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as far as Gage was concerned, he was the most logical choice to be
his best man. He knew that Ben wasn t one hundred percent at ease
with him, but he had chosen to set their disagreements aside and
Gage was certain that Ben was already on his way to being a good
man. Bowden and Sherry had their brood in the front row, each
one of them dressed up in their Sunday best and surprisingly well-
behaved. Chad s family sat behind them, and his kids were just old
enough to realize that they weren t attending a normal wedding.
Their eyes were wide and interested, and Gage was a bit proud of
them, too.
The reception wasn t quite as simple as the ceremony. He d
discovered he had a knack for planning parties, and he enjoyed it.
He hadn t gone overboard, not interested in breaking Christopher s
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wallet, though Christopher had insisted again and again that Gage
should get anything that would make him happy. Gage had made
specific sacrifices so they could afford to fly their friends to Iowa,
and when they stepped out of the bed-and-breakfast to join the
party on the lawn, they were greeted with a loud round of applause.
Gage released Christopher s arm and kissed his cheek.  Stay
right here.
The chairs that had been set up for the ceremony had been
cleared away, replaced with several tables and a low pavilion. A
mic stand stood on it, and Gage made a beeline for it. His guitar
had been hidden behind the table, and he positioned the strap over
his shoulder before turning to address their guests.
 I m sure you noticed that we didn t write our own vows. It s
mainly because I didn t want to risk repeating myself. Gage
swallowed and his eyes sought out Christopher s.  So I m going to
ask all of you to please indulge me before we start serving dinner.
 Don t we always? Bowden said good-naturedly. He
pretended to wince when Sherry elbowed him, but his grin never
wavered.
Christopher edged closer, his soft, expectant smile helping to
quell some of the butterflies in Gage s stomach. He hadn t been
nervous until this point. In fact, he d been a little amused by how
nervous Christopher had been earlier. But this was different. He d
been working on this for a long time. He wanted it to be perfect,
tweaking a chord here, a word there. Time had run out on him,
though, and now, here they were.
 I think it s safe to say, this is for Christopher. A small titter
rippled through the guests.  It s called,  All That You Are. 
His fingers slid along the strings, finding the first chord with
ease. Keeping his gaze on Christopher, he took a deep breath and
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started the song.
Music was everything to him. For as long as he could
remember, he d found sanctuary in it. It brought him peace when
the rest of the world was in turmoil, exhilarated him when nothing
else could reach through the funk. The world had opened after he d
met Christopher, but rather than dim his dedication, Christopher
had loved him enough to let that passion for his music grow.
 At the end of the light, at the start of the night& 
He d caught himself humming it in the shower and feared
Christopher might have overheard. But from the look of awe on
Christopher s face, his worries had been for naught. The pavilion
disappeared, leaving only the two of them, like the very first time
he had ever performed at the Red Fin and Christopher had been
there, right in the front, hanging on his every word. So much had
happened since then. And now, they had so much more to look
forward to.
 All that you are, my choice, my chance& 
The first verse had been the easiest to come, and he sang it with
confidence, but as he swung into the chorus, his voice softened.
Christopher never blinked. He soaked up every word, even the
ones Gage hadn t been completely sure about, his smile
unfaltering, the love radiating from him in palpable waves. He
made them better.
He made Gage better.
When he finished the song, there was silence for several
seconds. The applause erupted at the same moment Christopher
swept forward, caught Gage s face between his hands, and kissed
him for all he was worth.
 And he tried telling me earlier that I was the lucky one,
Christopher said to everyone when he straightened.
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Gage s mouth tingled from the kiss and Christopher looked so
amazing beautiful even in the late afternoon light that his heart
clenched. Gage knew that at least a few people at that wedding
thought they were rushing into things, but nobody had ever made
him feel as happy or secure as Christopher did. The glint of light
off his ring caught his eye and he suddenly felt such a depth of
love for Christopher that he knew no attempt at music would ever
really express it. He knew he was grinning like an idiot at
Christopher, but he couldn t help it. At that moment, he was happy
to wear his heart on his sleeve.
When everyone took their seat for dinner, Christopher s hand
disappeared beneath the table to come to rest on Gage s thigh. He
squeezed once as he leaned closer and murmured in his ear,  I
think that s the best thing you ve ever written. And not because it s
about us.
Gage warmed with the compliment.  Maybe it ll be my break-
out hit, he said lightly.
 Then everybody will finally know just how talented my
husband really is. His lips brushed across Gage s jaw.  I like
calling you that. I think I m probably going to drive everyone
crazy saying it all the time.
 I think you ve probably got a month before people will start
getting annoyed. Gage covered Christopher s hand and squeezed
his fingers under the table.  When do you think we can sneak
away?
 Sherry made me promise to stick around for the first dance.
You think you can wait that long?
Gage honestly didn t think he could, but he nodded anyway. He
tried to be content with the weight of Christopher s hand on his
thigh and the adoring glances he shot Christopher s way every
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thirty seconds. He couldn t even force himself to focus on the
meal which was exceptional judging from the cost of the
catering. Gage wouldn t know for himself because he could barely
taste it. He was too distracted and strangely eager. Like he was
crouched at the starting line of the final race of the day. Gage knew
on one level that nothing had really changed, except everything
had.
Once the plates were gathered from the tables and the pavilion
settled into a low hum of activity, Rev stood and gestured for the
mic. Gage slid his gaze sideways and whispered,  You didn t
mention he planned to give a toast.
Christopher was watching Rev warily.  That s because I
thought I d bribed him enough to keep him from doing it.
Adjusting the mic, Rev shot the waiting guests a brilliant smile.
 Christopher isn t expecting this, but honestly, he couldn t pay me
enough to keep me from toasting him and Gage. Though trust me,
he tried. Everyone was paying attention at that point, chuckling at
Rev s small joke. He held his wineglass aloft.  Good evening,
everybody. I m Rev, and it s an honor to be here today to share
this joyous occasion with all of you. Christopher and I have been
friends for years, so when he asked me to be his best man, my first
thought was,  Dude, are you kidding? Do you have any idea how
much dirt I have on you? 
Gage chuckled, in spite of his initial uncertainty. Even
Christopher smiled.
 But today s not about all the stories I could tell you about
Christopher, Rev said, then paused, looking thoughtful for a
moment.  Well, it is, but track me down after he and Gage take off
later. I ll give you the scoop then. For now, I want to talk about the
both of them, and why they owe their happiness completely to
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