24. Micaiah
ONE YEAR LATER
“This is what I have lived my whole life for, this one moment, this opportunity to pledge my life, my soul, my heart to you, Sam.” –Love You Hard, MJ Stone
“To the love of my life. This book is given to you with the remembrance of every stolen moment we had in Cali, and every stolen kiss and moment since and in the future. May our stolen Georgia nights be just as sweet as those written about in this book. Love, Myr.”
Those were the words written on a linen card that had been slipped between the pages of a long coveted hardback book that I had sought since my youth.
Since learning that I was MJ Stone, Myraj had been in love with the idea of how thoughtful it was that I wrote my readers love letters. Now she had given me the same.
In an envelope that rested in the middle of the pages of Stolen Georgia Nights was a letter from Myraj that I read as my eyes danced to the bottle of bourbon tied in a beautiful satin midnight blue ribbon, another gift from my precious bride.
Dear Micaiah,
It was a pleasure to put focus and dedication into hunting down this rare copy of Stolen Georgia Nights.
I know that you have wanted this book for a long time.
I pray that when you sit down to read it, you pair it with a glass of this fine bourbon that I know you will enjoy, while sitting in your library.
I pray that your thoughts are full of me and the love we share, and the peace that you find in our home.
I pray that in the characters written between these pages, you find inspiration for greater works than those you have created, inspiration to create the beautiful art that you do, and inspiration to care for the hearts of those who love you most. More importantly, I pray that you find inspiration to keep living, keep thriving, and keep shining.
I cannot wait to meet you at the end of the aisle this afternoon. I cannot wait to exchange vows with you in front of God and our family, friends, and our children. I cannot wait to take on your last name and begin our journey to forever.
I love you for always and forever,
Myraj N.
My heart thudded with thoughts about the gift that she had left in my dressing room this morning. I wasn’t sure how she had gotten her hands on it, but I knew that it had cost her a pretty penny, and I appreciated her efforts even more than I appreciated the gift she had given me.
Between the launch of my new romance series, Myraj returning to work, raising our children, and planning a wedding, life had become extremely busy for us.
Karen had gotten the help that she needed, and while she hadn’t regained or even petitioned for custody of Malachi again, she did get to keep him overnight, one night of each month.
It had done wonders for their relationship, even as he had grown closer to Myraj.
With everything that had transitioned over the last year, the efforts of our hard work had culminated into a beautiful day.
I watched as my li’l G walked down the aisle in his midnight blue suit, holding the rings on the satin pillow in one hand, and holding my niece, Peony’s, hand with his free one.
Peony, Joshua’s daughter, was also four like Malachi, and she was charismatic.
She beamed and waved at everyone like she was on a parade float or in the Miss America pageant, while my son looked around nervously at everyone on either side of the aisle.
Our guests pointed toward me as we had instructed them to on their arrival.
When he turned his gaze back to me, a bright smile popped out on my son’s face.
“Daddy!” Malachi called out.
I kneeled and beckoned toward him. When they arrived at my side, I tugged on one of Peony’s little curls, and it sprung back into place. “You look so beautiful today, princess.”
“I know, Uncle Micky. Mommy said I had to look especially pretty today, not my usual pretty. You like my dress?”
“I do. It’s a beautiful silver dress.”
“Mhm. Silver looks good on me. Daddy said it,” she declared.
My groomsmen and the bridesmaids laughed with me.
“You look handsome too, Malachi.”
He beamed brightly at me. “Thank you, Daddy. It’s a lot of people,” he declared, his eyes growing wide and somber and his mouth turning down as he looked behind him.
I turned his head forward and made sure his gaze was on me. “Hey, you did your job, and you did a great one. You just have to hold onto this pillow until we get the rings, and then you’re free. You’ve got this, li’l G. Okay?”
“Okay, Daddy.” He grinned brightly at me again and took his place beside me.
I looked out on the sea of guests all dressed in aqua blue, Myraj’s favorite color. Symone, Jade, and Yashika made up her bridal party and were dressed in silver. My groomsmen, Mason, Lance, and Xavier were all in midnight blue, my favorite color.
