Chapter 102: Chapter 102: FINAL: The Wedding 1

~Alexander’s POV~

I had stood against my own blood, sacrificed my pride, and risked my entire inheritance to ensure that he would be standing where he was about to be.

The room went silent. The heavy oak doors began to creak open.

My breath hitched.

I had seen Alis every day for years, but in this moment, the anticipation felt like a physical weight pressing against my chest. I didn’t see the guests anymore. I didn’t see the expensive flowers or the decorations we had spent millions on.

None of it mattered.

All I saw was the door slowly opening, light spilling through the gap.

I straightened my shoulders, my eyes fixed on that entrance, waiting for the man who was both my beginning and my end.

Waiting for my husband to walk toward me, so we could finally, officially, begin the life we had bled for.

Music 🎶 Until I Found You by Stephen Sanchez🎶

The music played softly in the background.

The double doors finally swung wide, and the room seemed to lose its breath.

There he was.

Alis.

As he stepped into the light, my heart didn’t just beat, it thundered.

He looked like a vision pulled from a dream I had spent a lifetime trying to reach.

The custom suit I had chosen for him fit perfectly, the fine fabric catching the glow of the thousands of candles scattered throughout the hall. But it wasn’t the clothes or the diamonds that held me captive.

It was the look in his eyes.

He looked at me with a mixture of vulnerability and absolute certainty.

He began his walk.

Every step he took toward me felt like a victory over every person in this room who had once whispered against us.

I watched him, my vision blurring with tears I refused to let fall.

I remembered the boy who followed me to my car in the rain all those years ago.

I saw the man who had stood his ground against my mother’s coldness.

And I saw the one who, just minutes ago, had been wrapped in my arms in the quiet of our bedroom.

He began to walk.

Row by row, he moved through the aisle, and with every step, heads turned.

Conversations faded.

Whispers died before they could fully form.

All eyes followed him.

Men who commanded empires straightened in their seats.

Women who had seen everything leaned forward, unable to look away.

There was admiration in their eyes. Respect.

Something that bordered on reverence.

Because Alis didn’t just walk.

He owned every step.

As he got closer to me, the soft melody shifted—from 🎶 Until I Found You by Stephen Sanchez 🎶 to 🎶 Saturn by Sleeping At Last (instrumental) 🎶—carrying through the room as he moved, steady and unshaken.

Closer.

Closer.

I saw my mother first.

She stood tall, composed as always, but her eyes betrayed her.

There was pride there.

And something softer.

Something that hadn’t been there before.

Acceptance.

My father stood beside her, quieter, more reserved, but even he couldn’t hide the slight nod he gave as Alis passed.

Approval.

Then I saw his side.

His mother.

Her hand was pressed against her chest, her eyes already shining, her lips trembling with a smile she couldn’t hold back.

His cousin leaned toward her, whispering something with a grin, clearly impressed, clearly proud.

And still...

Alis didn’t look at any of them.

His eyes stayed on me.

Locked.

Unmoving.

Step by step, he closed the distance between us.

And with every inch he came closer, I felt something inside me shift.

Until finally, he was right in front of me at the altar.

Close enough to touch.

Close enough to feel.

His hand trembled slightly as he stopped.

Just enough for me to notice.

I didn’t hesitate. I reached out, taking his hand, my fingers lacing through his without a second thought.

Holding him.

I leaned in just enough for only him to hear me. "You look breathtaking, baby," I whispered.

The officiant began to speak, but his words faded into the background. I was lost in Alis’s gaze. This was the moment I had fought for.

I looked him in the eye, my voice calm and deep as I prepared to say the words that would bind us forever.

I wanted everyone to hear it.

I wanted the world to know that Alexander Montclair didn’t just choose a husband.

I chose my soul.

And I would spend every breath I had left making sure he never once questioned choosing me.

I cleared my throat, my voice carrying through the silent hall with a resonance that surprised even me. I didn’t need a script. Every word I was about to say had been written in the scars of our journey and the quiet promises we made in the dark.

"Alistair," I began, his name on my tongue feeling like a prayer. "For a long time, I lived a life dictated by others. I was a name, a title, a legacy. I was a man who had everything... but felt nothing."

I held his gaze.

"And then I found you."

I squeezed his hand, pulling him a little closer, needing him to feel how real this was.

"You followed me when I was cold. You loved me when I was difficult. You loved me when I was weak. You stayed when the entire world told you to run. You are the only person who ever truly saw me, not the Montclair name, but the man underneath it all."

I took a breath, my eyes locking onto his with a fierce, unwavering intensity. I wanted him to see that I wasn’t just committing to a marriage; I was committing to a lifetime of protection, devotion, and honesty.

That moment the melody changed from 🎶Saturn by Sleeping At Last (instrumental) 🎶 to 🎶 A Thousand Years by Christina Perri 🎶

"I promised I would fight for you, and today, that fight becomes our peace. I give you my hand, my heart, and every resource I possess. But more than that, I give you my soul. I will be your shield when the world is harsh, I will love you for a thousand years, and for every moment after that, I will be your home when you are weary, and your husband until my very last breath."

The room faded into a blur of gold and light as I reached the words we had bled for.

I looked into his eyes and smiled.

He smiled back.

A pure joy radiating between us. We stood there, locked in that gaze, until the music shifted—from 🎶 A Thousand Years by Christina Perri 🎶 to 🎶 The Night We Met by Lord Huron 🎶—soft and aching, wrapping around the room.

The change in the music hit us like a wave, pulling us back to every struggle, every secret meeting, and every tear we had shed to reach this moment.

Suddenly, our smiles weren’t enough to hold back the weight of it all.

A single tear slipped from Alis’s eye, and my own vision blurred.

We weren’t just two men getting married; we were survivors.