Chapter 22 #2
Taking his vows from his pocket, Hayden paused, then let the paper fall to his side.
And as he readied himself to speak from his heart, his eyes never left hers.
‘Brianna, I thought I’d write this all down, but the truth is, every word I need is right here.
’ He lifted her hand to his chest, pressing her palm to the steady beat of his heart.
‘I spent so long thinking I didn’t deserve a second chance at the kind of love you read about in stories.
Then you came along, fierce, stubborn, kind.
You made me feel as if I were home again, not just here on this land, but right here,’ he tapped her palm ‘where it matters most.’
There was a lull as the crowd sighed and sniffled.
Then his voice wavered, rough but steady.
‘You’re my best friend, my greatest adventure, my safe place and my storm all at once.
I promise you, with every fibre of my being, that I will stand by you when the days are sweet and also when they’re hard.
I vow I will fight for you, for us, every day, for the rest of our lives.
’ A smile curved through the tears in his eyes.
‘I promise to hold you when you’re strong, and even tighter when you’re not.
To build our dreams with these hands, to raise our family, to grow old with you in the place we love most.’ He leant closer, his forehead brushing hers.
‘You are my now, my always, my forever. And I love you more than this land, more than these wide skies, more than any words I’ll ever say.
’ He squeezed her hand, his breath catching.
‘You’re my home, Bri. And today I give you all of me, always, forever and beyond. ’
There was a pause, before Brianna could find her voice amid her emotions.
‘Wow, my love, that was beautiful.’ Wiping tears from her eyes, she drew a shaky breath, her voice soft but clear.
‘Hayden, before you, I didn’t know what it felt like to be truly seen.
To be loved in all my mess and hope and stubbornness.
You are the calm to my storms, the steady arms that hold me together when I’m sure I’ll fall apart.
’ She brushed her thumbs over his knuckles.
‘You gave me more than love, you gave me a place to land, a place to call home, forever. You gave me a life I never dared to dream of. And you have taught me what it means to be chosen, every single day, flaws and all.’ A tear slipped down her cheek, but she smiled through it.
‘I promise to stand beside you when the road is smooth and also when it’s rough.
To fight for you, to laugh with you, to carry your dreams as fiercely as you carry mine.
’ Her voice wavered but didn’t break. ‘I promise to raise our family with you, to build our home under these skies, to grow old with you in this wild, beautiful life we’re creating every single day. ’
She took a breath, and Hayden whispered, ‘I love you.’
‘I love you, too,’ she whispered back as she leant forwards until their foreheads touched. ‘You are my once-in-a-lifetime, Hayden Pierce. My safest place, my best friend, my forever. And today I give you all of me, always.’
The celebrant stepped forwards again, her voice warm with the hush of the gathered crowd. ‘Brianna and Hayden, may I have the rings?’
Gavin stepped up, pressing the simple gold bands into Hayden’s palm. Then, with hands that trembled just a little, they each slid the ring onto the other’s finger, with Hayden’s thumb brushing over Brianna’s knuckle as if to promise forever all over again.
‘By the power given to me,’ the celebrant said, her echoing voice bright with emotion, ‘I now pronounce you husband and wife.’
The hush broke into laughter and soft gasps as Hayden pulled Brianna into him, his strong arms wrapping around her waist as he kissed her – slow, deep, certain, sealing every vow with the promise in his heartbeat dancing against hers.
The guests rose to their feet in a wave, the clapping, cheering and whistles echoing through the towering trees and the wide Sweetwater sky.
And in that single perfect moment, the world felt whole.
The reception unfolded under strings of fairy lights and paperbark trees, the air filled with soft laughter and the mouth-watering scent of a pig on the spit turning over hot coals, the crackling crisping to perfection.
Half an hour later, the guests perched on bales of hay covered with blankets, their plates piled high with roast pork, golden roast vegetables and fresh garden salads.
A dessert table groaned under the weight of Nina’s famous pavlova, and a collection of Molly’s homemade tarts, decadent slices, and enough sugary treats to tempt any sweet tooth.
Then, bellies filled to brimming, Brianna and Hayden cut the simple buttercream cake under a flurry of cheers, slipping each other a bite, with Brianna laughing when Hayden smudged frosting on her nose.
Later, their first dance played out on a cleared patch of grass, the pair of them choosing to be barefoot under the stars, with the band strumming ‘Forever After All’ by Luke Combs.
Lost in one another, they moved like no one was watching, Hayden with his hand at her waist as she pressed her cheek to his shoulder, with the world falling away until it was just them and the soft night air.
Feeling like she couldn’t possibly float any higher, Brianna closed her eyes, imagining their baby growing within her.
Hayden’s heartbeat was steady under her palm, and the warmth of his breath at her temple gave her immense comfort.
And as they swayed to the love song they’d chosen together, she thought of every step that had led them there – the heartbreaks, the healing, the promises made under the wide Sweetwater sky.
And she knew, deep in her bones, that there was no other place, no other man, no other life she could ever want.
This was home.
This was everything.
When the music softened then quietened, Hayden held up his glass and turned to their friends and family.
With all eyes on them, his eyes found Brianna’s, then dropped to the invisible swell beneath her dress.
‘Tonight, I want to thank you all for loving us, and for standing by us,’ he said, his voice catching as he squeezed Brianna’s hand.
‘And for standing with us as we build this life. And because we can’t keep it a secret anymore …
’ He paused as the crowd leant in, breathless.
‘In a little under seven months, there’ll be three of us here at Sweetwater Acres. ’
There was a heartbeat of silence, then an eruption of cheers, laughter and happy tears. They shared this magical moment with all, before Brianna pressed her forehead to his chest and the night carried on with firelight, music, family, friends, the land they loved and the forever they’d promised.
A little while later, when the laughter softened and the music drifted low, Hayden caught Brianna’s hand and tugged her away from their dancing guests.
She giggled as they slipped through the garden gate, barefoot across the dew-kissed grass, the hush of the surrounding paddocks wrapping them in a gentle darkness beneath a velvety sky blazing with stars.
Turning to her, he brushed a loose curl from her cheek with a touch so reverent it stole her breath. ‘So, tell me, are you happy, Mrs Pierce?’ he asked, his deep voice thick, like he already knew the answer but needed to hear it anyway.
She smiled, her eyes glassy, tears shining in the silvery moonlight dappling through the canopy of leaves. ‘I’m more than happy,’ she breathed. ‘I’m yours. I’m home. We have our first little one on the way. What more could I want?’
His expression that of a man who’d discovered his life’s purpose, he gathered her in nice and close, one hand splayed over the curve of her lower back, the other slipping between them to rest over her belly.
‘I’ll spend my whole life trying to deserve this,’ he whispered.
‘You, our baby, this land, this love. Every sunrise, every storm, every bit of it.’
Choking back the swell of emotion, Brianna cupped his face, tracing the rough line of his jaw with a tenderness that left him blinking back tears. ‘We found our place, Hayden. We found each other. And nothing could ever break that.’
He pressed his forehead to hers, and for a moment the world fell away. No laughter, no music, only the steady thunder of his heartbeat beneath her palms. ‘You’re my everything, Bri. My once. My now. My always.’
Her eyes told him the rest. She didn’t need words.
And when he kissed her, it was soft at first, just lips and breath and promise, then deeper, fuller, until it felt like even the trees leant closer, as if Sweetwater Acres itself was bearing witness to them.
Clinging to each other beneath the endless sky that had carried them through every trial to this very moment, they knew.
This was forever.