The guests had been seated, and his processional had advanced up the aisle. First Armin, then Artur, then Rafael himself. The priest stood off to the side, waiting.
Just stay standing, he told himself.
The seconds ticked away. There was a low murmur of chatter among the guests, their voices floating up toward the ceiling, and Rafael felt their anticipation growing. They’d long since lost interest in the intricate decorations of the cathedral, the blush pink flowers that spilled everywhere, the meticulous arrangements. No one was paying attention to the cameramen and the media representatives who had dressed all in black, hovering close to the walls. They were waiting for Felicity’s grand entrance.
No—Joy would come first, with Hope.
Rafael’s blood rushed in his ears. Even if Joy did come down the aisle, there was no guarantee Felicity would follow.
Artur leaned in. “Feeling all right?”
“Yes,” he said through clenched teeth. There was no way to force out another word. His attention was glued to the back of the cathedral, where shadows moved in front of the double doors, which were already thrown open wide.
Was she out there? Or was she already running from this life?
The string quintet struck up the processional song, the music swelled, and Rafael’s heart stopped.
The shadows at the door moved…
And Joy rolled into sight, with Hope perched on her lap. Both of them were dressed in the same pink shade. His heart rocketed against his chest at the sight of his daughter with the sunlight in her hair, so happy with her aunt…
And then it stopped.
The music changed.
This was the moment Rafael’s entire life hinged on, and he hadn’t even known it. All along, he had been so blind…
There was one long beat. It was a wait that had him reaching for the speech in his pocket, bracing himself, preparing…
Felicity stepped into the doorway, centered there, the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life.
Everything else in the cathedral faded away.
It was a long nave, an enormous center aisle, but it didn’t matter—Rafael could see Felicity’s face as clearly as if she were standing right in front of him. Her eyes brimmed with tears, but there was a determined smile on her face. A real smile that shone from her eyes and brightened everything around her.
I love you, she mouthed.
“I love you.” He answered her aloud, and his voice must have carried farther than he thought, because there was a sigh from the crowd as if it were the most romantic moment they’d ever witnessed.
Rafael’s heart started beating again, harder and faster than ever, as he watched Felicity come up toward the aisle toward him. She came unaccompanied, looking every inch a queen…and every inch a woman who was confident in her path. More than confident. Delighted.
After what seemed like a century, she reached him at the front of the cathedral. He offered her his hand and helped her up the steps, and finally they stood there together, waiting for the priest to make his way behind them.
“I didn’t know if you were going to come,” he said, his voice low and choked.
She shrugged one shoulder, just a fraction of an inch. “I decided that loving you is the most important thing. If we’re committed to that, and respecting each other for who we are and what we need, then everything else is just details.” Felicity tilted her head and threw a wink at someone behind him. “Joy had some words of wisdom for me after the rehearsal dinner. You might want to thank her for those someday.”
“I’ll thank her every day, if it means you’re staying with me.”
“I couldn’t leave you again.” Now it was Felicity whose voice was tight with tears, though she was still smiling up at him. “There are stressful moments and obstacles to overcome no matter where I go. If I face them here, I can do it with you. By your side. And I can help other people while I do it, too. It’s the best of all worlds.”
“The best of all worlds is you,” Rafael said. “I love you.”
“I love you. And I think the whole cathedral knows it.”
The ceremony passed in a blur of vows and readings, and Rafael cleared his throat and repeated everything the priest told him to repeat. The words themselves didn’t seem to matter. That is, they mattered, in the sense that he voiced his commitment to Felicity in front of all of his guests and the rest of the country and millions of people across the world, but what mattered more was the look in her eyes, and the feel of her hands in his, and the way his own hands didn’t shake at all as he slipped the ring on her fingers.
“You may now kiss the bride,” the priest said, his voice ringing out over the congregation, and that was the first thing that Rafael heard clearly over the beat of his heart and the sound of his bride’s voice.