by Scott, S. L.
“I did. You need a convertible in Hawaii and to ship your car over would cost more than the car is worth. So I bought you a new one.”
“You can’t do that. This is too much.”
He leans over and I tilt my head, my face hidden from the table. He whispers, “Too much for what?”
“Just too much,” I start. “You shouldn’t be buying me expensive gifts like this. You gave me the ring and the wedding.”
Evan takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles. “You’re going to be my wife, Mallory. You need a car in Hawaii and I can afford to give you one. We can afford this, so please stop worrying about money.”
I look down at the photo again and smile, running my finger across it as if I can touch the car itself. “It is really pretty.”
Evan smiles and says, “I knew you’d like it.”
“There’s no liking about it. I love this car and it’s just a picture. Is it this color?”
“It’s that very car unless you don’t like the color then we can get a different color. It’s called Lunar Blue Metallic,” he says, his voice filled with uncertainty.
“I love the color. It’s gorgeous. Is it a Mercedes Roadster?”
“How’d you know that?”
“Always admired them from afar.” I don’t bother telling him I went to a couple car shows with Will.
“I know you like safe and practical, but it’s Hawaii, so I had to get you the convertible. And then one thing led to the next and led to the SLK55 AMG Roadster. That car is fucking loaded. It’s so badass.” I listen as he goes on, his expression showing his excitement. “It has this really awesome sound-system and 4.5 second acceleration from zero to sixty. It’s not a Maserati, but I’m impressed and thought you’d like it.” He’s so animated it’s fun to watch.
After lunch, we all take a stroll from the restaurant down the block, stuffed from our meal. Evan holds my hand, bringing it to his lips to kiss several times.
“I don’t think I’ve ever felt happier than I do right now,” I say, glancing up at him.
“Me either. The sky is the limit once we’re married.”
“Forever is ours,” I add, leaning my head on his shoulder.
“Mallory?”
Evan’s tone catches me off-guard and I look up. “Yeah?”
“Speaking of the sky being the limit, we should talk about our money situation. I mean I should’ve told you sooner, but I didn’t really think about it and you never asked.”
“It’s your money, Evan. We don’t have to talk about it right now. We can wait until some other time if you want.”
“No, we should. I think you should know.” We cross the street and enter a small park on the corner, letting our families walk ahead of us. He holds onto my left hand and looks at the ring. “I talked to your dad about it briefly when I asked for his blessing, but I haven’t talked to you. You know my grandparents left me an inheritance, but I need you to know it’s millions. I don’t have the exact figures memorized because a lot of it is invested and there have been big gains. It’s substantial. Substantial enough that neither of us would ever need to work again. I’ll get the lawyers to send over the figures so you know everything.”
“Evan, I want to work.”
“I know you do, but know if at a later date, say when we have a family, you decide you want to stay home, you can.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“I trust you, Mallory, and I want you to know everything about me.”
“Son,” Hugh says, suddenly appearing, the rest of the group up ahead near a fountain. “This might be poor timing with the celebration, but we leave for New York tonight and I’m supposed to give this letter to you. The lawyers drew it up and I verified the information to be accurate on your behalf, but I would suggest both you and Mallory review it before signing.” Hugh hands Evan a white envelope that he pulls from inside his jacket pocket and turns back to rejoin the rest of the group who are now window shopping across the street.
Evan opens the envelope and pulls out the thick, folded papers. I want to ask what they are, but I don’t, worrying that it would be intrusive. When I look at him, he frowns then his jaw tenses as his eyes narrow while reading.
He’s upset, so I put a hand on his arm and ask, “Is everything alright?” Although I’m dying to know what the papers say, they look business like and private.
Evan’s eyes meet mine, and he shakes the papers in the air. “I need you to know that I’m not making you sign these.” He folds them up and stuffs the papers back into the envelope. Taking me by the hand again, he pulls me behind him as he storms back toward the group.
