Page 80 of Dance With Me
Epilogue
Joe
One Year Later
The weather was glorious, much better than his wedding day last year.
They’d driven to the hotel the night before in the navy and white Jaguar that Joe had seen at the wedding fayre just over twelve months ago. He’d wanted to arrive in style, and they’d done just that.
They’d eaten a meal with their close family in the evening and then spent the night together, making love until the early hours. This morning, though, they’d gone to separate rooms to dress.
Seb had picked a charcoal grey three-piece suit over a white shirt with a vivid blue tie for Joe to wear. Why he’d picked this colour, he didn’t know, but he wasn’t going to argue with the man he loved. He’d have given him the moon if he wanted it because that was what you did when you loved someone as much as he did Seb.
Aidan and Dave were going to be his best men, and before long, they were knocking on his door, telling him he had about ten minutes before he needed to be downstairs.
Joe had proposed to Seb on Christmas Day the previous year after being together for just five months. He knew it wasn’t long, but he couldn’t wait. Seb hadn’t bothered going back to the apartment after Joe’d asked him to move in. They’d just cleared everything out, and that was that. He’d fit in so well, and Rocco just made it complete. He loved both man and dog.
Seb had jumped on him after he’d proposed, and they’d made love right there on the lounge floor beneath the Christmas tree. It couldn’t have been more romantic if he’d tried. They’d decided on a summer wedding as, again, neither of them wanted to wait too long.
After the proposal, Joe hadn’t felt the same as when he’d proposed to Clare. Seb was the complete package as far as he was concerned, and he couldn’t have been happier. Every time he saw Seb, his heart soared and the butterflies in his stomach took flight. He was sure that he wore a grin on his face whenever he was in the vicinity.
They’d decided to get married in the gardens of a local hotel in front of their family and close friends. All of Joe’s family were there and, surprisingly, Clare and Neil were going to be there, too, with their little girl, Cecile. They had finally put their differences behind them and had actually become good friends over the months. They often joined him and Seb for meals and nights out when they could get a babysitter.
Jayne had had another little boy they’d called Isaac, and he was growing up to be trouble, like his brother and sister. Seb doted on him, though, and had become his favourite uncle, much to Joe’s displeasure. Seb loved to tease him about it, but Joe didn’t mind. He was just happy that they all loved Seb as much as he did. Seb had become part of his family.
Sometime after they got engaged, Joe took Seb to their place at the beach one Sunday and there, walking along the cliffs, was Jimmy and his dog, Bertie. Rocco and Bertie had got on famously, as had Seb and Jimmy. They’d gone to the café, and Joe had bought drinks the same as he’d done many months ago, but this time, the talk was much lighter, and they laughed as Jimmy regaled them with stories of Betty and how she would have loved them both.
Jimmy would be one of the guests at the small gathering today, and Joe couldn’t have been happier to share his day with him.
Another knock on the door and Joe knew it was time. He wasn’t nervous, just eager to make Seb his husband. He’d waited long enough to find the other half of his heart, and he wasn’t letting him go now. He opened the door and made his way downstairs with his best men beside him. This was it. The day he made his vows to the man he loved and swore to stay with him for the rest of his life. For the first time in forever, he felt settled, loved and above all, happy. He’d never look back again. His life and his future were with Seb, the love of his life, his best friend, his lover.
Joe and Seb had decided they would walk down the aisle together, the perfect beginning to their perfect love. His heart was thumping in his chest as he waited. Maybe he was just a little bit nervous. Everyone would be waiting for them at the end of the aisle along with the registrar, and he watched as Aidan and Dave made their way to their places. He stood and waited for Seb, something he’d be happy doing for the rest of his life.
Seb
Seb was excited for his wedding day.
He’d worried he’d moved in too soon with Joe, but everything had worked out well. They fit so perfectly together, and they were a family, just as he’d wanted. Him, Joe and Rocco. Who could forget his wonderful, smart boy?
The last year had been difficult at times. Seb was still hit with nightmares that often had him crying in his sleep, but he always woke to the sound of Joe’s soothing voice and his arms wrapped tightly around him. He felt safe and protected and loved beyond measure.
The police had finally been able to piece more of Ed’s life together after the death of his brother, Daniel. He’d hit rock bottom, convinced that Seb had taken him away from him. They’d found a flat that Ed had been staying in, notes and letters strewn around declaring his undying love for his brother and his intention to kill Seb. He’d been on medication for his mental problems, but they suspected he’d stopped taking them at some point. This had caused his spiral into depression and schizophrenia. Seb was lucky things had turned out as they had. If he hadn’t been wearing his seat belt, he could have ended up as dead as Ed was now.
On a positive note, Natalia and Louis had done well in the show and had been selected to take it to America. Luckily, they had managed to get some time off to come back to the UK for his wedding.
Both Dom and Hayden had a plus one, and he was happy that his friends had found the same heart-stopping love that he had.
His previous injuries had healed well, not affecting his ability to dance at all. He and Dom still ran the studio and had taken on a new teacher, Ashok, who fitted in well with their dynamic. They were busier than ever and Seb loved it, but then dance was his passion. He’d eventually been able to buy out Natalia and now owned Nava Dance outright. Joe had helped him with the finance side of things. That was what he did best, after all. Well, that and making love to Seb. He was an expert at that.
Their constant need for each other hadn’t waned in the slightest, and Dom was forever complaining that they ‘still couldn’t keep their fucking hands off each other’ after all this time.
A knock on his door from Nat and Dom reminded him it was time. He looked in the mirror and adjusted his blue tie, identical to the one that Joe would be wearing and the same colour Joe had worn that day in the studio when Seb had realised that he’d fallen for him. He’d persuaded Joe to wear a charcoal grey suit, the same as he’d worn that day too, but Seb was wearing a lighter grey three-piece suit with a spray of pink cyclamen and green leaves in his lapel, a nod to his Israeli roots and his parents.
He looked down at Rocco who was lying by his side, his sparkling collar standing out against his black fur.
“Come on, buddy, time to go.” Rocco stood up and licked his face as Seb bent down to hug him. They’d been through a lot, but he’d always been there at his side, loving him right back. He couldn’t imagine getting married without him by his side.
He placed the small sign around his neck, opened the door, and made his way down to where he knew Joe would be waiting for him. His love for Joe had grown and grown over the year, and he’d become such a big part of his life, he couldn’t believe how he’d ever lived without him. Joe was his world, his happy ever after. Joe had made him feel like he was enough, and that was something he thought he’d never be again.
