by Vivian Ward
I know I shouldn’t complain because they have everyone’s safety in mind but there’s got to be a more efficient way to do things. I could have done without the overweight butch woman feeling around on my tits and ass for five minutes. She could have at least taken me to dinner first.
Our guys were right there with us, though, only leaving when we got to the front of the security line. After that, it was just me and my sister hanging out and waiting for the plane. Of course, that meant sitting in the airport bar and having a few drinks before it was time to go.
It had been quite a while since the two of us had spent any time alone together and it was nice. Plus, the drinks would make it much easier to sleep one the flight was in the air. As scared as I am of enclosed places, I’m more afraid of heights and especially afraid of air travel. Getting a little tipsy before boarding would help make the trip more bearable.
The flight was perfect. We hit no turbulence as far as I could tell. Of course, I slept for the majority of the trip so that was a plus. That didn’t stop me from still feeling tired when we landed. Jet lag is a very real thing and it’s a bitch.
Sarabelle and I decided to go to the hotel, especially since we weren’t going to meet with the dress designer until late that afternoon. We both fell right to sleep and only woke up when the telephone rang. It was Christian calling to find out why we hadn’t made it to our appointment. We’d slept right through it.
We both scrambled to get ready and were fortunate that the designer was a real sweetheart of a man. He was very patient and helped Sarabelle pick out the wedding dress of her dreams. It was truly gorgeous.
The dress she selected was white with a corded lace and Chantilly lace bodice. It had a full-length tulle-tiered A-line skirt and a sweetheart neckline. The dress made her look like a fairytale princess.
Just looking at her made me want to cry, especially when I thought about how proud our mother would have been to see her in it. He took care of all the measurements and set the plan in motion to tailor it just for her.
After the fitting, I realized that we hadn’t eaten in hours and were starving.
“What do you feel like eating?” I asked my sister.
“I don’t know. French food?” she sarcastically replied.
Walking out of the shop, my jaw nearly hit the ground when I looked across the street only to see Liam and Christian standing there smiling at us. I ran over to give my man a hug while Sarabelle did the same.
I looked over at my sister and gave her a look that asked if she knew anything about them coming. I could tell by the look on her face that she was as surprised to see our guys as I was.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Liam.
“I decided that I didn’t want to be without my girl for the whole weekend so I called Christian to see if he was up for a road trip?”
“A road trip? A road trip is going to the cabin in the mountains. Well, you’re two guys. Shouldn’t you have taken a road trip to a seedy strip club or something?” I said with a laugh.
“You know, we actually discussed that and were very strongly considering it. The thing is, I realized that the two prettiest girls in the world were in Paris so those nasty strippers just weren’t going to do.”
“Oh yeah? Keep going. Tell us more,” Sarabelle said.
“Listen, do you guys care if I borrow Lexi in the morning?” Liam asked Sarabelle and Christian. “I’ve got a little surprise for her.”
“Well, the dress is all picked out. Take her now. I don’t need her anymore,” Sarabelle laughed.
The four of us went to a little cafe where we drank wine and dined on oysters and the best baked bread I’d ever eaten. After we ate, we all walked around for a while. Paris in the evening is a lot different than New York City.
As we walked, I tried getting Liam to tell me what the plans were for the next day but he wasn’t budging. He just kept telling me that I was going to have to wait and see.
That night, I grabbed my bag from our hotel room so Christian and Sarabelle could have some privacy. I went with Liam to the hotel that he had booked. As much as I love my sister, spending the night with my man in Paris was a lot more fun. I had a lot of trouble sleeping that night.
We were in Paris and I still hadn’t had the opportunity to see anything. I had so much I wanted to experience but no idea how I was going to make it happen. At the end of the day, it didn’t matter. I was there with the people I loved and that’s what was important to me.
The next morning, Liam woke me up for breakfast. We enjoyed croissants, toast, and coffee. It was an authentic breakfast and I thought that was very cool.
“So what are we doing today?” I asked as we walked from our hotel towards the Seine river.
“You see that water right there? Well, I know how much you wanted to see all the sites. Since we really don’t have enough time, I figured a sightseeing tour on the river would be perfect.”
It was as if he was reading my mind. I was so excited that I jumped into his arms and kissed him. I nearly ran the rest of the way to the river, eager to get on the boat and start the tour. The ship was gorgeous.
It had a little area with tables and glass from the floor to the ceiling so you could sit and see everything. That’s where Liam had a table reserved for us. If I would have called to make the reservations, I would have picked the same setup.
During the tour, we saw nearly everything I was hoping to see. The big landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and The Louvre. It also gave me the opportunity to experience Place de la Concorde, Musee d’Osray, and Hotel de Ville. I was in awe of the city, taking in everything it had to offer. At one point during the trip, Liam slid out of his seat and knelt down on the floor, holding a small box in his hand.
“Lexi Williams, the real reason I brought you out here today was not just to see Paris. The real reason I have you out here is because I love you with all my heart. I never thought in a million years that the two of us would end up together even though that’s what I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember. Now that I have you, I never want to lose you. Would you be my angel and spend the rest of your life by my side? Lexi Williams, will you marry me?”
Holy shit! This was really happening. I could feel my face turning multiple shades of red as I looked around the room and saw everyone staring, waited with bated breath for me to give him my answer. I knew what my answer was. Of course I was going to say yes.