I know what the papers are without him having to tell me. It’s kind of obvious it’s a pre-nuptial agreement. I stop him before he crosses the street. “Evan. Wait.” He looks back at me and I smile, trying to calm him. “I don’t mind. I’ll sign them. Just please let’s not make a scene right now. It’s not a big deal—”
He looks confused as his eyes search mine trying to understand. “Mallory—”
“Listen to me.” I pull him closer so the whole world doesn’t hear our conversation. “Those papers don’t change how I feel about you. I didn’t get together with you because you had money. Honestly, I didn’t even know you had your own money until much later and by then I was already a victim to your charm and sexy ways.” I giggle, hoping my fun lightens his mood.
“That’s why this is bullshit. I know you don’t care about this, but I do. My grandparents would’ve wanted me to marry for love not status. I’m doing that and I don’t want anything coming between us or shaking the foundation we’ve built.”
“It won’t,” I try to reason. “Your parents are only trying to protect you. That’s not a bad thing.”
“I’m in this for life, not for five or ten years. For. Life.” He emphasizes each word. “So it doesn’t matter if you have access to the money. Fuck, I want you to. I want to share everything with you.”
“It’s security and your parents want you to be secure—”
“I couldn’t live with myself if you signed these papers. This isn’t us. We weren’t built on contracts and financial statements.”
I take his hands, rubbing my thumb over his knuckles. “We’re built on love and trust.”
“Which is exactly how I want us to stay. Mallory, everything I have is yours now.”
“Oh, Evan.” I put my hand on his cheek. “Everything I have is yours as well. Just know I love you no matter what. If they demand we sign, I will if it means being with you.”
He leans down and kisses me. When our lips part, he says, “I’m sure the pre-nup is fair by legal standings, but money is just money. You have my heart so you already own me. I’m going to tell my parents to destroy this contract.”
“You do whatever feels right for you, but please talk to your parents about this later. Okay? If my family sees you arguing with your parents, they’ll get worried and I don’t want them to stress about us. They do enough of that already with me moving away.”
He smiles and agrees. “Okay, but know the matter is already settled in my mind.”
The next few weeks are crazy with packing up everything, selling the stuff we won’t need, and making final arrangements in Hawaii with school, the wedding, and the move.
My mom comes to visit one weekend to help me look for my wedding dress. Even though it’s a nice break from packing, I’m still concerned about the cost and my parents have offered to buy the dress for me. Three stores into our shopping excursion, I find it—the dress and it’s beyond perfect.
My mom sits when she sees me then bursts into tears. Through sobs she confirms this is the one, which makes me start to cry. I don’t even know why I’m crying. It’s been an emotional day I guess and the realities of me actually getting married and moving away is starting to affect us both.
As she’s paying for the dress, she brushes my hair over my shoulder, and says, “You’ve become a beautiful woman, inside and out, Mallory. Dad a
nd I are proud of the person you are and all that you’ve accomplished.” She smiles, soft and kind, the one I always see her wearing when I picture her. “Go into your marriage with an open mind and a forgiving and loving heart. There is nothing the two of you can’t work through as long as you stay a team.” I feel a tear forming and my eyes get glassy. She wipes my cheek as it cascades down my face. “You’re going to have a wonderful life, honey. Cherish every moment.”
“Thank you, mom.” I hug her.
She whispers, “And this dress is going to knock Evan’s socks off and just might kill your father. So let’s keep it a secret until the ceremony.” Her smile turns devious and I laugh, which eases the worry of my upcoming departure from my family.
The matter of the pre-nup is never brought up again, even though I overhear a heated conversation when I come home early after visiting Sarah one afternoon. Evan is pacing in the guest bedroom, his tone terse when I hear several: no’s, never, and unacceptable. He finds me reading a magazine in the living room when he walks out. He doesn’t say anything, but seems pleased.
I visit my parents one last time before we leave just wanting to spend time with them. We hang out, go to the grocery store, and do completely uneventful stuff, but I love every minute of it. My dad rearranges his schedule, so he can spend the day with us too. I’ll see them in less than a month for the wedding, but that visit will be different and we all know it.
