by Christina OW
Carson smiled. He never thought he’d liked hearing that word. But from Ellie’s lips, anything she called him would sound like precious music to his ears, “So when would you like to get married?”
She rubbed her nose against his, “As soon as possible.”
“How does tomorrow sound?”
She kissed him lightly on the lips, “Too soon, not enough time to plan. How about this weekend?”
He pulled away slightly, just enough to look into her eyes, “Are you serious?”
“Very,” She slid closer to his hips, as the desire to have him ravish her increased.
Carson ran his hands up and down her thighs, lightly at first making her shiver. The sound of her purr made his desire more urgent. He tightened his grip on her, his fingers digging into her flesh as he pulled her harder against him. Suddenly all the clothes they had on begun to feel like a barrier. Ellie echoed his thought when she hurriedly began to unfasten his belt. He moaned, glad she was wearing a dress.
And then it was all over.
Ellie whined as she pulled away, prompted by Stacey-Ann’s crying, “But right now your other, most important boss is calling you,” She moved back onto her stool.
Carson grunted as he stood up, “Five more minutes, that’s all I wanted.”
Ellie laughed, “Make sure she isn’t badly hurt and then come to the bedroom. We’ll turn those five minutes into half an hour.”
Carson smiled, giving her a quick kiss before he left, “I can’t believe we missed that.”
“No, we didn’t. There are wide-angled cameras in her room. We can watch her fall on her ass as many times as we want.”
Carson laughed, “A gag video at the expense of your daughter!”
“That... and the fact that daddy has a very scary day job,” Ellie spoke, her voice coated with worry.
Carson recognized it immediately, because he too was having nightmares about his day job. Ellie didn’t know, but he had a gun strapped under Stacey-Ann’s bed and other furniture around the apartment. The alarm and the motion sensors were fine, they gave Ellie a sense of security, but he knew better.
He picked up his daughter and kissed her wet cheeks, “Girls are supposed to play with dolls, not climb stuff.” He held her close, stroking her tiny back. He felt his heart melt when she hugged him back, holding onto his large neck with her tiny hands, “But it’s okay. Daddy is going to be here to pick you up every time you fall, and then laugh as he watches it on tape over and over again. But I still love you very much.”
****
The weekend wedding was postponed by another week. Planning a wedding, even a small one took a lot more time and energy than Ellie had anticipated, but the day was finally here. Ellie sat in front of the mirror looking at her reflection. She looked prettier with more makeup than she usually wore and her hair straightened and held in a bun.
She looked even more like Ellsa.
“What are you thinking about?” Audrey asked, putting more pearl pins in her hair.
“I’m thinking... I can see how Dale had spent ten minutes thinking Ellsa was me. I look just like her all dolled up. Sexier.”
Audrey pinched her, making her jump, “Don’t say things like that! Carson loves you just the way you are. If Amin had a twin brother who was standing naked in my bedroom, the last thing on my mind would be making sure if he is the right twin. It took Carson two minutes to figure that out.”
“When the mother of your child doesn’t know where your daughter is, that’s a dead giveaway,” Kris spoke, downing more of the champagne.
“He said he didn’t recognize her behavior.”
“Why, because I’m boring and she’s exciting when it comes to sex,” Ellie moaned.
“No, because that’s not what he fell in love with.”
“Sure?” Kris asked, shifting to the chair that was closer to them, “I thought it was the sex thing.”
Audrey grabbed the flute out of her hand, “You are not helping. If you can’t do your duties as the maid of honor, I will take over.”
Kris shot out of the chair, “Oh no you don’t! You already stole godmother from me, you are not stealing this!”
“Then do what you are supposed to or you’ll die a technological death!”
Kris gave her a blank stare, confused by the threat.
Ellie laughed, “Do what she tells you Kris. I had to carry cash everywhere in New York when she crippled my credit cards.”
Audrey’s face turned pink with embarrassment, “How did you know it was me?”
“Dale asked me if I had any technological problems. I told him about the cards and how the banks had no idea what the problem was, and he apologised on your behalf. I almost got arrested for trying to defraud them. And then, a day after I came to your office, they called and apologised for the technical glitch.”
“Sorry.”
“The machines aren’t going to take over, it’s people like her who are, geeks with computers!” Kris exclaimed the bubbly already in her head.
“We already have honey,” Audrey declared proudly.
Ellie stood up laughing, “Audrey would you please help me with my dress?”
“Hey, that’s my job!” Kris moaned.
Ellie held up three fingers, “How many fingers am I holding up?”
Kris paused her eyes shrinking a size, “Three.”
“Sober up. I don’t want you staggering down the aisle.”
“Fine!” she said, walking to the liquor trolley. She picked up a bottle of water and downed it, without taking a breath.
Audrey held the dress down so that Ellie could step into it, then she pulled it up gently and zipped her in it. The strapless dress was an off-white bridal satin, with beaded embellishment across her chest. It hugged her curves and widened at her knees to the tip of the shoe heel. It was appropriate for a small tent wedding.
“Audrey,” Ellie began in a whisper, “Did you find my sister?”
