"Do you, Alexa Joanne Bliss, take Clementine Everett to love and to cherish, to honour and comfort, in sickness and in health, in sorrow or in joy, in hardship or ease, to have and to hold from this day forth?"
"I do," Alexa said, looking lovingly into her bride's eyes.
The female reverend turned to Clementine. "Do you, Clementine Everett, take Alexa Joanne Bliss to love and to cherish, to honour and comfort, in sickness and in health, in sorrow or in joy, in hardship or ease, to have and to hold from this day forth?"
"I do," Clementine said quietly, but emotionally, squeezing Alexa's hand as she spoke.
"Alexa and Clementine, and all of you gathered here today, may the love in your hearts give you joy. May the greatness of life bring you peace. And may your days be good and your lives be long upon the earth. So be it. Alexa and Clementine, will you seal your marriage with a kiss?"
They stepped closer together and shared a delicate, slow kiss.
The reverend said a final prayer, wishing them good fortune and happiness in their lives together, and with that the service was over. Spontaneous applause broke out from the guests in attendance.
"I love you," Alexa said, holding Clem's hand tightly.
"I love you too, honey," Clementine replied, looking at her adoringly.
The final thing to do was for them to go over and sign the register. When that was done, the reverend invited the happy couple and their guests to leave via the chapel's rear doors into a picturesque garden, where photographs could be taken. Guests were also invited to throw confetti if they had it.
Alexa and Clem let the guests file out first, allowing those with confetti to get into place. The photographer they had hired for the occasion had also gone out, ready to capture the coming moment.
After a couple of minutes, the newlyweds walked outside. Sure enough, they were immediately showered in confetti.
"I'll be picking this out of my hair the rest of the day," Alexa giggled trying her best to get rid of the worst of it without ruining her hairdresser's hard work.
The photographer, a well-groomed older man with grey hair and a goatee, walked backwards in front of them, snapping away. From here, Alexa knew that he was going to take charge of proceedings. He would call out who he wanted for pictures, and where he wanted them to stand.
"I'll start with Alexa and Clem, in front of the flower beds, please."
"I managed not to cry, or mess anything up," Clementine said happily as they went over to where they had asked to stand.
"We both did. It was a lovely service," Alexa replied. Her heart felt so full of happiness, it truly was more than she could have dreamed of. The wedding had been a simple, fairly understated affair with not a massive number if guests, but in that lay the intimacy that Alexa and Clem had wanted.
"Get close to each other. Face me. Smile!"
They followed the instructions, and some pictures were taken.
"Great! Lovely shots! Now face each other, please. Look into each other's eyes."
Looking at Clem, Alexa was blown away by how gorgeous she looked with her short hair neatly styled, wearing the truly beautiful white dress that she had chosen. Her own white dress was also stunning. No expense had been spared on either of them. After all, they would only get married once. It was worth pushing the boat out.
After posing for some more pictures together, it was time for the family photos. First Alexa's mom and dad came forward for a few pictures, followed by Lee, Clementine's step-dad. He was the only family she had.
"Okay, let's have Alexa's maid of honour, colleagues and friends next!" the photographer called out.
Zelina was in the lead of the contingent that stepped forward. There was no way Alexa could have not invited her. Inviting Zelina had meant inviting Renee out of politeness, and Bayley for the same reason. There were also some friends, one of which was Nikki Bella, who had practically invited herself, although Alexa was happy to have her. She was a friend as well as a client. Clem hadn't been able to object once Alexa had pointed out that she had invited several clients from the firm of attorneys she worked for.
"Guys, that was such a special service. I nearly cried," Zelina said.
"You? Crying? I can't imagine that," Alexa chuckled. "But thank you, Z. I'm glad you liked it."
"I did cry," Bayley said.
"I knew you would," Alexa said, and Clementine laughed.
The group posed for pictures, then it was the turn of Clementine's maid of honour, friends and colleagues. Their mutual friends had mixed themselves into either group, wherever they could get in.
Eventually, the formal picture taking was done, leaving Alexa and Clementine to mingle with their guests for a while before cars took them off to wedding reception.
When she parted ways with her wife, the first person to approach Alexa was Nikki Bella, who looked resplendent in a silver dress that showed off her body and her two notable assets. They exchanged a hug.
"Oh, Alexa, what a perfect service," Nikki gushed. "You look stunning, you really do. And Clem? She's literally the cutest thing. I'm so happy for you guys."
"Thank you, Nikki. I'm glad you came. It means a lot."
"As if I would have missed it," Nikki said, sounding like it was unimaginably ludicrous. "I do have some news. I broke it off with Artem."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Alexa said, grimacing sympathetically.
"Don't be, it was my idea. Guys aren't my thing, I have discovered. I'm thinking I'll date a girl next."
"One who likes to tie you up?" Alexa guessed, knowing all too well what Nikki liked.
"That would be ideal, obviously," Nikki grinned.
"Joking aside, I hope you find the right person. You really do deserve it,"Alexa said.
"Thank you, Lexi."
"I'll speak to you a bit later, okay? I've got to go around and thank everyone for coming."
"Of course. I had some Bella Radici sent to the reception venue. Call it my wedding gift," Nikki smiled.
"Thank you, Nikki. That's very kind of you," Alexa said warmly.
"My pleasure."
Alexa moved off to talk to some other guests. A couple of minutes later, she happened to glance over in Nikki's direction. She saw her chatting to Bayley. No, not chatting, flirting, and obviously so. So much for moment of Bliss addiction, Alexa thought, shaking her head in amusement.
"Hello, Mrs Bliss," Clementine said from behind her a few minutes later.
"Oh, hello, Mrs Bliss," Alexa said, turning around. Calling her wife by her new name caused a fluttering sensation in her stomach. She figured that must be what being the luckiest woman in the world felt like.
They stepped away from the people Alexa had been chatting to, in order to have some privacy. Clementine said, "I was just thinking, it was a great service, this garden is beautiful, there are a bunch of wonderful people here to celebrate with us, and it's going to be a great night tonight at the reception. But you know what I'm standing here looking forward to?"
"The honeymoon," Alexa stated, not needing to guess. "Me too, babe, trust me. Two weeks of sand, sun..."
"And moments of Bliss," Clementine finished.
A/N: Thank you to everyone who left a review last time!
This chapter was going to be Alexa's next booking, but when I realised it was the 50th, I decided it was right to make this one the wedding.
Now that Alexa is officially taken, Nikki's attention seems to have shifted to Bayley. Do you think something might happen between them?