Chapter Twenty-One
Ella
Ade”s lips crash into mine in a kiss that makes my toes curl into the sand. The depth of his love is flowing into me, unleashing my own dam of emotions.
I wrap my arms around him, pulling him as close to me as humanly possible. But it”s not enough, especially in a moment like this one—I need him closer. Any distance between us feels unnatural and wrong.
His speech of me being home to him… the tears couldn”t be stopped after that.
It”s not the first time I”ve heard him say it. He talked about precisely that when he proposed, but in this setting?
With the sincerity in his voice?
It ricocheted the meaning to a place deep within my soul, resonating more profoundly than before. My own heart swells with the same profound love and commitment.
As our lips meet, I pour the intensity of these emotions into the kiss, my mouth melding with Aiden”s in a fervent, tantalizing exchange that ignites every fiber of my being with a fiery passion and complete devotion.
We”re lost in a bubble that only contains the two of us and, for that moment in time, everything else around us fades into oblivion.
Until…
Rigorous coughing jolts us back to reality. With a glacial pace, I let my lips slip from Ade”s. The giggle escaping me is light and bubbly—just like my insides.
”We”re not at the kissing part yet,” Father Josef remarks, his cheeks and ears flushed with the hues of the red sky around us.
Oops.
We must have put on quite a show. I glance over at Rhia; she”s grinning from ear to ear. Yeah, we never do anything the traditional way, do we?
To calm my racing heart, I let my head fall back and for a few seconds take in the vibrant sky which continues to deepen in color. The first stars begin to appear one by one, twinkling overhead as if winking at us.
Tiero is watching. Ma and Da are among them too, of that I have no doubt. I feel their presence here with us, their love and pride cloaking us like a warm, intimate hug.
Ade squeezes my hands as if he can read my mind. He probably can; he”s uncanny like that.
Smiling, I connect our gazes again. Looking at the man who is everything to me, my mind is blank when moments ago it was filled with all the things I wanted to say.
Taking a deep breath, I become more serious.
”Today, one year ago, it was uncertain whether I would live or die.” Remembering the heaviness of that day, I swallow the lump in my throat that wants to lodge there.
”It was a day of goodbyes, and the most heartbreaking day of my life. Up to that point, I thought I understood heartbreak, but it had only prepared me for what was to come.
”Saying goodbye to Tiero felt like it ripped my heart apart, just to literally be replaced with his an hour later. What little was left of my heart prior to the operation was completely annihilated when I had to say goodbye to you, Ade.”
Of course the tears are back. How could they not? They”re streaming down my face in rivers as those last few minutes before the anesthetic kicked in play in my mind.
”Neither of us knew whether I would return to you,” I struggle to say as my throat seems to fully close over.
”I knew,” Ade whispers, tears glistening in his eyes.
I shake my head. ”We hoped… we prayed I would. But there was no guarantee that the heart transplant would be a success, or that I would make a full recovery. Everything hung in the balance, shrouded by uncertainty.
”I was so distraught, I couldn”t even bring myself to say goodbye to Rhia or all the people who came to Italy to support us,” I reach out my hand to Rhia, who wipes away her tears before taking it and squeezing it tightly.
”If I had, it would have felt so final.” I let go of Rhia”s hand and take Ade”s once more, my fingers caressing his knuckles.
My eyes connect with his, and I take a deep breath, trying to banish the emotions overwhelming me.
”Your face… your eyes were the last thing I saw, and I was so grateful for that. We had had so little time together, but if that”s all I had been granted, then I would have died a happy woman because you, Aiden Leonard Burg, were everything and all I ever wanted in life. And at least I had that.
”But God was gracious, and I woke again. For me, it was just a blip in time. For you and our family and friends, it must have seemed like an eternity of fear and uncertainty, and I”m so sorry I put you through that.”
Ade shakes his head, wanting to protest, but his ability to speak is choked as the tears finally spill over, and one tear after another rolls down his cheek.
I let out a laugh. ”Oh gosh, I didn”t want to turn this into a sob fest. Thankfully for all of us, I woke up again. And I did it to the most beautiful sight… your eyes on me, Ade, and your hand holding mine.”
”Always,” he mouths, still unable to speak.
”Always,” I repeat. Because it”s true. His eyes are always on me, and mine on him. And we will always hold each other”s hand.
”We faced everything together, before and after the surgery. And we”ve grown so much as a couple. While some of our experiences were downright frightening, we”ve grown stronger for them. And for that, I will always be grateful.
