Epilogue
“Inow pronounce you husband and wife.”
Cheers erupted around the small chapel, though I didn’t take my eyes off my beautiful bride to acknowledge our friends. Wrapping a hand around the back of her neck, I tugged her closer and lowered my lips to hers. Whoops and whistles met my ears as I kissed my Millie like she was the air I needed to continue living.
Which wasn’t a far-off analogy, considering she was my sole reason for living and had been since we met.
“You’re mine now, wife,” I murmured.
“I already was, husband.”
The corners of my lips kicked up, and I brushed my nose against hers before straightening to my full height. Turning to the small gathered crowd, I finally acknowledged our friends and my family who had either flown or driven to Vegas for our intimate wedding. Dad smiled at us with pride and joy in his watery gaze from the front row, clapping as he stood with the rest of the guests.
Behind him was my team.
Ourteam technically, now that she had accepted the newly created forensic psychologist role with the Dallas-based BSU team. The dean wasn’t happy that she didn’t commit to another year of teaching, but once I explained he’d end up a missing person if he made her feel bad about her decision, he changed his tune and even gave her a parting bonus.
Crazy how a little bodily harm threat can turn anyone’s frown upside down.
After selling her townhome and most of her belongings, she moved down to Dallas and into the townhome we now co-own in the bustling uptown area. We’d barely had time to get settled, between the move and tying up loose ends from our joint assignment, taking down The Union of Blessed Souls, before jetting off to Vegas to get married.
And now, we were.
Holy fuck, how did I get so damn lucky?
Charlie and Rhyan waved and cheered as we walked up the aisle, the latter stepping out from the chairs to wrap Millie in a tight hug. While they whispered in each other’s ears, Charlie slapped me on the back and nodded.
“Best decision you ever made, Cooper.” I nodded, unable to look away from Millie. She was glowing with happiness, and I knew if I caught my reflection, it would be the same. “Did she see the additional guests you flew in last minute?”
At the mention of my surprise, I glanced to the very back row and raised a hand, beckoning the two closer.
“Congrats, Coop.” A grunt escaped, and I staggered forward at the hard slap between my shoulder blades. I turned with an annoyed look and flipped off Slade, our resident medical examiner’s boyfriend, before shooting a smile at Jameson, her husband and another profiler on our Dallas BSU team. Yes, she was with both, and none of us cared. She was amazing, and they made her happy. That was all I needed to know.
“Happy for you two, man,” Jameson said as he shook my hand. “I really never thought I’d see this day for you. I was almost certain, with your crazy-ass antics and lack of self-preservation, that you wouldn’t even see your next birthday.”
“Thanks for the confidence. Bastard,” I grumbled at the end. I looked over his shoulder and shifted. “Where is Hunter?” At his wince, I straightened. “What?”
“He wanted to be here, Coop, but a case came up that one of us needed to take immediately. I tried to go in his place so he could be here, but…” He ran a hand over his head. “The location was only a few miles from his hometown in North Carolina, so he wanted to be the one to go.”
“A bad one?” I asked, suddenly nervous for my friend.
“Yeah. A bad one. Multiple young women and the local police have no clue how to handle it.”
Before I could ask for details, the two guests I flew in just for Millie approached. Smiling, I laced my fingers through Millie’s and squeezed to pull her focus away from Rhyan. When she whirled around, that wide smile faltered as she took in the two women. My stomach sank. Fuck, was this the wrong wedding present?
“Karigan?” Millie whispered, fingers at her wobbling lip. I glanced at the young woman, who looked just as emotional as my wife. “What are you doing here? How did you…?” Those dark eyes snapped to me. “You invited them?”
“Invited, planned, and paid for all our travel. Even left us a goodie basket in our hotel room,” Karigan’s aunt said. She extended a hand to Millie. “Thank you for all that you did, all that you risked for my niece.” After dropping Millie’s hand, she wrapped an arm around Karigan’s shoulders. “She’s doing amazing, considering everything that she went through.”
In a flash, Karigan surged forward and wrapped her arms around Millie’s shoulders, pulling her in for a tight hug. Tears collected in my lower lids, but I refused to let them fall as I watched the two.
Karigan was safe.
Millie was officially mine.
And me…
I finally had it all.