Page 79 of The Princess, the Prick & the Priest (Confessions 4)

Priest and Julien were standing side by side, and as always, whenever they came into view, the rest of the world faded away.

Priest looked exactly the way Julien often described him. Like chaos wrapped in classic sophistication. That shock of flame-colored hair was brushed away from his attractive face, and made the polished black tuxedo he wore look as though it was trying to tame all the fire burning within. But when Priest’s steely gaze connected and locked on his, there was nothing Robbie wanted more than to catch on fire and burn up the rest of his nights with him.

Unable to keep his eyes from shifting to the man on Priest’s left, Robbie braced himself for the full impact of Julien—but that still didn’t help when it hit.

In a black morning suit, with a white vest and a printed dove-grey tie, Julien looked exceptionally handsome. Timeless in a way that made your breath catch and your heart beat a little faster, Julien looked like a prince who’d stepped out of Robbie’s very own fairy tale and had come to sweep him off his feet, and he was in real danger of swooning in front of his entire family.

“You good?” Pa said under his breath, reminding Robbie that there were people waiting for him.

Robbie somehow managed a yes, and as his father led him down the stairs and over to the aisle, Robbie kept his eyes trained on Julien and Priest. When they stopped for a moment, Robbie knew what they were waiting for, and not a second later, it began.

The swelling violins of “All the Way” by Frank Sinatra flooded out of his father’s outdoor speakers and into the open air, and as soon as the tune made its way up the aisle to Priest and Julien, the smiles that crossed their mouths had Robbie’s feet moving.

The words seemed to carry him up the aisle as though he were floating, and Robbie knew there had never been a more perfect song for them than this. When he finally reached them, and they both held a hand out, Robbie slipped his fingers free of his father’s arm.

“Thank you,” Robbie whispered.

Pa nodded, and then looked to Julien and Priest. “Same rule applies with this one as it does with my wife, gentlemen. You make my son sad, you answer to me, capito?”

As Priest and Julien nodded, Robbie took each of their hands, and they guided him beneath the arbor between them. Robbie swallowed and wondered if he should say something, but before he could locate his tongue, Felicity cleared her throat.

She looked lovely in her burgundy dress, with yellow daisies in her wavy hair, and when she smiled at him, Robbie couldn’t help but grin back.

“Now that we’re all here,” she said, “would you three like to begin?”

Julien and Priest each squeezed Robbie’s hand, and as if that somehow reawakened him from his dreamlike state, Robbie found his voice and was finally able to answer with them, “Yes.”

“Very good,” she said, and then looked out at the people behind them. The people Robbie had completely forgotten were even there.

“Welcome, everyone, to this wonderful and…unique day we’re here to celebrate,” Felicity started. “And really, would we expect anything other than that from Robbie? No, we wouldn’t, and while he asked me to stand up and perform this ceremony for the three of them this afternoon, I am not actually needed…”

Robbie’s mouth fell open, as Felicity stepped forward and kissed his cheek, then she walked around them all and said to the guests, “Julien and Joel have asked to take it from here, and I think they will do a much better job than I would anyway.” Then she went and took a seat.

Robbie had turned to watch her go, and when Priest and Julien moved around to stand in front of him, facing one another, Robbie realized that they were now all center stage—or center arbor, as it were—and his pulse began to race.

“Princesse,” Julien said, and as he smiled, that dimple Robbie loved appeared on Julien’s right cheek, and Robbie was mesmerized. “Je t’aime et je t’adore. I love and adore you. I have from the moment I sat down at a bar and you batted your pretty lashes at me. That was the night I fell under your spell, and I’ve been captivated ever since.”

Robbie’s chin began to quiver, and when Julien took a step forward and placed Robbie’s palm on his chest, Robbie sank his teeth into his lower lip to try and hold back the emotions threatening to overwhelm him.

“You, mon cher petit, radiate light and laughter and make me smile whenever you are near. Your joy for living is contagious, and has taught me to celebrate that which is gone and not mourn it, giving me back my sister when for so long she was lost to me. You love with every fiber of your being, and when I see you look at Priest with the same expression in your eyes that I feel in my heart, I can’t explain why, but that makes me love you even more.”

---