by Parker, Ali
Sade emerged from the bedroom after a good thirty minutes of primping. Bentley had been patiently waiting inside with me.
“Ready?” I asked her.
“I don’t know. Am I?”
I smiled, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. “You look fabulous.”
“Your chariot awaits,” Bentley said with a laugh.
We left Leia in the care of Khloe. I didn’t get the impression either of them was overly thrilled with the idea, but they would make do. We headed back to the hangar, which really confused Sade.
“Are we going back to my place?” she asked.
I laughed. “No.”
It was when the bright lights of Las Vegas came into view that she figured out my surprise destination.
“Vegas?!” she exclaimed.
“Yep. Have you been before?”
She nodded. “A couple of times but not to gamble. Once was for a conference for school and another time when I was younger and with my family.”
“I’m happy to share this with you.”
“Where exactly are we going?” she asked as we climbed into the back of a waiting limo.
“It’s one of my favorite restaurants, The Top of the World.”
“That sounds very intriguing,” she said with a laugh.
“Have you never heard of it?”
She slowly shook her head. “No. I don’t think so.”
“It’s awesome. You will love it.”
“I don’t get it. What is it?”
“It’s a restaurant high up in the STRAT hotel. It is reminiscent of the Space Needle. The views are absolutely breathtaking, and the food is pretty damn good as well. It slowly turns, giving you the full three-hundred-sixty-degree view of the city.”
She grimaced. “Oh, I don’t think I can handle spinning.”
I laughed. “You don’t even realize you are moving.”
“That sounds intriguing. I can’t wait.”
I loved watching her as we stepped out of the limo and rode up to the restaurant. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement. I loved that I got to be the one to put that little sparkle in her eye. We took our table next to the windows.
“What do you think?” I asked, hoping she wasn’t afraid of heights.
“I have no words. This is incredible.”
I laughed, ordering a tray of appetizers and a bottle of red wine from the waiter while Sade’s attention was focused out the window. “It’s hard not to stare, isn’t it?”
She looked at me and nodded. “It is so, so busy. And the lights! So many lights! Can you imagine a blackout in this city?”
I laughed. “No. I think that would be right up there with the ten worst things to happen.”
“Thank you for bringing me here. I don’t think I would have ever made it here without you. I wouldn’t have even known about it. I feel like you are showing me more in a month than I would have experienced in a lifetime.”
“I want to be your first time in all things,” I said, my voice thick as I thought about how innocent she was.
She smiled. “I want you to be my first.”
When I had made the dinner reservation, I had thought about proposing to her. It was the perfect place to ask her the question. It was one of the most romantic restaurants in the entire world. I didn’t buy the ring, and I didn’t plan to ask her. I knew it was too soon. I was rushing things, but marriage was something I wanted her to be absolutely ready for. I would wait. Maybe we could come back to the restaurant once we had some time together and she would be ready for the next big thing.
“What’d you think?” I asked her, sipping the red wine after we’d finished eating our four-course meal.
She groaned. “So good. How can you eat anywhere else after eating this? I have never had such a good meal. I feel like nothing will ever compare to that steak. It was absolutely fantastic.”
I grinned, happy to know she was impressed. “Next time, we’ll have to try the swordfish. It’s absolutely delicious.”
She shook her head. “I cannot eat like this too often. I’m so full, but it was so good.”
We left the restaurant holding hands. It was a warm night and perfect for a little sightseeing. I ushered her into the waiting limo and settled in. I would have loved to stroll down the strip with her by my side, but my leg would not tolerate it. It had been acting up and was still stiff and sore, with my usual limp much more pronounced.
“How about a nice cruise down the Strip?” I asked her.
“Sure.”
“We can stop in one of the casinos and do a little gambling if you’d like? Do you gamble?”
She laughed. “No, I don’t gamble. I suppose I could, but it has never been something I’ve been all that interested in. Do you?”
I shrugged. “I don’t mind playing poker now and then. The slot machines are a nice way to pass the time.”
The car was slowly moving down the street. The sidewalks were packed with people having a good time in various states of drunkenness. Sade was staring out the window, taking it all in. “This is wild. I’ve seen Vegas in the movies and on TV, but actually being here and seeing it like this is a totally different experience.”
“I can have the driver stop off at Caesar’s Palace,” I offered.
She burst into laughter. “Why gamble when there are chapels lining the roadway?”
“Chapels?” I repeated.
“How crazy would it be if we got married in Vegas?” she asked, still laughing.
“I don’t think it would be crazy at all,” I answered, my voice lacking any laughter.
She looked at me, her eyes widening. “Seriously?”
“Are you serious?”
She licked her bottom lip. “I am.”
“I am too.”
We stared at each other for several long seconds before I grabbed her and pulled her in for a sound kiss. Nothing was real if it wasn’t sealed with a kiss.
My mouth moved over hers. All the want and need I felt for her was overflowing into the kiss. I couldn’t get enough of her. Part of me was conscious enough to remember we were in the back of a limousine.
