Page 50 of Treasured By 3

And I just lost the battle with my tears. One runs down my cheek and I sniff.

“Thanks to you, I can admit there’s plenty I don’t know, but you’re the partner I want when I’m taking all that uncertainty on. I want you by my side through all of it. No matter how bad it gets, or how wonderful it gets, I know that having you ... that’s all I need to be happy. I vow to always make the little moments count, even if that means taking twice as long to make the bed. I vow to protect you, to support you, and most important, to love you the way you deserve to be loved. I’ll love you by being your rock in every storm. I’ll love you by making everything that’s boring fun. I’ll love you by never letting you question, forget, or wonder how I feel about you forever.”

I take a few minutes and wipe my eyes before he passes me the microphone. Chase is already tearing up, too.

I mouth I love him, then clear my throat. I tried to memorize what I wrote. That was half my morning since I knew I’d get things messed up if I tried to bring out my vows with me. “Chase, you’ve grown so much since we met. You were a quiet workaholic that I connected with because we’re both ambitious and don’t like to stop when there are still things to do. But seeing your silly side, seeing you enjoy life’s little moments with a huge smile and a silly dance or comment ... that’s when I fell in love with you. You’re so careful, so loving, always put others first, and never want to miss a moment where you can help. I’m so lucky that you refused to let me go, that you stayed, that youneverlet me think myself out of what I want.”

My voice breaks and I have to collect myself before I continue. He nods to me, eyes all teary and his cheeks red.

“I vow to always correct you when you’re wrong.” Some people laugh at that, but Chase nods. I smile. “I vow to make time for us every week–just for us. I vow to interrupt you when you work from home, to always embarrass you by supporting your silly side, and to let you spoil me. And I vow to always remind you how much I love you as you are, for who you are, not what you do or your last name. I can’t wait to be your wife and to take on the world together.”

Chase groans and wipes his eyes. “You’re too good for me, baby doll.”

“Not even close, baby boy,” I say, just as close to crying as he is.

I fan my face and hand the microphone back to the officiant. “Hunter Volkov, do you have your vows?”

“I have plenty,” he says, smiles a happy, boyish smile that makes my heart beat unsteadily. He glances to the officiant.

He takes a slow breath. “I’m not that great at being serious with you, Valerie, because you make it so easy to be more. I smile with you, laugh with you, annoy you and ruffle your feathers, challenge you, adore you, and admire you. I can’t get enough of you. It took work for us to get here and ...” his brow furrows before he slows down. “And I don’t regret that for a second. That work has made us both better people and made our relationship so much stronger. I will spend the rest of my life reminding you why you chose me and to prove that it was a good choice, Dorogaya.”

He squeezes my hand nearly to the point of pain. “Even when we fight, I promise to love you. I promise to bore you with history facts. I promise–I swear, I will never let you have a boring week. I’ll give you plenty of reasons to stick to forty hours a week. And I promise that you are the only woman that will ever have my heart. You have become such a huge part of me in such a short time that I can’t wait to see where we are in five years, or ten, or when I’m old and forgetful and get to fall in love with you all over again. You’re more than the woman I love. You’re my soul mate and I willnevertake that for granted.”

I shake my head and have to pull my hand from his to get my tears under control. Hunter pulls out a handkerchief and wipes my eyes. “I will only make you cry for good reasons.”

We put ourselves back together and I fan my face before taking the microphone and Hunter’s hand. “Hunter, you are a whirlwind of a person. You’re wild, spontaneous, hotheaded, and intense.”

He cocks his head to the side.

“And I fu- I love that about you. I’ve never met someone who feels everything so intensely and doesn’t hide it. I love that you’re so genuine. Even if you annoy me, even if you drive me up the wall, I always feelsomethingand I always feel lucky that you’re mine,” I say.

He looks up, trying not to cry, and motions for me to continue. I smile. “You’re a closet nerd, you’ve made me love Indiana Jones, and you never forget any small detail I tell you. You remind me how good it is to just let go and enjoy life and seeing you become such an amazing man when you already started out so strong is.. staggering. I promise to always work with you and not against you. I promise to join in on your hobbies and try everything you’re interested in. I vow to never make you feel second best or forgotten because you’re so damn important to me that I learned Russian for you.”

He lets out a soft sound, and I realize he’s crying. He’s also close to breaking my fingers since he’s holding me so tight.

“At your best and worst, I’m on your side and love you all the same. You are the man I never knew I needed and now, I just can’t let you go, even when I tried,” I laugh once. “I love your outlook and the way you want to improve the world, and I’m so ready to be there when you do with the perks of a new title.”

“Fuck, Valerie, I hate that I can’t kiss you,” he says in Russian, making a few people laugh.

“Easy, Krolik, soon,” I promise with a wink. He shakes his head and steps back, taking care of his eyes.

“Finally, Lief Prins. Did you write your own vows or-” the officiant asks.

“I know what I’m going to say,” Lief says.

His bottom lip trembles, and I take a step forward. He holds my hand, then laces our fingers together. “Valerie, I love you. That’s all I needed to know to marry you. I don’t love easy and I don’t always show what I feel, but you always know. You’re the first person to ever want to take care of me, to see me as more than some muscle that stands in a corner and is handy in a fight. There has never been and will never be anyone who compares to you. I could live a thousand years and that would still be true.”

My lips part as a little sob leaves my throat.

Lief rubs my hand with his thumb. “I will always cook with you and for you. I will always tell you what the weather is going to be. I’ll spar with you and never let you win. I will always ask for you to braid my hair. Beyond all of that, I will love you every single day as easily as I breathe. Whatever you want, you only have to ask, and I will make it a reality. You’re the woman I never thought I’d meet, and calling you my wife is the best thing I could ever do.”

He hands the microphone to me, as if he didn’t just ruin my makeup in one go. I notice the braid in his hair and almost lose myself all over again.

“Lief, I love you. I love your soft side. I love your intense side. Love our conversations, even if other people don’t get them, and I always learn something new when we’re together. I don’t care if other people don’t understand you, if they lust after you, if they challenge you because I know you, I trust you, and I love you. I promise to never let either of us stay mad at each other. I promise never to hold back when I have questions or feelings. Promise that you will never regretalmostretiring because I will fill every single moment, even if we just sit and talk or try new things together.”

He smiles, and I step back, looking at my men. “I didn’t think I’d ever get married. I thought love was something in movies and books and a word people threw around too freely, but you three ... you’re the only people I could ever marry, the only men I could ever love and I can’t wait to have all of you forever.”

We trade rings and the officiant barely gets out his questions before we’re saying, “I do”. I kiss each of my men, savoring the moment, and let go of my control, crying as they hug me and tell me again how much they love me.

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