Chapter 1 Love And Marriage

Daniel and Alessandra Civil Marriage

Daniel walked to meet them and he felt as though he could finally breathe. He gave her no sign he’d been nervous and when he stood before her, she and both her friends stared up at him. “You are so beautiful.”

She blushed and held out her hand. He took it and was about to walk away with her, but she tugged on him. “This is Rihanna,” she indicated to the woman with the light-brown hair, who he’d seen before. 

“Rihanna, nice to meet you.” He nodded, not willing to let go of Alessandra’s hand. 

“And Leila,” Alessandra smiled at the redhead. “She’s a newer friend, but I thought I’d invite her anyway. I have others, but it’s a work day, so…” 

“I wouldn’t miss this!” Leila grinned, clearly thrown by the swiftness of the courtship. 

Rihanna rolled her eyes, clearly indicating her disbelief that any of this was a good idea, but kept quiet.

Daniel could see that took some doing, and he imagined she must have given Alessandra quite a bit of grief over this decision. He was just glad she hadn’t talked her out of it.  With his future wife’s hand tightly held in his, he turned and introduced his pack mates. “Ladies, this is Elias, Donald, and Darius.” He turned back as each one inclined their head in respective order. Locking eyes with Alessandra he saw love gazing up at him. “Come with me.” 

She nodded and let him lead her to the door. He listened through it and heard the previous ceremony coming to a finish. He paused with his hand on the doorknob. When he knew it was time, he walked her in just as the other couple was leaving. 

The city workers smiled at the large party’s arrival. Their friends stood back a few steps as Daniel and Alessandra walked to the front and faced one another in front of an older man in a tired suit, who waited to perform the ceremony. He went through the normal verbiage without much romance, and when he started to give them the usual vows, Alessandra shook her head.  “I want to say my own. Sorry, I should have warned you. I just thought of it, though,” she said with a shaky voice. “Just now. I don’t want the same old thing.” 

He smiled at her. “I don’t need time to prepare. I know what I want to say to you.” 

She flushed happily, a small shy smile on her lips. Taking a deep breath, she began, “Daniel, I promise to love you every day for the rest of my life. I promise to always be loyal and to treat you with the utmost respect. I vow to you today to work through whatever problems we may encounter as the years go by and when we change and grow. I promise with all of my heart to truly love you in the deepest sense of that word.” There were tears in her eyes and he squeezed both her hands and kissed her. 

“Not yet,” said the Court Judge. 

Throwing Daniel a sideways smile, he cleared his throat. Looking into Alessandra’s soft brown eyes, he told her, “Alessandra, I promise to love and protect you every day for the rest of my life. I promise to support you in whatever you do and to be your greatest friend. I vow to take care of you and treat you with the respect you deserve. I promise to make love to you with passion and commitment from this day forward.”

She chuckled and a tear escaped. He bent down and kissed its trail, this time uninterrupted, as there was not a dry eye in the room. “I promise to grow and change with you, and to share everything I am, to be honest and have no secrets. I will work through problems. I will be on your team. I promise you that. You have my word.” 

The Court Judge cleared his throat. “Daniel Montenegro, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?”

Daniel said, firmly, “I do.” 

“And Alessandra Nieves, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?” 

She gazed up at him, and choked, “I do.” 

“Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride…again.” 

Daniel crushed her to him and kissed her deeply as her arms swung around his neck. She pulled him close and they kissed until their friends were whooping and hollering, the clapping echoing loudly off the sparsely decorated room.  The newly married couple separated, laughing, and shook the judge’s hand before they turned back to grin at their friends.

Alessandra threw the bouquet without warning and it hit Rihanna in the face. Rihanna laughed and held the flowers, rolling her eyes at them and not seeing what Daniel had, that Elias had a special gleam in his eye as he looked at the dark-eyed female. 

“Now what?” Donald asked with pretend gruffness.

“Move to Metro Manila and buy a house? Ridiculous. All of this!”  Daniel threw his arm around his new wife. “We’re staying in Manila.” 

She nodded beaming at him. “It’s been decided.” 

“Well, with the rate this is going, she’ll be having his child by next week,” Leila quipped. 

“Right?!” Rihanna Diaz said dryly. She pointed her finger at Alessandra. “Don’t you dare!” 

