Their table cracked up at her words, and Jono shook his head as he pulled Patrick to his feet. “I would never.”
He drew Patrick past tables and onto the dance floor, the pair of chandeliers above sparkling brightly. The wedding guests crowded around the space, everyone watching with smiles on their faces as Jono drew Patrick into his arms. The first notes of the song they’d picked filtered through the speakers, and it was easy to drift over the floor with the love of his life in his arms. Patrick was pressed up against him, body familiar the way breathing was, and they only had eyes for each other.
So it was a little startling when Jono’s feet left the ground, magic lifting both of them into the air. He finally dragged his attention away from Patrick to look for the guests casting magic and was unsurprised to see Nadine and Spencer at the edge of the crowd, tiny mageglobes spinning against the palms of their right hands. They waved cheerfully, mischievous smiles on their faces.
Jono could only chuckle at the trick, letting Patrick take the lead now, the air strangely solid beneath his feet. They drifted together over the dance floor, magic trailing in their wake, and Jono kept his eyes on Patrick. “Are you happy we’re married now?”
Patrick rolled his eyes, lips twitching into a smile. “I would have been happy either way, you know that.”
They hadn’t taken each other’s names, keeping their own, because they didn’t need to change anything about themselves to show their love. It was the same reasoning why it had taken forever to get married in the first place—they loved each other. They hadn’t needed a marriage certificate to prove it, but the wedding was a nice way to bring everyone together.
Jono pulled Patrick closer, listening to his heartbeat that was the sound of home, no matter where they were. As the song reached theend, the magic they danced on gently lowered them back to earth. When his feet touched the ballroom floor, Jono dipped Patrick backward to the sound of applause, kissing him soundly. Patrick laughed against his lips, never pulling away.
“I love you,” Jono said when they broke the kiss and straightened up as others came onto the ballroom floor.
Patrick lifted a hand to touch his jaw, thumb ghosting over his lips. “I love you, too.”
“My turn! It’s my turn!” Lillian shouted as she wiggled her way between two people to throw herself at their legs. “Dance with me!”
Jono leaned down and easily lifted her into his arms. “With me or Uncle Pat?”
“Both.” Lillian grinned at him, a bit of frosting stuck to the corner of her lips.
“All right then, love.” Jono set her back down on her feet and took one of her hands in his. She reached for Patrick, who gamely joined their circle. “Then let’s dance.”
It’s how they spent the next hour, dancing indiscriminately with friends and family, one-on-one or in groups. Jono never once left Patrick’s side, always within arm’s reach, the scent of his husband easy to pick out in the crowd.
They took a break after that hour, slipping free of the crowd to head toward the cake table again, intent on getting another slice to share. The server manning the table had their back to them, and Jono didn’t think anything of it until the sharp, unwanted scent of ozone hit his nose.
“Congratulations,” Hermes said as he turned around, dressed like a waiter and holding a small plate with a cake slice on it, fork in his other hand. “Cú Chulainn spoiled our surprise by giving you our gift before I could. I’m devastated, Pattycakes.”
“Not as devastated as you will be if you don’t fuck off back beyond the veil where you belong,” Patrick snapped.
“You weren’t on the guest list, so piss off,” Jono said, stepping forward before Patrick could. “We don’t want anything from you gods.”
“You already got it.” Hermes took a bite of the slice of cake, arching an eyebrow. “Peace.”
They’d gotten a lot more than that over the years, but the life they’d built after the Battle of Samhain wasn’t because of the gods but in spite of them. Jono wasn’t going to let Hermes think he’d given them what they’d carved out on their own.
Jono wrapped his arm around Patrick’s waist, fingers digging into his lover’s hip to keep him from lunging at the trickster god they’d hoped to never see again. “The blessing came from Gerard, and he’s family. We don’t want anything from the rest of you. So leave. Now.”
Hermes chuckled before turning away from them and disappearing how only the gods could, taking the slice of cake with him. Jono didn’t miss the trickster god in the slightest, glad to see him go. Jono turned his head and kissed Patrick’s temple. “Don’t let that arsehole ruin today.”
Patrick snorted. “There’s no way in hell I’d give him that satisfaction.”
“Good.” The last thing Jono wanted was for Patrick to feel down on their wedding day. “Then let’s head back to the dance floor.”
“After we eat some more cake.”
Jono wasn’t about to deny Patrick anything, so he stepped up to the cake table, snagged three slices, and carried the plates with him through the archway that led to the hall at the rear of the ballroom. An unoccupied sofa was the perfect place to have a few minutes alone, and Jono sank down onto the soft cushion with the plate. Patrick settled beside him, their bodies aligned from knees to shoulders, and Jono sighed contentedly.
“I’m glad we did this,” Patrick said after a moment, staring at everyone enjoying themselves in the ballroom.
Jono wrapped an arm around Patrick’s shoulders and turned his head to take a bite of cake offered up on the fork. “Me, too. But I would have been happy even if we’d never got married.”
Patrick smiled, tilting his head for a kiss Jono was glad to give him. The taste of caramel frosting lingered on his tongue, flavoring the kiss. “I know.”
“You’re supposed to be dancing!” Lillian announced imperiously as she darted out of the ballroom, Sage and Marek close behind her.
