Chapter One
UNION
-- November --
Matthew Hamilton stood, nervously waiting, at the flower-adorned altar. There were only ten minutes to go, ten minutes until he would see her again, ten minutes until the beginning of his new life as a married man. He straightened his tie – purple, at the request of his bride – for the umpteenth time, his palms becoming clammy with his nerves.
A hand grasped his shoulder tightly. It was Jake.
“Ow,” Matthew winced, shying away from his brother’s touch. His muscles were aching from the night before – the bux party – where Matthew had consumed too much alcohol to remember how he sustained the multiple bruises covering his body. Jake had assured him that nothing had happened that he would regret, but Matthew could not be sure.
“Right,” Jake said, immediately removing his hand, grinning. “Last night.”
Behind him, Sebastian snorted a chuckle. “The-”
“Not one word,” Matthew growled in a whisper; Sebastian unsuccessfully smothered his grin. Matthew was aware of how one bruise had occurred, but had never wanted to bring it up again, especially not at his wedding! “What happened at the club stays at the club.”
Again, Matthew straightened his tie nervously.
Jake lightly elbowed Matthew’s ribs. “Looks like she’s early.”
Matthew spun around, eager to see the carriage that would be carrying his bride and the bridal party. However, there was no carriage, not even any sign of the carriage.
“Made you look.” Jake high-fived Sebastian as they broke into muffled laughs.
Matthew knew what they were doing – he had done the same at each of their weddings, but he wished they would hurry up to grow up.
A warm breeze passed through the crowd and altar, though it gave Matthew goose bumps. He was all too impatient to marry the woman he had fallen in love with a whole seven years ago during their limited time at Yale. He remembered the times they had spent together – the highs and the lows – before recalling the moment when she had agreed to marry him and be his forever…
* * *
The wind bit at their exposed faces, giving the impression that their skin was being sliced wide open. The clouds were thick and breathing was becoming difficult.
“Matt! How much farther?”
Matthew grinned, felt his breast pocket to ensure that the box was still there, and answered, “Only a few hundred metres.”
Behind him, a large groan escaped Amy’s lips. “Why are we doing this? I hope there’s a good reason for this ridiculous trek.”
“There is, I promise.” Mount Kosciuszko was the only place he could do this.
They wound their way around the last section of the narrow trail before Matthew stopped and took in the amazing views of New South Wales and Victoria. A pair of weak arms wrapped around his waist from behind moments later.
YOU ARE READING
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