”And, thank God, we”ve made so many wonderful memories too, moments together and with our friends that I will cherish forever.
”You are my life, Ade, my love, my best friend… beside Rhia,” I quickly add when she clears her throat from behind me, making me giggle. It”s much needed after the seriousness of my previous words.
”You”re my constant source of joy. We”ve proven we can do this together. And I am excited to be walking life”s path with you hand-in-hand. We are one unit—a close one—and we will navigate life together. I”m up for all the adventures coming our way, and the challenges too.
”Throughout it all, I promise to stand by your side, to support you, encourage you, and love you unconditionally. I vow to cherish every moment we share, to laugh with you in times of joy, and to hold you close in times of sorrow. I give you all of me… my heart, my soul, and my unwavering commitment… forever.”
Ade squeezes my hands, and I”m ready to throw my arms around his neck again and resume our earlier interlude.
My arms lift, but this time Father Josef is quick to lift his hand to halt us. Clearing his throat, his voice cuts through the ambient sounds of the beach, steady and clear.
”Your love and commitment to each other shine brightly, and your vows were truly beautiful and heartfelt. Now, let”s formalize your union with the official rites.”
A warm smile on his face, he turns to Aiden.
”Do you, Aiden Leonard Burg, take Ella to be your lawful wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?”
Aiden looks into my eyes, his gaze unwavering. ”I do,” he says, his voice having regained its strength and filled with emotion.
The sound of those two simple words sends a shiver down my spine, and the tears are welling up again. Damn waterworks.
Father Josef turns to me. ”And do you, Ella Rose O”Neil, take Aiden to be your lawful wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?”
My heart swells with so much love I can barely breathe. ”I do,” I whisper, my voice thick with tears of joy.
Father Josef nods and continues, ”May I have the rings, please?”
Lex steps forward, handing the rings to the priest. He blesses them before giving Aiden the smaller one.
”Aiden, place the ring on Ella”s finger and repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed, and pledge to you my love, my faithfulness, and my devotion. May it symbolize the unending circle of our commitment, a bond that will endure through all the seasons of our lives.”
Aiden takes my hand gently, his fingers steady despite the tremor beneath his skin. As he repeats the words, he slides the ring onto my finger. Then he lifts my hand to his mouth and kisses the symbol of our marriage that now happily marks me as his.
My smile is radiant, reflecting the joy and love that fills my heart.
Father Josef holds the larger ring out to me, and I carefully take it. Reaching for Aiden”s hand, I savor the cool metal against my palm.
”Ella, place the ring on Aiden”s finger and repeat after me: With this ring, I thee wed, and pledge to you my love, my faithfulness, and my devotion. May it symbolize the unending circle of our commitment, a bond that will endure through all the seasons of our lives.”
I look up at Aiden, my hand steady as I slide the ring onto his finger, though my voice is shaky with emotion as I repeat the words spoken from the heart.
Father Josef carefully and reverently pulls the ribbon from around his neck and binds our hands together. I sense a flutter deep within my chest, like butterflies taking flight. The warmth of Ade”s touch, combined with the weight of the moment, sends a wave of tingles cascading down my spine. With each gentle tug of the ribbon, it”s like the bond between us strengthens.
Is that my imagination? Or is he really weaving our love and commitment together?
Weirdly, it”s as if every fiber of my being is attuned to this sacred ritual.
”As your hands are bound together, so too are your hearts.” Father Josef”s words echo the vows we”ve just exchanged.
He smiles warmly at us both and then says the words Ade and I have been longing to hear.
”By the power vested in me by the Holy Church and the state, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Now, you may kiss the bride.”
Grinning from ear to ear, Aiden steps closer, his hands cupping my face as he leans in. My stomach is wonderfully bubbly, the electricity that always sparks between us amping up to a feverish intensity. I can”t wait for our wedding night. Right now, it seems too long away. The need to touch every inch of my hot-as-hell husband is overwhelming.
Husband.
I repeat the word over and over in my mind, all of me giddy with excitement.
Husband, husband, husband.
I”m married!
I”m really freaking married.
Ade”s face inches closer, so slowly, it”s as if he wants to prolong this moment, make it last, and give us time to memorize it for eternity.
”Mrs. Burg… wife,” he whispers before our lips meet.
And in that kiss, I feel the culmination of everything we”ve been through, every hope and dream for our future.
For this perfect moment, it”s just the two of us, bound together forever… having found our happily ever after.
The End