6. Eden
EDEN
Lust.
I’m struggling with a bad case of sinful, lustful thoughts for a man who is not even the father of the child in my belly.
Sterling Grant Redford, whose last name I didn’t even know until I went through his mail, is the sexiest man on this entire planet.
I didn’t know muscles came that big. I counted his abs last night. Eight. He has eight.
His skin is deep tan, and with the cut through his eyebrow and his dark eyes, he is downright terrifying-looking.
And it turns me on.
What is wrong with me? Why am I having all these horrifying thoughts about him kissing me and running his fingers through my hair?
He’s doing a nice thing for me—a charitable thing he has no obligation to do—by letting me live in his house right now. And all I can think about is whether or not the calluses on his hands would feel better on my inner thighs or around my breasts.
Harlot.
I need to be baptized again.
I exhale, trying to focus my gaze on the stone courthouse we’re walking up to. My hands are shaking by my sides.
“Are you sure, like really sure?” I ask him for the tenth time.
He simply nods. “Pretty sure, Sunshine.”
He opens the door for me. We walk in, stopping at the desk in the lobby.
“We’re here to get married,” he says to the woman sitting there.
She doesn’t even look at us as she shoves a form toward us. Her name tag reads Jody.
“I need both your IDs.” She smacks her gum, red lipstick staining her teeth.
When I ran from Michael, the one thing I managed to escape with was my driver’s license. We sit down and complete the forms. Sterling fills out most of it, pointing out where I need to sign.
“When is your birthday?” he whispers.
“April 10.”
His pen scratches across the paper.
“When is yours?” I ask.
“February 10,” he says.
“You’ll turn twenty-nine before I turn twenty-two,” I muse.
He smiles, chuckling softly. Once he finishes the forms, the lady asks if we want the judge to perform the ceremony now. Sterling says yes, and she tells us to follow her back.
“This must happen a lot here,” I whisper to him.
He chuckles, reaching for my hand. “I guess so.”
He’s wearing his camouflage pants and gray USMC T-shirt, giving away his status as a soldier. The sleeves hug his huge biceps just right, making me a little jealous when Jody seems to notice.
Oh my word. He’s not really yours, Eden.
The unfamiliar feelings stirring in my gut make me uneasy, and I worry about vomiting on the scuffed linoleum. Jody knocks on the wooden door she led us to.
“Come in,” a male voice says.
“Wait here.” She disappears inside.
I look down at my dirty tennis shoes. I tried to look my best, even using the mascara and tinted lip balm he’d bought me. I braided my hair in two French braids.
He squeezes my sweaty hand. “You okay?”
I nod. My mind feels disconnected from my body.
Jody returns a minute later.
“Judge Moore just started his lunch break, but he said he’ll take you now if you’re okay with the lightning version and you brought two hundred dollars in cash.”
Sterling nods. “Okay.”
She pushes the door with her back, allowing us to enter. The judge is sitting at his desk with a half-eaten sub sandwich in front of him. He’s still chewing and sipping on a fountain drink. Jody follows us in and takes a seat in one of the chairs by the wall.
“Hello. Welcome in. Did you happen to bring cash with you?”
Sterling extracts his wallet and sets two hundred-dollar bills on the desk. I wonder if he always carries cash like this with him.
The judge takes it and shoves it in the front pocket of his button-up gingham shirt.
He stands, smiling. “Let’s get started then.”
He moves to the other side of his desk. I’m not sure what I expected, but he positions us on either side of him, joins our hands together, and looks at Sterling.
“Full name?”
“Sterling Redford.”
He turns to me.
“Eden Wesson.”
“All right, we have our witness. Thank you, Jody. Do you have rings?”
I start to shake my head, but Sterling lets go of my hand and reaches inside his pocket, pulling out one tiny gold band and a black rubber one. He hands them to the judge, who returns the tiny gold one to him.
“Place it on her left ring finger. Do you, Sterling Redford, take this woman, Eden Wesson, to be your lawfully wedded wife? In sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, till death do you part?”
Sterling nods, his eyes steady on mine as he slides the ring onto my left hand. “I do.”
It’s a perfect fit.
This isn’t real, I try to remind myself, even as my heart pounds in my chest.
Judge Moore hands me the black rubber ring. “Do you, Eden Wesson, take this man, Sterling Redford, to be your lawfully wedded husband? In sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, till death do you part?”
“I do,” I say, wondering if I’m being too loud or if anyone can hear me over the rushing sound in my ears.
I slide the wedding band onto his finger. It’s tight, but it fits.
“By the power vested in me by the state of Virginia, I pronounce you man and wife, Mr. and Mrs. Sterling Redford. You may now kiss your bride.”
My lips part, and I wonder if we should’ve told him we wanted to skip that part. I don’t even have time to protest before Sterling pulls me closer. One of his hands cups my waistline, and the other wraps around the back of my neck.
“Just go with it, Sunshine,” he whispers into my ear before crushing his lips to mine.
I float into the sky. His lips are soft and gentle.
He presses them into me, his mouth slanting over mine.
I’ve never been kissed like this, so tenderly.
His tongue brushes over my lips, just to taste me.
I reach out to brace myself against his hard chest. He tastes like mint.
I fist his T-shirt, pulling him closer. I see stars circling my head. I want to feel more of him.
