Griffin wears a charcoal gray suit with a lilac tie. It fits him perfectly, showing off the lean lines of his muscular body. His dark blond hair is styled away from his face, and he looks so, so handsome.
Tears shimmer in his eyes as I walk toward him, and my own fill in response to the tremble of his lower lip. No one besides Griffin Wright has ever looked at me this way, and I could weara burlap sack and he’d still make me feel like the most beautiful woman in the room.
As we come to a stop in front of Griffin, our closest friends, and an officiant dressed as young Elvis in a nod to our first wedding, my mom kisses my cheek, places my hand in Griffin’s, and pats him affectionately on the cheek.
“Oh, sunshine,” he murmurs, eyes full of love. “Look at you.”
GRIFFIN
“It’s time.” Maddox gives me a knowing grin as he enters the room I’ve been pacing for the last twenty minutes. “You ready to get out there and get married again?”
Am I ready? I almost sprint out the door.
The guys’ laughter floats behind me, but I barely hear it. I only have eyes and ears for her.
Things with Mira have been amazing. We spent too much time away from each other during the postseason, but if we weren’t together, we were video chatting or texting nonstop. Being without her for those few weeks was more than enough distance for me, and I’ve become a stage-five clinger. I’m just careful how I show it. So far, she doesn’t seem to mind. And every week that goes by makes me feel a little more settled and less worried that she’ll change her mind about us.
As I walk the stone pathway leading to the massive floral arch and the officiant dressed like Elvis, I know that exchanging vows here, in front of our friends and family, will settle me even more.
Soft music begins to play, and the crowd shifts in their seats. I can’t be the only one who feels this buzzing sense of anticipation. I swear, the whole world is holding its breath withme while we wait for the woman I’ll love for the rest of my life to appear.
Maddox, filling the best man role for me, just like I did last month, gives my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I don’t know how I didn’t realize sooner that you’re perfect for her.” He clears his throat. “There’s not another man in the world I’d entrust my baby sister’s happiness to. I’d tell you to take care of her, but you already have been. So I’ll just say that I love you, man. And I’m glad you found each other, despite my meddling.”
“Love you too, bro,” I say, pulling my best friend and now brother-in-law in for a hug.
Then the music grows louder as Lexi walks down the aisle, and all my focus goes to the stone path that will offer the first glimpse of my wife in her wedding dress.
Ryder stares at his girlfriend like she’s the most beautiful woman in the world, and when Isla walks down the aisle next, Madds does the same. At least I’m not the only lovesick fool on this team.
When the music changes and swells, so does my heart. I don’t even care if it’s cheesy to say; it’s the truth. That fucker expands like a balloon full of too much helium, and I may just float away. Or I would, if she didn’t keep me tethered to the earth.
Mira is a vision in white as she steps onto the pathway, hand in hand with her mom. The way the sun hits her, I’d swear it was waiting for this moment too. Ethereal light washes my bride in a warm glow that makes the beadwork on her dress shine and the light shimmer on her cheekbones gleam.
Her hair is half down in loose curls with a braided crown framing her face. Little pearls are interwoven in the braid, along with small flowers. Her green eyes find me and widen. Those dark lashes that have tickled my body so many times as she kissed me flutter. Her gown accentuates every sexy curve, and I can’t wait to peel it off her body later.
She’s stunning. I’ve never seen anything or anyone more beautiful.
And she’s mine.
I’m in a daze as Camila places Mira’s hands in mine. Completely lost in my wife’s eyes as we stand in front of Elvis, our friends, and family and promise to love and support one another, to be faithful and true, and to spend the rest of our lives together.
The tears in Mira’s eyes make them glitter as she speaks. “Griffin, I promise to love you and choose you every day for the rest of my life. To cheer you on louder than anyone else. I promise to laugh at your jokes, no matter how bad they are, and hold you when you cry. You are my best friend and my greatest love, and I will spend the rest of our lives feeling so incredibly lucky that you love me back.”
“Mira—” I have to clear my throat because her name comes out choked with emotion, and I’m not ashamed to admit that a tear slips down my face when she reaches out to cup my jaw.
“Mira, you are my sunshine, my light. Just like you chase away the darkness for me, I promise to be your shelter in every storm. I vow to love you, encourage you, and be your biggest supporter in everything you do. I promise to be there in good times and bad, and to never, ever leave. You’re my person, my everything, and I love you so much more than I thought humanly possible.”
Even though we’ve both been wearing our wedding bands ever since the press conference, my hand still shakes when I slip it onto her ring finger. There’s a weight to this moment I didn’t feel when we were drunk and impulsive in Vegas. Some part of me must have realized Mira was it for me that night, but all of me knows it now.
Elvis smiles brightly at both of us and holds up his hands. “And now, by the power vested in me by the King himself and the state of Minnesota, you may kiss your bride.”
The audience erupts into cheers and applause as I close the distance between Mira and me, cup the back of her neck with one hand and her jaw with the other, and kiss the hell out of her. It’s not a chaste kiss, and our friends cheer even louder when my wife’s fingers grip the lapels of my suit jacket and our tongues tangle.
We’re both breathing hard as we break apart, and I take a moment to memorize her expression in this perfect moment. Eyes bright and glistening, lips parted, her cheeks flush with happiness.
It’s everything. She’s everything. And now, she’s all mine.
“And now, for thesecondtime ever,” Elvis says with a wink, “I present to you as husband and wife, Mira and Griffin Graves-Wright!”