Carson had asked Audrey to try and find her, but to not tell her about the wedding until it was too late for her to make a scene. But Audrey, with all her powers, couldn’t track down Ellsa- except for her new phone number. Which didn’t do them any good, considering it was always off. It was like she disappeared two months ago, “Sorry, I didn’t.”
Ellie’s heart dropped, “It’s okay. Dale would be glad about that anyway.”
Kris teared up when she saw how dazzling Ellie looked in her wedding gown, “You look so beautiful.”
Ellie moved to the mirror and looked at herself. She looked like a beautiful bride, “Do you think Dale will like it?”
Audrey dabbed her eyes with a tissue, “He’ll love it!”
****
Carson sat down close to the altar, all kinds of thoughts running through his mind, quickly driving him crazy. He kept thinking Ellie would change her mind and runaway, or Ellsa would crash the wedding or a natural disaster would blow the tent away. But mostly, the one thought that really drove him to the brink of madness was what the hell he was, doing standing there, next to a pastor? He was never a best man and he only went to weddings for the slutty bride’s maids at the reception. But now, he was at his own wedding.
All of a sudden it got hot and his collar felt too tight. He couldn’t breathe! He stood up, tugging at his tie.
“Stop that!” Ann rebuked. But her stern warning only made his anxiety worse.
Dale Senior stood up and walked to him, “breathe,” he whispered in his ear. “You are marrying the love of your life. You are not in line to get slaughtered.”
Carson chuckled nervously, “How did you do this pop?”
He chuckled, “I was drunk!”
Hope! “You wouldn’t be carrying a flask by any chance?”
He shook his head, “your mother still hasn’t forgiven me for that. I’m not about to make it worse by getting you drunk!”
Carson tugged at his collar again, “All of this just feels too.... much, too fast.”
“I’m not
the one who told you to have a baby and get engaged, within a year and a half of meeting the girl.”
“But I’ve loved Ellie since the first day I met her, and I’ll love her till the day I die.”
“If you feel so strongly and you are sure about your feelings, what’s the rush to get married? Wait a few more months or a year and have a grander wedding. Your mother would love to plan it for you.”
He snorted, “It’s because of her crazy sister. I can’t risk her separating us. It will be harder for her to drive a wedge between Ellie and me, when we are married.”
Dale Senior gave his son a worried look, “That shouldn’t be a reason to get married. Son, you need to have a good reason to do this. Marriage isn’t a joke.”
Before Carson could answer, the bridal march song started, “Pop, do you mind staying up here with me? Keep me from running?”
“Sure thing. And if you do start running, I’ll trip you, and you can fake a concussion before your mother finds out and gives you a real concussion.” He said with a laugh.
Carson laughed, “Mom doesn’t scare me as much as Ellie does.”
Dale Senior raised his eyebrow, “Really?”
“She threatened to kill me herself if I got shot again, and she meant it.”
Kris came first. She looked beautiful in her lilac dress that matched the purple and white bouquet. Then Audrey came next carrying Stacey-Ann. She was quiet and still before she saw Carson. But when they got close, she couldn’t stop laughing and jumping around. She reached out for Carson several times, but he kept shaking his head at her.
“That should be your first reason for marrying Ellie,” Dale Senior whispered.
And then Ellie came in from behind the curtains. She had a beautiful smile on her face, her eyes focused on Carson as she walked towards him, a lovely bouquet of lilies in her hand.
Carson looked at her and he felt like his breath had been taken away. He was relaxed and everything around him became still and very quiet. Nothing existed, but a beautiful soul walking towards him. He couldn’t shift his eyes away from her. It was like he was under a spell, and all he could do was fall in love with her even more.
“Hi,” she whispered once she got to him, “I thought you’d have run away by now.”
“Why in the world would I want to do that? You are never getting rid of me.”
“I know. I’m stuck with you for life.”
Chapter Fourteen
Ellsa sat at the bar licking her wounds with the help of a few tequilas, after getting thrown out of Ellie’s home. This person wasn’t her. She didn’t go to dingy places, drink cheap liquor and feel sorry for herself. She was better than this, and yet she couldn’t help but wallow in the gutter.
How dare they humiliate her like that? And worst of all, in front of Kris and Audrey? Ellie might be her sister, but she was going to regret what she did. And Carson, he had no idea what he’d just started.
She drove so far just to get away from the humiliation. She didn’t even know the name of the stupid town.
A man sat in the stool next to her, ogling her like he was seeing a woman for the first time, “Hi honey, how you doing tonight?”
“Getaway from me,” Ellsa uttered with disgust.
He held a lock of her hair and rubbed it in between his fingers, “What’s wrong? I was just trying to be nice.”
Ellsa pulled away, “Don’t touch me.”
The man sneered, “What, you think you are so special?”
“Yes I am. The hands that touch me earn a million as an annual income. How much do you make a month, or should I have said a day?”
The man got right into her face, “You are a high priced whore! It doesn’t change the fact that you sell your body for money. How much do you earn a day?”
“Do I look like a prostitute to you?”
He winked at her, “I saw what you have under that coat. Trust me, I’m going to be worth your while. It will be so good, you’ll be paying me.”