Daniel exchanged a look with his pack mates. All of them knew from her scent that his bride wasn’t fertile just yet, but that would soon change. He smirked and started for the door, his arm still around her. “Let’s go we will eat!” 

Cheers from the group as they followed them out, their footsteps echoing loudly off the hard tile.

Daniel heard Elias asking Rihanna, “So, what do you do?” 

“I’m a lawyer,” she said with casual lightness.

“Hot.” 

Darius’s voice rose over the clattering heels. “No dating, remember?!!!” 

Daniel grinned over his shoulder to see Elias throw up his arms in mock innocence. “What? I’m just asking the pretty lady a question!” 

Sunlight burst onto them as the double door swung open. Alessandra whispered up to him, “Hey husband.” 

“Yes, wife?” 

“I just had to say it.” 

He stopped at the top of the steps before the group descended, and kissed her again as though no one was watching. They heard the voices of their friends fade away. They’d given them a moment alone. Daniel felt such a rush as he held her, knowing she was here to stay. He looked at Alessandra and said in a husky tone, “Remember I said, no secrets?” She nodded. “I have to confess something then.”

Her eyebrows tilted up. “I didn’t think you were going to come.” 

Tenderness warmed her eyes and she rose on her tiptoes to kiss him before saying, “And I didn’t think I’d ever meet the one. See, we were both wrong.”  He grinned, grasped her hand, and led her down the steps. Their friends waited at the bottom, talking amongst themselves. They turned to watch them coming down and broke into applause. 

Daniel called out, “Alright! Enough! I’m starving! Let’s do this!” 

The seven walked into the beautiful place feeling their lives were changed and changed forever. You just never knew when a path would turn and take you where you never thought you’d go.

XXX 

Elias and Rihanna's Civil Marriage

Elias kissed Rihanna's hands and they both looked at the judge for what was next.  He stared, removing his glasses, his eyes flitting back and forth between them. “Rihanna Diaz, do you not take this man to be your loyal husband, to love and to cherish from this day forward until death do you part?” 

She nodded. “I most certainly do not.” 

He paused and turned to Elias. “And Elias Jalandoni do you…not…take this woman to be your loyal wife to love and to cherish from this day forward until death do you part?” 

“No way. Uh uh.” 

He put his glasses back on and sighed. “Um, I do not pronounce you husband and wife. And you may not kiss the bride?” 

The room went up in applause and Elias and Rihanna looked over to find other people had come in, hoping to get married after they didn’t. Their friends were clapping and whooping and hollering. Darius shouted through cupped hands. “Whatever you do, don’t kiss her!” 

Elias grabbed Rihanna and kissed her deeply and with such passion that fresh applause broke out as she went limp in his arms. He picked her up. Glancing back to the man who didn’t perform the ceremony, he asked, “All the paperwork is intact right? This is really a done deal, right?”

The judge nodded, both he and the female employee were caught up in the excitement of something old as time done in an entirely new way. 

“Yes, you’re really married.”  Rihanna tucked herself up against him as he carried her through the ten or so strangers who’d watched it all. Then he realized what they’d forgotten. “Hang on!” He stopped before their group went out the doors.

  “What, Elias?” she asked as he set her down.

Alessandra walked up to stand by her side as he looked at his ex-roomie and demanded. “Give ‘em over.”

  “Oh, shit! Sorry.”

Daniel searched his pockets and produced two rings.  Elias dropped to his knees and held up a diamond ring with a slender silver band. Rihanna’s eyes went wide. “You like it?”

She nodded happily. “Rihanna, will you go back in time and marry me ten minutes ago?” 

“I will.”

She looked at him with love and touched his cheek. “Except it’s Rihanna Diaz.” 

“Yeah?”  She bit her bottom lip and nodded with a cute smile. “Yeah. I want to take your love. Can I have that ring, please?”

He slid it on and laughed. “I meant the other one.” 

“Oh, well let me just take the diamond off you then,” he joked, acting like he was trying to remove it. 

She hit his shoulder pretty hard and said, “Give me your ring, dummy!”  He handed it over and rose to tower over her. She slid it on his finger and looked up. “I love you, Elias Montes.”  He picked her up and whispered to her. “I love you, too, Rihanna.”

XXX