Rose In Bloom (13 page)

“Oh Kyles, I can’t thank you enough!”

“Sure you can. You can thank me by getting your ass dressed! Your man gave me a strict schedule to stick to. Go on and get moving! So get in that bathroom now bitch, so I can do your makeup!” she says, pushing me out of the room.

Sebastian

“Stop moving or I swear to God, I’m going to ram this pin into your eye,” Nik threatens as he tries to pin my flower to my shirt.

“Just pin the damn thing on, you fucking prick.”

Whatever I was thinking when I allowed him to be the one to pin it on me in the first place, I’ll never know. I don’t think I was thinking at all actually, because I’m too damn nervous. When I say nervous, I don’t mean that I’m nervous about marrying her. I’m nervous about everything going as planned for the wedding. Today is one day that I can give to her and I want her to remember it every day for the rest of her life. I want to make her dreams come true every single day, just as she has for me by just coming into my life.

“There! It is fine, now move your ass or we are going to be late,” he orders and I contemplate beating the fuck out of him.

Once we reach the designated spot on the beach, I can’t help but smile. It’s a breathtaking view and a gorgeous afternoon. Every last detail looks absolutely perfect. I definitely owe Kylie on this one for sure.

Briefly, I discuss the ceremony details with the man who is marrying us. Since this is such a special day and I know our deceased loved ones can’t be here, I want some way to honor them.

The short older lady in the back signals they are ready. Nik nudges me in the ribs and we take our places underneath the flowing white sheer material as it flutters in the wind as John Legend’s
All of Me
plays quietly through the speakers. Glancing over at Nik, I half expect him to give me some stupid look, but instead, his eyes lock ahead and his mouth gapes open. When I turn my attention ahead of me, I swear I feel like every inch of my body has been electrified. She is absolutely stunning. Our eyes lock and our souls merge. She is every breath I will ever take. She’s my purpose and hope for happiness. She is my redemption for my soul. Holding her flowers against her arm, Skylar links arms with Kylie and Sophie and slowly begins the journey to me.

Ever wish you could see your future? Well, I can, and I’m looking right into her eyes.

She is my past, present, and always.

She is my wife.

Skylar

“You look absolutely beautiful, sis,” Sophie says, taking my hand in hers. I squeeze it and smile.

“Thank you, baby girl,” I look into her eyes. Gosh, she will never know how much she reminds me of our momma. My eyes tear up. I can’t help the emotions running over me. I guess I’d not thought about how this was going to feel. Perhaps I’d even avoided the topic because I knew it would be like this. I am so blessed to have my best friend and my sister to walk me down the aisle, but let’s face it; I would give anything to have my parents here. I just hope they can see how happy I am. I truly believe they are with me all the time.

“Hey there, no crying allowed before your man gets to see how fucking gorgeous you look,” Kylie says, wiping my tear away. Adjusting my curls, she steps in front of me and tugs my chin up.

“They’re here, Skylar. You and I both know that. They are happy for you and this is going to be a beautiful day.” Kylie coaches me. My best friend is never serious like this much. She always puts some sort of smartass humor to things, but right now, her words are just what I need to hear. Pulling me into her arms, I hold on to her.

“I love you,” I whisper. “Thank you for everything.”

“No one deserves this more than you. There is no way you are thanking me. I love you and would do this a million times for you. Besides that… your man is loaded, so like, we
can
actually do this a million times again.” She jokes and we begin laughing. Just like that, my sassy, smartass friend returns.

“Are you ready?” Sophie asks and I nod. The lady handling the wedding sends us on out to make our way around to where they are waiting.

I hadn’t been prepared for what I saw when we walked out. A massive bamboo altar stands in the middle of the beach, the beautiful blue water crashes in the background. There isn’t a cloud in the crisp blue sky. White and silver fabric blows in the wind, adorned with every imaginable tropical flower in existence. A long piece of turquoise fabric covers the sand and lines the way to him, dusted in the same tropical flower petals. John Legend’s enchanting voice fills my ears, but my eyes are locked on the gorgeous man staring back at me.

Dressed in loose gray pants and a white linen shirt, he can put any GQ model to shame. (And I mean SHAME!) Nik’s eyes are glued on my best friend.

Looking back to Sebastian, I take a deep breath. My insides calm when I see him smile back at me. Sophie and Kylie hook arms with me and we begin our journey to the love of my life.

“Who gives this woman away?”

In unison, Sophie and Kylie speak, “We do in honor of her parents.”

