Chapter Thirty-Nine
His
Crystal
I shook all the way down to the altar.
It felt like I was playing dress up, a part of me was waiting for Anthony to say it was all a joke. Even as I scrawled my name on the marriage certificate and watched everyone else do the same, it still felt surreal.
He gave my hand a squeeze, but when I looked up at him, he just smiled and stared into my eyes.
“You ready?”
“For what?”
He grunted and canted his head, “Whatever life throws at us. It’s me and you now.”
He kissed my knuckles and I bit my lip, as tears burned my eyes.
Joplin was the only person I’d invited.
My mother could find out in the newspaper like everyone else.
I let him lead me out of the church my granny used to love and was so lost in that moment, that I didn’t notice what was in front of us until he opened the door of the Camaro.
“What is this?”
It was gorgeous, that’s what it was.
“You like it?”
“Like it?” I scoffed.
“It was the nicest one I could get my hands on. So, it had to belong to my queen.” He kissed my forehead and nodded at the driver’s seat. “Get in.”
I glanced back at Joplin and Daisy and did as he requested. The new car smell hit me instantly.
“There was only a little over a thousand of them produced like this. It’s a special one,” he explained, while running his hand over my leg.
“Start it, come on. We’re going to Peoria for the weekend.”
“Peoria…” I repeated.
“Yes, to the casino and our suite, just like old times. When we come back, the house will be ready to move into. Daisy is going to get Joplin to school. It’ll be smooth. No more hiccups.”
I did as he asked and put the car on the interstate.
“Do you really think he’ll let it go? You knocking him out and… everything?”
“I think he wants his money. He wants me to agree to his vote to move coke, and he wants me to run it.”
“And what do you want?”
He smiled and squeezed my hand. “I want you, for the rest of my life.”
I smiled, unable to resist his charming words. Still, I pressed, “You know what I mean… With the club.”
His thumb ran over my fingers, teased a circle around the joint and he abruptly changed the subject, “How do you feel about school?”
“School? You said Daisy was taking Joplin–”
“I’m not talking about Joplin. I’m talking about you. How do you feel about classes and college?”
“I want to dance. You said I could dance at your club…”
“You will, but I want you to go to school, too.”
I squinted at him until he sucked in a breath and I had to swerve back into my lane.
“If you’re a cop, he won’t fuck with us. Maybe it’ll put some fear into him. And maybe he will see some value in you. You could be an asset to the club,” Anthony finally spat it out.
“That’s your plan? You want to have a cop for a wife?”
“I have the most gorgeous woman God ever put time into creating as my wife. She dances, and if she happens to carry a badge some day and the club thinks it is in their interest, so be it?”
I didn’t know what to say, so I reached and teased my nails over his jaw, capturing his chin, “I’ll let you figure it out.”
“I will, baby. Trust me.” He smiled, and everything in me went warm, “We got this.”
Somehow, I believed him. Something in me knew I’d be safe with him at my side.
Me and Joplin.