Chapter 20 #4
Her eyes widened when I started, and by the time I finished, she was crying softly.
“Hey, that wasn’t exactly the reaction I’d hoped for,” I whispered, hoping I’d said it all correctly.
I wiped her tears with the handkerchief Grammy had put in my pocket, saying I’d need it. She always knew the right thing to do.
“Mike, you big, beautiful man,” she said around a sob and hugged me. There was a collective ‘aw,’ but I also heard a lot of sniffling. When she let me go, she shook her head.
“You keep surprising me, my Data Boy,” she said, with a teasing tone. We were grinning at each other for what felt like forever when Pastor Danny softly spoke. I liked her addition of ‘my’ to her nickname for me.
“Renata, would you like to say your vows now?”
She nodded her head and took a breath, her eyes never leaving mine.
“Michael Walker, you have become the sweetest, most unexpected gift to me. I promise to be your home, to walk beside you in the storms, and to shield you from the darkness. I choose you and give you my heart, my life. Now and always.”
Her words cut through me, and I wondered how she knew to choose those exact words. I didn’t even realize I was tearing up until her soft fingers wiped them away.
“Mike, you have a ring for Ren to signify your never-ending commitment, yes?” Pastor asked.
“Yes, I do.” Niko handed me Grammy’s wedding ring.
It had been made to nestle perfectly around the engagement ring she wore.
I held it out and looked at Ren. “With this ring, I pledge my life to you,” I said, as I slid it onto her dainty finger.
Her nails had been painted a pale pink that made me smile.
My girl was brave and fiercely independent, but her soft side was just as beautiful.
At that moment, my heart started to race even faster as I panicked, wondering if I was supposed to have my wedding ring, but when Pastor spoke the same words to Ren, she turned and took something from Vicky’s hand with a smile. I closed my eyes, grateful that I hadn’t just ruined our ceremony.
I held my shaking left hand out to Ren, who took it in hers.
She held up a gorgeous titanium ring with an abalone shell, intertwined with a type of wood I didn’t recognize.
She must’ve seen my curiosity and said, “Mike, I chose this ring because of the Hawaiian Koa wood, which is believed to be a symbol of strength and integrity. It reminded me of you.”
She slipped it onto my left ring finger, and I was surprised by how lightweight it was.
But it was stunning, the woodtones shifting as I angled it back and forth.
It displayed a range of light brown hues and rustic grain textures.
I’d never seen anything like it. Her acknowledging my love of woodworking in something as significant as my ring made me fall even more in love with her, knowing I was seen.
I looked at her, holding her hand again, letting her words wash over me.
“With this ring, I pledge my life to you,” she whispered as she brought my hand to her lips like she’d done before, looking up at me as she kissed it.
I feared for the health of my poor heart as it alternately stopped and thundered in my chest. When she lowered my hand, we were once again lost in each other’s eyes, oblivious to anything around us.
I wondered if it would be like this for the rest of our lives.
I silently made another vow to prove to her that she did know how to love, because it was evident in her eyes when she looked at me.
“Mike and Renata, I pray God’s blessings over you today and every day.
Put Him first in everything in your lives together, and you’ll find the strength to face every challenge and celebrate every blessing.
You are now a cord of three strands, and together you will see Him do the impossible.
So now with the power granted to me by the state of California and in the eyes of God, I pronounce you man and wife,” Pastor said with a huge smile.
It was surprising how such a small crowd could create such a thunderous noise when my pastor spoke those last few words. I gently pulled Ren close to me, and she came willingly.
“You may kiss your bride,” he said over the commotion.
We hadn’t spoken about this being our first kiss, but I’d thought about it. As much as I didn’t want it to happen in front of everyone, I wasn’t going to miss the chance to kiss my wife.
My wife.
She smiled, and her eyes dipped to my lips, and that was all I needed.
My hand banded around her waist, the other slipped into her thick hair as I slowly dipped her, making her gasp.
I may not have wanted our first kiss to be in front of an audience, but I wanted her to remember our wedding fondly. And this moment.
“I’m going to kiss you now,” I said, not able to hold back my wide smile as I held her suspended in my arms.
“I think I’m going to let you,” she answered saucily.
When my lips touched hers, the sound of obnoxious yelling and cheering slowly melted into the background as heaven touched earth. I was kissing an angel.
My angel. My wife.