That was the only part of me keeping me from taking her right there.
Chapter 54
Sade
I leaned back against the seat. My lips felt a little swollen after the exuberant round of kissing. I couldn’t believe what I had blurted out. It shocked the hell out of me. More shocking was him agreeing to it. I kept expecting him to burst into laughter and say he was only joking.
The kiss told me otherwise. He was serious. I was serious. I had never done anything so crazy in my life, but marrying him was what I wanted. I knew it was right. I knew weeks ago, he was the man I would marry one day. Why not let that day be today? Putting it off did nothing.
“Ready?” he asked. “Do you want to change your mind?”
I shook my head. “Nope. Let’s do this.”
He grinned and leaned forward to tell the driver to take us to the first chapel he spotted. The driver chuckled. I had a feeling we weren’t the first couple to make such a rash decision while in Vegas. Hell, it was what the city of lights was famous for. It felt a little cliché, but I loved the idea of being completely spontaneous.
I embraced it. At least if we were married, I wouldn’t feel nearly as bad about living with him. We wouldn’t be living in sin, which would make my parents very happy as well.
“You know, I was thinking about proposing to you over dinner but backed out,” he said.
“You were? What stopped you?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t want you to think I was pushing you. I know it’s all moving fast. I am very confident that what I feel for you is the real thing, but I didn’t want to push you into anything you weren’t ready for.”
“I’m ready for this,” I told him, squeezing his thigh.
The car pulled to a stop in front of a small white building with a steeple on top. “Good, because we’re here. Last chance to change your min
d.”
I laughed. “I’m not changing my mind. You’re going to be stuck with me.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
We got out of the car and stood in front of the chapel. I was surprised to see quite a few other couples mingling around outside. Some were smoking, others were kissing, and then there was the obvious couple with the woman sporting a belly that suggested she might give birth at any minute.
We walked inside to get our name on the list and fill out the necessary paperwork. Trent’s limp was much more apparent as we moved.
“Sit,” I ordered. “I’ll wait in line.”
“I’m fine,” he said in a low voice. “Sitting tends to make it worse.”
“Standing isn’t any better. Sit. Now.”
He grinned. “Not even my wife, and you’re already ordering me around.”
I winked. “Damn straight.”
I got the paperwork, and we huddled together on one of the benches and quickly filled it out. It was the first time we learned each other’s middle names. I realized we didn’t know a lot of the little details that most engaged couples knew about one another, but that didn’t bother me. My heart knew him. The other details would come with time.
“Elvis or regular guy?” I asked him, staring at the question on the form.
He laughed. “We are in Vegas.”
“Elvis, it is,” I said, checking the box.
We finished our paperwork, and Trent paid the fee before we took our seat on the bench once again. He held my hand while we waited our turn.
“Who knew there would be a rush at the chapel on a Saturday night?” he quipped.
“And Monday, there will be a rush to get annulment papers.”
“Not us. This is real for me.”
I looked into his blue eyes and nodded. “Me too.”
“I hate that I don’t have a ring for you.”
“I don’t need a ring.”
He looked up at the display of cheap rings that were for sale. “I could get you one of those for now.”
I curled my lip. “No. I don’t need a ring. I want you. Knowing you are my husband is enough for me.”
He smiled, shaking his head. “I can’t believe we’re doing this. What is your dad going to say?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t think he’ll be all that upset. He might put up a bit of a fuss, but he knows I tend to do things a little different than most.”
“Just so you know, I didn’t bring you to Vegas with the intention of marrying you. I’m absolutely thrilled that you are going to, but I wasn’t trying to pull a fast one on you.”
I leaned forward and dropped a kiss on his lips. “You’re not pulling anything on me. After all, I’m the one who suggested it.”
He laughed. “This is true.”
“Gilroy party!” an older woman shouted into the waiting area.
I looked at him and grinned. “Want to change your mind?”
“Not a chance in hell.”
I was a little shocked that I didn’t feel the least bit nervous about walking into the chapel with Elvis standing up front behind a podium and under an archway of the ugliest artificial flowers I had ever seen. I felt confident. I held Trent’s hand in mine as we took our positions up front.
There was one older woman sitting in the front row of folding chairs, wearing a leopard-print shirt and black pants. She was our witness. We followed the directions given by Elvis and his helper, reciting our boilerplate vows before being pronounced husband and wife.
The kiss was hot and full of so much promise, but abbreviated due to the audience and the time crunch. “We have to get a picture,” I said after the kiss.
“Of?”
“Us with Elvis!”
“We sell pictures five bucks each,” the woman with a smoky voice rasped.
“Five dollars?” Trent repeated, digging into his pocket for his wallet.
I stopped him. “I just want a picture with my phone,” I answered, not about to give the woman money for a shitty polaroid.
“Five bucks,” she snapped.
I rolled my eyes. “Make it good,” I said and handed her my phone and a five-dollar bill.
