Chapter Seven

The Vows Recitation

Yoshi began the marriage ceremony, but his voice became a distant sound to Sheldon. He found himself looking intently into the eyes of Rosemary, who met his gaze with such love, he felt almost weak. How had this happened? Dr. Sheldon Cooper, who pledged to himself (and continually reminded others) that he was already a superior being, that he didn't need companionship, now stood at the altar. Sheldon Cooper, intelligent but socially awkward to the point of occasionally debilitating, gained the love of a brilliant, kind, and beautiful woman.

Looking in her deep brown eyes, he felt transported to the moment he first saw her, standing in the doorframe of her bedroom as she played the piano. He replayed their first conversation, searching for clues that would hint toward this moment in time, them joining their lives forever. But he found nothing in particular, reminding himself that love often stood outside the logical, the tangible. And he'd grown to accept this and finally, embrace love. He didn't stall or block like he'd done in the past. He no longer ran and hid. Rosemary filled in all his empty spots, and he finally felt whole. Of all his talk about being a superior human being, he hadn't truly felt that in reality until this moment in time. He'd found his person, his future, his true love, and now nothing would stop him…no, them…from taking on the world and beyond.

"Sheldon?" came Yoshi's voice, almost yelling.

Sheldon snapped out of his thoughts. "Huh?" he said, immediately regretting how inelegant he sounded.

"I said, the bride and groom prepared vows. And you're up first. You insisted on alphabetical order by last name," Yoshi said.

"Oh…yes…of course," he said, refocusing back on Rosemary, ignoring the light laughter from the audience. "Rosemary, I…"

Damn, it happened again! When he proposed, his whole speech left his head, and he just popped the question, no long, elegant speech. But relief seeped through Sheldon…he'd placed a copy in his pocket in case of this same emergency. Holding up a finger to Rosemary, he pulled out the paper and unfolded it, his jaw dropping in horror. That morning he'd scribbled down an equation that suddenly came to him, an addition to his dark matter theory. And that is what he put in his pocket, the vows on the nightstand in the bedroom. He swallowed hard and looked back up at Rosemary.

"Rosemary, my love," he said. "I love you more than I could ever express in words or numbers or….or…." he hesitated, feeling dozens of eyes on him.

"Or interpretive dance?" chimed in Yoshi, and the assembly laughed. Sheldon looked at Yoshi, who winked at him, and he felt a bit calmer. He liked how Yoshi used humor to diffuse a situation, a skill Sheldon was sure he'd never possess.

"Yes, or interpretive dance," he said.

He looked out at Penny, who smiled at him broadly. Penny always helped him in difficult times, often after making fun of him, but she did help. Keep doing what you're doing, she'd said. He looked back into Rosemary's eyes. What he'd always done with Rosemary is tell her how he felt, from when he'd shared about his family only a few days after meeting her to when he struggled with the obligations of her being in public office. Just tell her how you feel, Cooper!

"I love you, Rosemary. Simple and pure. You make me happy. And I will spend the rest of my life supporting you, taking care of you, loving you, in order to deserve you, your love, your goodness," he continued. He heard small gasps from the audience, a few sniffles. Sounds like he was doing well. "I know I'm a difficult person to be with. I find myself difficult to be with most of the time. But you make life better, and I promise to make your life better as well, every day, better and better, for the rest of our lives. And beyond, although I have extreme skepticism about…"

"That was beautiful, Sheldon," Yoshi said, patting Sheldon on the back. "Rose?"

"Sheldon, baby boy," she said, smiling warmly at him. "I'd given up on love, thought I would just be alone for the rest of my life. And then I turn around one day, and there's this handsome, gangly man standing in my doorway. And I was captivated. And I fell. And every day I'm falling more and more." She paused, biting her lip in that thoughtful way Sheldon adored. Her eyes were wet. "The way you support me, the way you let me take on my dreams, fighting right there beside me…I'm the luckiest woman in the world. And I promise to love you, to support you, to take care of you, for all time."

Sheldon once again leaned forward to kiss his bride, but this time Yoshi stuck his hand in front of Sheldon's face. The groom smashed his nose into Yoshi's palm.

"Not yet!" Yoshi hissed to more laughter. "Rings?"

Sheldon turned toward Leonard, who already had the ring out, a smug expression on his face. Sheldon repeated Yoshi's words as he slipped the ring on Rosemary's finger. Rosemary did the same, then grinned at him and winked.

