beginning, really, and now I’m positive that it is.

Because that day is today. It’s finally here.

“EJ, you’re going to totally lose your shit when you see her,” Marc quietly reminds me as he stands front and center at the altar.

“Yeah, I fucking know that.” My heart is racing, every nerve in my body firing at once.

I just walked Mary to her seat, my friends and family sitting on either side of the aisle. There’s no set seating arrangement besides my dad and Mary’s seats in the front row on my side, and the two empty chairs I made sure were reserved in honor of Logan’s parents, close to her.

Stacey sneaks out from the house, quickly making her way to her seat. Trev and her make eye contact, sharing a moment, as he stands up here with me as one of my two groomsmen.

“Fucking sap,” Zanders whispers to him.

“You’ll get it one day.” Trev keeps his gaze still locked on his wife.

I’ve spent almost every day of the last year with Zanders. He’s become my best friend, almost like another brother to me. But one thing I’ve learned about Zanders over the past year? He may never get it.

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