“I forget some of these young ones need a room for this part,” Judge Moore jokes.
Sterling rips away from me abruptly, wiping his mouth off with the back of his hand. Judge Moore and Jody are chuckling, shaking their heads.
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” Sterling shakes his hand.
“Jody got a few pictures. Give her your email address, and she’ll send them to you.”
Sterling writes it down on a Post-it note and thanks her.
“You two are adorable,” Jody adds on as she walks us out of the office and back toward the lobby.
“Thank you, ma’am. Have a great day,” Sterling says before leading me out to the truck and opening my door.
I’m too stunned to respond.
I climb into the vehicle, wondering if I’m even awake right now. This feels like a dream. He climbs into the driver’s side and starts the truck.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
I feel myself nodding without even looking his way. He doesn’t ask again.
TWO WEEKS LATER
Being pregnant has brought on some strong hormonal urges that I’ve never dealt with before in my life.
All I can think about is sex.
Correction: all I can think about is climbing my roommate/fake husband like a tree.
Sterling has this thing about not putting a shirt on after he showers. It’ll be forty degrees outside, and he just walks around the house in only his sweatpants.
I’m getting increasingly more frustrated about how my thoughts are constantly in dark, filthy places when it comes to him. I have no way of finding relief. It feels like I’m circling a drain, never going down it.
Finally, I reach my wits’ end. He comes out of the bathroom, groaning in a way that makes my toes curl.
“That smells amazing. I’m starving.”
He hovers behind me, where I’m stirring the mashed potatoes, and dips his finger into them. He lifts it up to his mouth and licks it off.
“Mmm, that tastes so damn good. What’s in it?”
Heat crawls up my neck. I genuinely think I might have a fever.
“Butter, garlic, milk, potatoes, and spices.”
He dips his finger in again. I swat his hand away a little harder than I intended to. Mashed potatoes splatter across the countertop. He chuckles, wiping up the mess with a paper towel.
“Sorry, I’m starving,” he says.
I’m the one who should apologize, but I can’t find the words.
We’ve fallen into a comfortable routine. He goes to work every morning before I wake up. I spend the day cleaning, baking, and wandering around his house and yard.
When he gets home from work, we eat dinner together, and he asks if I’ve gone outside or gotten any exercise. Then we take a walk around the neighborhood before watching a movie.
His phone rings as I’m pulling the salmon out of the oven.
“Hey, Duke,” he says. “Yeah, I’m at home right now, about to eat dinner.”
He puts the phone on speaker. I glance over as a male voice comes through the phone.
“You mean, you’re about to eat a tray of microwaved shit?”
“No, actually, I’m having fresh bread, baked salmon, and mashed potatoes.” He winks at me.
As usual, my cheeks heat, and my stomach knots. I can’t figure out if he does it just to mess with me or if he doesn’t even realize how it affects me.
“Wow. That’s quite an upgrade from your usual plate of microwaved shit.”
“My wife likes to cook.”
My movements stall at his words.
He just called me his wife.
“Yeah, about that. I got scolded for not having more information to share about her. So, I got a list of questions.”
Sterling comes over to me and takes the pitcher of iced tea to set it on the table. “Shoot.”
“What’s her name?”
“Eden.”
“Eden—okay. Is she living with you?”
“Yes.”
“Cool, cool. How did y’all meet?”
Sterling walks back over and takes the plates from my hands. “I met her outside of a truck stop, getting harassed by a driver. I got rid of him and offered her a ride.”
“Damn, did you kill him?”
“Unfortunately, no. He’s still breathing.”
I gulp, the hair on the back of my neck rising as I take a seat at the small, round table.
“How old is she, and how far along is the pregnancy?”
“She’s twenty-one, and we think she’s twelve weeks. Her first doctor’s appointment is tomorrow.”
“Damn. All right, one last question. Is she hot?”
Sterling’s dark eyes find mine across the table. He reaches for my hand because he knows I’ll want us to say grace before we eat. I grasp his fingers, holding my breath.
“She’s gorgeous.”
My stomach flips. I release an exhale, licking my bottom lip.
“And you’re just … helping her out?” Duke asks.
Sterling doesn’t answer immediately. His gaze sweeps over me.
“I gotta go.” He taps the End button on the phone screen and bows his head. “Thank you for this food and for Eden preparing it. Amen.” He releases my hand.
I can barely taste the buttery lemon pepper marinade as I bite into my salmon.
He thinks I’m gorgeous.
“That was my brother Duke.”
“How many brothers do you have?”
“Three brothers, one sister. They’re all in Texas.”
“And they know about us and the baby?”
“Yeah, they know.”
“And they’re not mad at you for marrying a random stranger?”
He shrugs. “No. Why would they be mad?”
“I don’t know. It’s a little crazy to marry a girl you just met so she can get insurance and house-sit for you?”
“My family isn’t like that. We’re all a little crazy in different ways. They know I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t have a good reason. They would’ve been mad if I’d just left you there or kicked you to the curb. Plus, I’m eating fresh bread and incredible salmon instead of microwaved shit.”
“You like it?”
He leans closer to me. “This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted in my entire life.”
A tinge of awareness runs up my spine. I don’t know why, but the way he looks at me heats my core from the inside out.