The arches, runners, and chairs on this section of the private beach were decorated in silver, white, and midnight blue.
The violinist and saxophonist played Kenny Lattimore’s “For You,” and we all turned to look back.
My heart constricted and tears stung my eyes as I saw my beautiful bride being led down the long silver runner scattered with white rose petals.
She rode on a white horse that had a diamond encrusted bridle.
When I told her that she could have whatever she wanted, I meant that shit, including the fairy-tale wedding of her dreams.
The one-of-a-kind wedding gown was designed by Christina Dorché. The Chantilly lace and crystal embellishments came with a pretty price tag, but it looked good on her body, the way that it fit up top and flared at the bottom.
Her dress and shoes shimmered in the afternoon sunlight because of the crystals.
It was a dramatically elegant dress with long, off-the-shoulder sleeves, and her cleavage was perfectly accentuated with the sheer bodice and the sweetheart neckline.
Floral appliques traced the body of her gown and flowed effortlessly over her figure down to an elegant chapel-length train.
Two attendants stood by to help her down from the horse, and one of them gave her hand to her father, and he walked her toward me.
I heard the attendants in their seats oohing and ahhing, and I knew it was in response to her backless gown and how it dipped low in the back.
She wanted something elegant and sexy, yet still giving her the allusion of a princess, and that was exactly what Christina Dorché had accomplished with this modern design that was still sensual.
Nakaria had introduced Myraj to the designer the minute we told her that we were engaged. Christina had worked tirelessly with Myraj over the last year to design the gown of her dreams that had timeless couture detail, and my baby looked exquisite in it.
Mr. Nicholson clapped my shoulder with one hand, while holding her hand with his other one. He leaned in and whispered, “She is the most treasured gift God has blessed this world with besides His Son. As long as you remember that, you’ll never go wrong.”
I nodded and replied, “She is my greatest gift, my treasure, my reason for living, and she’s mine alone; she does not belong to the world.”
“You get the picture. My soul is good,” he remarked.
I pulled back, and Mr. Nicholson smiled and patted my shoulder before he placed her hand in mine.
“You are more beautiful than I ever imagined you would be,” I declared.
“When did you imagine it?” she asked in a breathless whisper.
“The night I gave you the fairy-tale night of your life.”
“Micaiah, but I thought you said—”
“I told myself repeatedly that I would never marry again. Just because my lips and my brain said one thing, it doesn’t mean that my heart was aligned with that. My heart saw you as my soulmate, my wife, and my forever, on the day we became one.”
The minister cleared his throat and smiled at us. “I’m not sure my presence here is even required,” he declared.
We laughed along with our guests, and I nodded at him. “Go ahead, man. Do your thing.”
We listened attentively as he gave his speech. He took the rings and blessed them before he passed them to Symone and Mason, Myraj’s maid of honor and my best man. When he finished and signaled for us to exchange our vows, I spoke first.
“I didn’t write my vows, Myraj. I didn’t need to, baby.
The feelings and emotions that I have for you and the love that is deep in my soul are etched on my heart, and from my heart, I will pledge forever to you.
I vow to always make your life a beautiful experience, a curated journey of delight, pleasure, experiences, joy, and love.
I will catch your tears, chase away your sorrows, hold your hand through your darkest hours, and travel the road with you.
When challenging times come, I will shelter you from the storms, and I will always consider your feelings and what your heart desires above my own.
“I love you, Myraj Nycolette Nicholson. With this ring, I vow to be loyal, committed, and strong for you. I will always cherish, love, respect, and honor you as your protector, your friend, and your husband.”
I slid the ring the rest of the way down her finger before she turned and took my ring from Symone.
“Myraj, you may say your vows,” our minister commented.
She inhaled and smiled before she spoke.
“When I met you, I had embarked on a journey to prove my friends wrong, that romance did still exist and that I could have one perfect, fairy-tale night.
I told them to watch how my life would change.
Never did I imagine you in a million years.
Not only did you give me my fairy-tale night and confirm that romance still existed, but you changed my life for the better in so many ways.
