Jaded Hearts
Chapter 94

Matt

She was a masterpiece.

No person, place, or thing in the history of time could have ever been more beautiful than the woman making her way down the aisle towards me. Her dress was well worth every penny my dad had spent on it.

The bright white silk had a modest V-neck neckline, but it hugged every dip and curve of her body, making it incredibly sexy. It flared out around her knees and trailed behind her, ending in an intricate lace design. Her hair was beautifully curled and pulled up away from her bare shoulders—shoulders I couldn’t wait to trail my fingers across and make her shiver.

She decided to wear her veil back, which was perfect. I didn’t want anything in the way when it was time to k**s my bride. When they finally made it to the altar, she turned around and gave my father a k**s on the cheek, showing the sheer lace on her back.

God, she was perfect. She knew how much I loved her f*****g back. Dad stepped closer to me and took my hand.

“You take care of this woman the same way you’ve seen me take care of your mother, and the same way you will demand Xayden and Alexander take care of Genesis, do you understand me?”

“Yes, sir. I do, and I will.”

“Good. I’m very proud of you, son.” He stepped back and placed Taylor’s hand in mine.

When our skin touched, it was reminiscent of the night I first met her in the club; the first time she’d trusted me and placed her small hand in mine. She looked up at me and smiled. My entire life was leading me to this very moment.

“Hi, tesoro.”

“Hi.”

“Friends and family, we are gathered here today to witness a celebration. A celebration of two lives becoming one,” the minister began.

I wanted to listen to what she was saying, but the love that was shining in Taylor’s eyes drew all of my attention and held it. I didn’t think there was anything in the world that could pull me away from this moment. She was a vision, she was perfection, she was—

“Matt!” Kade whispered as he jabbed me in my ribs.

“What?”

“Your vows, man. Pay attention.”

Soft chuckles and smiles were coming from the guests. I had become so lost in this woman that I didn’t hear when it was time for my vows. I turned back to Taylor and cleared my throat. I’d practiced these vows for months, but as soon as I opened my mouth, I forgot everything. It was time to speak from the heart.

“I believe you have been the best guide for me through this journey called life. You have shown me what it means to love. You have directed me down paths I did not know existed.

“Through our adventures, we’ve discovered beautiful waterfalls and fields of wildflowers. We’ve fought rapids and turbulent waters and came out the other side victorious and stronger than before.

“I believe in you, the person you will grow to be, and the couple we will be together. With my whole heart, I take you as my wife, acknowledging and accepting your faults and strengths, as you do mine.

“I promise to be faithful and supportive and to always make our family’s love and happiness my priority.

“I will be yours in plenty and in want, in sickness and in health, in failure and in triumph. I will dream with you, celebrate with you, and walk beside you through whatever our lives may bring. You are my person, my love, and my life. Today and always.”

“Taylor, your vows to Matthew, please?”

* * *

Taylor

Standing before Matt in his perfect black tuxedo, I was blown away.

He was so beautiful. His blue eyes shone so bright, and his smile was so incredible. This god of a man chose me to be his wife. To say I was honored would be an understatement.

It was finally time for me to tell him everything he meant to me. But how do you explain the entire universe in a few short sentences?

“A rainbow occurs naturally when the Earth is in perfect harmony. A precise combination and balance between sunshine and rain that creates a prism of colors perfectly painted in a half-circle across the sky for all to enjoy.

“Finding a rainbow isn’t easy. I like to think of our love as a rainbow that brightens both of our lives, and has a lasting impression on those who witness it.

“They say love is like magic, and I couldn’t agree more. When I first met you, you seemed to appear out of nowhere. My focus was kept on you, consistently trying to solve the puzzle of who you were and where you were from.

“As our love grew, I couldn’t wait to see you again and be entertained by the chemistry we shared. Now as we wed, I look forward to unlocking the mysteries of the world with you by my side.

“I love your sense of adventure and the way you always brighten my day. I vow to join with you in this journey as your wife with an open heart and to make even the smallest of our accomplishments, eating breakfast or changing a light bulb, into an exciting part of our lives together.”

“That was beautiful. May I please have the rings?”

Before Morgan and Kade could pass them over, Tyson stood up in the crowd.

“I’m really sorry to do this like this, but I didn’t see a good opening,” he began.

Matt dropped my hand and turned to him. “What are you doing, Tyson?”

“I’m not objecting, I promise. Just let me do this one thing.”

He walked over to me and handed me a small heart-shaped bowl.

“This day is a special day. Not just because you two are exchanging vows, but because it was your mother’s birthday.

“You told all of us how much she had dreamed of seeing Italy and being with you on your wedding day, so I made sure that dream was a reality as best I could. These are her ashes, sunshine. I’ve got your dad’s too. Maybe this beach is the perfect place to sprinkle them.”

I looked at the bowl and the beautiful swirls of colors that went into making it and knew that had my mom seen it, she would have loved it. I couldn’t believe that he had remembered and put the care and effort into making sure I had this opportunity to lay them to rest.

“Thank you so much for doing this for me. I can’t begin to express how grateful I am,” I looked up and told him.

“You know I’d do anything to make you smile, beautiful.” He passed Matt a similar sized box and smiled.

