The wedding was absolutely beautiful.

Of course it would be. We’d all worked hard to make sure it had come together exactly as both of them had dreamed it would be. The caterers, the decorators, the venue coordinators and staff, the wedding cake, their suits, mine and Millie’s dresses, Bebe’s pretty dress and bow…all of it was just so beautiful.

And the grooms…

I had never seen Harley smile so much in my life. Standing behind Declan, I couldn’t really see, but I knew he was smiling, too. When he reached up to wipe a stray tear from Lee’s face, Lee kissed his palm, Dex tilted his head just enough for me to know the gaze he had on his husband’s face was as loving as it could ever be. 

The officiant began her part, welcoming everyone, giving us a beautiful speech about love, soulmates, and second chances. It really set a tone for the entire event, and summed up their lives perfectly up to this point. When it was time to exchange vows, she announced that they had written their own and then took a step back, her hands clasped in front of her.

Declan went first. I handed him the paper and he kissed my cheek. “Thank you, Bug.”

I smiled at him and squeezed his hand.

He turned to Harley and let out a deep breath, the paper shaking in his hands. He barely looked at it.

“Harley Dean Cox,” he began. His soft voice was unsteady, but he did his best to remain composed as he bared his heart and soul to the man he loved in front of everyone. “When I was nineteen years old, I met a man who was cocky, arrogant, mildly good at basketball,” he paused to grin at Lee who pouted briefly.

“I’m not that bad,” he muttered, to the amusement of those nearby.

“Shut up,” Declan chuckled. He cleared his throat. “And with a smile so bright it could blind the sun.” He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. “I fell for this man at first sight, but was too scared to say anything. I lost him to another man for many years, to my best friend. When he died…” he inhaled sharply. “When Robin died,” he continued, “It tore us both up, and we were forced to separate, our lives leading us down paths we couldn’t travel together at that time. However, time and circumstance brought us back together, and I know and believe in my heart that he brought me back to you. He gave me to you, gave you to me, to love and to treasure the way you deserve. Not for one single moment will I take this gift for granted. You have had my heart for sixteen years, and it beats only for you. You have my love, my utter devotion, my life, my everything. You have me, all that I am, I give to you and I give it to you willingly, knowing what an incredibly selfish bastard you are.”

Harley chuckled softly, wiping at his face, his chin trembling.

“The love we share, the future we are ready to build, and the family we will grow, I can’t imagine, nor do I want to, ever doing with anyone else but you. You fit me in every way, completing my soul, and giving me a reason to get up each morning. I vow to care for you, to support you, to challenge you and call you out on your crap when you need it. I vow to be there for you and Windy always, as your husband and her co-guardian. If you stumble, I will pick you up. If you get lost, I’ll help you find your way back. 

“I have been crazy about you since I was nineteen. And I will continue to be just as crazy about you when I’m ninety. Even if by then I can’t remember my own name, if all I can remember is you, then I will have lived a perfect life.”

He folded the paper and put it in his pocket.

“I love you, Harley. Until my very last breath, all that I am, belongs solely to you.”

Harley reached for Declan’s hands, lacing their fingers together. He had no paper. He gazed down at their hands for a moment and swallowed hard before he spoke.

“Declan James Howell,” he began, his voice low and hoarse. “Years ago, when I was young and stupid, I met you during a carnival, standing in front of a stage listening to a local band. You were…” his eyes rose to Dex’s. “You were the most radiant person in the entire place. I didn’t know then what I felt for you, and to be honest, it scared me. Like you said, I was cocky, arrogant, and amazingly good at basketball, thank you very much.”

Another wave of chuckles, even from Declan.

“But I didn’t know how to love you back then. And if I was going to, it was going to be in the right way, in the way you deserved. It took me being with someone else, loving someone else, to understand just what it is you needed from me. And when I lost him…when we lost him…I hid away, taking with me what was meant to be yours.” He shook his head slowly. “That will never happen again.” He took a step closer and brought Dex’s hand to his lips, kissing his fingers before letting them fall back down between them.

“If your job took you somewhere else, I wouldn’t follow you, I’d be right at your side. When you get sick, I will stay at your side and care for you. And as our family grows larger, and the home we have becomes too small to hold it, I’ll build you an even bigger one so it can hold all the love we have to share.” He took a deep shuddering breath. “I never thought it was possible for me to ever love someone as deeply and as honestly as I love you, Dex. From the very beginning, all I’ve ever wanted for you was nothing but the best of me because that’s what you deserve. That is what I will give to you every single moment of every single day for the rest of my life. You own me, every part of me. You are my gift from Robin…the storm that keeps my heart going, the electricity that races through my soul. For all the rest of my days, there isn’t a single person I want with me caring for Windy. I want you to be Daddy to our children. I want you to be my voice of reason when I’m too pissed off to think straight. I want it all, and everything I want, I will give back to you tenfold. I want your love today, tomorrow, and all the days after. In return, I’ll give you all of my love. All of my soul, my heart, my mind, my body. I give you everything of me that was always, always meant to be yours. My best, my worst, all of it. Until my very last breath, I will love you.”

I had a hard time keeping myself together after Chase handed Lee the rings. The promises made during that exchange, though simple, were beautiful, and when they were finally announced as husbands, the kiss they shared was so magical, everyone felt it.

During the recessional, as I walked with Chase, Bebe trotting happily on my other side, I said, “Do you think anyone noticed the make up on Dex’s neck?”

He snorted. “If they did, I’m sure we’re going to hear all about it during the reception."

We chuckled together as we made our way to the limos that would take us to the reception venue. I was turning to join Millie and a couple others in the second limo when Lee called out to me.

“Aren’t you going to join us?” he asked.

“And watch you two suck face for twenty minutes? I think the fuck not, my dude.”

It was the best decision I could have made up to that point in my day