Love Until It Hurts (Monteverde Series 4)

Epilogue

Wedding bells were ringing as the woman walked towards the aisle in what seems like the slowest of all walks. She was covered with a white laced veil and was carrying a bouquet of assorted flowers that probably costed a huge amount of fortune.

Up ahead, there stands a man in a silver-grey tuxedo, snifling as he watched the love of his life slowly approach.

He smiled at her and I know what he was thinking, She is the most beautiful bride of the century.

And she was indeed very beautiful, especially that day. That joyous wedding day. Her white gown was embedded with small crystals and diamonds and it had a long tail. It signifies the long journey both of them had experienced before finally achieving their happiness.

Her make-up made her look more ethereal, head-turning, neck-breaking. She was beauty and substance. And maybe that was the reason why she was so attractive.

The bride cocked her head to the side and saw a frail-looking woman who was silently crying as she watched her daughter marry the man she had once been scheming on. The bride smiled once and mouthed an i love you in her mother's direction. She smiled proudly and mouthed an i love you too.

The bride looked around her and saw the family of her groom—her soon-to-be family. They were smiling at her, woderfully welcoming her and cheering for her. The groom's mother was crying as she watched another one of her precious children get married. They were an amazing family, and she was lucky—no, more than that—extremely fortunate to be a part of them.

At long last, the bride reached the aisle.

"Hi?" She smiled at her groom, without him knowing that she was only keeping her tears at bay. She have cried so many times before, and this time, all she wanted to do was smile, and laugh and kiss.

"Hello, miss. Why, you happen to be my future wife." There was glint of playfulness in the groom's tone when he said that, though his eyes were already starting to get bloodshot from crying.

They both faced the priest, and he started the wedding ceremony. Everyone was silent as they listened to his short sermon about marriage. And then their vows came.

This is my favorite part of their wedding. The part I have almost committed to my memory in high definition.

"Zade..." The bride stared directly at her groom's eyes. "You gave me reality when everyone else is living a fantasy. You gave me love, happiness and more. And I, for all my life, will always be thankful. You are my Edgar Allan Poe, my Alexandre Dumas, my Michael Faudet, my Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra and my Dante Alighieri. You are my greatest novelist, my personal poet, and at the end of this ceremony, my husband."

She swallowed. "I love you. Today, tomorrow and for infinite lifetimes."

The groom looked jovial, his expression softening as he took in his bride's queen-like features. And then he spoke with a voice almost cracking.

"Back at Maldives, when we watched the sunset together one night, I had a sudden realization. I stared at you and you grinned at me. Babe, you make life more interesting. You enhance the world's beauty, because you are one of its wonders."

He stopped to wipe a tear and then continued. "Sunsets won't be as beautiful without you. I look forward to more years with you by my side and my love won't waver, instead it will ignite more and give us fire with an intensity that will last a lifetime. I love you, in this life, in the next and in the life after that. You are everything, Sam. From the clouds that pour rain and to the trees that give me air."