The Ties That Bind

(Harper's POV) "Do you, Harper Faye Hollins, take this man to be your lawfully-wedded husband? Do you promise to have and to hold him, to love and to cherish him, to respect and to honor him in all ways for as long as you both shall live?" asked Mr. Mather, the minister, looking intently into my eyes as he spoke. Though I scanned the sea of smiling faces that were murmuring in hushed tones amongst themselves, my focus wasn't on any of them or my extravagant wedding dress or the beautiful Autumn scenery around me, or even on the stiff-as-a-board minister asking me if I vowed to love my soon-to-be husband for as long as I should live. My focus was on him – my life-changing, heart-stopping hunk of a vampire Master standing opposite me at our fancy little alter with his hands clasped around mine and gazing into my eyes like Van Gogh, himself, had painted my very irises. Now realistically, I didn't need to ponder Mather's questions for even a second; in fact, I couldn't have blurted out my answer any quicker! "Hell yeah!" I squealed with nervous excitement. Between my eager response to the minister and Dane's fang-flashing smile in return, our audience erupted in a fit of laughter and light applause. I, being only human and unable to pick and choose when embarrassment washes over me, turned my blushing face away from the crowd for just a moment to gain my composure, then I refocused my full attention back on Dane, who playfully shook his head back at me but kept a cheeky smile on his face all the while. "And do you, Dane Ambrose Hale, take this woman to be your lawfully-wedded wife? Do you promise to have and to hold her, to love and to cherish her, to respect and to honor her in all ways for as long as you both shall live?" Mather asked, looking intently into Dane's eyes like he'd just done to me. Giving my hands a reassuring squeeze with his stunning blues fixed squarely on me, his wide smile broadened even more. I swear, I've never seen a man look at me with such love and adoration before! "I loved her for years before I even met her, Mr. Mather, and I'm more than willing and prepared to love her for an eternity more. So, yes ... I do," he declared, the boldness of his declaration making our audience coo and murmur their sweet sentiments amongst themselves. My heart took flight the moment 'I do' rolled off of his tongue, and my cheeks, quite literally, began to ache due to how long and how wide I was smiling! Calvin handed our wedding bands over to Mather, who then handed Dane's to me. After a few moments of silence, Mather leaned in closer to me and whispered, "Now would be the time to give your vows." I acknowledged him with a nod then looked at my almost-husband and released a drawn-out sigh – not in a negative sort of way, though. Simply put, in that very moment it was still so very surreal to me to find myself at the altar with him! "Dane … regardless of the way our story began, I don't think I could ever thank you enough for coming into my life and flipping it upside-down the way you did. I never knew bonafide love until I met you. Hell, I never knew many things until you! Each day with you is a gift and I'll never take them for granted. I'll love you with every beat of my heart and then some, I swear! It's you and me against the world, babe," I vowed to him and only him, then I shakily slipped the band onto his finger. The hugest, most alluring smile I'd ever seen graced his handsome face in return – a sight that would be seared into every fiber of my being for the rest of my life, no doubt! He was up next. Rather impatiently, he snatched my band from Mather's open palm and cut right to the chase. "A while back, I told you that you're the reason I believe in love at first sight, and that hasn't changed a bit. You very much are the reason I still exist and the reason I am who I am today. I'd be nothing without you, Sweetheart. You're my life, my love, my hopes, my dreams, my goals, my inspiration, my everything ... and in a world where so much is void, you've completed me. Thank you for being who you are, my lady, and thank you for accepting my love. I'm gonna love you like nobody's ever loved you before. I swear it," he vowed to me and only me, then he slipped the band onto my finger. As expected, a big-ass smile that couldn't have possibly been erased was plastered right onto my face, reiterating my sentiments to everyone within eyesight. "Then by the power vested in me, it is my honor to officially pronounce you husband and wife," Mather proclaimed. "Congratulations to the both of you, and Dane ... you may now kiss-" Dane didn't let him finish, urgently yanking me into himself and smashing his lips into mine. Time stood still as our lips moved gracefully together and a roar of applause erupted, and for a second or two I damn-near forgot we were in front of a crowd of our closest friends and family! All too soon, though, the sudden clearing of Mather's throat interrupted us, effectively breaking our increasingly-heated kiss. Snickering under his breath, Dane pressed his forehead against mine, then we exchanged goofy smiles and mouthed an 'I love you' to one another. As we turned our bodies to our audience, he took hold of my left hand and interlaced our fingers, then we exchanged sideways glances once more and faced the sea of smiling, teary-eyed faces dead-on. Mather then stepped around Dane and my maid of honor, Sammie (who promptly handed me my bouquet), then finally he took hold of mine and Dane's conjoined hands and held them up high in the air. "Presenting to you all ... Mr. and Mrs. Hale!" he proudly announced. I held my bouquet up to the sky in triumph as my new title escaped the minister's mouth. Our audience erupted in a fit of applause again, then each bridesmaid and groomsman pair filed back up the aisle and off to the side in wait for Dane and I to happily follow suit. At long last – after eight grueling