Chapter 312: The Wedding

Maximilian stood at the altar with his hands clasped so tightly together that his knuckles had turned pale.

Beside him, Sebastian, his best man, noticed and nudged him with a teasing smile.

“Afraid she’ll run away?”

Maximilian shook his head. “I’m excited,” he admitted. “But nervous.”

He hadn’t expected to feel this nervous.

In his previous life, even when he had been forced to take the mantle of King after his brother’s sudden death, he had never felt anything quite like this.

It wasn’t fear. It was something else. Something he couldn’t put into words.

He glanced toward the groom’s side of the church.

His mother was sitting there, smiling proudly at him. Amelia, his sister, sat beside her, with Timothy Rathbourne on her other side. Even from a distance, Maximilian noticed Timothy gently cooing to baby Charlotte, who seemed increasingly irritated by the crowd and perhaps overwhelmed by the heavy scent of flowers.

Maximilian looked around the church again.

There were children everywhere.

Some were sitting surprisingly well-behaved in their seats. Others were being subjected to the stern glares of their mothers and grandmothers whenever they became too restless. There were even babies.

Maximilian blinked.

When Catherine hadn’t mentioned children while discussing the wedding, he had assumed it went without saying that children wouldn’t be attending.

Apparently, he had been very wrong.

This was a child-friendly wedding. Relatives, friends, even babies had been brought along.

It surprised him. Nearly every wedding he’d attended recently had been adults-only. ℯℯ𝘭.

Then again, this wedding seemed to have very few rules.

There was no strict seating chart or guest limit for the church ceremony. Close relatives had reserved seats, but beyond that, townspeople and ranch workers were welcomed freely.

Some sat inside. Others stood outside. No one seemed to mind.

Maximilian found himself smiling.

He liked it.

He liked the atmosphere.

It felt warm. Alive. Like a celebration that belonged not just to the bride and groom, but to everyone who had come to share in their happiness.

His only concern was security.

But apparently, Catherine’s brothers had taken care of that as well. Almost everyone here was someone they knew, and almost all of the men were armed, even inside the church.

This was probably one of the safest places Catherine could possibly be.

His gaze moved across the crowd again. Then it stopped.

One tall figure immediately caught his attention.

Fitzgerald Rathbourne.

Catherine had sent an invitation to the Rathbourne family, but Maximilian hadn’t expected them to attend together.

His eyes shifted toward Samantha. She was glaring at Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald, for his part, was doing an admirable job of pretending he hadn’t noticed, although he looked at her at the rare instance when Samantha was not looking at him.

Maximilian almost smiled. Then he checked the time.

It was time.

The thought of the bride’s arrival swept away every other distraction. He turned toward the church doors. A moment later, the sound of cheering rose from outside. The car had arrived.

Maximilian’s body tensed.

This was more than nervousness now. His heart was pounding so hard that he could feel it in his chest. He felt as though he were flying and falling at the same time.

Then the doors opened.

And there she was… Catherine. His Catherine. She was holding her father’s arm as she began walking down the aisle.

For a moment, everything else disappeared.

The people… The flowers… The music…The voices… All of it faded into the background.

There was only her.

He couldn’t see much of her face beneath the veil, but it didn’t matter.

He knew her. He knew the woman walking toward him. His wife-to-be. His love. And Maximilian couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face.

He smiled like a fool… Like a man who had finally been given everything he had once lost.

Like a man hopelessly, completely in love.

Catherine looked at him through the veil. She wondered if he would cry. She was already fighting back tears herself.

Then she saw it… Maximilian was crying. And he was smiling, too. He didn’t even seem to realize the tears were running down his face.

Catherine drew in a deep breath.

He’s here.

Waiting for me.

My Maximilian.

When they reached the end of the aisle, James gently lifted her veil and kissed her cheek.

“Thank you, Daddy,” Catherine whispered.

She had always wanted her father to walk her down the aisle. And somehow, after everything that had happened, he had made it here.

He had held on. He had taken care of his health. He was here to give his daughter away.

James smiled and took her hand. “All my duties are over,” he said, placing her hand in Maximilian’s. His voice grew softer. “Take good care of our Bitty Bean, Son.”

Catherine’s eyes immediately filled with tears.

Before he had been wheeled into surgery, even before she had fully realized that she was in love with Maximilian, her father had said almost the same thing.

And now he was saying it again.

Here.

In front of God… In front of their families… In front of everyone who mattered.

Maximilian didn’t hesitate. “With my everything, Sir.”

Catherine’s tears spilled over. “Not all your duties are over, Daddy,” she reminded him softly.

She wanted him with her for a long, long time.

James chuckled. “I know, sweetheart.”

He gave her hand one last squeeze before taking his seat.

Catherine turned toward her family. They were all smiling at her. Her heart swelled. She felt blessed.

Then she turned back toward Maximilian. The pastor began the ceremony.

It was time for their vows. They had chosen the traditional ones.

Maximilian turned fully toward her, keeping her hand in his. His eyes were still rimmed with tears.

Two lifetimes.

That was how long they had waited for this moment.

“I, Maximilian Llewellyn Whitmore…”

Maximilian repeated the words after the pastor.

Catherine’s lips twitched.

Llewellyn.

She almost laughed.

She had never imagined that was his middle name.

Maximilian caught the expression immediately and gave her a warning glare.

This woman…

For a moment, he could see the little princess who had found every possible reason to tease him.

And somehow, even now, she hadn’t changed.

But then their eyes met again. The teasing disappeared. Their expressions grew solemn.

“I, Maximilian Llewellyn Whitmore, take thee, Catherine Elizabeth Preston, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward; for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health; to love and to cherish, till death us do part…”

His voice broke.

Catherine tightened her fingers around his.

He took a breath and continued, his eyes never leaving hers. “…according to God’s holy ordinance; and thereto I plight thee my troth.”

By then, Catherine’s own vision was blurred with tears.

She repeated the vows. Every word felt heavier than it should have. Not because they were difficult, but because they meant everything.

Then came the rings. The wedding band Maximilian placed on her finger was simple. There were no diamonds or elaborate design.

It was just a smooth band of pure gold, with no beginning and no end. There was no way to tell where it started or where it ended.

Just like the life they wanted to build together.

No beginning.

No ending.

Just them.

As Catherine placed the ring on Maximilian’s finger, her hands trembled.

By the time they finished their vows, both of them were crying openly. Tears streamed down their faces, and neither cared who saw.

The pastor smiled at them.

“By the authority vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. What God has joined together, let no one put asunder.”

Catherine’s heart seemed to stop.

“You may kiss the bride.”

Her eyes blurred completely.

“Husband…” she whispered.

Maximilian lifted both hands and gently held her cheeks.

“Wife…”

Such simple words… Words humanity had spoken for centuries… Words people said every day. And yet, for them… They meant everything.

They had waited two lifetimes for those words. Two lifetimes to stand here. Two lifetimes to finally be allowed to call each other what they had always wanted to be.

Husband.

Wife.

Maximilian rested his forehead against hers. Catherine smiled through her tears.

Then he kissed her. And this time, there was no tomorrow to fear.

Only the rest of their lives.

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