Their inner beasts had both scoffed at the need for a wedding. They were mated—what was a silly human ceremony going to prove that their mate marks hadn’t?
To be safe, Cameron had requested they shift the night before, and they’d curled up on the floor of their apartment together. Now, his octopus was on his best behavior.
Later tonight, they’d be heading to a fancy hotel before catching a plane to Europe. They were going to start in Paris, then go to Spain, Portugal, and stop in Iceland on the way home. Jo and Christopher were actually meeting them in Iceland, as it seemed Jo had big plans for them to open an international office in the next year or two. Emory had been nervous asking Cameron if it was okay to tack on a few additional days for work, but Cameron had eagerly agreed on one condition: all of them had to go to the Blue Lagoon with him. Even though Emory had gotten better at work/life balance, he knew Jo and Christopher still worked too hard. He wanted them all to take one full day off since Emory was getting two whole weeks off.
Jo placed a steady hand on Cameron’s back, a trait Cameron had come to learn was definitely a lion thing, or at the very least a Rexford thing. Emory’s mother did it to him at the rehearsaldinner a few days before, and Jo did it whenever Emory wasn’t there to ground him.
Bolstered by Jo’s support, Cameron filed out of the changing room, and they met up with Ronan and Christopher in the hallway. The plan was for Emory to already be up at the altar, and Shay and Jo, then Ronan and Christopher, would walk down the aisle, leaving Cameron to walk in by himself. Seahorse culture didn’t really mesh well with the whole ‘giving their child away at the altar’ thing, and besides, there was something empowering about taking these final steps by himself.
Cameron pressed his hand against the paper in his pocket as he watched his two best friends and two closest relatives walk down the aisle. He kept it pressed there right up until he stepped out onto the gold carpeted aisle.
They’d both agreed wholeheartedly to get married in Emory’s hometown aquarium. The ceremony was taking place in front of the large floor-to-ceiling tank, which housed octopuses, seahorses, and hundreds of other critters going through rehabilitation before they’d be released back into the ocean. Cameron had made sure that the alligator and otter exhibits would be open today as well.
Before they’d signed the venue contract, Cameron had connected Shay with the aquarium's curator to ensure that all the animals were being treated with the utmost care. Somehow, Shay had talked her way into a consulting position, and she now visited every other month to advise on the aquarium's coral reef conservation research.
There was a fair amount of coral at the bottom of the aquarium behind Emory, but Cameron could barely see it. He could barely see anything other than his fated mate standing there in a stunning sapphire suit. Everyone in the room stood up as Cameron entered, but he had eyes only for Emory.
Cameron was vaguely aware of the string quartet they’d hired beginning to play the opening chords of Pachelbel’s Canon. He’d practiced walking down the sidewalk with the song playing in his headphones hundreds of times, but all that went out the window as he and his octopus hurried down the aisle to reunite with Emory.
Laughter erupted around the room as the quartet increased their tempo to an almost frantic pace to keep up with Cameron. He tried to slow down, but it was too late, and he ended up tripping over himself and stumbling into Emory’s arms.
“Hi,” he whispered, and Emory’s grin lit up his entire face.
“We have to stop meeting like this,” Emory said, and Cameron threw his arms around his neck.
“You can’t kiss yet! We got all dressed up for this!” Shay shouted, grabbing Cameron by the shoulders and pulling him over to his side of the aisle.
“Speak for yourself—I dress like this all the time,” Jo said from Emory’s other side, flipping their blonde hair over their shoulder.
“I sure as hell don’t, so you better get this show on the road before I burn this tie,” Ronan said, and the room erupted into laughter again.
Emory was still holding Cameron’s hand, and he squeezed it three times.
Cameron tried to stop him, but his octopus leaped forward, finding and latching onto Emory’s lion like a cephalopod beard. His lion tried to shake him off, but Cameron’s octopus just climbed onto his back and nestled into his mane.
Emory choked on a laugh, and Cameron squeezed his hand three times in return.
He knew he should probably pay attention. This was supposed to be the happiest day of his life, but all he couldconcentrate on was the way the aquarium lights played off the amber in Emory’s eyes.
The ceremony was being recorded, and thank the gods for that. Emory only got two words into his vows before Cameron burst into tears and missed at least half of what was said.
When it was his turn, Cameron couldn’t even get through the first line before he was gasping through sobs. He gave up, handing the paper to Emory, who accepted it even though his eyes were also a little wet. Because he was the best mate ever, Emory held his hand as he read them out loud for all their friends and family to hear.
“Emory,” he said, his lips curving up in a soft smile. “I love you more than I could ever put into words, and I’m pretty sure I have since the moment I met you. You are the best thing to ever happen to me in an airport, and that’s saying a lot because…”
Emory trailed off, and he looked up into Cameron’s eyes. Cameron nodded, and Emory looked back down at the paper.
“That’s saying a lot because an airport is where I first met my ba and pa.”
The room had gone still, and even without looking, Cameron could pick out the sniffles and labored breathing of Shay, Ba, and Pa.
“I went through a lot to finally make it to my forever home, just like I went through a lot to make it to you,” Emory read, his voice wavering as the paper shook in his hands. “I don’t really like the sentiment that I had to go through all of that just to make it to you. I don’t think anyone should have to suffer to find happiness, but I would…do it all again in a heartbeat…if it meant I got to fall asleep next to you every n-night,” Emory said, his voice breaking as he lifted the hand holding the paper up to his face and wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand.
There was more on the paper, but Cameron didn’t need to read it to know what it said.
“Emory,” he said, and Emory dropped his hand, clutching at Cameron’s fingers, effectively crushing the piece of paper between them. “You are more than I ever could have hoped for. You’ve brought so much life and laughter, family, friends, and purpose to my life. For a long time, I felt aimless, just getting by on work and serial killer dramas–”
Shay made a gurgling noise from behind him that he was pretty sure was some kind of terrifying half-laugh, half-sob. Emory huffed out a soft breath and shook his head.
