Colin exhaled slowly. “About what?”
Joshua lifted his head enough to meet Colin’s eyes in the dim light. “The wedding. Getting ordained.” He breathed out a soft sigh. “You don’t often surprise me, but this did. And I have to say, I love how serious you are about it.”
Colin stared up at the ceiling for a long moment before nodding. “Yeah. I am.”
Joshua shifted, propping himself up on one elbow. “What planted this seed in your mind?”
Colin reached to run a hand down Joshua’s arm, grounding himself. “Current events planted this seed. I keep thinking about how easy it was for Norm to drop that fraud case on my desk. Like it was nothing. A huge case like this that affects so many people. And it occurred to me that handing over a file and signing a paper was all it took to make itofficial.” He swallowed. “And it pissed me off that our marriages—ourrights—weren’t also that simple. That they can just be taken away if the wrong people get enough power.”
Joshua stilled, his hand resting over Colin’s heart.
Colin sighed. “I keep thinking—if they ever come for our rights, someone has to say no. Someone has to stand up andmarry us anyway.” He let out a quiet huff of laughter. “So yeah, I’ll get ordained. And I’ll marry every damn couple who asks me to. And if they try to destroy our right to love, I’ll be the one saying—screw your approval. We don’t need it.”
Joshua didn’t say anything at first. He studied Colin’s face, his expression unreadable in the soft glow of the bedside lamp. Then, finally, he reached out and caressed his cheek.
“You’re a good man, Colin Michael,” he whispered. “With a great and loving heart.”
Colin scoffed, though there was no real heat in it. “Well, don’t tell opposing counsel.”
Joshua smiled, then leaned down and kissed him: slow, deep, as if he never wanted the kiss to end. When he pulled back, he rested their foreheads together. “I love you.”
“I love you too, bud.”
A comfortable silence stretched between them, the kind that didn’t need to be filled with words. After a moment, Joshua smirked. “So … youaregoing to wear a cape, right?”
Colin groaned. “Goodnight, Joshua.”
Joshua chuckled as he snuggled back down against Colin’s chest. “I’m only saying … it’d be averystrong aesthetic…”
Colin sighed and wrapped his arms around Joshua, holding him close. “You’re lucky that I’m so nutsy cuckcoo in love with you,” he murmured.
Joshua smiled against his skin. “I really am.”
The following day,Colin called Trent Peterson. “I want to officiate your wedding,” he said. “What do you think?”
Silence stretched between them. Colin shifted in his chair, suddenly second-guessing himself. Had he overstepped? Maybethis was something they’d already planned, something deeply personal, and here he was … barging in like a bull in a china shop.
“Um, Colin? Exactly whenwasyour ordination ceremony? And why the hell weren’t we invited?”
Colin let out a breathless chuckle. “Ordination ceremony? Yeah, about that… there wasn’t one. I got ordained online through the Universal Life Church. I clicked a few boxes on their website and boom—I’m a minister. It took about five minutes, and they didn’t even ask me any deep theological questions.” He smirked. “You’d think they’d at least make sure I believe in something, but nope. Instant minister.”
He could almost hear Trent processing.
“I figured it might come in handy someday,” Colin continued. “And, it turns out, that day is now. So, what do you say? Want me standing up there with you and Jeff, making it all official?”
“I …” Trent exhaled, his voice thick with emotion. “Truth is, Colin, I’ve seldom been more touched. I honestly didn’t think you could surprise me, but damned if you didn’t prove me wrong.”
Colin let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “It’s not an act, Trent. It’s not a joke. It means a lot to me.”
“I believe you,” Trent said, his tone quieter now. “And as far as I’m concerned, I’d be honored to have you officiate. You’ve been a good friend to both of us. It just seems … fitting. Especially at Camp Pride.”
Colin swallowed past the tightness in his throat. “Thank you, Trent. That means more than you know.”
“Uh … thiswillbe legal though, right?”
“Have you forgotten what I do for a living?”
“And you do realize, don’t you, that you’ll be required to behave with some level of ministerial dignity, right?”
