Page 232 of Staying Selfless

“EJ is going to lose it.”

“That’s my plan.”

“I have something for you,” Marc holds a card out to me. “It’s from my brother.”

“Shit,” I breathe, taking it from his hands. “I’m trying not to cry today. I just finished my makeup.”

I cautiously open the envelope to find a card with a simple gold script. ‘For my wife,’ is printed on the front, and that word alone—wife, is enough to kick my heart rate into full gear.

Inside, there’s a small golden charm tucked into the crease of the paper, but before I investigate what it is, I read the short message Eli wrote for me.

Logan,

I’m not going to say too much here because I want to save it for my vows. But you’re going to be my wife today, and it’s about damn time.

I know they couldn’t physically be here today, but you should know that your parents are still here, with you. They’re with us. And I wanted to make sure they are included in our day as much as possible.

I love you.

See you at the altar,

-E

Finally, I grab the small gold chain, holding up the charm, finding the picture of my parents that I kept displayed in my college dorm room scaled down to a tiny image and framed in gold.

“It’s for your bouquet,” Mary explains. “We’ll wrap it around it.”

Keeping my lips pressed together, I try to hold back my emotional response to the sentiment. Eli is the most thoughtful person I know, and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the romantic heart he has.

“He’s the best,” I squeak out.

In the years that we’ve been together, I’ve learned that pictures hold a special place in Eli’s heart. He’s kept one of his family and me in his hockey stall since college, and the same goes for his locker room in Chicago. I realized their importance to him when he decked out my college dorm room with images of our friends as a reminder that I was loved, then noticed the countless ones that were taking up the majority of his phone storage.

His need to always be able to see the people who matter the most in our lives has rubbed off on me, and our Chicago apartment is littered with pictures of our loved ones covering the walls.

And next to those pictures on our wall is the map I had over my bed in grad school. After this last year of traveling to watch Eli play hockey, it’s now majority scratched off and pinned all over the place.

“I gotta get downstairs. I have a job to do,” Marc reminds us. “I’ll see you there.” He hugs me tightly, and we both hold on a little bit longer than usual before he takes off towards the door.

“Hey, Marc,” I call out, causing him to turn back towards me. “You look hot as hell in that suit.”

“Right?” He runs a hand over his chest, smoothing out his tie. “Man of Honor, baby!”

His eyes briefly find Ali’s before taking off downstairs.

“So, clearly, you guys are going fuck tonight,” Cam tells Ali before pulling his glass of champagne to his smug lips.

“Cam!” Ali scolds. “Mary is here.”

“I’m with Cam on this one,” Mary cuts in. “You already know where I stand on the whole topic. It’d be nice if the two of you would figure out what the rest of us already know. Don’t get me wrong, my son made a huge mistake, but we all see the way you look at each other.”

“Let’s just get the bride in her dress. Today is not the day to figure out what the hell is going on between Marc and me.”

“But it could be,” I remind her with a knowing smile.

Ali shoots me the death glare, so I hold my hands up in defense, dropping the subject with that.

“Logie, I don’t want your fiancé to murder me, so I’ll be in the hall until you’re dressed.” Cam stands from the couch, refills his glass of champagne, and heads out the door.

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