“Is duty of best man and brother to give speech,” Alexei said once the sound of ringing glasses died down. “Am Kilyusha’s older brother. Am the one who kept him out of trouble as kids.”
Kyle turned to fully face Alexi, shaking his head as he laughed. That was an outright lie, and Alexei knew it, judging by the sparkle in his gray eyes. They’d both gotten into so much trouble as kids, but back then, it had felt like them against the world—Alexei a newly transplanted refugee and Kyle a newly placed foster child. They’d come a long way from their troubled childhoods, but everything had worked out for the better in the end.
“Have known Kilyusha long time. Kilyusha was first friend I ever made here, and I would not be here today without him. Would not have him if not for Jamie, who is family always. We’ve gone through a lot over the years. Always think we not find a special person to share our lives with. Can say now we did. Can say now Kilyusha find perfect match in Jamie.
“Is not easy what we do and did. Would be harder if none of us had Jamie to lead us. I know Jamie is best man for Kilyusha when he risked everything to stay by Kilyusha’s side. May be wrong at time but was right choice. Is measure of man by what they do when you see them and when you not see them. Jamie and Kyle loved each other through all the good and bad. That love is all I ever want for my little brother.
“To Kilyusha, best brother and friend I could have. Am glad you happy. To Jamie, best captain we all had. You worthy of Kyle, so I let you keep him. Welcome to family.” Alexei raised his champagne glass higher, silently inviting everyone else to do the same, before switching to Russian. “>”
Kyle and Katie both burst out laughing at the pointed, loving threat from his brother.
“To Kyle and Jamie,” Alexei said once again with a smile on his face. “Congratulations.”
The ballroom echoed with over one hundred voices repeating various versions of congratulations. Kyle set his glass down without taking a sip in favor of getting to his feet so he could hug Alexei. His older brother hugged Kyle tightly with his free arm, careful not to spill his champagne.
“>” Kyle said.
“>” Alexei said, sounding smug. “>”
Kyle turned away from Alexei in favor of doing just that. He leaned down, cupped Jamie’s face with both hands, and kissed him soundly on the mouth. The cheers grew louder, and Kyle let himself nip at Jamie’s bottom lip before pulling back. He didn’t go far because Jamie wouldn’t let him. The strong hand resting on Kyle’s hip was an anchor he had no desire to get free of.
Kyle sat back down in his seat, scooting it closer to Jamie’s. He knew they had more speeches to get through before they would both have to get up and start making the rounds of greeting their guests. He wasn’t sure who was up next, but he wasn’t surprised when Katie stood. She managed to command the room’s attention the same way she used to command the team in Jamie’s absence, and she didn’t even need to use her telepathy to do it. Everyone settled back into their seats, expectant faces turned toward the wedding party.
Katie angled her body toward Jamie and Kyle, holding her champagne glass in slim fingers. Jamie pushed back his seat a little so he could see her around Liam, but Kyle stayed where he was. Katie smiled brilliantly at them, her blue eyes bright with happiness.
“I still remember the day you walked into the command tent all those years ago, Jamie,” Katie said. “My first thought when I saw you was goddammit, I’m going to have to babysit some wet-behind-the-ears nugget again.”
Kyle joined in with everyone’s laughter. He winked at Katie in silent acknowledgment of just how hard NCOs had it when it came to baby officers.
“It took a little while, but you proved me wrong in all the best ways. You are someone I became proud back then to call a friend, and that hasn’t changed. You are an officer that I could trust, that we all could trust, to do the right thing. You were a little arrogant back then, I’m not going to lie, but I won’t hold it against you.”
“Thank you,” Jamie said dryly amidst more laughter as Katie smirked at him.
“You’re welcome. But truthfully, you brought the best out of us, Jamie. Both on and off the field. You’re one of my best friends, you are my only captain, and I’m so incredibly glad that you found the best person to share the rest of your life with. Kyle, I leave the care and feeding of our captain to you now. I know you’ll take good care of him, and he’ll take care of you. He might still wear the railroad tracks, but we both know who’s really in charge, don’t we?” Katie raised her glass, laughter in her eyes. “To Jamie and the best NCO I know to keep him in line going forward.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Kyle said with a laugh, raising his glass in solidarity.
“As I’ve said before,” Liam told Jamie beneath everyone’s laughter, “your NCOs are hard as nails.”
“I still wouldn’t have them any other way,” Jamie replied as he stood to give Katie a hug.
Kyle followed suit, embracing Katie tightly. “Thank you for everything.”
He knew Katie understood what he meant. She’d risked a lot helping to keep his and Jamie’s relationship a secret over the years when the rules had clearly stated that it was wrong. More than that, he knew she’d kept Jamie sane after Kyle had nearly died.
I don’t regret a thing, Katie told him on a tight telepathic link.
Kyle held on a little tighter before finally letting go. She touched his shoulder with a gentle hand before returning to her seat. Kyle sat down and ate a couple more bites of his dinner before the next person got to their feet to give a toast. The speeches went on for at least another hour, and while Kyle could appreciate the love and affection sent their way, he really just wanted to eat a warm dinner.
In the end, neither he nor Jamie finished the main course of their meal, though the cheese course that followed was a little easier to nibble on. The cutting of the wedding cake would happen soon enough, and he figured he could get a bigger piece there to tide him over until the late-night snacks were handed out.
Jamie finally set aside his napkin and got to his feet, pulling Kyle to his as well. “Come on. Let’s say hello to some of the guests.”
Kyle gamely followed Jamie’s lead, plastering a smile on his face as they went from table to table to greet everyone. They couldn’t spend long at every table, but they tried to make their guests feel welcome. Their wedding list had been small to begin with for people of their social status, something Kyle was exceedingly grateful for. It felt more like their wedding than a political or high society event.
Jamie rarely let go of him as they moved from table to table. On the handful of occasions he pulled away, it was to shake someone’s hand or give them a brief hug if he knew them well enough for that. The separation only lasted a few seconds before his hand was back to holding Kyle’s again. The strength in his grip was an anchor amidst the whirlwind that was their wedding day. Kyle was sure many of the pictures would show him staring adoringly at Jamie, and Alexei would never let him live it down, but Kyle didn’t care.
Jamie was his husband now. No one could take that away from him.