When I return to the apartment after the weekend, Evan’s made a lot of progress on the packing. Win for me, I silently cheer. On our final day there, we make sure to christen every room as ours—making love and fucking everywhere. I can’t get enough of him, the feeling of him against me, on me, inside of me. I love it all. Though the wedding is the legal part of our union, our souls are already married, bonded by something greater, bonded together forever.
On the plane, Evan grabs the backpack from the overhead compartment and then my hand with his other. As we hurry off and through the airport, we make it to the baggage claim area in record time. I’m huffing behind him as we approach a man who’s holding a sign that reads “The Future Mr. and Mrs. Ashford.”
I giggle as we approach. “Did you do this?”
Evan looks at me and smiles. “You like?”
“I love,” I answer, feeling light and happy.
The man places a lei around each of our necks, and says, “Welcome to paradise.”
24
Mallory
It was suggested we stay apart the night before the wedding so we get proper sleep. I’m not sleeping at all without him, so I use the back stairs and go to Evan. I tap lightly on the door, but he doesn’t answer. It’s not that late, so I doubt he’s sleeping. I try the knob and it’s locked. Walking around to the back door, I round the corner and see him sitting on the step, staring out into the ocean.
“Hey there, want some company?”
The moon reflects in his eyes, when he sees me. “I’d love some.”
Quietly I settle in next to me and look into the far distance. “The moon is huge tonight.”
“It’s a thinking moon,” he says. I bring my knees to chest and listen as he continues. “I used to paddle out on nights like this and just sit on my board. You’d be amazed how quiet it is out there, the rest of the world left back on land with your worries.”
His foot nudges mine. “I haven’t done that in a year. Strange how you fall out of old habits when you fall into new ones.”
“Was I a new habit?” I lean my head on his shoulder.
With a soft chuckle, he replies, “You were habit forming, that’s for sure.” He kisses the top of my head. “So what brings you here? I thought you were supposed to be able to rest better when I’m not around.”
“I rest much better with you around.”
“Me too.”
I stand, taking his hand and pull him up. “Can we go to bed?”
“Yeah, big day tomorrow and all.”
“Yep, big day.” He doesn’t know, but I have no intention of getting real sleep, which is how I ended up with my head hanging off the end of the bed and the room thick with sexual tension as we make love. Correction, we start off making love, but our desires and impatience win out. I start to slip off with each thrust until Evan stops. He pulls me back by the hips until my body is supported again and realigns himself. “You okay,” he asks, his tone soft while his body remains hard.
“I’m more than okay,” I reply, rubbing his neck and encouraging him to continue. When he’s inside of me, my head goes back, my mouth drops open, and I gasp from the pleasure.
My body moves of its own volition and I watch my earthbound Hawaiian God. There’s just something about watching his body, the muscles moving together for my gratification and his. All his arrogance is captured and put to use in his seductive ways. He’s sex personified and lust come to life. He makes me feel things I never have and crave things I’m not sure I should. He makes me want him in all ways and punctuates every encounter by sending me into a cliff-diving pool of ecstasy. “Evan!”
A loud knock on the door startles us. Our bodies still and we look at each other, both silently hoping whoever it is goes away. When another knock sounds, Evan says, “For fuck’s sake.” He climbs out of bed and slips on a pair of boxers before he answers the door. “What?”
I can’t see her, but I hear Kate embarrassed. “Soooo,.. Ummm, This is really awkward with you know Mallory yelling your name out like that, making it obvious what you guys are doing in there, but her mom sent me down to find her. She’s worried about her.”
Evan looks back at me over his shoulder and releases a heavy sigh. His words aren’t hurried and disappointment is written all over his face. “Guess I’ll get a rain-check?”
While Kate waits outside, I slip out of bed and start gathering my clothes. “I’m sorry. I should go see her. I don’t want her worried.” I finish getting dressed and lift up and kiss him. I whisper, “I definitely owe you a rain-check.”
