Stephen
T his is the second time she’s retreated into her thoughts.
It’s safe to say that the adrenaline has worn off and she’s feeling strung out.
I don’t want to force her into more than she’s ready for but I’m on a strict schedule. I slowly rest my hands on the table on either side of her so as to not startle her. I dip my head until her eyes are in my line of sight. They widen slightly until a faint blush rises to her cheeks.
There we go. There’s my girl.
“Just so there’s no misunderstanding, yes, I am doing this for the bar but I am also doing this for you. By now you should know that despite our bickering and differences, you’re family. No one fucks with my family without consequences. So this is the plan, I’m going to give you a few minutes while I start packing your stuff. You’re coming home with me.”
Her chin quivers and she releases a long breath, her body sagging like it’s lost all the heaviness she’s been carrying around.
“Your home? The penthouse or compound?”
I smile at her, gently brushing the stray strands behind her ears.
“The penthouse which is technically your home now as well.”
“As soon as we-we get married?”
“In an hour we will be so yes.”
“An hour?” She jolts up in surprise, her chest brushing mine and I grip the table harder so I don’t end up doing something crazy like kissing her. I’ve avoided looking at her lips for that very same reason. Vanessa is my own brand of temptation and I have this weird feeling that if she would only let me in…
She is also my redemption.
“Yes.”
I push off the desk and head straight for her closet, frowning at how little she has in here.
Once she’s my wife, this changes immediately.
I’m piling all the hung clothing on the bed when her voice stops me midway through.
“But I haven’t… I mean I didn’t actually say…” She sputters behind me.
I look over my shoulder at her, shooting her a grin.
I reach out, pulling her gently back in my arms.
“Will you marry me, Vanessa?” I whisper in her ear, my hands drawing soothing circles on her back. I can feel how fast her heart is racing. I bet it mirrors mine.
Despite her insistence on pretending it doesn’t exist, this connection between is palpable.
She whispers, “Yes.”
And it is my undoing.
Warning bells sound off in my head, the voice inside my head reminding me this is a fake marriage born out of sheer necessity and convenience. To not get carried away
I watch Vanessa retreat to her room to finally get some rest and sleep.
She was so obviously beyond emotionally spent that I didn't argue and let her claim the other room. As I trudge my way to my own room, the one I hope will soon become ours, I think back on the last four hours. Everything had happened so quickly that it felt like a blur.
We had rushed through packing all of her stuff into two suitcases and a duffel bag. Then headed straight from her hotel room to a little town south of San Diego called Apple Creek. Colton’s sister, Aurora, is the mayor there and was able to marry us in less than twenty minutes.
Unfortunately, while we were doing that, someone posted on social media that I was involved with an arrest that happened at a hotel and the local news channel started running the story. We were quickly shuffled back into the SUVs by Ben and the security team. Ben wanted to avoid anyone ID-ing us. We also didn’t want to risk anyone seeing Vanessa and connecting us both.
And by the time we got to the penthouse, there was a crowd of paparazzi waiting outside. We were then ushered quietly through the back way and were met by Mr. Figgs in our penthouse who I had called on the way.
Mr. Figgs is not only TEG ’s senior counsel, he was also the one who handled the case we filed against her ex and that’s what Vanessa needed. Someone familiar. Someone she could trust to get her the justice she deserved. After getting all the details from her and learning her assailant was connected to her grandfather, he urged us to lay low until he can file all the paperwork necessary and request a formal investigation.
Then at Vanessa’s request, he pores over Vanessa’s grandfather’s will to ensure our marriage fit every stipulated condition in it.
After emphasizing the one year requirement, he firmly suggested we stay together longer to avoid anyone contesting the will.
Neither Vanessa nor I said anything in response to that but Mr. Figgs is perceptive as fuck. Lucky for us, he also understood lawyer-client privilege so he is legally bound to secrecy.
After Mr. Figgs left, Vanessa and I sat down to iron out the details.
We both agreed that we weren’t going to tell anyone it was fake but that in order for people to buy our relationship, we had to stick to the truth as closely as possible. Which included explaining why she went on the dates and how we reached the point of marriage.
The story we eventually came up with is that we got together a few months ago after I made the decision to purchase Pints & Twists and reached out to her for help. That although it is very much real between us, we broke up because I did not want to be forced into the timeline her grandfather set but very quickly realized that I could not stand back and watch her date and marry another guy so I proposed to her at the hotel.
We also came to the agreement that aside from informing her grandfather that she had met the requirements of his will, for the time being, no one outside of the people we met tonight would know about our marriage until we were able to tell Ava.
And that was something best said in person, face to face.
My sister is due back in 6 months which means I have that long to win her over because to her, it might be a fabrication but to me… all of this is very much real.
She’s my wife, now.
I would very much like for her to stay that way.