"By the power invested in me by the state of Washington and the internet, I now pronounce you husband and wife," Yoshi said, his voice booming and joyful. "Kiss your woman, Sheldon."

But Yoshi hadn't finished the sentence. Sheldon grabbed Rosemary and pressed his lips hard against hers, her sweet vanilla scent, her softness, dominating everything. She wrapped her arms around him and deepened the kiss, and everyone erupted in cheers and cat calls. Finally, they separated to breathe.

"Hello, husband," she said softly.

"Hello, wife," he grinned before diving in for another kiss.

The assembly had a small receiving line just outside the bed and breakfast as Sally, Glenn, and a few helpers quickly reconfigured the large great room for the reception. Tables also sat out in the basketball court, the weather lovely, not a cloud in the sky.

As they received congratulations and best wishes from everyone, Sheldon leaned over to whisper in Rosemary's ear. "In some cultures, it is appropriate for the bride and groom to consummate the marriage immediately following the ceremony."

Rosemary blushed at his suggestion. "Sheldon! A lot of people put together a nice reception, Laura some great music, Sally that awesome dinner as well as that gorgeous cake. It would be rude to just disappear to have sex."

"Everyone would understand the need to engage in post-marriage coitus, Rosemary," Sheldon said. "We can make it quick."

"I don't want it to be quick," she said, leaning her body into his. "I want it to be long and hard and throbbing and…"

"Stop, stop, stop," whispered Sheldon, his face red, Rosemary sensing his quickened breathing.

"Plus, remember the fifty buttons," she said, turning a little to show the back of the dress to Sheldon. He stared with a look of dismay. "You said they wouldn't get in your way."

She watched him swallow hard. "Okay, reception and cake first, but I'm going to get an early start on those buttons.

Rosemary just laughed, and soon Erik appeared to take a few group photos, one featuring the entire bridal party as well as all the guests.

The reception went by like a blur for Rosemary. People ate, sitting in and around the bed and breakfast, and everyone reassembled in the great room for the cake cutting, also the time for speeches. Best man Leonard went first.

"When Sheldon returned home from his trip to Washington, in which he'd driven the car he stole from me," Leonard said to laughter from the audience. "I knew a miracle occurred. While still the same Sheldon we all knew and loved and, well, found a little irritating, something profound changed about him. He truly cared about another person, without being prompted by any of his friends. He talked about Rosemary all the time, and, being his roommate for several years, I began to see a change in him slowly take over. A man in love, a man now with the world. With Rosemary, Sheldon is finally the homo novus he always claimed to be, a complete man, a better man. Thank you, Rosemary." Leonard raised his glass. "And Sheldon, while I miss you and our Roommate Agreement and drives to work, I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to see you genuinely happy." At this point Leonard began to tear up. "I…well…I mean…" he blubbered, and Penny appeared, guiding him out of the front of the crowd to his seat.

"Cheers to the bride and groom," she said, and applause followed.

Lillian stood next and pulled out her phone, scrolling a bit. "I want to read something to everyone." She cleared her throat. "While I applaud your efforts in pursuing your doctorate, geology is a colossal waste of time. Here is an example of one of the more noble sciences. Enjoy! SC." Rosemary smiled broadly at her sister, knowing where this was going. "That is the very first interaction I had with Dr. Sheldon Cooper, the SC in question, an unsolicited and rude comment left on my blog. I forwarded this comment to my sister who replied…" Lillian scrolled again. "Ah yes, she said what a tool."

The audience laughed.

"And now they stand side by side, husband and wife, and all because of my pursuit in geology and Sheldon's need to let everyone know he is better." She smiled warmly at the couple. "And he is right. He is better. Better because he has my sister, my favorite person in the world, as his wife. And she is better for having met him, my new brother, who supports her and loves her in the way a kind and wonderful soul like Rosemary deserves. Cheers!" Lillian raised her glass. "And hopefully Sheldon fixed that citation error in that article he sent me." She grinned and sat back down.

Afterwards came dancing and mingling, people moving in and out of the house visiting with one another, Erik flitting all over taking photos. The great room became a small dance floor, and after the bride and groom's first dance, Rosemary took the floor with everyone, from Yoshi to Leonard to Carson to her father, who she couldn't help but cry tears of joy with, having been so close to losing him. She watched Sheldon dance with his mom and Meemaw and Penny before her aunts cut in, and she laughed with her father to see how red Sheldon got in the face after apparent harassment from her relatives.

