Her chin trembles.
Then the officiant turns to her.
“Charlotte… your vows.”
She inhales, shaky but brave, wiping a quick tear with her thumb. Then she looks up at me, and it hits with more force than any hit I’ve taken on the ice.
She begins softly.
“Declan… I think I loved you long before I understood what the word meant.”
My breath stops. She squeezes my hands, steadying herself.
“You’ve always carried so much. Your team, your daughter, and still… you made space for me.”
She laughs softly, tears slipping freely now. “You let me see the man underneath all that armor.”
My chest tightens.
“You showed me what partnership really looks like. Not perfection. Not control. But honesty. Patience. Showing up. You love me in a way that feels safe.”
She takes a shaky breath.
“You’ve given me a home I didn’t even know I was searching for.”
Her voice breaks. “And a family I never thought I’d have.”
Sophie sniffles loudly in the front row. That almost undoes me.
Charlotte lifts her chin, eyes locked on mine.
“I promise to stand with you—when life is calm, and when it isn’t. I promise to listen, even when it’s hard. I promise to laugh with you, push you, steady you, and let you steady me.”
Her fingers tremble against mine, one last tear slipping down her cheek.
“And I promise this: whatever the world throws at us, I’ll be your place to land. Your partner. Your safe place.”
She exhales softly.
“I love you, Declan.”
The room is silent.
Then the officiant’s voice warms, gentle and steady.
“By the power vested in me… I now pronounce you husband and wife.”
My pulse spikes—no hesitation, no nerves left—just this tidal wave of certainty crashing through my chest.
“Declan,” the officiant says, “you may kiss your bride.”
Charlotte barely has time to take a breath before I’m gathering her in, one hand at her waist, the other sliding up to cradle the back of her neck. Her fingers curl instantly in my jacket, soft but sure, pulling me closer.
The kiss is everything: slow, reverent, deep enough that the room tilts for a second.
A soft chorus of “awws” ripples through the crowd. Someone cheers. I think it’s Torres. Might be Tyler. Doesn’t matter.
Because she melts against me like she always does.
