Page 71 of Her Eternal Mate

“Great,” he said, breaking the hug and wiping his eyes. “I’ll be there, waiting with the rest of the guests. Just nod in my general direction, and I’ll walk you down the aisle, okay?”

“Thank you so much, Morgan. That means the world to me,” I said, giving his hand a squeeze as he left.

“You’re a good kid, Alexis,” he said, waving at me as he left.

Just as I had closed the door, another knock rattled the doorframe. I opened it again, feeling a bit befuddled. I had forgotten that a wedding was not complete without bridesmaids. Well, bridesmaid. Singular. Who else but Maliha?

“Girl, oh my God, you look fucking divine!” Maliha squealed as she rushed in and hugged me fiercely. She was wearing a magenta dress and flowers in her hair.

“How does Will look?” I asked, unable to conceal my excitement.

“He looks like a billion dollars and then some. Honestly, woman, I’ve never seen him look this handsome,” she said, jumping up and down. “And can you guess who’s my date to the event?”

“Vince?”

“Yes! Vince! He’s wearing a matching magenta tie, and, oh my God, look at this brooch he got me! Girl, this is the best day of my life, and I’m so happy for you!” Maliha’s voice was so high-pitched that probably all the dogs in the vicinity could hear it.

“Okay, okay, calm down there. It’s my wedding day, and I haven’t had anything to eat yet,” I said, my stomach grumbling.

“Well, too late, sister. I’m here to escort you to the venue,” Maliha said, latching onto my arm.

“What? Now?” Suddenly, all of this was too real for me. It was all happening too fast.

“Yes. Now!” Maliha said, yanking me out the door. “It has to happen now. They’re all waiting.”

“There’s a knot in my stomach. I can’t move,” I said, feeling my legs go faint.

“Out there, standing at the end of that aisle, is a man you love dearly. What’s there to worry about? You look stunning, he looks gorgeous, and all the pack wants to cheer you on as you start this new chapter of your lives!” Maliha said enthusiastically.

“But that’s just it. A new chapter of our lives. What will that hold? We haven’t told a lot of people this, but we’re not staying here,” I said.

“You mean you’re going on the honeymoon. Of course, you have to,” Maliha said.

“No, babe. We’re leaving for good.”

A long and awkward silence hung in the air as we just stood there, looking at each other. Maliha’s eyes had welled up with tears. She hurriedly dabbed her napkin to her eyes, then coughed to clear her throat.

“If that is so, you owe me one last awesome day, and you better make it this day. So, without further ado, let’s go out there and have some fun,” she said, her voice constantly breaking during the sentence.

“Don’t be sad, Maliha,” I said, putting my hand on her cheek.

“I cannot imagine Fiddler’s Green without you,” she said, sobbing. “Crap, now my makeup’s getting all ruined.”

“Come on, let’s go. Big deep breaths, Maliha. You got this,” I said, taking her arm and patting her hand to calm her down, which weirdly enough calmed me down enough to walk out of the house with her.

The entire commune was deserted, which made sense seeing as how everyone was attending the wedding. Even the streets had been decorated with flowers, glitter, ribbons, and balloons. I had never seen the Grimm Abode look so colorful in my entire life.

Maliha and I turned a corner at the end.

What used to be the training grounds were turned into the wedding venue, complete with a carpet to cover the entire ground, a lovely luxurious white tent with tapestries hanging from the sides, and flowers. Flowers as far as the eye could see.

We entered from the far side, with the entire reception ahead of us. Morgan was standing at the start of the aisle, looking at me approvingly.

“I’ll take it from here, Maliha,” he said, relieving her of her duty.

Then it was Morgan’s turn to take my arm.

Everyone I had ever known was seated on either side of the aisle, all of them with their faces brimming with joy and zeal. I could see Will standing there at the top, his hair cut short, his beard gone in favor of a clean-shaven look, and his suit looking immaculate. It had been one week since he had woken up from his coma, and already he was looking like he had recovered. He smiled at me, then nudged Vince, who was standing right next to him, as a best man should.

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