Neighbor Dearest

“Here we are, Miss. Follow the lights.”

“Thank you for the ride,” I said, handing him a ten-dollar bill.

Follow the lights.

I looked to my left and saw nothing. Then, I looked to my right and understood exactly what the driver meant. In the distance, was a long line of tall tiki torches. There had to be at least twenty of them on each side.

The waves were crashing as I made my way toward the flames. When I finally arrived at the beginning of the line of flickering bamboo sticks mounted into the sand, I paused and took a deep breath before looking over at him in the distance.

Damien looked breathtaking as he stood tall with his hands crossed one over the other. He was wearing a light-colored vest with a thin tie over a fitted white shirt that complemented his muscular arms. His sleeves were rolled up, and his beautiful dark hair was disheveled from the wind. He was the sexiest groom I’d ever laid eyes on.

My eyes started to water when it hit me that he wasn’t alone. Flanking Damien were the Double Ds—Dudley on one side, Drewfus on the other. They were standing at attention, more well-behaved than I’d ever seen them. I hadn’t expected him to bring them, but it was an amazing surprise.

My heart beat faster with each step closer to the end of the line. I could finally make out Damien’s face. He seemed overcome with emotion, and it shocked me to see him wipe his eyes. I’d never seen Damien cry and honestly didn’t expect it today. That, of course, made me break out into my own tears before I even got to him.

The dogs left their spots to greet me, and I bent down to pet them. Damien had put little bow ties on them; it was the most adorable thing I’d ever seen. I then noticed that the town car driver suddenly appeared again and took Dudley and Drewfus to the side.

Damien whispered, “He’s gonna take them back to Jenna’s in a little bit.” Placing his head on my forehead, he simply said, “Hi.”

“Hi.”

He pulled back. “You look...” he seemed to lose his words then looked me up and down. “That dress. Baby, you look like an angel.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“I really do.”

Holding both of his hands, I looked around at the torches surrounding us. “This is amazing what you’ve done.”

“I figured you’d appreciate the fire, even though this one is controlled.” He winked.

“I do.”

There was a vague awareness of a man standing to our left, holding a book. Whoever he was, he was being patient, letting us have our private moment.

Damien and I continued to be in our own world, holding hands in silence. I momentarily closed my eyes and cherished this moment: the sound of the water, the breeze in my hair, the smell of his cologne mixed with the salty ocean air.

“May I start?” the man asked.

Damien squeezed my hands then looked over at him. “Yes.”

The Justice of the Peace started his script, saying some generic things about love and marriage. Then, he asked Damien and me if we had written any special vows. With the short notice of our wedding, I hadn’t had the time nor the clarity of mind to put my feelings into words.

Damien placed his forehead against mine.

I whispered, “I didn’t write vows. I didn’t know we were supposed to.” I started to tear up, afraid that I’d somehow failed him by not coming prepared with something poignant to say. The thought of putting into words everything I was feeling seemed impossible.

When I looked into his eyes, he was crying.

Damien wiped my tears with his thumbs and wrapped his hands around my face. “I had a thousand things memorized to say to you in this moment, but I can’t think of a single one. What you mean to me, Chelsea, defies language. It can’t be summed up in words or reduced to a minute recitation. Just know that I love you with all of my heart and soul and that it’s limitless. As long as my heart is beating, it will only beat for you.”

His bottom lip was trembling.

I placed my hand on his heart and said, “This heart beating for me…these tears...they tell me more than any amount of words ever could. I never thought I’d be fortunate enough in my lifetime to have someone love me enough that it would bring them to tears. I love you more than life, Damien. You’re everything I’ll ever need. Please don’t forget that. I’m so lucky to have found you, so lucky that out of all of the places in the world I could have ended up, I moved next door to you—the one person I was meant to be with.”

“It was no accident. It couldn’t possibly have been. I’m just so grateful to God that He brought you to me when he did.”