LOVE IS 2 Revealing Riley

1 Year Later

"You're gonna make a hole in the carpet Riley." Jack teases.

"I am going over my vows over and over in my head." I say pacing back and forth biting my nails.

My brother's, soon to be brother in laws and my ring bearer Jonah are staring at me with amusement. I got to learn a lot about Jonah and Beth when we filmed in London. Jonah's father was killed in combat in Afghanistan and his father never got meet his son. Jonah was born a month after his father died. During our engagement party we introduced Beth to my brother Paul. They hit it off which made me nervous because Paul is the Ryan brother with the biggest reputation for being a man whore. She got under his skin and tamed the beast.

Beth and Paul became pregnant four months into their relationship. They where crazy happy and we were happy for them. We all went on a family trip to Vegas including Julia. We get to Vegas to find out it is for their surprise wedding. Paul adopted Jonah a few months after they got married. Jonah is an offical Ryan now. He was been cast in other movies and he now used the name Jonah Ryan. People thought he was my actual son until I told them he was my nephew.

"Jonah, can I trust you not to drop the rings at the alter and to stand still like a big boy." I ask him.

"Uncle Ylee, I am 4 years old now. I am not a baby. Daddy tell him I'm not a baby."

"He's not a baby Riley." Paul laughs.

The door opens and Mama and Abuela come in. Mama and Abuela look stunning I go over and hug and kiss them.

"Can Abuela and I have a few minutes alone with Riley." She says as everyone files out of the room.

"You looks so handsome Hijito Lindo." Abuela says crying.

"Thank you Abuela." I say getting a bit choked up myself.

"Riley, I have something for you. I have had this since you were 10 years old." she says handing me an envelope that says my name on it.

"What is it?" I say taking the envelope.

"Open it." She smiles with tears in her eyes. I open it and I am taken aback with emotion.

My Dearest Riley,

If you are reading this you have found the love of your life and this day would be your wedding day. I am grateful for that. Honor her and cherish her for tomorrow is not promised. Let love guide you everyday. Please do not make the mistakes I have made. I have faith that you will not. Be open and honest always. You and your siblings are my greatest achivements. When you become a father do not miss a moment for those are moments that you cannot get back. I missed far too many moments in your life and I am truly sorry for that. I may not be there physically but I am there in spirit. I am proud of you Mi Amor. Love hard and passionately always.

I love you to the moon and back

FOREVER

Daddy

I fall to my knees sobbing as I read the letter. He did love me. Tears falling down my face. All these years I convinced myself that he did not love me when infact he did. Mama drops to her knees and holds me in her arms.

"Ok Mijo I have two more things for you. Since you are crying already I'll give you Ayana's gift first." Abuela laughs. Making me chuckle through my tears. I stand up and take a box and a card.

I open the box. Inside is a set of cuff links and a beautiful watch. The Cuff links have the initials ANR on them. The watch is engraved with the words Time stopped the moment our eyes met.

Baby,

The watch says it all. The cuff links are my new initals Ayana Neveah Ryan

I am proud to become a Ryan. I love you. See you at the altar I will be wearing white.

Love,

Ayana

My emotions are all over the place. My Abuela hands me one last thing. Once she places it my hand I know exactly what it is and I begin to cry like a baby. It is my Abuelo's tie clip that has his initals E.R with diamonds for the dots. The initals stand for Esteban Ryan. He would wear this clip on special occasions. I am now a complete mess. They help me put on the cuff links and tie clip. I am putting on the watch as Jack walks in.

"Ready to get hitched?" Jack asks.

"Ready." I smile.

I stand at the front of the church with our Pastor. My heart is pounding with excitement as our wedding party comes in followed by Jonah who is pulling the girls in an oversized wagon. They look adorable and no tantrums which is a plus. The door closes and the orchestra and singer begin to play the song Turning The Page. The door re-opens.

She appears in the door with her father. My lip is quivering and tears are streaming down my face. She takes my breath away she looks gorgeous. She also has tears streaming down her face. My hand is over my heart and I am in awe of my bride. I mouthed the words I Love you to her. I take out my handkerchief and I wipe my eyes. I meet them at the bottom of the altar. I hug and shake her dad's hand and he is crying. I whisper I will take care of her always. He nods. He kisses and hugs his daughter and sits down with his wife.

The ceremony we chose was more on the tradional side. We wanted this because we wanted our marriage to be based on what God wants for us and what we want. We wanted to exchange our own vows.

"Ayana, the first day I met you I knew that you were something pretty special. I promise to love you and honor you for the rest of my life. I promise to be by your side through the good and bad. I promise to not eat all the ice cream in one day. I cannot wait to spend the rest of our lives together. Even that is too short. I love you Mi Amor."

Riley, you stole my heart with just a handshake. You have the biggest heart of anyone I have ever met. I am proud to become your wife. I promise to love and honor you. I promise to support you in all your endeavors. I promise to learn how to make tostones. I promise to laugh at all your jokes even when they are not funny. I cannot wait to spend forever with you. I love you Mi Vida."

We exchange rings. It is the first time I am seeing my wedding band. It is a beautiful band with diamonds all the way around. She wanted my band to be a surprise. Jonah did a great job and did not drop the rings.

"See Uncle Ylee I didn't drop them." he says proud as could be. Which makes everyone in the church laugh.

"You may now kiss the bride." The Pastor says.

I grab her by the waist and hug her to me. I kiss her crazy and I dip her down continuing my kiss causing her to laugh.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, it is now my pleasure to present for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Riley Ryan." The Pastor announces.

We run out of the church hand in hand. We kiss and hug everyone in attendance. We take photographs for over an hour. We finally make it to the reception and we are announced in by our DJ.

"Please give it up for our newlyweds Ayana and Riley Ryan." he says. Everyone cheers we do a funny little dance as he makes the announcement.

We have a blast at our reception with all our friends and family. I am in awe of my wife because she planned everything perfectly. We had a candy area and kid area to keep the kid entertained. A whiskey and cigar bar which was a hit. It was time for our first dance. We chose a song that really spoke of our relationship and love for each other. We finally chose the song Thinking out Loud by Ed Sheeran. We swayed to the music and no one else mattered only us. Here is to our future.