Chapter 8
Eight
Nash
I t’s as if the room around us comes to a standstill, or at least that’s what it feels like. I hear myself breathing, or better yet panting. I swear I hear every single thump of my heart beating as I wait for her answer. Willing her to say yes, silently begging her to say yes. Praying to whoever is listening to me or looking down at all the sinners in Vegas. One beat, two beats, three beats, and I see her lick her lips, and then as if the gates of heaven open and angels start to sing, she whispers, “Okay.”
The heart beating in my chest soars, and I move my head to the side, slamming my mouth down on hers. Her mouth parts in shock, making it easy for my tongue to slide into her mouth, and when it does, it’s as if I’m soaring. Her tongue hungrily twirls with mine as we both take what the other is giving. My hands never leave her face, and I angle my head to the side to deepen the kiss. Her hands come out to grip the lapels of my jacket, pulling me toward her. If we weren’t in the middle of a busy bar, I would have pulled her on top of me. I rub my nose with hers as I disengage from the kiss. Her eyes flutter open as I see her lips are wet, making me lean in and suck the lower one into my mouth while my tongue comes back out to invade her mouth for a second time before I let the kiss go again. Her eyes remain closed for a good two seconds before she opens them. “We have to go.” She stares at me as I drop my hands from her face and pull the phone out of my pocket. “Let’s go.”
“Where are we going?” she asks as she stands beside me and bends down to collect her purse from the table in front of her.
“We’re going to get married.” I reach for her hand, and she doesn’t pull back. Instead, she slides her hand in mine as we walk through the crowd to the exit. I’m practically running out of the hotel, and looking over my shoulder, I see her giggle. The lightness in her eyes is everything, and I have to stop moving. She crashes into me, but it’s worth it. “Fuck, I’ve wanted to do this ever since I met you,” I tell her as I put one hand on her hip and the other on her neck.
“What?” she asks, her eyes roaming my face.
“Kiss you whenever the fuck I want,” I share before I tilt my head to the side and make out with her in the middle of the lobby. People zoom by all around us, but I’m lost in her taste. The kiss is long, it’s wet, and it’s fucking glorious. “Fuck,” I curse when I let her go.
“Was that not good?” she asks, leaning into me, my hand on her hip going to the top of her ass.
“That was so good that if we don’t leave, I’m going to fuck you on that table.” I motion with my head to the side where a round table sits.
She laughs with her hand on my chest. “Nash, that kiss was good”—she tilts her head to the side—“but it wasn’t panty-melting.” She nips the bottom of my jaw. “I think you can do better.”
“Oh, baby,” I say, and her eyes go darker, “I’m making it my goal for you to try to remember a time my mouth wasn’t attached to you.”
“Now is a good time to start.” She tilts her head back, waiting for my kiss, and I don’t let her wait long. Whereas the last kiss was hard and wet, this one is just as wet but softer until she presses her tits into my chest. Then my hand on the top of her ass goes south, grabbing her ass and squeezing it while I pull her to me. Both of us moan at the same time, drowning out the other one.
“How’s that for a start?” I bend to kiss her neck.
“I mean, it’s a start.” She winks at me as I turn to walk out of the venue and toward our hotel. We zigzag through the crowd, her hand never leaving mine while we go through the revolving door together. Her laughter makes my hard cock turn to granite. I walk over to the concierge desk, and the man looks up at me with a smile.
“Good evening,” he greets us. “How can I help you?” He looks at me, and then at Zoey standing right beside me.
“We want to get married,” I reply to the man, and Zoey turns from beside me, moving her fingers in mine so she’s got her front against my side. “Now.”
I want to say the man is surprised by this request, but it’s Vegas, and I’m sure he gets asked this hourly. “I see,” he says. “Well, let’s start with the first thing. I’m assuming you are both over the age of eighteen.” I don’t have to answer because Zoey snorts from beside me. “You both need a valid driver’s license, passport, or Social Security card.”
We untangle from each other. My hand goes to the wallet in my inside pocket, tossing the
license on the top of his counter. Looking over, I see Zoey toss hers right next to mine. He nods at us. “The marriage license fee is seventy-seven dollars,” he states, and I toss my black credit card right next to the other two. “Perfect, now you need to take the marriage license application to the Clark County Marriage Bureau,” he instructs, looking at his watch. “You have about two hours until they close.” He holds up his finger but only to pick up his phone. “Good evening, this is Curtis from the Bellagio. I have a couple who are on their way to pick up a marriage license.” He stops talking. “I can email you all their documents to start the process, but they will be handing in the original one, as well as their two pieces of ID.” He looks at us and smiles.
“Yes,” Zoey says from beside me, “I think that’s a good sign.”
He hangs up the phone and looks at me. “Okay, I need you both to fill this out while I scan your IDs,” he directs, handing us a form. “While you do this, I will also have a driver ready to take you there and wait for you.”
“We need a chapel,” I say, grabbing a pen to fill out the form. “Whichever one you know.” I look at him. “Whatever the cost. I want whatever package you have, just bigger and better.”
“Of course, we can have it here. I know someone who can marry you right after you leave the courthouse.”
