I chuckled. “Of course he did.”

“If that’s all right with you, Miss Larson.”

“Whoa.” Jude’s eyes widened. “Do you realize that’s the last time you’re going to be Miss Larson?”

“Yeah, that’s kinda the reason I’m standing here,” I said, laughing at the irony that our wedding was just as unconventional as our entire relationship. “And yes, Father Joe, I’m just fine with keeping things brief.”

“Something tells me the two of you have quite the dynamic relationship,” Father Joe said, his eyes sparkling.

Jude and I looked at each other and smiled. “You have no idea,” we said in unison.

Father Joe cleared his throat and angled himself toward Jude. “Son, repeat after me—”

“Oh, I’m good, Father,” Jude said, raising his hand. “I memorized the vows a while back.”

“What?” I shouldn’t have been surprised.

“I never knew when I was going to finally wear you down, and had to be ready for whenever that moment occurred,” he said.

I stood up on my toes and planted a kiss on his lips. “Just when I think I can’t fall any more in love with you.”

He winked and blew a slow rush of air out of his mouth. “I, Jude Ryder Jamieson, take you, Luce Roslyn Larson”—I bit my lip to keep from smiling—“to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish—until death do us part.” He blew out another long breath. “How was that?”

“Pretty much the most romantic thing you’ve ever said to me,” I replied.

“Very well done, son,” Father Joe said before angling in my direction. “Lucy, would you like to repeat after me, or did you memorize the vows as well?”

“I’ve got this, Father,” I said, squeezing Jude’s hands. Amazingly, neither of our hands were clammy. Neither one of us was nervous about making promises of forever to the other. “I, Luce Roslyn Larson”—now it was Jude’s turn to keep from smiling—“take you, Jude Ryder Jamieson, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish—until death do us part.”

As I finished my vows, I wondered what had taken me so long to get here. What had I been so worried about waiting for? Jude was just as much mine now as he had been then. A simple exchange of vows shouldn’t change anything. But as I stood here before him now after exchanging our vows, it kind of changed everything, too.

“I understand you have rings you’d like to use?”

“We do,” Jude answered, slipping something from his pocket. It was a tiny silver band. A wedding band with three alternating gemstones. It looked like he’d been hoping for this moment when he got dressed today.

Holding my left hand in his, he positioned the finger above my ring finger. “These stones represent you and me, Luce, and our little girl,” he said. “Emerald for your birthday, ruby for mine, and amethyst for the month she’s supposed to be born. I wanted it to be special, you know?”

He’d put a serious amount of thought into this one ring. “I know,” I said, fighting the lump in my throat. “It’s beautiful, Jude.”

He slid the ring down my finger. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

The wedding band with the three members of my family’s birthstones sparkled above the engagement ring I’d worn solo for three years. It was happy to have its mate.

I had to wipe my eyes before I grabbed his left hand. “Mine’s not nearly as thoughtful, but it’ll work. For now.”

“It’ll work forever,” he said, admiring the band.

As I slid the ring down his finger, I realized it would work forever. It suited him. “With this ring, I thee wed.”

Father Joe looked between us. “And now, by the power vested in me, I hereby declare you husband and wife. You may—”

“Yeah, Father,” Jude said, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close. “I memorized this part, too.” His mouth covered mine, and he kissed me. It was a bit like our first kiss, timid and hungry, and a little like it would be our last kiss, slow and consuming.

My first kiss as a married woman was pretty damn amazing.

Only when we had to surface for air did Jude’s lips leave mine. He sighed. “Finally.”

“Yeah,” I said, kissing his scar. “Finally.”

“Congratulations,” Father Joe said, his eyes still sparkling. “Be good to each other.” Giving us one last smile, he backed away from the podium and headed out of the chapel, along with our silent witness.

“What now?” I asked, tugging him toward the door. “Now that you’ve made an honest woman out of me, what have you got in mind next?”

“We should probably get that official wedding license thing so I can hang it on the wall,” he said, grinning ear to ear.

“We’re as official as you and me need to be,” I said, “but a framed wedding certificate would be a nice touch to the Ryder family home.” Wherever that home would be. We were in something of a TBD state in the home department. “But when I asked ‘what now’ I was referring to the next few hours future, not the next few days future.”

“In that case . . . how about a nice dinner? Candles? A bottle of champagne,” he said, catching himself. “Or a bottle of sparkling water?”