He’s with Ethan, Hannah, and Eva, who have no idea about today. With everything going on and about to happen, getting married in the middle of it all may seem like a crazy idea, but Punky and I have never lived by the rules.
Crazy is where we thrive.
Aine opens her ceremonial book and clears her throat. “When I met Cami, she was broken. Like a caged bird, her wings were clipped.”
Punky takes my hands into his, squeezing softly as we stand face to face.
“I thought if I opened her cage, she would eventually fly free, but lookin’ at youse before me, I see she was waitin’ for her mate to fly free with. The door was always open, but she chose to stay waitin’, waitin’ for you.”
Punky’s eyes soften because the analogy is perfect.
There was never another choice—it was always him.
“Marriage is a sacred vow we make to one another; a lifelong promise that no matter what, we choose that person. Always and forever. Do you, Puck Connor Kelly, take Camilla Doyle to be yer wife, always and forever?”
Punky takes a second to bask in this moment because it’s absolutely perfect. But two simple words cement our perfection forever.
“I do.”
A tear trickles down my cheek, one which Punky lovingly wipes away with his thumb.
“And do you, Camilla Doyle, take Puck Connor Kelly to be yer husband, always and forever?”
My heart is beating so fast. “I do.”
Punky smiles, a true, genuine smile that lights up my entire world.
“Grand. Have ye got the rings?”
Punky’s mouth pops open, as this is something he forgot about. But I’ve got it covered.
Reaching into my pocket, I produce two white gold wedding bands. They’re simple, which is what I wanted. Their significance is priceless, however.
Nostalgia washes over Punky when he sees the two matching rings. I’m pleased he likes them as early this morning when he was still asleep, I paid a visit to the jeweler and bought them.
I hand them to Aine, who places them into her upturned palm. “A ring has no end, which displays yer lifelong commitment to each other. Puck, repeat after me.”
She offers him my ring, which he accepts, and he recites the vow after Aine.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my love. I give you everythin’ I am. Now and forever. My heart and soul belong to you.”
As he slips the ring onto my finger, I realize everything we endured has led us to this moment. And no matter what faces us, we will tackle it together.
When Aine asks me to do the same to Punky, I repeat the vows, my voice trembling because this day will be one I cherish and remember for the rest of my days. The ring is a perfect fit. He is mine. And I am his. Seeing him wear a wedding ring, my ring, does something to me which I never anticipated.
I feel whole; for the first time in my life, I’m complete.
“I now pronounce ye husband and wife. You may kiss—”
Aine doesn’t even have a chance to finish her sentence because Puck swoops forward and slams his mouth to mine. I stand on tippy-toes, threading my arms around his nape as we seal our union with an affectionate kiss.
“Mine,” he whispers against my lips, his possessive tone doing things to me, which turns my cheeks a bright red.
“Congratulations,” Aine says, truly happy for me.
“Thank you. For everything.” Aine and this place were a haven for me, and now, it’s the place where I made my love for Punky official.
“I’ve prepared a little somethin’ for youse.” She gestures with her chin toward a picnic basket. “To the happy couple.”
“Oh, Aine. It’s too much. Thank you.”
She smiles, and although she may have disliked Punky when she first met him because she thought he was the reason I was so sad all the time, she can now see that’s not the case. I was sad because I was without him—without my other half.
“Thank you, Aine,” he says with a polite nod. “This was grand.”
“Yer welcome. But if ye break her heart, A’ll break yer legs.”
“Aine!” I scold playfully.
Punky chuckles. “I’d break my own legs, but y’ve got yerself a deal.”
Linking my fingers through his, we collect the picnic basket, and Punky allows me to lead him as I know the grounds better than he does.
He doesn’t ask where we’re going. He follows as I lead him away from the property. I know the perfect place. The landscape gets a little rougher, and when we’re enveloped in a green wonderland, I take a deep breath.
I used to come out here to think, which was often. It was the only place I felt like I could breathe. Guests never ventured out this far because there is no path and one could easily become lost. But that’s the exact reason I would spend hours out here, happy to be lost to the silence.
But now, I’m happy to share the silence with my husband.
“It’s beautiful out here,” Punky says as we reach the lake.
Setting the basket down near my favorite towering tree, I open it and retrieve the red picnic blanket Aine packed for us. Spreading it out on the ground, I’m about to sit, but Punky picks me up and takes me to the ground with him.
Laughing, I straddle him as he gets comfortable against the trunk of the tree. We’re inches apart, and I take a moment to admire the man I intend to spend the rest of my life with.
Running my fingers across his cheek, I appreciate how he’s grown from when we first met. Punky has always had an edge, but now, he is a force to be reckoned with. I know tomorrow he will torture and kill whoever stands in his way, and I love him even more for it.
I know what that says about me, but it’s who I fell in love with, and I don’t want him to change.
“I love you,” I say, stroking over his scar. “Husband.”
A low growl escapes Punky. “Say it again.”
“I love you, husband.”
“And I love you, wife. Mrs. Puck Kelly. I can’t get my head around it.”
“Why?”
He places his hand over mine. “’Cause I don’t deserve ye,” he explains. “After everythin’ I’ve done…it doesn’t seem right that I deserve to be the happiest man alive.”
“You do deserve it,” I correct softly. “We deserve this. We deserve to be happy.”
Punky senses I won’t be swayed and nods.
He reaches for my left hand and rubs his thumb over my ring before drawing it to his lips and kissing over it softly. “When did ye do all this?”
“When you were sleeping.”
He smiles broadly.
“I know you wanted to get married at the castle, probably with friends in attendance, but—”
He doesn’t let me finish. “This was everythin’ I could’ve ever hoped for and then some. All I care about is being yer husband. And you, my wife.”
He lays a gentle kiss to the side of my throat, stirring the hunger within.
When my stomach rumbles, however, it seems I’ll need to feed another hunger.
Punky laughs, rummaging through the picnic basket. He retrieves the bottle of champagne and two glasses. With me still propped on his lap, he aims the bottle away from us and pops open the cork. It goes careening into the sky.
The bubbly liquid spills over, but Punky quickly catches it into the glasses. Once they’re full, he offers me one.