Page 28 of The Marriage Auction 2: Part 4

JACK

This woman…

I shook my head and chuckled loudly as we tromped through the snow at a fast clip toward our family and friends. Summer gripped my hand tightly and kept pace with my longer legs. Adrenaline flooded my veins, warming my blood and filling me with a majestic energy that fueled my excitement.

Today I’d become a married man.

A family man.

I couldn’t wait.

With every step we took, I got closer to the future I’d always desired. Sure, it looked quite different than what I’d envisioned over the years, but I had no complaints. Summer was it for me. She challenged me at every turn. Her thirst for life was unmatched. And the way she’d taken to TJ as if he was her own child…priceless. I’d honor her commitment and sacrifice until the day I died.

So when she came up with the idea to get married tonight, here, with everyone we loved present, even Troy and Ellen, I jumped at the chance to make her mine forever.

We climbed up a hill that was around ten meters, following the multitude of footprints in the packed snow. Once we crested the top, we both stopped and took in the view.

As far as the eye could see were purple, pink and green swathes of light, painted across the sky like God was using a brush against a midnight-colored canvas.

“It’s breathtaking,” Summer gasped.

I squeezed her hand and took in her profile. Her sun-soaked hair glowed against the white velvet of her cloak. Her skin seemed luminescent as the swirling colors moved through the night sky above us. I watched as a single tear slipped down the pearly skin of her cheek like a diamond falling from the heavens.

“It’s so beautiful,” she breathed, her voice trembling.

I looped my arm around her waist and nuzzled her cheek. “You’re beautiful. The sky pales in comparison, Summer.”

She smiled and turned her head. “And you’re charming, husband-to-be.”

I scanned the entire horizon and felt an enormous sense of belonging and peace.

“This is the place. This is where we lay Troy and Ellen’s souls to rest. This is where we become a family.”

Summer smiled, and it was as if the sun had come out at night, just for me.

She was my light. My sun. Mysolskinn.

“Family,” she whispered. “I like the sound of that. I can’t wait to be Mrs. Summer Larsen.”

My eyebrow rose toward my hairline. “You’re taking my name?” It was the one thing I had to give from my beginning on this Earth. The only thing my biological parents ever gave me.

Summer cupped my cheeks and kissed me softly. I could taste the wintery mint ChapStick she wore.

“Jack, I want every part of you,” she whispered and kissed me again.

“Let’s go tell the others,” I gestured to our group who were down in a little valley not far from the bluff we’d stopped on.

A stream trickled along the entire plain, disappearing alongside the mountains in the distance, likely headed to the coast. The sky was beyond anything that could be captured by a photograph. It was perfect. The air seemed thick and filled with magic.

This was it.

I stretched out my hand and she placed her smaller one within.

Together we made our way toward our friends and family.

* * * *

I didn’t hear a single word Summer had said to our group when she told them the plan. None of it mattered. My focus was on my bride-to-be as we stood under the Northen Lights and the full moon, with the people we loved most in the world in attendance. Summer and I thought it was important to include TJ in the ceremony so we both held one of his little hands. Surprisingly, he seemed content to listen and watch while swinging our arms.

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