I sat up and sighed. “That’s another thing. Mathias knows so much about sex. I know nothing but the basics of how it’s done. There’s no way I could please him the way some other woman could.”
She took my hand and held me in place. “First of all, if that’s the case, why isn’t Mathias kissing one of those women? Second of all, the basics are all you need to know. He will teach you the rest.”
I shrugged and did the palms-out again. “If you say so. I’m just going with the flow because I’ve tried fighting against the current and it doesn’t work. All I can do is give him time.”
She hugged me around my waist for a moment in solidarity. “You’re right, and from what I just saw there, the time is now.”
While we stood and finished our preparations for her big day, all I could think was, I hoped she was right.
♥
“Here we are again,” Mathias whispered. We stood at the back of the orchard waiting for our turn to walk up the aisle. “We just spent an hour taking pictures, and you’re still drop-dead gorgeous.”
A smile tipped my lips up, and I fought against swooning in front of the almost one hundred guests lined up in chairs waiting for the festivities to begin. “You’re pretty handsome yourself, Mr. Best Man. I suppose we better get this started before Gulliver falls from anticipation.”
“He’s already seen the bride,” Mathias said, linking his arm through mine when the music started.
“He did, and those first-look pictures are going to be everything, but he hasn’t seen the love of his life walking toward him with the sole purpose and determination of becoming his forever. That does something to a person, especially considering Gulliver’s past.”
We started our walk toward the front, being careful of the uneven ground that led to the little wooden swing. Laverne had made sure the tree overhang had been cut back, and we had some beautiful pictures of Gulliver on the swing with Charity on his lap. They kissed just as the sun broke through the clouds for a moment to shine down on them. The photographer said it was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of shot.
I’d been there for it, but I’d have to see the picture to remember the moment. I was too caught up in the azure eyes of the man next to me. It was ridiculous how in love I was with this guy even after twenty years.
“That’s true. Gulliver always thought he’d be alone forever,” Mathias agreed, helping me over the root of an apple tree. “They deserve to be happy, and I’m thrilled to be here for their big day,” he said, patting my hand with his. “I always figured I’d be married and settled down by now. Didn’t you?”
I swallowed hard and shook my head, tears springing to my eyes instantly at his words. I wanted to say that I always knew I’d be alone forever too. Someone like me can’t love someone like him and expect anything else. Fortunately, we reached Gulliver and the judge before I could respond.
We each took our place next to Gulliver and turned, ready for the bride to appear. The music changed, and the rest of the guests stood as Charity walked toward us with her arm through Jonathan’s and a bouquet of apple blossoms in her hand. The height difference between them was almost two feet, and it would have been comical if it weren’t for the fact that Charity was too stunning to notice anything else.
We’d found her dress at the same shop as mine. It was a first communion gown and absolutely stunning in the innocence of it. Charity had known finding a wedding dress was going to be difficult, but the dress brought tears to her eyes at first sight. I insisted she try it on, and when she did, we both started crying. Even if she felt silly buying a child’s dress for her big day, it had been the absolute right choice. She radiated light and happiness that touched Gulliver instantly. He leaned heavily on his crutches while Mathias grasped his shoulder in solidarity. The walk was short, but the journey to get there was long, and Gulliver’s eyes told us of the emotional toll it took. There was nothing but joy and happiness between them as Charity stood before her groom and their eyes met. Mathias moved a chair behind Gulliver, and he sat, meeting his bride eye to eye. Her beaming smile and the soft caress of her hand on his face told us how happy it made her.
When the music ended, the judge opened his book. “Jonathan, as representative of Charity’s family, are you who gives the bride to this man to be wed?”
“I am,” he answered, placing Charity’s hand in Gulliver’s.
“Charity and Gulliver. Is there any known reason why the two of you can’t be joined in matrimony on this day?”
They both answered no, but their gazes never wavered from each other. The judge continued the ceremony, keeping it simple in light of our time constraints. I tried to focus on the happy couple, but the eyes of the best man were laser focused on me, making concentration difficult. I wanted to run his silk tie through my fingers. I wanted to lift myself on my toes and kiss his lips, my hands gliding through his soft blond locks. I wanted to—
“Honey?” Charity whispered, and my gaze snapped right to her as Mathias took a step toward me. “The ring?” she asked, and I was suddenly sure the judge had already asked me several times.