“Oh, we need Elvis.” Zoey leans in to say in my ear, “We can’t get married in Vegas without it being Elvis.”
“My wife would like Elvis.” I wink at her as I turn back to Curtis. “Also, the honeymoon suite, is it available?”
“I would have to check the availability,” he says, turning to his computer and clicking on a couple of things. “We have one available.” He reads the screen.
“We’ll take it,” I tell him as I finish filling in my information and then hand the pen to Zoey, who starts on her side.
He nods. “Now, would you like a photographer?”
I look at Zoey. “Oh, yes!” Then she gasps, “I need a bouquet.”
“She needs a bouquet,” I tell the man, who tries not to smirk and just types something on his keyboard.
“I’m assuming it will just be the two of you?” he asks.
“Yup,” I confirm, tapping the counter, “just me and the wife.”
Zoey looks at me and giggles before she looks back down and continues filling out the form. I gasp, “We need rings.”
“Oh, I want a ring,” Zoey declares. “Do I get a ring?” She points at herself.
“You get two rings,” I tell her, and she looks at Curtis, smiling ear to ear.
“I get two.” She holds up two fingers. “Score.”
“The first thing we need to do is get you over to the courthouse,” Curtis informs us. “When you get back, I will have everything in your suite waiting for you.” He looks over at the door and gives the man standing there a chin up, and he comes rushing over. “I will also transfer everything from your rooms to the suite.”
“This is so easy,” Zoey says, tossing down the paper. “No wonder so many people get married in Vegas.”
“This man is going to take you to get your marriage license,” he says. “Once you present yourself with the paperwork and your government IDs, it should take fifteen minutes.” He hands me both licenses and the form, along with my credit card. “I will have someone here upon your return.”
“Ohh,” Zoey whispers, “we get to make out in the car.” She slides her hand in mine as I rush her out to the same SUV that picked us up. I toss the paper to the side before grabbing her face and pulling her to me. I don’t know how long it takes to get there, but we make out the whole time. We walk into the building, my eyes scanning for the sign. It takes us two minutes to hand in everything and then she tells us to take a seat.
“What type of ring do you want?” I ask, leaning and kissing her neck. I move up to her ear, sucking her lobe into my mouth. She gives me a soft moan. “I know what wedding band I’m getting you,” I tell her.
“Ohh,” she says, “I get to give you a ring also.”
“Anything you want, baby.” She leans in to kiss me, but the clerk calls our name. I walk up with her hand in mine and grab the paper before walking outside. The driver waits at the curb, and as soon as he sees us, he pops a bottle of champagne, making Zoey laugh. I stop moving to look at her. “I promise to make you laugh every single day of our lives.” She comes to me and puts a hand on my cheek. “Among other things.” She chuckles.
“Challenge accepted, Mr. Griffin.” She nips my lip before she tilts her head to the side and kisses me. “Let’s go get married,” she urges, walking down the steps toward the driver who is holding a full glass in one hand and waiting to fill the other. I grab the full one and hand it to Zoey while he fills the second glass. “We need to toast.”
I hold up my glass. “To the best night of my life.”
“Our life,” she corrects me, clinking my glass before downing her whole glass of champagne. I shake my head, finishing my own before we get back into the car. She turns to me when I get into the seat, her hands going to my face. “I have a secret,” she whispers, looking into my eyes and smiling big as she says it. “I’ve wanted to make out with you all night long.” I don’t bother answering her. Instead, I lean in and wait for her to bend her head to mine, my tongue ready for hers when she slides it into my mouth. The sweetness from the champagne is all over it, and this kiss is more needy than the ones we had driving over here.
When we return to the hotel, Curtis waits for us in the lobby with a woman beside him dressed almost the same, but instead of pants, she’s wearing a skirt. “Mr. and future Mrs. Griffin,” he greets us, “we have everything waiting for you.” I reach into my inside pocket and hand him the marriage certificate. “Claudette will take you to your room and get everything ready. Elvis will be here within an hour, whenever you are ready.”
We follow Claudette up to the suite. “Welcome to the penthouse suite,” she announces, opening the door for us. I see balloons that fill the whole ceiling as soon as we walk past the wet bar and powder room. “Mr. Smith will help with your rings.” She points at the man sitting at the dining room table with a black tablecloth on the surface and rings all over it.
A butler is on the side of the wet bar, holding a silver tray with two glasses of champagne. “This is so pretty.” Her eyes light up as she looks around the room. “And the flowers…” She points at all the vases of white flowers all around the room. “It’s magical.”
I walk up to her, pulling her into my arms. Her hand drops her purse to the floor as she places her palms on my chest. “Are you happy?” I ask her the loaded question. It’s a question that is heavier than the will-you-marry-me question, and that one was huge.
She smirks, looking down at her hands, then she looks up at me, and her face fills with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen. Over the years, I’ve seen her smile many times, in person and on her Instagram. It’s as if her smile is engrained in my brain, but this smile right here is a new one. One I’ve never seen before. One that makes the corner of her eyes crinkle. Her eyes are almost a crystal blue, with shades of yellow in them, and the smile has filled her whole face. It's a smile I’m going to do everything in my power to see every single day of my life. “I’ve never been happier.”