Ellsa slapped him across the face and poured the tequila in his eyes, “Touch me again, and I’ll kill you!”
He grabbed her and roughly pulled her off the stool, “You little bitch!” He hissed, “I’m going to teach you a lesson!” He dragged her out into the alley and pinned her against the wall. He felt her up as she struggled to push him off her.
She stopped fighting when something in her mind clicked, “Okay! I’ll do what you want. You don’t have to force yourself on me.”
The man looked at her with a glimmer in his eye, “You are not going to run, or blind me with your pepper spray?”
She tilted her head and looked at him. She then ran her fingers over his lips, “Of course not. I’m going to do you a favor.”
The man moaned, closing his eyes, “What?”
“Stop your life from getting even more pathetic.”
“Please do.”
Ellsa pushed him down a few inches to reach his ear, one hand on his chin the other stroking the back of his neck, “You asked for it,” She whispered. And with one swift quick move, she snapped his neck. The man’s body fell to the ground with a loud thud.
Ellsa stepped over him and walked back into the bar, “Can I have another glass of tequila?”
A drunk man staggered to her, “That was fast. He is a man with empty promises.” He laughed, “So is it my turn?”
“What?”
“I swear I live up to my promises.”
She turned and looked at him and smiled, “Are you sure? There is no going back from it.”
He ran his hand up her leg, “Very sure.”
“Hey! Let her go!”
Ellsa turned to the voice. At first she wasn’t sure who it was until he shoved the drunk away and spoke to her.
“Ellie, are you okay?”
She bit down angrily, “Hi George. What are you doing here?”
He smiled at her. She fell in love with him because of that smile, “I could ask you the same thing. What are you doing here Ellie?”
She swallowed hard, pushing the anger down. If he calls me Ellie one more time... she thought.
He put his hand on her back, “please come with me.”
Without a word, she went with him. She got into his car and didn’t say a word until he spoke first.
“I’m sorry if I’m intruding, but I thought you were an art teacher?”
“I was until they fired me. All I can do now is sell my body just to eat.”
George gave her a confused look, “But on your Facebook page it says married with a daughter. What happened?”
Ellsa tilted her head and stared at him, and then something in her mind just clicked.
She began to cry hysterically.
George put a hand on her shoulder, “Ellie, what’s wrong?”
“My daughter died and my husband became my pimp. George, my life, is a nightmare!”
“Shh. Don’t cry. You can stay with me for the time being and then we’ll figure something out.”
Ellsa kept on with the ruse even when they got to his loft. He had pictures of all sorts of people around his home. She smiled when she saw his football trophy. He’d won that their senior year, and then a rage took over her when she saw the picture next to it. It was of him and Ellie, so happy and celebrating. That should have been her.
“That’s my favorite picture. I hope you don’t mind that I have it out?”
She shook her head pulling her lips into a tight smile, “Who are all the other people?”
He smiled, walking to a group shot, “These are the kids from my drug free project. Half of them are graduating High School this year.”
Ellsa hung on his arm, “You are an everyday hero.”
He blushed, “I try.” He then handed her the clothes he was holding, “You can change into these. You can have my bed too, and I’ll sleep on the couch.”
Ellsa smiled seductively at him, “A hero and a gentleman. However can I repay you?” She dropped the coat, exposing the lingerie underneat
h.
George swallowed hard as he drank her up with his eyes, “Ellie you don’t have to...”
She moved closer to him, “But I want to.” She grabbed his shirt and stared up at him under her eyelashes, “It would be a pleasure.”
George dislodged her hands and took a step back, “What did that man do to you? This isn’t you Ellie.”
Ellsa got enraged, “What, I’m not good for you either?”
He caressed her cheek, “Of course, you are. I just don’t want you to feel like you have to do this the rest of your life.”
Ellsa leaned into his hand, “You were always so sweet to me George.”
“You were my girlfriend, it was my job to make you feel special each and every day.” He pulled away and went to the kitchen, “How about some pasta?”
Ellsa shrugged her shoulder, “I hate pasta.” She sat at his island, not bothering to cover herself up.
George looked at her with an arched eyebrow, “You used to love pasta. Ellsa was the one who hated it.”
Ellsa pulled the knife out of the holder and toyed with the tip, “Speaking of Ellsa, why didn’t you date her?”
George kept dicing the tomatoes, “She wasn’t you.”
“Excuse me?” She hadn’t intended to sound offended. And by the look on George’s face, she couldn’t take it back.
“Don’t get me wrong, she’s a nice girl, but she just wasn’t you.”
Ellsa’s hold on the knife tightened, “We are twins.”
“She was shallow and you were...” he looked at her affectionately, “You are beautiful inside and out. Everything about you is real and so wonderful.”
Ellsa stood up and walked around the island to him, “So Ellsa wasn’t good enough?”
He placed the knife down and turned to her, “Nothing personal, but Ellsa is a handful, a prima donna and I have no patience for that. I’m sure there are others who feel the same way.”
“Huh, that is something to investigate,” she closed the gap between them, “too bad you won’t be around to find out.”
“What? Why?” And then the smile on his face turned into a horrified stare. He stepped back, his hand over his bleeding chest.