Finally back in Sheldon's arms, they swayed together to a slow song. Sheldon moved his hand up into Rosemary's hair, resting it on the back of her neck, massaging her gently. She sighed, leaning against him.

"This is a good day," she said.

"Yes," he said above her. "I'm very glad I sent your sister that comment."

"Me too," Rosemary smiled.

"There," Sheldon said, leaning back to face her. "Seven down, 43 to go."

"What?"

"Buttons," Sheldon said, smiling triumphantly.

Rosemary placed her hand on her neck under her long hair, and sure enough, seven of the top buttons we undone. Feeling aroused at Sheldon's sly way of undressing her, she looked up at his smug face.

"You sneaky, sexy man," she whispered. "But no more. I don't want anyone to see."

Sheldon leaned in. "But I want to see. You naked. Now. Come on, most people are not paying attention." He began to pull her in the direction of the stairs when Raj approached.

"May I have this dance with the bride?" he asked, extending his hand in gentlemanly fashion.

"Of course," said Rosemary, glancing back at Sheldon who appeared defeated. But there would be time later.

And later came soon, as guests began to return to their motels. The wedding party stayed at the bed and breakfast helping clean up before heading to their rooms for the evening.

Rosemary entered the kitchen to see everyone about to tackle the rather large mess.

"Let me change, and I'll help with…" she began.

"Seriously, Rose," laughed Lillian, coming up to her sister. "Always so helpful. Take care of that horny husband of yours. Please, before he bursts. He's been looking at you with obvious lust since the ceremony."

Rosemary could feel herself blushing deeply, but Lillian pushed her into the foyer in front of the stairs to the waiting Sheldon, who grabbed her hand and dashed with her up the two flights of stairs to their bedroom, hers alone the previous evening. Well, at least in theory, Sheldon having snuck in.

Missy already moved his things into the room, having taken over the second floor suite. Sheldon only briefly considered re-ordering the shirts in the closet, as his sister had not hung them up in the logical, color-coded way he liked. But he had 43 buttons to take care of and a marriage to consummate, far more pressing matters.

Closing and locking the door, he spun around to Rosemary, who stood like some medieval princess. For a moment he just looked at her, his wife. Sheldon Cooper's wife!

"We're married," he said plainly, suddenly realizing it fully.

She walked up to him, moving her body flush against his, putting her arms around his neck. "Yes," she said.

He kissed her, and his eidetic memory replayed their first kiss for him, on that rainy November day in Tacoma, the chill in the air completely brushed away by the warmth that is Rosemary.

Forty-three buttons! As they kissed, Sheldon worked his fingers around and undid a few more, but his hands began to tremble more and more. Finally, he broke the kiss.

"Rosemary, please turn around," he said.

"Baby, we have time…"

"You do not understand, kitten. I have been aroused since you walked down the aisle," he said, emphasizing his pleading look. He wanted her, especially because he kept being told he couldn't have her. He worked around her and tackled a couple more buttons. "It's my wedding day. And everyone keeps telling me no kissing, no coitus. But…but…blast these!" He turned toward his suitcase and pulled out a pair of scissors.

"Sheldon, what are you…oh hell no!" she cried upon seeing the scissors, then laughed. "This dress is now a family heirloom. Maybe our daughter will wear it. We cannot cut it up."

"We'll never get a chance to make a daughter if I don't get you out of that dress," he said, then shrugged.

"Slow down," Rosemary said again, coming up to him and undoing his pants. Pulling out the belt and moving them down a bit, she reached in and grabbed his erection over the silky underwear she'd chosen months ago.

Sheldon groaned, closing his eyes, feeling a little relief in the pent up coital tension he'd felt all day. He remembered a time when he didn't want coitus at all, and at the moment it completely dominated his thoughts. And he felt perfectly fine with that. Leonard was right…he'd achieved becoming the homo novus, successful in work and love. A complete man.

Continuing to allow Rosemary to stroke him, he walked her backwards until she sat on the bed. At this point, he moved away from her, casting away his shoes, socks, and pants, Rosemary reaching out when he finished to run her finger along his member delicately, again boiling his blood.

He leaped on the bed behind her and got more buttons before she captured his lips again and pushed herself on top of him. Her hair piece toppled off and crashed against his forehead.

"Ouch!" he cried, but he cast the piece onto the floor and resumed their deep kiss.

Rosemary suddenly leaped up. She looked at him with lust. "Sheldon, get me out of this dress!"

