Tears spring to my eyes as I read Aiden’s note. It’s so sweet. He’s so sweet, and I’m the lucky one for having him in my life.

“Aww…” Hannah smiles as she snaps some pictures of me with her phone camera. I hear multiple clicks. “Seriously, you two are adorable.”

“Those pictures had better not end up on Instagram,” I warn my sister, even though I’m sure I don’t sound threatening at all with my voice distorted by crying.

“Okay. Facebook it is,” she says.

Mom hands me the box of tissues. “You’re going to ruin your makeup if you keep crying like that.”

“Thanks, Mom.” I dab carefully at my eyes and cheeks.

I’ve fantasized about my wedding day, of course. Which girl hasn’t?

But just a couple of years ago, I never would’ve expected that I’d be getting married to Aiden. And even in my wildest imagination, I never would’ve dreamed of marrying Aiden and having my whole family attend the wedding.

I still don’t know when it finally clicked for me that I’m supposed to be with Aiden, and there’s nothing I can do to change that—not that I ever wanted to.

The clock seems to crawl until I finally walk through the open doors into the old stone church where we're about to get married.

As he promised, Aiden’s at the end of the aisle, grinning at me with pride and love in his blue eyes. He’s absolutely striking in his tailored suit. And whenever Aiden looks good in something, I get the urge to take it off and jump his bones.

Today, though, I have to wait all day and all night until we get some time alone.

But at least, now, he’ll be by my side. Nobody can keep us apart anymore, not even just for one night because it’s “bad luck” for us to see each other before the wedding.

I can’t believe how much I miss him. It’s not easy for me to maintain a slow pace to match the music, because all I want to do is run into Aiden’s arms. Aside from last night, we’ve always shared a bed ever since Aiden stole me away from Hannah’s home.

Everything has just fallen into place easily for us. I realize now why it never worked with any other guy. I know now why they always seemed too clingy. It’s simple: none of them was Aiden, and I was never into anyone else.

The wedding guests have stood up to their feet, and most of them are looking my way (although Marcus is stealing a little of my thunder with his cuteness). But I’ve got my eyes on Aiden.

Because of my dad’s excessive need to control me, I used to want to be a lone wolf. I wanted to break free and do everything myself.

Now, I see that it’s okay to depend on other people sometimes. I mean, if it weren’t for Hannah’s help, yes, Aiden and I would still be together, and we’d probably be doing fine.

But as I walk down the aisle, holding on to my dad’s arm while gazing giddily at Aiden, I realize that going it ourselves wouldn’t have been as satisfying.

“Thanks, Dad,” I say just before we reach the end of the aisle. I give him a light kiss on the cheek.

My dad smiles sagely and pats my hand before I let go. He tends to be quiet at emotional moments like this. He always looks awkward too, like he doesn’t know what to do with himself.

He hasn’t said much about Aiden ever since the intervention, but they’ve been warming up to each other. They greet each other and speak civilly when they meet at birthdays and holiday dinners.

I don’t think my dad is ever going to be as close to Aiden as he is to Earl, seeing as they’ve been working together for years. But I’m okay with that.

I know now why my luck was so shit when I met Aiden again at the parking lot and at the slot machine. I think I used up all my luck meeting him. He’s been worth the trouble, though. I’m glad he showed up again, and I’m glad I never moved on after we parted the first time.

As Aiden takes my hands, my surroundings turn into background blur. All I see is Aiden—his dark hair that makes me want to reach out and run my fingers through it, his strong jaw, and his sharp, blue, familiar eyes.

The minister is probably saying something important, but Aiden and I are busy sharing our excitement.

To everyone else, we may appear to just be staring and grinning at each other like idiots. But we’re having an entire conversation with our eyes right now. I’m telling him I loved his note, and I hated waking up to an empty bed. He’s telling me he was so excited he couldn’t sleep last night.

In front of everyone we know and love, we share a private, wordless conversation in our secret language.

And when the minister gives the prompt, we make a public vow. To love and to cherish each other for as long as we both shall live.

“Before you kiss the bride,” the minister says, “let me end with a quote from the Bible. “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

I hope my dad hears that, I think to myself. Aiden smirks and gives me a look that says he knows exactly what I’m thinking about, and he agrees . . . but it’s time for our wedding kiss now.

He pulls me close and I let my eyelids flutter shut. These lips . . . No matter how many times I’ve kissed them, it never feels like enough.

Aiden pulls away. Amidst the cheers of our wedding guests, he says, in a low voice only I can hear, “You’d better not get tired of doing that. Because you’re stuck with me now. For better or worse. You heard what the minister said.”

I giggle. It’s scary how well Aiden reads my thoughts, but it’s even scarier how comfortable I am having him in my head.

“I love you,” I whisper.

“I love you, too, princess.” He pauses and turns to look at me. “I mean . . . I love you too, wifey.”

* * *

Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoyed Aubrey and Aiden’s story.

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