“I thought my soulmate had to be perfect, but you taught me to embrace imperfections. I thought my HEA had to be easy, but you taught me anything worth having is worth working for. You gave me hope, you strengthened me, and you encouraged my faith in the beauty of love. You taught me how to stand down and be okay with relying on someone else, that I didn’t have to always be my own strength.
“I vow to always treasure your heart and share in the dream that you have. The dream that true love and romance does exist. I vow to welcome your efforts in my life, make our home a beautiful one filled with peace and love, and to put in the work that is required to create our own fairy tale and our HEA. With this ring, I vow to love your imperfections, embrace your flaws, be dedicated to you, loyal to our life together, and to provide a haven for you and your heart. I will always honor, respect, love, and treasure you. I will be your peace, your comfort, your friend, and your wife.”
She slid the ring on my finger, and I reached out and wiped away the tears that pooled in her eyes.
“I now pronounce you man and wife. Micaiah, you may now kiss your bride.”
I cupped her face and drew her closer to me. My lips covered hers, and just as they were the first day that I kissed her, they were pillowy soft and sweet. I licked along the seams, enjoying the cherry flavored lip gloss that covered her lips.
When I pulled back, she smiled sweetly at me, and her eyes shone with so much pride and happiness.
“I love you, Mr. Livingstone.”
“Not nearly as much as I love you, Mrs. Livingstone.”
Everyone applauded, cheered, and rang bells as we turned around.
There was a carriage at the end of the aisle, and the horse that Myraj rode in on was hitched to the carriage. One of the attendants that helped her down from the horse was driving the carriage.
The second attendant helped her inside and then me, as everyone applauded. We took a three-mile ride to specific parts of Sorrel Island that allowed us to take in the whales in the ocean, white-washed buildings, giant tortoises, bungalows, and tropical plants and flowers.
“Has our wedding day been the wedding of your dreams?” I asked.
“It has been, starting with the brunch with our immediate family and the wedding party this morning.”
“Do you regret not having a traditional bachelorette party last night?”
“No. I loved that we partied together with our friends and each other. It gave me a glimpse of what I could expect in the future,” she replied.
We had a day-long coed bachelor party yesterday with our siblings and close friends.
We had a wedding Olympics complete with relay races and trivia, we did a bar crawl in the evening, and we took a sunset boat excursion.
We ended the night with a pool party and enjoyed drinks at the swim-up bar as we danced to Soca music.
“Malaika was beautiful in her little replica of a dress like yours,” I stated.
“Oh, my goodness. I almost lost my mind when I saw her in my mother’s arms looking like a baby version of me.”
“That was my little surprise to you. I knew that you would love that.”
“The same way that you loved that signed copy of Stolen Georgia Nights by Cobalt Stevens?”
It was a rare collection of poems by one of my favorite poets. The man seldom autographed anything, and there weren’t many copies of that particular book in print.
“Baby, how did you do that shit?”
“It was through one of my wealthier and connected clients. He’s a literature lover and spends a lot of time in theaters too.
He’s an older gentleman, and when I learned that he loved poetry and all the greats, I mentioned that book and you to him.
When I told him the story and how I would love to present that to you as a gift on our wedding day, he promised he would make it happen. ”
“But how?”
“Apparently, he and Cobalt are good, old friends.”
“Damn. How amazing is that?”
“Exactly.”
“You know that I’m not a crying nigga, but that shit almost brought me to my knees this morning.
I told you my dad used to read to me when I was a kid, and that was one book he wished he could get for me but never could.
Bonding with him over literature meant the world to us both, and the fact that you recalled I mentioned that way back when we first reunited means the world to me. ”
“And you giving me all of my heart’s desires means the world to me.”
I leaned in and kissed her sweetly as we finished our scenic drive. By the time we arrived at the castle on the island where our reception was held, all our guests had already arrived.
“Thank you for this day, baby. Thank you for positioning me not only as the queen of your heart but as the princess in my own real life fairy tale.”
“What else would I do? You’re the perfect FMC for me.”
She giggled and replied, “And you’re my perfect book bae.”
Everyone cheered as our carriage came to a stop outside of an old castle, and we climbed down to continue our fairy tale at the reception.