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Authors: Scott Hildreth

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CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

Present Day, Austin, Texas

My chest heavy with medals, ribbons, badges, and commendations, I stood erect in my Marine dress blues with my Squad Leader at my side. I glanced over my right shoulder. Dressed in his dress blues, the left side of his uniform covered in medals and his right with various ribbons, he stood arrow straight and stared directly in front of him.

As the music began to play, I turned slightly to my left. Redefining beauty, she walked down the aisle, her dress flowing six feet behind her footsteps. In the front row, her mother, brother and sister were seated on one side, and my father, sister, Shane, and Kace were seated on the other.

“Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

They were words I had longed to hear.

“Her mother and I.”

“Sir, Ma’am, will you bless me with your approval to move forward with this ceremony of marriage?”

“I will.”

“We have come together at the invitation of Alec and Katie to celebrate the uniting in Christian love, their hearts and lives. This is possible because of the love God has created in them, through Jesus Christ,” he said.

“Katie and Alec, no other human ties are more tender, no other vows are more sacred than these you are about to assume. You are entering into that holy estate which is the deepest mystery of experience, and which is the very sacrament of divine love.”

“Alec, will you have Katie to be your wedded wife, to live together after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony; will you love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, keep yourself only for her so long as you both shall live?”

I lowered my head slightly. “I will.”

“Katie, will you have Alec to be your wedded husband, to live together after God's ordinance in the holy estate of matrimony; will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, keep yourself only for him so long as you both shall live?”

“I will.,” she responded.

“Alec, repeat after me. I, Alec, take you, Katie,
to be my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”

I recited from memory. “
I, Alec, take you, Katie,
to be my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”

He turned to Katie. “Katie, repeat after me.
I, Katie, take you, Alec,
to be my lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”

She recited the vows without flaw.

“Will rings be exchanged?” he asked.

“They will,” I responded.

“The rings?’

I glanced over my shoulder.

“Come on, Little Man,” I said as I curled my arm toward Katie.

Casey stumbled up the aisle, spent a few minutes climbing the steps, and held the pillow as high as he was able.

I pulled the rings from the strings they were fastened with and handed them to the pastor.

Casey stood between Katie and me and hugged my left leg.

“Please remember, a ring is more than a symbol of your marriage. It is a seal of the vow you have made to one another. The circle of the ring is, as far as human eye can see, a perfect circle – with no beginning or end – so God too, has perfect love for you and wants you to love one another in His grace--never, never ending. This ring is made of precious metal. You also are precious in God's sight and now in the life of Alec. When you are absent one from another, the presence of the ring reminds you to be faithful and to fulfill your vows to Alec. Rings have historically been the sign of authority, used to seal documents and proclamations, you now accept this authority in your life.”

“Alec, you may now place your ring on Katie’s finger.”

I slid the ring onto her finger.

“Katie, what symbol do you bring as a pledge of that sincerity of your vows?”

“A ring,” she said.

“Alec, this ring is a seal of Katie’s vow to you. She presents this to you as a token of her submission to you in Jesus Christ. This is a symbol of leadership and privilege. God has placed you as head of the family. You must lead in worship, works and fellowship. As the weaker vessel she depends upon you for strength.”

“Katie, you may place the ring on Alec’s finger.”

“For as much as Alec and Katie have consented in holy wedlock, and have thereto confirmed the same by giving and receiving each one a ring; by the authority committed unto me as a minister of the Church of Jesus Christ, I now declare you husband and wife, according to the ordinance of God, and the laws of the state of Texas, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.”

“You may kiss the bride,” he said.

I tilted my head to the side and kissed Katie for the first time as my wife.

We turned to face the crowd. Five Marines lined each side of the aisle, and as we stepped down the steps, they drew their swords. Under their raised swords we walked, and took the traditional kiss. I turned from the kiss and faced the rear of the church.

Selected Sinners lined the back of the church, all dressed in their cuts.