He went to the back, getting a few more undone, but still not enough to slide the dress off. Blast! Rosemary turned and ripped off his jacket and expertly undid his shirt buttons. Soon he stood in just the special wedding night underwear. Rosemary again pressed herself to him, clutching his penis, mouth on him so roughly she bit his lip. He didn't complain. Instead he kneeled to the ground, lifted up her dress, and went under.

He went underneath earlier to retrieve her garter, which he immediately flung at Carson, the only unmarried man present. And in his journey, he'd seen a pair of light blue lacey panties, the quick view giving him an erection he had to stealthily adjust as Rosemary tossed her bouquet, right in the face of the laughing Olivia.

Now under her dress, he snaked his fingers up her legs, and caressed her sensitive area on the outside of her panties, Rosemary moaning, leaning against him. He smiled as he looked at the red boots she wore, just for him. Her Wonder Woman boots. She'd need to keep those on. But not the panties. He grabbed them and pulled them off of her, then pushed his fingers into her vagina, pressing against her clitoris.

"God…Sheldon…please!" she cried, but he kissed up her leg and ran his tongue against her folds.

Wet, Rosemary's wonderful taste. He moved a third finger into her, rubbing vigorously, her cries mounting as she became wetter for him.

"Sheldon…I'm…I'm…ooohhh…." she groaned, and he felt her knees buckle as she went to lay down on the floor.

Both on the floor, Sheldon still under the dress, he felt her vagina tighten around his fingers, more of her fluids flowing, moistening his lips. He smiled triumphantly, happy to get her to climax early, as he always enjoyed making her orgasm multiple times. While he'd made the initial goal of 50, to match the number of buttons, after careful reading, he thought that might be excessive and rather exhausting after such a busy day.

Rosemary calmed a bit, and Sheldon emerged from under the dress, his own arousal almost painful. His wife sat up slightly, looking a bit dazed, her face flushed, hair everywhere. She grinned.

"Wow…that was…get me out of this dress!" she said.

They leaped up again, and Sheldon went back to work on the buttons. Only 20 more!

"I think I can wiggle out," she said, and Sheldon moved around as Rosemary slipped out of the sleeves, the front of the dress falling open, revealing her bare breasts, support built into the dress. Sheldon hadn't expected this, and he stepped forward and cupped both breasts, remembering the first night they explored one another, back in his bedroom in Pasadena, the eve of Leonard and Penny's wedding. How frightened he'd been, yet how excited as well. Finally letting himself go with someone. And everything always felt so right with Rosemary, he hadn't hesitated or stalled, he went for it. And now it paid off. Rosemary was his wife.

Rosemary finally wiggled her way out of the dress, nude except for the boots. Stepping away from the now large pile of clothing on the floor, she grabbed at Sheldon's underwear, pulling it down his legs before he kicked it away. She hugged him tightly as she kissed his neck and shoulders, their naked bodies together, Sheldon's hot, hard member pressed against her, making her stomach sticky.

She moved away and lie on the bed, motioning for him to follow. He moved up onto her, sliding inside her with a hard thrust, causing them both to grunt in a rather animalistic manner. But Sheldon didn't feel embarrassed. He could let go with Rosemary, enjoying being a man with his woman, a husband with his wife.

He climaxed after only three thrusts, coming hard into her, losing himself completely, crying out her name over and over. Rosemary squeezed her legs around him, the leather of the boots against his skin, and ground up against him, tightly gripping his hair, and he felt her orgasm again as well.

Sheldon wanted to stay inside, but he felt incredibly sensitive and rolled to lie beside her. They both lie together, breathing heavily.

"Will we have time to do this in Iceland between all the sightseeing?" Sheldon asked, when finally able to speak.

"Baby boy, you're the only sight I want to see," she said, breathlessly. "We didn't plan that much. Just the excursion with Glenn's friend to some of the volcanic sites. But I don't think we should cancel. Volcanos erupting….you erupting. Good inspiration. Metaphor. Symbolism and…" but Sheldon rolled over and kissed her simply on the lips.

"Thank you for marrying me, Rosemary," Sheldon said.

"Thank you for marrying me, Sheldon," she answered.

Sheldon and Rosemary didn't quite get to fifty that evening, but as he lay on the edge of sleep later, he felt he'd accomplished something greater than even his dark matter theory. He'd grown up, become a man no longer completely dependent on others, but someone others could depend upon. He'd somehow become worthy of the love of someone as special as Rosemary Fox.

Author's Note: Next time, an epilogue reveals the future of Sheldon and Rosemary.

Thank you for reading.