Trent was barely able to control his laughter over my dickering with the woman about a five-dollar photo. It was the principal of the matter and really not about the money. We smiled, and she took exactly one picture.
“Here,” she said, handing me my phone.
I looked at the picture and realized it was as good as it was going to get. The top of Trent’s head was shaved off a bit, but I supposed that happened when a man was as tall as he was. I would take it. Trent peered over my shoulder and burst into laughter.
“I guess you get what you pay for,” he said, still laughing.
I scowled. “For five bucks, she could have gotten your whole head into the picture. It’s not that hard.”
“It’s perfect. I love it.”
“It’s our wedding picture, and you look like your head has been chopped off,” I complained.
Trent stopped walking. “Excuse me,” he said to one of the young men waiting outside the chapel. “Will you please take a picture of my wife and I in front of the chapel?”
“Trent,” I hissed. “You can’t just give your phone to anyone on the street.”
“Yes, I can,” he answered and did exactly that.
He put his arm around me in front of the chapel sign. The man took several pictures before handing the phone back to Trent and congratulating us.
“We should have done that the first time,” I said, scrolling through the pictures that were a million times better than the one I paid for.
“Happy?” he asked.
I went up on my toes and gave him a quick kiss. “Very. Thank you.”
“Anything for my wife,” he said with a wink.
We headed for the waiting limo. “I’m going to send this to Khloe. Hell, I think I’ll send it to my dad too. May as well get it all out there.”
“Send it to me so I can send it to Richie,” he said.
I quickly sent the picture to his phone. He asked the limo driver to take us to the hotel he’d booked a room at while we waited to get married. And just like all old married couples, we sat in the backseat, both of us on our phones. I looked up and saw him grinning and realized in that moment that was not how I wanted us to be.
“Did he reply?” I asked.
“Yes. There were some colorful words and some creative emojis. What did Khloe say?”
I laughed. “Similar response. I texted my dad and Julia as well. They haven’t replied yet.”
His phone vibrated in his hand. I watched as he stared at the screen before typing a message. “Richie thinks I’m joking.”
“Trent?” I asked, my tone serious.
He didn’t look up from his phone. “Hm?”
“Trent,” I said his name again.
He finally looked up at me. “What is it? Don’t tell me you’re having regrets.”
I shook my head. “No, but this is a special night. I think we should spend it together—no distractions. No phones.”
He held up his phone, pushed the power button, and showed me the black screen. “Done.”
I did the same, putting my phone in my purse. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. This is a special night, and you’re right. I want to spend it with you and you alone.”
We checked in at the hotel. It felt a little strange to be in a hotel with no luggage, but when I was with Trent, everything was a spur of the moment. It was one of the things I loved about him. He knew what he wanted and didn’t let little details like planning get in his way.
He pushed open the door to the room. I took a few steps inside and stopped. “You got the honeymoon suite?” I gasped.
He chuckled, coming in to stand beside me. “Technically, it is our honeymoon.”
“How did you get it done so quickly?”
He gave me a look. “Baby, that’s how I
roll.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. It was such a Trent thing to do. I walked to the bottle of champagne chilling in a bucket, popped the top, and poured us each a glass.
“To being married,” I said, toasting his glass.
He took a drink of the expensive champagne, his eyes on me the whole time. I could feel the heat radiating from his body. I felt the same way. I put down the half-full glass and stared into his eyes. The eyes of my husband. It was going to take some getting used to, but I liked the idea of him being my husband.
“Baby, the champagne is great, and those strawberries look amazing, but there is only one thing I want right now,” he whispered.
“Me too,” I answered in the same hushed tone.
He put his glass on the table and lunged for me. It was a flurry of movement as we stripped our clothes off, helping one another out here and there until we both stood naked before one another.
“Husband,” I said the word, testing the feel of it on my tongue.
“Wife,” he answered, his tone possessive.
“Bed.”
He snatched my hand, practically dragging me to the double doors that were partially open. There were flameless candles on the dressers and rose petals strewn across the bed. It was perfect. He stepped close to me, his bare chest rubbing against my breasts as his hand moved to the back of my neck. He held me steady as he kissed me with so much passion, I feared I would spontaneously combust.
“Our first time together as husband and wife,” he whispered reverently.
“It feels like I’m living a dream.”
“The dream is just beginning,” he replied and pulled me to the bed.
Chapter 55
Trent
The very second I drifted into consciousness from the deep sleep I had been in, I remembered I was a married man. A smile spread over my face before I even opened my eyes.
I was married. Well, I wasn’t just married. I was married to the best woman in the whole wide world. She was mine. All mine.
I opened my eyes and slowly turned my head. Her head was resting on the pillow and facing me. She was still asleep, her eyelashes creating little half-moons under her eyes. Her lips slightly parted as she slept. I wanted to touch her cheek and caress her exposed bare arm, but I didn’t. I didn’t want to wake her just yet.