months of planning and meeting, of searching out and inviting, and of high tensions and semi-breakdowns, I finally got to say 'I do' to my man ... my vampire ... my Master ... my lover ... my husband ... my absolute everything, and I couldn't have been more thrilled about it! It's been every bit worth the prolonged wait and each of our stressful days and restless nights. On this day, we are officially husband and wife and I am officially Mrs. Harper Faye Hale! ***** After the ceremony ended, we were bombarded with an overwhelming flood of congratulatory well-wishes, warm hugs and cheek smooches, requests for snapshots, and even a few crocodile tears from the more sensitive guests such as Hen and Ms. Hannigan. While I hugged Tilly's neck, my gaze wandered off to a distant group of trees and took immediate notice of the shape of a person casually propped against one of them. I could barely see the lit end of a cigarette glowing a bit redder each time the mysterious being took a hit from it. My curiosity hit the sky by the second as I stared the distant figure down, puzzled as to why the hell he or she was just standing on the outskirts of my wedding. Unfortunalry for my inquisitive mind, though, I didn't have the time of day to dwell on it; not only that, Dane didn't seem phased at all. In favor of concentrating on my husband, I pushed the strange anomaly into the back of my mind and carried on with my wedding and well-wishers. After the onslaught of loved ones dispersed to mingle with one another, Dane and I wandered off to have a couple of minutes to ourselves before the beginning of our reception was to be announced. We were immersed in a hot and heavy kiss as husband and wife when his lips abruptly stopped moving, and when my eyes popped open I took immediate notice that his entire expression had soured. With concern instantly washing over me, I pulled away to study his features, then I followed his gaze over my shoulder and straightaway registered the form of a couple who were nearing us at a snail's pace. Dane looked rather enraged at their approach, and the same could be said of the tall, model-pretty brunette woman coming our way; the man, on the other hand, seemed to be quite chipper, sporting an endearing-type of smile from ear to ear. I whipped around to stand beside Dane and leaned in closer to him. "Who are they?" I whispered, linking arms with him in the process. Although I knew he'd clearly heard me, he remained tight-lipped and uncomfortably stiff. "What a beautiful wedding that was ... well, what we saw of it, anway," chimed the man as he and the woman closed in on us, then he wrapped Dane up into a tight embrace. Though Dane's gaze lowered at first, he eventually reciprocated the hug – albeit not in nearly as warm of a manner. When the man broke away, his eyes wandered to me, then he threw his arms around me and pulled me into him, wrapping me up in a thoroughly-awkward hug as well. Sensing my discomfort, Dane released a low, possessive growl and swiftly peeled me away from the man, then he hooked his arm with mine again. "Arthur, please," the woman implored, rolling her eyes to the sky and back, then her piercing orbs briefly looked me up and down before settling upon Dane. "Aren't you going to introduce us to your ... lovely bride?" she asked pointedly, almost sneering at the adjective she'd used. In deafening response, my eyes widened, my brows shot up to my hairline, my nostrils flared, and my already-thrumming heart picked up its pace; I damn-near lost every bit of poise that I had within me, quite frankly! I gave the shrewd woman a quick, unimpressed once-over then turned my attention to Dane, who I could tell was trying his damndest to remain calm under such aggressive tension. I never anticipated such a negative attitude from any of my wedding guests, let alone some b*tch I didn't even know! She just rubbed me the wrong f*cking way, to be frank! Dane unhooked his arm from mine and promptly threw it around me then protectively pulled me into him, his icy blues burning holes right through the strange pair in front of us. "Sweetheart, allow me to introduce you to Arthur James and Heidi Nadine Hale. My parents," he stated begrudgingly, his irises slowly transitioning to that pretty but threatening crimson. He was really struggling to keep himself under control, and I felt so bad about that! "Mother ... Father ... it is my deepest pleasure to introduce to you my phenomenal wife, Harper," he added, turning his head to face me as he oh so fondly referred to me as his wife. I flashed him a quick smile then turned my attention to his parents; Arthur was cheesing like a happy-go-lucky idi*t, but Heidi? She looked at me as if I was an insect – one which must be squashed immediately! "Charming," she replied, her snobby little response dripping with unadulterated venom. Quite fed up with the b*tch's disgusting attitude, my lip curled into an ugly snarl (and yes I meant 'ugly', because I dish out the same type of energy I receive), but Dane graciously cut in before I had the opportunity to utter a smart-ass word to her. "Shall we go and have a chat, Mother?" he inquired pointedly, his eyes shooting white-hot daggers straight into her borderline-hypnotizing ones. In instant reply, she flipped her long, brunette hair over her shoulder and scoffed curtly, then she rudely excused herself from my presence and off they walked together, leaving me alone with Arthur and every bit of the awkwardness I felt around him. He talked my ears off congratulating me and asking what our future possibly held, and while I was physically present for his bombardment of insufferable laud and prying questions, I was mentally absent and worried sick about whatever the hell it was that Dane and his Mommy Dearest were mulling over. My gut told me that I wasn't gonna like the b*tch whatsoever, but of course I always hope my gut is wrong – though it rarely ever is.