All I had to do was get my brain to communicate with my mouth, which I wasn’t having great success doing. Instead, I excitedly shook my head up and down as tears began to stream down my face. These were happy tears of course.
Liam got up off his knee and hugged me so tight that I thought he was going to squeeze every last bit of air out of my lungs. Everyone on the boat started clapping. I almost expected a band to play like you see in the movies but, of course, that didn’t happen. Still, it was the greatest surprise and an incredible memory that I’m going to have for the rest of my life.
“When did you have time to set all this up,” I asked.
“Believe it or not, it all came together pretty quickly.”
“Wow. I’m glad you did this. It’s amazing. Thank you so much,” I said. “So now that I have this rock on my finger, when are you going to make an honest woman out of me?”
“I figured I’d leave that up to you. Is there any particular day or season you want? I’ll let you have control.”
“Okay. Marry me today.”
“Today? I don’t think that’s going to be possible.”
“No? And why is that?”
“Because there are rules and laws that need to be followed.”
“I see. I heard Sarabelle talking to the dress designer. I bet he could pull some strings and make it happen. I don’t even want a big wedding. Just me and you. Let’s make it official while we’re in Paris.”
“Are you sure? I can give you an incredible wedding. I can give you the wedding of my dreams.”
“The wedding of my dreams is one where you become my husband. That’s all that matters to me.”
“Okay then, I’ll make the call.”
We enjoyed the rest of our cruise even though I didn’t pay very much attention to the things around me. I spent most of the entire journey staring down at my ring and thinking to myself that I couldn’t believe I was engaged. I figured I’d always be the girl who had a lot of guys around but never a boyfriend, let alone a husband.
As promised, as soon as we got off the boat, Liam was on the phone with the wedding designer. There was going to be some things we’d have to do in order to get married legally.
The first thing we needed to do was get in touch with the American Embassy for a marriage license that would be recognized in the United States. Normally, we would have to live in France for 40 consecutive days before we could get married there but Liam was able to contact some people and pull some strings.
By that evening, the two of us had exchanged vows and were officially husband and wife. The ceremony was small and quaint. It took place right outside a little cafe and we had someone snapping some pictures for us.
We’ve decided to hold off on telling anyone. Liam still wants to give me a big wedding in the states and I’m excited about that. Even if this little ceremony was all we had, I’d still be a happy woman for the rest of my life.
Lexi Epilogue
Sarabelle and Christian are the only ones who know that Liam and I got married in Paris last year. Some people suspect it, especially since I refuse to take the huge rock off my finger, but we keep promising that a wedding is coming.
I’m sure it will at some point but he seems to want it more than I do. I’m happy just having him. He thinks I need all of these amazing things like a big wedding with beautiful gowns and lots of food but all I need is him and one day he’ll see that.
Watching my sister walk down the aisle on her wedding day was the second happiest day of my life. It’s always been her dream to find the perfect man to settle down with. I have to admit that I was a little surprised when she told me she was dating Christian Wilde.
Okay, I was more than a little surprised. I was stunned. He’s always been the playboy who collected women like it was a hobby. I asked her all the time if she was sure that he was what she wanted. He was the bad boy and the bad boys can never change. At least, that’s what I used to think.
Being with Liam has taught me that you can’t always judge a book by its cover. I always assumed Liam was just an all-around nice guy. A little geeky, sure, but nice. Never in a million years would I have dreamed that he had such a dark side to him.
I love that he can turn it off and on whenever he wants. There are some nights when I love that side of him and I want him to punish me and make me his little bad girl.
Other nights, I want to lay beneath him while he kisses me and makes love to me slowly. Whichever mood I’m in, he has no problem giving me what I want.
There is no better example of someone being able to change than me. I was always the bad girl and didn’t have any intention of changing.
I didn’t care what anyone thought of me and I was going to do whatever I wanted, regardless of who I had to step on to do it. Liam coming along changed something in me. He showed me that my bad girl persona was not who I really was.
I was hiding my true self underneath layers because I was scared to get hurt. He came along and showed me that not only could someone love me, but that I deserved to be loved. I owe him a lot of gratitude for putting the good girl back into me. I’ll love him forever for that.
At Sarabelle’s wedding reception, my sister came up to me with Christian by her side to whisper in my ear that she was pregnant. She was going to be making an announcement near the end of the reception but she wanted to make sure that I was the first person who knew.
She’d only found out about two weeks prior and wasn’t showing yet. I gave her a hug and cried, something that I would have never done in public before. I was going to be an aunt and I was very excited.
“There’s one other thing I wanted to talk to you about,” Sarabelle said. “We’re not going to go on our honeymoon to Christian’s villa.”
“What? Why not? It’s so beautiful in the Alps!”
“I know, but we’re both so tired from all this wedding stuff. I don’t feel like flying anywhere and would rather spend some quality time with him at home. I also don’t want the tickets to go to waste and know that you and Liam haven’t gotten a honeymoon. We’d like to give you our tickets so you guys can get away and enjoy yourself.”
“Are you serious?” I asked as she handed to tickets over to me. “You’re the best. I love you so much!” I said, hugging her once again. “Come on, you guys had your first dance. Now you get to dance with your sister.”
The rest of the night was spent partying and celebrating with my sister. For so long, we’d been two entirely different people. We had our own sets of friends and rarely did we ever do anything together.
Yet, in the end, we were closer than we had ever been before. The good girl and the bad girl, more alike than anyone ever dreamed we could be. I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Also by Vivian Ward
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