After a kiss goodbye, he says, “See you at the altar. I’ll be the one with the goofy looking grin.”
With a smile and a small wave over my shoulder, I walk out the door, and say, “There’s nothing goofy about you or your grins. Trust me on that.” When I see Kate, I stop and look back. “Oh, and I’ll be the one in the white dress just in case you forget what I look like overnight.”
“You’re unforgettable. You can trust me on that.”
“C’mon, Mal,” Kate says, taking me by the arm and pulling me toward the main house. “You’re lovey dovey-ness is just so… um, sooo—”
“Romantic?”
“I wouldn’t exactly say romantic. I was leaning toward stomach turning.”
I hit her on the arm. “You don’t mean that. I’ve heard how you and Murphy talk to each other. You’re not a stranger to the love-dovey stuff.”
I see a small smile and point. “See! Right there. I knew it.”
“Whatever,” she says, nudging me. “It’s still my brother you’re doing that with and you should be glad it was me who heard that sex-screaming and not your mother.” I wait, knowing she’ll come around. She stops at the backdoor and turns to me. “Fine. You two are adorable and I’m glad you turned my brother into a romantic. Are you happy now?”
“Yep. I am.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“I’m a bride. I get to be ridiculous.”
She laughs. “True.”
Kate and I walk inside the main house and she says, “And about what I heard right before I knocked on the door, we shall never speak of that again.”
“Okay,” I reply, laughing.
Working my way back upstairs, I tiptoe down the hall to the bedroom again. I find my mom sitting in my room. She looks up when I enter, and says, “Getting fresh air?” I can tell by her expression she knows exactly where I was.
“Something like that.”
She stands and hugs me. “I’m going to bed. Your dad is already asleep. I just wanted to che
ck on you. How are you doing?”
“I’m good. Really good.”
“I can tell you’re good. Really good.” She mimics me with a little laugh. When I release her, she asks, “And how is Evan?”
“He’s good. Really good.” I laugh this time.
“Good to hear everyone is good tonight.” She heads to the door. “And you should probably take a shower before you come down for breakfast.”
And I’m mortified now.
“Thanks.”
“Goodnight, dear daughter.”
“Goodnight, dear Mom.”
* * *
Everything appears perfect… to the outside world, but it doesn’t feel perfect on the inside. I should have listened to my instinct more, put my foot down, and been stronger. I wanted Claire to like me… and that meant giving into her demands. Now she likes me, but I’m caught in the middle of a wedding that feels so upscale New York and not me at all.
I should have said something when she begged for more guests, or she told me she ordered the favors without asking for my opinion, or even when a sample bouquet showed up in Colorado, Claire insisting all the fashionable brides were carrying peonies this season, even though my wedding is in Hawaii. But I didn’t want to burst the cloud nine bubble she’s been floating on the last couple of months. I really only have myself to blame for not speaking up sooner. What’s done is done and I’ll walk down that aisle with a smile on my face. But I would anyway since Evan’s waiting at the other end.
Sunny’s been keeping tabs on the guys all morning, but I have no fears about being left at the altar. She relays a message from Zach that Evan’s in a great mood. Kate stands at the window watching the guests arrive. My mom is on the other side of the room pinning a flower into Sunny’s hair, and I’m sitting at the vanity waiting for the ceremony to begin.
“I’m really nervous,” I say quietly, not feeling in control of my voice. Clasping my hands in my lap, I look down to avoid the mirror in front of me. My dress is beautiful. Spaghetti straps hold up the lace top, a deep dip in the lace leads to a full skirt that falls naturally instead of being held out by an uncomfortable hoop skirt underneath. The dress is sexy and pretty. I chose it with Evan in mind. My mom said it was very ‘us’ and fitting for a beach wedding. The earrings Claire gave me are on and stunning. So all the pieces are in place for a great day, and as much as I want to suck it up, something still feels off.