“I wish you could have had more time with them, man. Robert and Nancy were amazing people. I’m sure they’re smiling down on you two right now.”

“On all three of us. Thank you.”

Tyson took his seat, and Matt took my hand.

“You ready to do this?” he asked.

“I’m ready.”

He helped me down from the wooden stage we were standing on and over to the edge of the water. I stood there, feeling the sun on my face and the breeze in my hair, and imagined it was my parents. They’d done their jobs and lived their lives. Now it was time to let them go.

I opened the box and held it out. As a gust of wind swept over me, it lifted the ashes from my hand and out to sea. Matt copied my actions, and we both watched as my mom and dad floated away in the wind together.

It was perfect.

“Are you okay, angel?”

“I’ve never been better. Let’s go get married.”

We made our way back to the altar, and I saw more than a few wet eyes in the crowd. It was a beautiful moment that he’d given us, and we all felt it. I sent Tyson a quick wink, then turned to Matt and took his hands. We exchanged rings as the officiant performed her final blessing of the marriage. Then came the words we’d both been waiting for.

“You may now k**s the bride.”

Matt pulled me to him and dipped me backwards before capturing my lips in the deepest, sexiest, most passionate k**s I’d ever had in my life.

Whoops and cheers rang out from the bridal party, and it wasn’t until a blushing Giana yelled out his name that Matt finally let me come up for air.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Stone!”

The guests stood to their feet and cheered as my husband and I made our way back down the aisle. It was everything I wanted this day to be and more. I couldn’t have asked for anything else.

* * *

“How do you feel, Mrs. Stone?”

Matt was holding me close and guiding me around the dance floor. I don’t know how long we’d been at it, but it was the best feeling ever.

“Mrs. Stone. I love the sound of that.”

He kissed my temple and continued to effortlessly move.

“Is it okay if I cut in? You’ve kind of monopolized this beauty all afternoon, and I’m getting a little jealous,” Tyson walked over and said.

“Of course. I’m going to go find my mom. I need to thank her for all the work she did to make this day happen.” Matt gave me a gentle k**s and passed me to Tyson.

“You’re the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen, sunshine. Your husband is a very lucky man.”

“Thank you, Tyson, and thank you for everything you’ve ever done for me. You helped me let go of my parents twice. I’ll forever love you for that.”

“But you loved me before that,” he joked.

“That’s true. I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember.”

He wrapped his arms around me and began to dance to the music. I didn’t think it was possible for a person to be more content than I was in that moment. I had everything I could ever want.

“This day is all about you and Matt, but I’ve got to admit that I want this for us now. I want to show you off to the world as mine, see you walk down the aisle and only see me. That’s my new dream.

“It’s a beautiful dream, Tyson, and you deserve it.”

“I just hope I’m worthy of it.”

“You’re worthy of so much more than you think. You’re a good person; you deserve happiness too.”

We danced for a while longer, and then it was time for toasts and cake cutting. True to form, Morgan was an absolute character when she got the microphone, and when she began to shell out advice on the best positions for the honeymoon, Kade quickly swooped in and took over.

Luckily, most of Matt’s older family only spoke Italian, so they had no idea what was going on anyway. Matt and I just laughed it off and continued to feed each other cake. We were used to her nonsense; it no longer surprised us.

Once everyone finished giving their well-wishes, the music was turned back on, and we partied and ate until well into the evening. I was sitting in a corner, rubbing my aching feet and watching everyone having a good time when Matt came up behind me and kissed my neck.

He then moved a chair in front of mine and took my foot in his lap. “Are you tired, baby? You’ve had a long day and didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“Honestly? I’m exhausted. This has been a crazy long weekend, and I don’t think I’ve had one full night of sleep since we got to Italy.”

He lifted my foot and began to lightly k**s each toe, then my ankle, then further and further up.

“As much as I’d love to let you sleep, I have the most beautiful wife in the world. I have to take her back to our room and make love to her at least three times. It’s tradition,” he told me.

“I love a good tradition. Besides, last night, Nonna and Giana filled me in on my duties to you tonight, so I’m all set.”

He looked up at me, shocked, and I shrugged my shoulder. “It was tradition.”

“We have a child. None of this is new for us,” he said.

“Tradition.”

“I don’t even want to know what they said, do I?”

“Nonna warned me of how well-endowed you likely are, then—”

“Ack!”

He stood up and began firing off what I could only guess were extremely imaginative Italian curses. When his eyes landed on his mother across the tent, he charged over, leaving me to sit back and watch.

It was an animated conversation for sure that ended with Giana laughing aloud, then pulling him into a hug. She was too sweet and adorable for him to stay mad at, no matter how much he may have wanted to. When he walked back over, he sighed, then slumped down next to me.

“Have a nice chat?” I asked.

“She asked me if I needed my dad to teach me how to go down on you, tesoro. She told me he was good at it! What is wrong with this family?!”

I had to laugh at that; I couldn’t help it. He was so disgusted.

“We’ll be doing the same thing to Genesis on her wedding day; it’ll be fun. And I’m aware of how well you work those lips and that delicious tongue of yours. You don’t need any training. At all.”

“I’m taking you back to the room. Now. We’ve done enough talking. Now it’s time to consummate this marriage.”