Page 111 of Wrecked

My chest tightens as Jonah starts playing the wedding procession, and I watch my fiancé walk toward me. Each step Sam takes brings me closer to a future I thought I’d never have.

When they reach us, Michelle lays Sam’s hand in mine. I clasp it tightly as he steps up onto the platform and turns to face me. Michelle takes her seat in the front row of guests.

Last, but not least, are the ring bearers—Aiden and Luke—who walk down the aisle, proud as punch as they both hold onto the ring pillow. When they reach us, they hand me the pillow so I can remove the rings and slip them into my pocket.

“Hi, guys,” Luke whispers loud enough everyone in the room can hear him. “We brought your wedding rings.”

Sam winks at the kid. “Thanks.”

“Good job, buddy,” I say.

All attention is on us now. Shane makes some opening remarks.

“I’ve lost track of how many weddings Cooper has officiated for us. I figured it was time for me to repay the favor.”

The guests chuckle.

“Truthfully, though, this is a great honor and a real pleasure to facilitate the wedding of my business partner and best friend.” He lays his hand on my back. “I’m happy for you, Cooper.”

All I can do is nod because there’s a huge knot in my throat, and I’m struggling to maintain my composure. My gaze is locked on Sam, and his is on me.

After Shane says a little bit more—the part required of him by the state—it’s my turn.

“Cooper has something he’d like to say,” Shane says, as he nods to me.

My pulse is thudding, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous in my life. But now’s the time. This is the moment.

When I drop down on one knee in front of my soon-to-be husband, Sam’s eyes widen in surprise. “What are you—”

“Sam Harrison,” —my voice cracks— “I do not deserve you.”

Our guests respond with a chorus ofaww’s.

“Cooper, no,” he says, reaching for my arms and trying to make me rise. “You don’t—”

“Sam, I know I’ve disappointed you many times. I’ve let you down. I hurt your feelings. I ignored you when I shouldn’t have.”

Sam’s eyes fill with tears, and he tries once more to get me to stand up. “You don’t have to do this.”

“No, baby.” My voice breaks as I hold off tears of my own. I need to get this out. “Let me say what needs to be said.”

Sam wipes his damp eyes.

“I was afraid,” I admit, not just to him, but to myself. “But that’s no excuse for my behavior. Why you stuck with me in the beginning, I’ll never understand.” I stop to clear my throat, which is clogged with tears. “But when you left me, when you went back home after the accident, that’s when I realized I didn’t want to live without you. I swore then and there, I’d doanything—whatever it took—to become the type of man who did deserve you.”

With a shaky hand, I reach into my pocket and pull out Sam’s wedding ring—a thick gold band with a single, perfect diamond embedded in it. “Sam Harrison, will you do me the honor of taking me as your husband? Will you give me a chance to prove that I finally do deserve you?”

I already asked him this, of course. And he already said yes. But I feel like I need to say it again, in front of all those we hold dear. I want everyone to know how much he means to me and how grateful I am that he gave me another chance.

Sam nods as he pulls me to my feet. “Yes! God, yes!” And then he pulls me close for a heart-wrenchingly sweet kiss.

The guests’ soft applause fills the room as Shane says, “Wait, guys, we’re not done yet.” He holds up his notebook. “You still need to say the vows and theI doparts.”

As the laughter finally dies down, Shane says, “Now, Sam, repeat after me. I, Samuel Wayne Harrison, take you, Daniel Lee Cooper, to be my lawfully wedded husband….”

* * *

The rest of the ceremony is sort of anti-climactic because we’d already said the important parts. The rest is just bureaucracy. I don’t need fancy words to know Sam’s mine. I already know he is. He’s mine, and I’m his. Forever. It’s a donedeal. We already have our notarized marriage license from the Cook County Courthouse.