Page 32 of Soul

Jack crooks his arm, and I slide my hand onto his. “Shall we get you married?” He smiles. Jack Porter, Mr. Linebacker, Mr. Grumpy, Mr. I-Don’t-Like-You-Gillian gave me a smile. A real one, too.

“That smile looks good on you, Jack.”

He purses his lips holding back a grin. A grin! “I’ll have to remember that.” Before we get to the step Jack turns to me stopping our progress up the stairs. “Look, Gillian, I’ve only ever wanted what’s best for Chase. He’s more than my charge; he’s like a son to me.”

I place an arm on Jack’s forearm. “I’m not ever going to hurt him, I promise you that. I love him.”

Jack tightens his jaw. “I know that, now.” His dark gaze holds mine for a second more then he puts out his arm again. “I think someone is very ready to make you his wife.” We take the few steps and enter the church. One of our bodyguards is standing to the side of the entrance. The church’s ceiling is a peachy hue with wide sweeping white columns curved into a half moon shape. Several empty rows of wooden pews sit in lines ready for guests who aren’t going to be in attendance. For a brief moment it saddens me that the girls aren’t here, and Chase’s family but all of that disappears the moment I look up.

Chase.

He’s there at the end of the aisle, hands clasped in front of him waiting for me to walk to him. Jack lets me go, walks up the aisle, and stands at Chase’s side. What I didn’t see before is the little old woman who stands at the very front. It’s Mrs. McMann, the woman I met two days ago, the woman whose dress fits like it was tailored for just me. Having someone standing on my side, even someone I don’t know very well brings tears to my eyes. Her wrinkled hands come up to her face, a handkerchief is clenched tight in one gnarled fist.

I hold tight to the bushel of daisies I wrapped in a single white ribbon. I’m wearing the dress, and a blue sapphire ring that belonged to Chase’s mother on my right hand. It’s something old, something borrowed, and something blue all in one, he reminded me early this morning. I think it’s perfect.

Taking a deep breath, I look into Chase’s eyes and hold them as I walk slowly down the aisle. There isn’t any music, but I don’t need anything. The music is our love, and it’s leading the way.

When I get to him, he takes my hand and kisses it. “You have never looked more beautiful than you do in this moment. I’ll remember it always.”

The priest says a few words skipping over some of the parts that would matter to a church full of people, or to a Catholic couple, but neither of those things matter, not to the two of us.

“Chase, Gillian, I believe you have your own vows.”

I turn and hand Mrs. McMann my flowers. “Would you?”

“Of course I’ll hold them, dearie. It will be an honor,” the old woman says, and I smile.

Chase clasps both my hands and brings them up to his mouth where he places a kiss on the knuckles of each hand.

“Gillian Grace Callahan, I promise to love, cherish, and worship the ground you walk on every day of my life. I’ll strive every day to be the man who’s good enough for a woman like you.” Tears fill my eyes and slip down my cheeks. He cups both of them, and I rest my hands on his hips. “When you cry,” he moves forward and kisses each cheek, “I’ll kiss away your tears. When you love,” I look deep into his blue eyes and see they’re a startling shade of aqua. “I’ll love you in return. I will never forsake you, and will always make you priority number one. Today is the first day of the rest of our lives as one whole. I feel as though I’ve spent the last decade trying to find my other half and I’ve found you. You’re it for me, baby. Through infinity.”

He once again kisses the tears off my cheeks and then my lips. “I love the taste of your joy.”

And more tears.

Finally, I get it together taking a long slow breath. “Chase William Davis, I promise to love, cherish, and allow you to worship the ground I walk on.” He chuckles. I hold onto his hands and kiss his knuckles the same way he did mine. “I’ll never put another man higher than I hold you and your love. I want to be the woman you believe in, the one you come home to at night, the woman who bears your children. Today we become a family. A real family. There is nothing more important to me than the sanctity of that binding. Every day, I will do my best to make you proud you chose to spend the rest of your life with me. Today I give you me. My body, my mind, and my soul. Please take care of it,” I whisper as the tears fall again. This time as I look into Chase’s eyes I see they, too, are wet.

One tear falls down his cheek. “I will, Gillian, I promise I will,” Chase says.

“I believe you both have your rings.” Jack hands Chase’s ring to me and mine to him.

The priest speaks, “Bless, O Lord, these rings that he who gives it and she who wears it may abide in thy peace, and continue in thy favor, unto their life's end; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Both Chase and I respond with, “Amen.”

The priest continues with the ceremony. We exchange rings, repeat after him and wait while he says the Lord’s Prayer and then finishes. Finally, he finishes with, “Amen.”

“You may now kiss your bride,” he announces. Chase cups both my cheeks and brings me in. His mouth covers mine and the entire church, the priest, Mrs. McMann, Jack, and the world disappears. It is just the two of us. His kiss is slow, thorough, and filled with enough happiness and energy to light up a small town. I kiss him back with everything that I am, wrapping my arms around his neck and holding on for dear life. Because that’s what being married to Chase is going to be like, me holding on for dear life. And no matter what I know, he’ll always keep me close. Cherished. Loved.

Finally we pull back and both Jack and Ms. McMann clap and offer their congratulations.

Chase tunnels his hands into my loose locks of hair. I left it down because I know he prefers it that way. “You’re my wife,” he whispers, his forehead planted along mine.

“You’re my husband,” I whisper back.

“I’ve never been happier than this moment. You give me that, baby. Life. A life worth living.”

“I love you,” I caress his cheeks and kiss him softly.

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