Chapter Eighteen #3
Cass is laughing quietly to himself and standing there at the center of our altar is Clayton. All of the guys are in their cut offs, Cass included. He's wearing a pair of dark blue jeans, black riding boots, his button up Hounds shirt, and his cut-off.
Clayton is wearing something similar, button up shirt and all beneath his cut-off.
When I make it to the altar, Mindy gets up from her seat and snags Buddy's leash from me.
She's got him his own seat, an empty space where a chair would be, is reserved just for Bud with a small cushion for him to sit on.
Cass takes my hands in his and I stand across from him.
Clayton begins reading from the script he's holding.
He begins by thanking everyone for being here and he politely reminds them that he will not be asking for anyone to speak now or forever hold their peace, garnering a laugh from everyone, including me.
The world around us disappears as Clayton reads our vows and we repeat them, sliding rings onto each other's fingers.
"And with that, by the power vested in me by the state of Oklahoma, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Son...You may kiss your bride!"
I step toward him and his arms wrap around my waist as he presses his lips to mine. Just like every other time he kisses me, blue sparks ignite.
Our friends cheer loudly when he dips me, one hand on my back and the other holding my thigh.
He sets me upright and we're both smiling a breathless.
He grips my hand and throws it in the air like I've just won the biggest wrestling match of my career, earning us another round of applause and cheering.
"I present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Caine Sonnier," Clayton announces.
The wind blows hard, whipping my curls around wildly and biting into my fingers that have a death grip on my bouquet. Nova steps in and begins giving us direction on poses. As we follow her orders and do each one, she takes what sounds like a hundred pictures.
"Okay, everyone up here!" she yells.
Everybody approaches, lining up behind us and beside us.
Cass's arm glides across my lower back and he pulls me in close to him.
I bask in the warmth his body has to offer and shield myself between everyone to attempt to block the wind.
Nova has us do a few different poses before dismissing everyone.
Cass's truck is already cranked with the heater on full blast when I climb inside.
It takes me a second to realize my fingers are colder than they've ever been.
I shove them in front of the heater, but they are so cold that even the heater hurts at the moment.
Cass climbs into the driver's seat and grins at me. I lean over the center console and press my hand to his cheek. It's ice cold against my hand as I kiss his lips.
"Hi, husband," I whisper, opening my eyes and staring into his. His smile is so wide that his eyes are squinted.
"Hi, wife," he whispers back, kissing me again.
I sit back in my seat and slip my hand in his.
He shifts the truck into drive, and we follow behind the rest of our friends to the VFW hall that we rented for the reception.
The prospects, Cass, and most of the ol' ladies spent the last few days there getting everything ready.
I haven't seen it since we walked into the empty room the day we rented it.
Cass turns in slowly and we park beneath the awning, waiting for the rest of the guests to enter the hall first. Once everyone is inside, Cass looks at me.
"Ready?" he asks.
I nod enthusiastically. He gets out of the truck and opens my passenger door.
He holds his hand out and I take it, stepping down out of the truck with his help.
We walk inside the reception hall, and everyone has made an aisle between them for us to walk down.
I shove my bouquet in the air as we walk through and bubbles begin blasting through the air, bursting when they come crashing down on us.
Our first dance song begins to play and Cass leads me onto the empty dance floor just beyond the aisle of guests.
'You Make It Easy' by Jason Aldean blares, and I place one hand in Cass's while the other is wrapped around his shoulder, resting on his back.
We sway back and forth, wrapped in each other.
Lost inside of a moment that I want to last forever.
I rest my head on his chest for a moment before he spins me around.
Cass pulls me back to him and kisses me. I almost forget to keep moving my feet and if it weren't for him leading us, I'd have forgotten to breathe.
"You finally broke the cycle, love," he says playfully.
I purse my lips, curiosity getting the better of me.
"What cycle?" I ask.
"You married outside of your family wreath and to someone who's really a biker," he says sarcastically, throwing my words back at me from the night we met.
I cackle, loud and obnoxiously as I slap his chest. His laugh is the best sound I've ever heard. He's holding my hand in his against his chest to keep me from slapping him again. Cass leans in and kisses my forehead, a sensation that gives me the utmost peace inside of my soul.
"This is everything I've ever wanted out of life. This moment. Right here," I whisper, closing my eyes and resting my head back onto his chest as the song draws to an end.
"Ditto, baby."