With my Marine brethren beside me, and my MC brethren in front, I cupped Katie’s hand in mine and held it high in the air. After the cheers slowed, I picked her from her feet and carried her toward the door.

“I love you,” she said.

“I love you, too,” I responded.

As we approached the two long lines of men in their cuts, Axton lowered his chin.

“Get that Marine shit hung up in your closet where it belongs, and get on your cut, A-Train,” he growled.

Soon enough, Brother Slice, soon enough.

“You ready to take care of some long overdue business?” I whispered as I carried her between the two aisles of Sinners.

“We have a reception,” she responded.

“Doesn’t start for thirty minutes,” I said.

“Sounds good to me,” she said with a smile.

I had no intention of having sex with Katie in the thirty-minute window we had before the reception started, but it was fun to joke about.

For her, it was going to be the first time, and I was going to make it special.

I glanced around the church. It was filled with my family – all facets of it. They surrounded me on all sides. Family by blood, family by oath, and family by choice.

And with God’s blessing, I was ready to get started making my own family.

One special moment at a time.

EPILOGUE

I had waited my entire life to find the man of my dreams, and now I had him. I couldn’t really call myself pleased or happy, or even elated – not if I wanted the word to accurately describe how I felt.

Alec took me to an entirely different place than anything life had offered me before meeting him, and I truly appreciated him for it. Since I had been a small girl, my dream had been to have a prince come riding up, sweep me off of my feet, and take me to his castle.

I didn’t expect at the time that he would be riding a Harley-Davidson, or that his castle would be two houses down from my brother, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

One definition of a fairy tale is
a story in which improbable events lead to a happy ending
. So, by definition, I was living in a modern day fairy tale. It didn’t seem to matter much if we were together or we were apart – although I preferred when we were together – I had a smile permanently etched upon my face.

I dug my fingernails into his chest, arched my back, and moaned into the otherwise silent room as I reached climax. A few electrically charged seconds later, and I opened my eyes only to find them focused on his muscular torso. I drew a deep shuddering breath, exhaled, and gazed into his eyes.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m better than okay,” I said, still trying to find my breath.

“You sure?” he asked.

“Uh huh.”

“I just…”

“Alec,
I’m fine
.”

“I don’t want to hurt…”

“Alec. Really. The doctor said. Oh. Wait. Let me see your hand. Hurry,” I exclaimed as I reached for his hand.

“There,” I said as I pressed his flattened palm to my stomach. “Feel it.”

The baby rotated slightly, and although I wasn’t sure, my guess was that it was his knees that Alec was feeling.

“He’s active today,” I said.

His eyes widened. “He?”

I went to the doctor for a normal checkup and they did an ultrasound to check the baby’s heart. Although we had both agreed not to find out the sex of the baby, I glanced at the screen at the wrong time.

Apparently the baby and his father shared at least one trait.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “They did an ultrasound today, and I really didn’t even try to see, but he was. Well, let’s just say you and him are a lot alike in one respect.”

He sat up slightly, his mouth curled into smile from ear to ear. “A boy. I thought I didn’t want to know, but now that I do…”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

I burst into a laughing fit at the thought of the sight on the monitor at the doctor’s office. Even the technician gasped at the sight.

“I guess it was one of those you had to be there moments, but yeah. I’m sure,” I said.

He continued to stare at me with face filled with pride.

“At least it’ll make picking a name only half as hard,” I said.

His sister and I had become great friends, and I saw her almost daily. Shane gave her a job at the gym working as his CPA. Although she and I had already discussed names, I had yet to really talk to Alec about it.

“What do you think about the name Derek for a boy?” I asked.

He sat silently for some time and just stared.

I really liked the name and I had hopes he would to. About the time I was going to suggest my second favorite name, his bottom lip began to quiver. Soon thereafter, a tear rolled down his cheek.

“It’s…it’s uhhm…it’s perfect,” he said as he wiped the tear from his cheek with the back of his hand.

And so are you, Alec Jacob.

So are you.

THE END