Page 29 of The Quirky Vet

Under a wide blue sky, Wilby and Col exchange vows. The ceremony is intimate and heartfelt, the love between the two of them undeniable.

After the ceremony, we hang out with Fitz, Ryde, and the Yanks. It's fun and all, but my body is thrumming with nerves. I don't know when the right moment will be to tell our friends we've gotten hitched, and I still need to have that one-on-one with Fitz, but first…we need to congratulate the newly married couple.

"There they are," Fitz says.

We excuse ourselves and walk over to greet the smiling newlyweds.

"The ceremony was beautiful," I say.

"It was," Fitz agrees. "You guys have been surrounded by people all day so we didn't get a chance to see you earlier."

"Sorry. Getting married is busy business," Col says, prompting Fitz and I to turn to each other.

"Okay. What is going on with you two?" Wilby says. "You've been looking funny at each other all day, and you've been even stranger than normal at work. Did something happen when you went to the Gold Coast last week?"

Guess that's the opening we've been waiting for.

"Uh, yeah." Fitz scratches the back of his head. "We went away to propose to our girlfriends on Valentine's Day…"

"Yeah? And?"

"Well, see, here's the thing." I glance at Fitz, who respondswith a serious nod. Okay. This is it. "Somehow we ended up getting double dumped and accidentally double married on the same night."

"Dumped by who?" Col asks.

"By our girlfriends," I reply.

Wilby frowns. "So who did you get accidentally married to?"

Fitz claps a hand over my shoulder. "To each other."

It takes a lot to stun Wilby Linfox into silence, but we've managed to do it.

"You mean, like…" Col wags his finger between me and Fitz. "Toeach othereach other?"

"Yep." I slide my hands into my pockets to stop from fidgeting. "Toeach othereach other."

"I need another drink," Wilby mutters, so we head to the bar, grabbing Linus and Ryde on the way so we only have to explain everything once. By the time the bartender hands us our shots, we've caught them up.

"Well, cheers!" Linus lifts his glass. "To the happy couple." His eyes meet mine, and he smirks. "Both of them."

We down one round.

Then another.

And then a third, because why the fuck not?

"Fuck." I start coughing, and Fitz claps my back a few times.

"You okay?" he checks.

"Yeah. Thanks."

"So…" Wilby glances at us expectantly. "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

"Didn't want to steal your thunder," I explain.

"Thanks, but…no one could ever steal my thunder."