I handed her the ring with a smile and flicked my eyes to Mathias until he stepped back. Charity held the ring up and turned it back and forth. “When I bought this ring, I was struck by how big it was,” she said, gazing at her soon-to-be husband. “It was too big for any of my fingers, and yet, it will fit you perfectly. That’s us in a nutshell if you think about it. No one can say we’re a perfect fit.” She held the ring up again. “At least not in the physical sense. We couldn’t be more different, but at the same time we complement each other. Taking my upbringing into account, I don’t know a lot about marriage, but I’ve figured this much out. Being a perfect fit isn’t about our physical bodies at all. Being a perfect fit is about our hopes, dreams, goals, and beliefs about what we want in life and from each other. It helps that you can reach the stuff on the top shelf and I can reach the stuff on the bottom shelf, though.”
Everyone chuckled at the image running through their heads. I grinned, bouncing up on my toes as my gaze met Mathias’s again. He wore a grin ear to ear, and it was damn near impossible to tear my gaze from his.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is, I love you, Gulliver,” Charity continued. “Not because you can reach the stuff on the top shelf, but because you are top-shelf. You’re the person who climbed a hill with crutches in the dark to take a picture of me lying under the northern lights. You didn’t have to go that extra mile for something you could have done with less pain and strife to yourself, but you weren’t thinking about yourself that night. You were thinking about me. You wanted that moment to be perfect for me. That’s what I think about as we start our lives together today. I think about the little moments that you make perfect because you love me,” she said, holding up the ring again. “So, with this ring, I promise to love, cherish, and honor you all the days of our life together,” she whispered as she slid the ring onto his finger.
He smiled, a tear dripping down his cheek that she wiped away before he spoke. He held up his hand. “It is a perfect fit. I suppose that’s to be expected since we did have them sized, but you’re right, we don’t always get to have our lives sized to perfection. I think the giant shoe I wear on one foot is evidence of that. Sometimes we just have to find our perfect in the imperfect. Sometimes we have to stop and listen to the universe when it says that you do deserve to be happy, and the tiny woman who just walked out of your office with a dog bigger than she was will make you happiest of all. The universe was right that day,” he said as Charity chuckled and Mojo whined from where he sat at Laverne’s feet. The giant mastiff was indeed bigger than Charity, but he was always her protector, and he wasn’t enjoying his forced time-out away from her.
Gulliver held up the tiny diamond band he’d accepted from Mathias. It sparkled in the afternoon light and would fit perfectly on her finger to join them forever. “I don’t think this would fit on one of my toes,” he said, turning it in confusion as their friends burst into loud giggles. “I was deathly afraid I was going to lose it considering its size, beauty, and worth. It hit me as I watched you walking toward me that I had felt the same about you for the last year. I am so glad we’re finally here committing ourselves to each other in a way that will let me worry less about our individual size and beauty and concentrate everything on our worth. We are worth everything we’ve done together this past year, Charity. We deserve the happiness we’ve found with each other. We may not be a perfect fit for the rest of the world, but this ring symbolizes to me that perfect comes in all sizes. You are my perfect.” He slid the ring onto her tiny finger and snugged it up next to her engagement ring. “With this ring, I promise to love, honor, and cherish you no matter where we are or what we’re doing. I promise to always go the extra mile for you because I know you’ll meet me halfway and let me lean on your shoulder to rest. I love you, Charity.”
Everyone had their hands to their hearts, a tissue to their eyes, or a grin on their lips. The judge finished the ceremony with a final reminder to be kind, love hard, and always take a moment to walk in the other person’s shoes before letting anger guide your tongue. Then he said the words everyone had been waiting to hear.
“With the power vested in me by the State of Wisconsin, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Gulliver, you may kiss your bride.”
The audience jumped to their feet with laughter and applause while Gulliver hauled Charity onto his lap to share their first kiss as husband and wife.
My gaze met Mathias’s over their heads, and his expression told me I was his top-shelf. It was unnerving, exciting, and a little bit scary at the same time. But my heart sank just as quickly. If he couldn’t let go of our past and see that we were different people in the present, we’d never have a future together.
