“You said it,” he replies with a laugh.
“No, I mean in your suit,” I smile back. “You know perfectly well how hot I think you are.”
His eyes reflect the same memories as I’m having, last night, every time, the incredible and unimaginably skillful things this man does to me. And the power I have over him.
“Shall we begin?”
I blink at the young Balinese woman who stands beneath the simple canvas shade, in traditional dress, beaming at us. I don’t miss her pink-cheeked, snatched glances at my god of a man, but Dylan can’t take his hands and eyes from mine.
“Dylan, let go,” I whisper. “You’re crushing my hands.”
“I’m never letting you go.”
I hold back on throwing myself into his arms and kissing him with the passion forcing itself to the surface. Not inviting people to the wedding was to attempt to keep our marriage quiet for as long as possible, but a different reason lies underneath. This is mine and Dylan’s moment in time, and nobody should share it.
“I love you,” I say.
Dylan’s smile grows, sharpening his cheekbones, and he cups my face in one hand. “Well that’s a bloody good thing for me to hear right now.”
I catch sight of something close to Dylan’s bare feet. Two small hearts created by shells interlock.
“Did you make that?”
He nods and strokes my cheek. “Yes. And don’t break the shells this time.”
My attempt to rein in the emotions, at least until we say our vows, fails as fought tears spill, and I wrap my arms around his neck. Dylan holds my waist, a surprised noise escaping his throat as I press my lips on his.
Sheltered from the sun and the world for a few minutes, we look into each other’s eyes. I’ve always known. The look we exchange says more than words ever can. The vows are a formality.
I’m drawn to him, the man who is my gravity as we hold each other in an orbit of our own. I was always his, and always will be. The union between us happened months ago. No reason ever existed for me to distance myself from this man whose heart I take care of, and who mended mine.
* * *
DYLAN
The womanwho anchors me to this world, who’ll be with me through this one and the next, looks back with adoration I once thought I didn’t deserve. I wipe a stray tear from her cheek with my thumb, and when she smiles, the world around explodes into a blinding light.
I love her, but saying the words doesn’t feel like enough. How can I express something indescribable in words? I tried with a song, which she loves, but even that isn’t enough to hold out to the world and her how deep my love goes. Our lives move along the same path, our bodies mould together as naturally as if we were one person, and each day we weave together until we almost are.
Sky wears a simple dress and is barefoot too, somehow smaller and more vulnerable buther. She’s natural, normal but fills my universe.
I’ve fought with her for this moment, to express my love for the world to see, over and over, but now all I want is for everybody to leave us alone.
No. All I want is to wear a ring, a symbol that I can be normal too: in love, married, and one day a family. A symbol that the old egotistical, immoral Dylan Morgan is dead. The heart once dulled by watching my parent’s marriage fall apart finally believes in love again, because of Sky.
The vows are simple, spoken softly, almost as if they’re only for each other’s ears. The words spill from my mouth, but all I’m focused on is the alarm Sky won’t stop crying. I know how deeply she feels, how hidden her heart is, and how easily she holds people at arms’ length with her aloof sarcasm. But grow to know Sky, gain her trust, and she’s the most beautiful soul you can imagine.
Maybe that’s why we fit; she showed me mine could be too.