Page 72 of Book Bae

“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.”