They move to light a candle in front of a picture. I gasp when I see a table with pictures of my parents, his mom, and my Granna. There on that table is everyone we have loved and lost. Because of someone’s wonderful heart, they really are here and part of this. I can never thank whoever did this enough.

Sebastian steps forward and takes my hand. An overwhelming surge of energy flows through my body and we both smile knowingly. This happens every single time we are near each other and I love it more and more with every minute of every day.

“I love you,” he whispers and kisses my hand.

I squeeze back and the man clears his throat to begin the ceremony. I hope I can concentrate on it, because right now I’m lost in the eyes of my happily ever after.

Sebastian

She is absolute perfection. Heaven itself couldn’t be any more stunning than she is right now. Skylar keeps staring at me as I hold her soft hands in mine.

“The groom has requested he do his own vows,” the minister announces.

Shit, I probably should have warned her about this
. I just want to tell her how I feel without the use of some generic wedding vows. She needs to hear this.

“Skylar, from the first moment I laid eyes on you, you stole my breath away and to be honest, I’m not entirely certain that I ever got it back. You saw right through me, all the way down deep inside, past all the ugly darkness and you didn’t run. You are the only one who ever has seen inside, the only one who has ever cared enough to look. All my life, I thought I had been living, but that isn’t true. You are the reason my heart beats. You are the fire that rages in my soul. Because of you, I finally know what it feels like to be alive, to be truly loved.” I try to hold back the tears, but I can’t. Blinking hard, I stare back into her haunting eyes and continue.

“To have an ending to a story, you must first have a beginning. You are my beginning, Skylar Rose. You’re my beginning, middle, and end, my happily ever after. I will spend every minute of the rest of my life, showing you just how much I love and need you. A lifetime with you will never be enough.” Sliding on her ring, I chuckle at the way her eyes enlarge at the sight of it. Most would say I went a bit overboard on it, but nothing is good enough for her. “With this ring, I take you as my wife, my lover, my best friend, and my baby momma.”

She throws her head back and laughs that fucking beautiful laugh of hers, keeping a smile so bright on her face that she could outshine the sun. Reaching up on her tiptoes, she kisses me sweetly on my lips, leaving me with the taste of raspberry lip-gloss on my mouth. Dragging my tongue across my lips, I savor her taste in my mouth and pray that I can make it through this ceremony without taking her right here in front of everyone. Taking my ring from Kylie, she turns back to face me and smiles.

God, I love this woman.

“Sebastian, the love we share is something magical, unimaginable to most. Through everything we have been through, our love has always been the magnetic force, pulling us back together. When I’m in your arms, anything is possible. You’ve taken away the pain inside of me,” she says, choking up as she takes my hand and places it on her growing stomach.

Tenderly, I cup her cheek with my other hand, swiping away a trailing tear away with my thumb. “Baby, don’t cry,” I whisper and she smiles, drawing in a deep breath before she speaks.

“You’ve given me something so beautiful and perfect. The best parts of both of us are growing inside of me, promising us of a lifetime of happiness. Sebastian, you are my everything.” Sliding the ring on my finger, she continues, “I want you to be my forever and always. Love is forever, my forever is with you.”

I can’t help it. I pull her against me, and our mouths crash against each other. Our tongues hungrily devour one another. My lungs are burning before I let her go. We both gasp for air while the man who is conducting our ceremony clears his throat.

“By the power vested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride once again.” He laughs.

She throws her arms around me, and I lift her up, bringing her belly tightly against me. Kissing her with everything in me, I know I hold everything in my arms right now. When we finally break away, I gently set her down on the ground. She looks up at me with so much love that I think I am going to melt.

Fuck me, she is so damn beautiful!

“I love you so much,” she says, smiling.

“Not as much as I love you.”

Skylar

My husband is simply amazing to do all of this for me. I look around and see my sister laughing as Nik spins her and Kylie around in the sand. Today… this… is simply perfect. Holding on to him, I lay my head against his chest and move to the music of Katy Perry’s “Unconditionally.” Words could never be truer. Despite everything we’ve been through, he is my life. He kisses my forehead and I look up at him. We don’t have to say a word because the lyrics speak for us. His amber eyes are so full of light and happiness. Leaning in, he holds me close as our lips touch. His hands find my face and he deepens the kiss. I lose every sense of my surroundings. I’m completely lost in this man. Our tongues dance hungrily with one another. When he breaks, I’m being lifted up in his arms. The photographer snaps pictures of us while he holds me tightly against his body.