I looked over at my bride, who wiped a tear of laughter from her eye.
“I knew from the first time Billie worked on my body art that she had amazing taste. I thought she could do no wrong. Then I found out she was in love with Colby and realized…nobody’s perfect.”
Our guests were once again in stitches.
Holden scratched his chin. “So, yeah, Colby and I…we’re yin and yang. And I know this because earlier, I looked up the meaning of yin and yang for the first time in my life—to make sure I had it right.” He looked around the room. “It’s one of those things you always hear about but don’t fully understand. And in learning about it, I realized that even more yin and yang than Colby and me, are Colby and Billie.” Holden turned to us. “Listen to this: yin represents an energy that is feminine and dark.” He pointed to my bride. “That’s totally like badass Billie, right? And yang represents energy that is bright, masculine, and I shit you not…hot. You’re welcome, Colby.” He laughed. “Doesn’t that remind you of the two of them? Opposites that go so damn well together that it’s like they were made for each other, like the sun and the moon.” He looked over at us. “The most important realization in my research of yin and yang is that even though they’re opposites, they rely on each other to exist. Without night, there is no day. Without love, there is no grief—we all learned that the hard way when Ryan passed. And I think it’s safe to say, without Colby, there is no Billie. Without Billie, there is no Colby. They’ve become one today.” Holden flashed his megawatt smile. “And yes, I did manage to bring this speech to a sappy ending.”
My cheeks hurt from grinning.
He grabbed his champagne flute and lifted it. “So, to Billie and Colby, yin and yang. You inspire me to want to fall in love someday…when I’m sixty-five and can no longer get it up.” Amidst the laughter of the audience, he added, “Love you both! And Colby, man, if you didn’t like this speech, I suggest choosing someone else to be your best man the next time you get married.” He winked at me.
I gave him the finger and got up to give him a huge hug—those two gestures in quick succession pretty much summed up our relationship.
When I returned to my seat, Billie was beaming. “That was freaking awesome.”
“Only Holden,” I said.
Our wedding was a pretty grand affair held in the ballroom of a hotel downtown. Billie had insisted she wanted a smaller wedding, but I’d convinced her that after everything we’d been through, we deserved a massive party. Since Billie wasn’t really into the planning component, we gave my mother the gift of her life, letting her take full charge of making the arrangements. She, of course, met with Billie several times and took my gorgeous bride’s taste and style into consideration. We ended up with a colorful motif that was vibrant yet classy. Red and burgundy flowers with black feather accents. You could call it gothic chic.
My wife turned to me as they began to serve the cake. “I can’t believe how amazing this day turned out.”
I glanced down at her chest. “Almost as amazing as your tits in that corset. I nearly died when I saw you coming down the aisle on Deek’s arm.”
“Did you really think I’d have any other kind of top for my dress?”
Billie’s dress was nothing short of spectacular. It was two pieces: a satiny, white corset top and a massive ballgown bottom. Her black hair was styled half up, half down in loose curls. I’d always imagined I would cry when I saw her coming down the aisle, but my reaction surprised me. Of course, I was filled with emotion, but instead of crying, I wasn’t able to stop smiling. In fact, I’d yet to shed a tear at my own wedding, even during my father-daughter dance with Saylor. But the night was still young.
After the meal, everyone hit the dance floor. At one point, the DJ played a slower song, and I happened to look over and notice an interesting sight—Holden dancing with Ryan’s little sister, Laney, whom we all affectionately called Lala. Well, I say little, but she was definitely all grown up now. She’d been dancing with her fiancé just minutes before. But in this moment, her fiancé was nowhere to be found. Normally, there wouldn’t be anything notable about a girl dancing with a so-called friend of the family. Except I knew about Holden’s crush on her that went way back. The way he’d swooped in the first chance he got tonight made me wonder if he had an ulterior motive.
When the song ended, he bent to give her a kiss on the cheek. Then he walked away.