Leveled

It seemed like Lando and I were always off to an engagement party, a baby shower or a wedding. Now that I had immersed myself in his life and the lives of the people Royal had found to be her family there was more love and happiness floating around than anyone could shake a stick at.

Colorado is called the Centennial State and it fit in a different way than I think the old-timers intended. It seemed like there were a hundred ways to fall in love in Mile High City and all of them were just as majestic, imposing, and rocky as the mountains surrounding the area.

I was sitting on an uncomfortable plastic chair in the heart of the Botanical Gardens waiting for yet another wedding to start. I was fidgety and sweaty because Lando had nixed the black cargo shorts I wanted to wear and told me that I needed to put on slacks. I wasn’t sure what I wore mattered to anyone, not with the bride standing under a beautiful floral arch dressed in an ivory gown with just a hint of lilac at the bottom. She was facing her big, tattooed husband-to-be and the smile on her face was radiant. Truthfully I didn’t think they needed any kind of vows to express how they felt about one another. It was there on their faces and the way no one else existed except for the two of them.

I’d never really been into boys with a lot of ink and edge, but I had to admit the more of these shindigs I attended, the more I saw the appeal. They all looked badass and no-nonsense, but the way they were with their women was something special, something that deserved to be appreciated and celebrated.

I jokingly tried to talk Lando into getting a sleeve or a piercing and thought my Mr. Fancy-Pants would blow me off. Much to my shock and delight he showed up after work one day with a shiny barbell pierced right through the tip of his dick. It was my new favorite thing ever, at least it was now that it was healed and I could actually put it to good use. I loved that there were still things about being with him that were surprising.

The priest finally told the couple they could kiss and they did so to a chorus of fanfare and applause. They looked good together, maybe not like a matched set but more like a special kind of curio that you just knew you had to have to make your space feel like it belonged to you, like it was home.

Suddenly the precious little flower girl with wild blond ringlets and a frilly lavender dress ran to where an uncomfortable little boy was standing in his miniature tuxedo amidst several giant men dressed the same and planted a kiss smack on his surprised slackened mouth. Much to the little boy’s credit he didn’t flinch or pull away from the fairy-like little girl. Instead, he seemed to give a resigned sigh and took her hand and guided her down the aisle as the music for the wedding party to exit started to play. Just like a tiny little gentleman. They were adorable. They stole the show and it was the perfect ending to a flawless ceremony. When life moved on like this, it was a charmed thing.

I was still chuckling at the kids under my breath when Lando turned to me and put a hand on my thigh. His pale eyes glowed like the forget-me-nots that surrounded us and his heart was shining there as clear as day.

“I’m so glad you are here with me.”

My chuckle turned into a lump in my throat. He did that to me a lot.

Leveled me with the way he loved me.

“There’s no other place I would rather be.” And no other man I would want to be there with.