Elena was crying freely now, tears streaming down her face in silver tracks. But she was smiling too—that radiant, world-altering smile that had captured his heart from the very beginning.
"Reed," she began, her voice shaking, "five years ago, I made a choice that I thought would destroy both of us. I walked away from you to save you, and every day since then, I've wondered if I made the right decision."
Reed's throat tightened.
"But standing here now, looking at the man you've become—the leader, the brother, the protector—I know that everythinghappened the way it was supposed to. God had a plan, even when I couldn't see it. Even when I was lost and alone and terrified, He was working all things for good."
She took a shaky breath, steadying herself.
"You are my answered prayer, Reed Star. When I was in that hotel room in Seattle, broken and alone, I got on my knees and begged God to show me the way forward. And then you knocked on my door." A laugh bubbled up through her tears. "You showed up, just like you always do. Just like I know you always will."
Reed felt his own eyes burning.
"I promise to stay," Elena continued, her voice growing stronger. "I promise to stop running, to stop protecting you by pushing you away. I promise to let you in—all the way in—even when I'm scared. Especially when I'm scared." She reached up and cupped his face in her hands, her thumbs brushing away the tears he hadn't realized he'd shed. "I love you, Reed. I have loved you since coffee and conversations at six-thirty in the morning. I will love you until my last breath, and then I'll love you beyond that too."
The pastor said something—words about rings and eternal bonds—but Reed barely registered any of it. His hands moved on autopilot, sliding the simple gold band onto Elena's finger, feeling her do the same for him. The metal was warm against his skin, tangible proof that this was real. That she was real. That they were finally, impossibly, together.
"By the power vested in me," the pastor announced, his voice carrying through the small chapel, "I now pronounce you husband and wife." A warm smile creased his weathered face. "Reed, you may kiss your bride."
Reed didn't need to be told twice.
He pulled Elena into his arms, one hand splayed across the small of her back, the other cradling the back of her head. Shecame willingly, eagerly, her arms winding around his neck as their lips met in a kiss that was soft and fierce and absolutely perfect.
The guests erupted into applause, but Reed barely heard them. The world had narrowed down to this—to Elena in his arms, her heart beating against his chest, her lips moving against his with five years of longing and a lifetime of promise.
When they finally broke apart, both breathing hard, Elena laughed—that bright, joyful sound that Reed had missed so desperately during the years she'd been gone.
"Hi, husband," she whispered against his lips.
"Hi, wife." Reed pressed his forehead to hers, savoring the moment. "I love the sound of that."
"Me too." She kissed him again—quick and sweet—then pulled back with a smile that could have lit up the entire Pacific Northwest. "Now let's go celebrate before your brothers start heckling us."
As if on cue, James's voice rang out from the pews. "About time! I've been practicing my toast for three weeks!"
"Heaven help us all," Walker muttered, but he was grinning as he said it.
Reed laughed and took his wife's hand—his wife, he still couldn't quite believe it—and led her back down the aisle. The guests threw flower petals as they passed, a cascade of pink and white that caught in Elena's hair like tiny blessings.
Outside the chapel, the September afternoon was golden and warm. The reception would be held at Reed's house on the lake—an intimate gathering with just their closest friends and family. But for a moment, before the chaos of celebration began, Reed pulled Elena aside into a quiet corner of the garden.
"Hey," he said softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Before we get swept up in everything, I just wanted a moment. Just us."
Elena's eyes softened. "I'd like that."
Reed took both her hands in his, studying the way the afternoon light made her wedding ring gleam. "Thank you," he said.
"For what?"
"For coming back. For fighting your way back to me, even when it would have been easier to stay hidden." His voice caught slightly. "For choosing me."
Elena stepped closer, close enough that he could feel the warmth radiating from her skin. "There was never really a choice, Reed. It was always going to be you. From the first moment you opened that door to find me standing there with two cups of coffee, it was always going to be you."
He kissed her then, slow and deep, pouring everything he felt into the connection—gratitude and wonder and a love so vast it felt like it might split him open from the inside.
When they pulled apart, Elena was smiling that smile again—the one that made him feel like the luckiest man in the world.
"Now," she said, her eyes sparkling with mischief, "I believe there's a reception waiting for us. And I've been told James's toast is... memorable."
