Page 123 of Of Vows and War: Special Edition
Bellamy.
Chapter Fifty-One
Bellamy
Gods.
Asher had always been stunning. Perfect really. She was the most extraordinary creature to walk Alemthian. Yet, there was something otherworldly about seeing her in a wedding dress. I was terrified she would change her mind after last night, but instead she stood there, ready to seal our love with more than just a blood vow.
I was practically bouncing on my feet as first Lian, then Noe, and finally Nicola made their way to us. What they wore or carried or even looked like was gone to me. It was as if there was a haze that left everything but Asher a blur.
There was only her.
And then, somehow, despite everything that tried to rip us apart, Asher began walking my way. Her slow glide to me was both taunting and enchanting. I thought I might cry, or perhaps faint. I felt Henry’s hand grab my shoulder, tugging me back towards him. As his breath fanned against me, Asher made it to the halfway point.
“If you cry, I will make fun of you for the rest of our lives,” he chuckled near me.
“If you do not get your stupid ginger head away from me, then I will have Asher send you images of Genevieve walking down the aisle to you and then leaving you at the altar,” I hissed, throwing back my elbow into his gut. Air left him in an audible whoosh. Smiling, I focused back on my fiancé—no, Asher was about to be my wife.
Okay, so I was crying. Fine. Who cared? I could cry. It was my fucking wedding day!
And then, magically, Asher was before me. Farai and Jasper each took a turn to kiss her left hand, the one that bore the ring I had given her, before offering it to me.
Me.
I thought I might die from the sheer ludicrous nature of the moment. Asher was marrying me. Of all the males and females and fucking gods, Asher choseme.
Quickly, eagerly, I grabbed her hand and pulled her up onto the small silver platform. She smiled, her true smile now so common it no longer surprised me. But oh did it still excite me. Her large gray eyes were on me and her hands were in mine, a testament to how perfect my life had become.
“Hello, demon.”
“Hello, beautiful creature.”
“What, no princess?” she asked mockingly.
“No,” I rasped, my smirk full of a bravado I did not feel. No, I could feel nothing but sheer joy.
“Why not?” Confusion painted her stunning face, those alluring red lips pinching slightly.
“It does not fit any longer. Does not mean enough.” I pulled her left hand to my mouth, placing a kiss just above where her ring was. “My Queen.”
Adbeel sniffled loudly to my right, causing Asher to blush. But she did not pull away or scold me for my mushy nature. Instead, she just smiled softly and leaned down, offering a kiss to the finger she would soon place a ring on as well.
“My King.”
I was getting hard. Oh no, I was literally getting hard in my pants. I tried and failed to think of something that was less arousing. Anything other than Asher, really. But how could I when she was right there making every single one of my dreams come true?
Adbeel’s voice was deep and firm as he spoke, informing the attendees that we were there to bond us in matrimony. He blessed the union, begging for the gods to grant us their favor. None of the gods we once worshiped would. Except—maybe—the pink-haired one in the crowd. She watched on with bland disinterest, her hands wandering over Sterling in a way that likely left him even more excited than I was.
At least I was not the only one.
Sooner than I expected, Adbeel was stating that we vowed to honor and cherish one another, ranting about sickness and riches and so many things that did not matter. I would more than likely die in this war, but if I miraculously did not, then Asher would be the most beloved being on this world. By the masses, yes, but by me most. Nothing could stop me from loving her. So when Adbeel called for Asher to state her vows, I readied myself, trying to remember that Asher might not be the best at expressing her feelings verbally, but she would always be there to remind me in every way she knew how.
“Bellamy. There is so much I could say right now, so many promises I wish to make and thanks I want to give. If it were not for you, I would have been lost forever. But those things, they can be given, slowly, maybe even daily, over the course of the rest of our lives. For now, I just want to say this. I would wait centuries on that cold and lonely balcony if it meant I could have even a moment of your time. I would suffer a thousand lifetimes of pain if it meant I eventually found my way back into your arms. I am of the belief that there are few things in life that can beat fate and chance and whatever lies in between the two. But this, Bell—you, me,us—we are eternal. No force in this universe could tear us apart again. To you, I give my all. I give myself. Today, tomorrow, and every day until forever.” And then she took my hand and slipped on a gold wedding band with swirls of black, rubies and diamonds glittering around it.
Well shit. I was most definitely tearing up.
That was fine. Everything was fine. I was just feeling my soul leave my actual body.
