“We’re happy you could make it,” Patrick said.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
She cast a loving glance at Patrick, who leaned down to hug her, better at expressing emotion these days with his family than when they first met. Eloise clutched him back, whispering something soft into his ear that Jono politely didn’t listen to.
It went like that for their trip around the ballroom, spending time at every table to greet the friends and family who had joined them for the wedding. They’d kept the number small for a wedding, not wanting or needing an extravagant day. Jono and Patrick were both of the same mind that spending the day together with the people who meant something to them was all they wanted. Sage had understood that without them even needing to tell her, and Jono needed to remember to thank her for handling the wedding for them. It was everything they both would have wanted if they’d sat down to talk about it.
Wade leaned back in his chair when they finally reached his table, circling back around to the front of the ballroom. “Is it cake time now? Please tell me we can finally eat the cake.”
“Please tell me you ordered one for yourself,” Patrick retorted, but he was smiling as he spoke.
Wade gave him the most affronted look. “OfcourseI have my own cake! It wouldn’t be fair to everyone else if I didn’t.”
Jono laughed, well aware that Sage had planned for that scenario when she’d sent Wade to do the cake tasting. “If you get your own, then hands off ours.”
Wade put his hand to his chest in mock outrage. “I would never.”
“You say that like you haven’t eaten right off our plates before,” Patrick drawled before tugging on Jono’s hand.
A nod to the wedding organizer had the DJ calling for everyone’sattention. Despite the multi-course meal, everyone was excited for dessert. Jono was impressed when he finally saw the cake Wade had decided on for them. The little sign depicting the flavors of the three tiers showed Wade had picked out Jono’s favorite flavor of chocolate salted caramel, a Grand Marnier–spiked lemon cake for Patrick, and blackberry-and-elderflower sponge cake as a flavor they both liked.
Gerard offered up his ceremonial dress sword with a smile before either of them could look for a knife. “A little longer than the blades I know you’re used to.”
Patrick snorted as he took the sword, delivered hilt-first to his hand. “A little overkill, but it’ll do.”
Patrick no longer carried a blade. Ever since returning the gods-given dagger at the end of the Battle of Samhain, he’d given up keeping weapons, letting his concealed-carry permit lapse after Lillian was born. None of them had wanted a gun in the home where a child was present, and keeping the weapons seemed like an acknowledgment they expected another fight. Jono was never going to tell Patrick what to do to feel safe, but he’d been relieved when his lover had willingly set his weapons aside.
Patrick readjusted his grip on the sword in his right hand with an almost absent-minded ease. Jono stepped up behind him, resting his left hand on Patrick’s hip before reaching for the sword hilt to settle his other hand over Patrick’s.
“Don’t cut mine!” Wade yelled from the crowd.
“I’m taking the middle piece of it just because you said that,” Patrick called back. Wade’s squawk of protest had everyone laughing.
Jono chuckled, brushing his lips over the shell of Patrick’s ear. “We could always shove the cake in his face.”
“Let’s not teach Lillian bad manners,” Patrick said. He raised the sword a little, and Jono followed the movement with his own hand. “Ready?”
Together, they raised the ceremonial sword until the tip of the ceremonial blade rested against the edge of the top tier of the cake. With a seamless motion, they brought the sword down, cuttingthrough all three layers at once as camera flashes went off from the photographer. Jono let go of Patrick’s hand and stepped back just enough that he had room to return the sword to Gerard. A server deftly handed over a linen napkin to clean the blade off.
Another server stepped forward with a much more manageable knife and cake server set, smiling at them both. “What would you like?”
“A slice of each. We’ll share,” Jono said.
The porcelain plate the wedding cake was served to them on felt delicate in Jono’s hands as he held it steady while Patrick cut a bite from the chocolate salted-caramel piece. He lifted the fork to Jono’s mouth, feeding him the bit of cake, laughing as he did so. Jono was barely aware of the pictures being taken, all his attention on his husband.
The cake was delicious, but what Jono enjoyed the most was the pure delight on Patrick’s face, his smile, and the sparkle in his green eyes. Years ago, he never thought they’d reach this moment, yet here they were, surrounded by pack and close friends and family, with their battles forever behind them.
“Okay, Wade did pretty good with the flavors,” Patrick admitted.
“I told you to trust me!” Wade said as he walked past them carrying the tray that held his own sheet cake. “I wouldn’t pick out boring flavors for your wedding.”
“Your efforts are appreciated,” Jono said.
They returned to their table, where they discovered the wineglasses had been swapped out for champagne glasses. Speeches had already happened during the meal in between the courses from quite a few people, so it was a much quieter affair during the cake course. They traded the fork between them, offering each other bites in between conversation with those who stopped by their table. The cake slices were quickly devoured, and a server brought them a second plate, to which Jono helped himself when Patrick professed he was full.
Jono ate with his left hand, his right holding Patrick’s, absentlystroking the wedding ring there with his thumb. Letting him go seemed impossible just then, so it was probably a good thing that, once everyone had their fill of cake, it was time for the first dance.
“Just don’t step on Uncle Patrick’s feet,” Lillian warned Jono.
