Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 111520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 558(@200wpm)___ 446(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111520 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 558(@200wpm)___ 446(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
“No,” Aleks said softly, the heartbreak in his voice clear. He pulled away from me and started heading for the door. I reached him before he could get it open. While Ronan had assured us the men who’d been arrested at the party had gotten the message that Aleks was off-limits, it still wasn’t completely safe for him to be out and about by himself. To that end, several of Ronan’s men were monitoring the outside of the house, but I was still reluctant to let Aleks out of my sight.
Not to mention I had a lot of explaining to do.
“Aleks, wait,” I said as I pushed the door shut just as he tried to open it.
He turned around. Tears were streaking down his cheeks. “I want you to choose me,” he whispered. “I know that’s selfish and those kids need your help, but I still want you to choose me. Maybe… maybe you can still do that kind of work but come home to me whenever you can. I’ll take that, James. It would be hard, but I could do it. And you’d know you had someone to come home to when things get really hard—”
“Aleks, I do.”
“What?” he sputtered.
“I do choose you. I already have.”
“What?” His voice cracked this time.
“I was apologizing to you because things have been going a million miles a minute since we landed in Seattle and that first day we just crashed and slept and last night I wanted you to focus on you and Dante talking so I was going to tell you today—”
“Tell me what?” he cut in.
“I talked to Ronan on the plane after everyone else fell asleep. He told me… he told me there were things I could do to help those kids without having to go back in. He said he’s got men on the inside but what he really needs is someone who’s lived that life… someone who can prepare the guys that go in.”
I wiped at Aleks’s tears. “He offered me a job, Aleks. And I accepted. I’ll have to travel every now and then, but he says I can live anywhere… we can live anywhere.”
“You’re staying?” Aleks whispered in disbelief.
“I’m staying.”
Aleks threw his arms around me. “I love you so much, James.”
“I love you, Aleks,” I said as I hugged him. Then I was kissing him and pushing him back against the door.
“Oh man, I don’t need to see this,” Dante muttered, reminding me we had an audience. “Magnus, can you send my best man to our room to help me find something to wear when Vaughn gets his tongue out of his mouth?”
I heard laughter behind us but ignored it and continued to kiss Aleks softly over and over. “We should go check out that bathroom,” I muttered as my body responded to his.
“Yeah,” Aleks said. “It’s upstairs,” he whispered.
Before we could head for the stairs, there was a knock on the door behind us.
“Sorry, guys, that’s Father O,” Magnus said as he held up his phone. I assumed he was showing us a text from Ronan’s men notifying him the man of faith had arrived.
“Fudge,” I said.
“Fiddlesticks,” Aleks said at almost the same time. We both chuckled and then he released me. “I better go check on Dante.” He gave me another quick kiss, then he was gone.
The wedding took place less than ten minutes later and started with three little boys, one dressed in Captain America pajamas, throwing cereal all over the hallway floor as they made their way to the living room. Father O was standing in front of the fireplace. Tate and I were waiting off to the side as witnesses. Tate had managed to find the traditional wedding march on his phone and had figured out how to play it through the surround sound system that ran throughout most of the house.
Hawke entered the room after the boys, followed by Aleks. Magnus and Dante walked hand in hand to stand in front of Father O. There was little fanfare in the whole thing, but somehow that just fit for the two men.
Hawke and Aleks each stood off to the side of the grooms. I could see that the band Dante had been wearing on his left ring finger had been moved to his right hand, so I assumed that meant the couple had wedding bands to exchange.
Father O did the traditional introduction as he spoke to the rest of us about the couple in front of us wanting to commit themselves to one another. But when it came time for the vows, he seemed to catch Dante off guard when he asked, “Do either of you wish to speak your own vows?”
“What?” Dante blurted. “Oh shit, I didn’t know that was a thing.” He seemed oblivious that he’d just sworn in front of the reverend. He looked at Magnus and said, “Fuck, Magnus, I’m sorry, I just thought he’d ask us that love, honor, and obey shit and we’d say yes. But I should have thought of something special to tell you so you know how much I fucking love you.”