by Ellie Hall
I hoped we could keep this feeling for a very long time. Our whole lives if possible.
7
Emma
“What should we do today?” Zach asked.
I looked out the window at the beach that seemed pretty empty today. Actually, it always seemed empty. It was a far cry from the beaches in Florida. Even though I lived in a pretty small town, as far as Florida was concerned, the beaches always seemed to be crowded with people. Some days more than others, but never so few people as I always saw on the beach here.
“I know this sounds cliche, but do you want to go check out the beach?” I asked.
He smiled, pulling my hand into his, something he had been doing a lot lately. I couldn’t say I minded.
“Sounds perfect,” he said, before looking at my outfit. “Do you want to change?”
I followed his eyes to see if what I was wearing was really that bad. It was casual. “Do you think I need to?”
“No. You look good in everything you wear. I just thought you might get chilly.”
“I’ll grab a jacket,” I said, reluctantly letting go of his hand to retrieve my warmth.
I quickly grabbed a jacket from my closet and went back out to meet Zach. As close as we had gotten this week, it made me want to share rooms with him. It wasn’t a logical feeling, but it was a fact that I wanted to take this marriage to the next level. Only I had no idea how Zach thought. I decided to let things play out naturally. Whether it took a week or two months, I didn’t care. I wanted to go at the pace this relationship was supposed to go. Even if I did get a little impatient sometimes.
Zach grabbed my hand again like we were magnets fused together. I smiled at the thought.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Not much.”
He wiggled our hands. “I can tell by the look in your eye that it’s something,” he said trying to coax it out of me.
I sighed as we walked out the door. “Things have progressed a lot faster than I could have imagined.”
“What do you mean?”
“I feel like we’ve known each other for a long time, and that we’re a real married couple.”
His smile broadened. “Isn’t that the point of all this?”
“Why do you think I’m smiling?”
He brushed a strand of hair that had stuck to my lips as we stepped into the wind, moving closer to me. He placed a light kiss in the place my hair had been a moment ago. He pulled away quickly, but it still sent my heart racing, and those tingles ran down my spine again. If this was how I felt with just a light kiss, I couldn’t imagine what really kissing Zach would feel like.
I shook my head to erase any images I had just put into my mind and let Zach guide me onto the beach. I was thankful to be wearing flip flops so I could let the cool sand move through my toes. I didn’t have to worry about running to the water to cool off my feet from the hot sand here.
“Should we go out for dinner, or stay in tonight?” Zach asked.
“I can cook something.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I want to just spend time alone with you tonight,” I admitted.
“Sounds like a deal,” he said, his voice deepening.
He needed to stop doing that. The tingles on my spine were back again at his change in tone. It said he was looking forward to it. Although I loved the feeling, I felt like I was being pulled between heaven and back to earth. It was too jarring.
Zach let go of my hand and started jogging ahead of me. “Hey, where are you going?” I asked, not ready to let go of this euphoria.
“I’m trying to get you out of this mood.” He smiled mischievously.
“What mood?” I knew exactly what he was talking about but the fact that he was trying to get away from it stung a little. I wanted to stay with this intoxicating feeling all evening despite what I’d told myself.
“You’re too contemplative today. It’s making me nervous.”
“Being contemplative isn’t always a bad thing,” I said.
“You’re right, but it’s driving me crazy not knowing what you’re thinking about.”
“I already told you what I was thinking about.” I had to practically yell now because he was too far ahead of me.
I started to chase him, but that just made him pick up speed. Unfortunately, I tripped on my flip flop and faceplanted into the sand amid a cry, which produced gobs of sand landing directly into my mouth.
The mood instantly changed, and I could already feel my face turning red with heat. I could normally walk in a straight line and didn’t trip over myself. This was just another example of how Zach had flustered me.
I placed my fingers on the sand, propping myself up and spitting out the grains that had lodged on my tongue.
Zach was at my side in an instant. “Are you okay?” he asked, concern straining his voice now.
“Don’t look at me,” I said, spitting out the remaining sand as covertly as possible.
“Why?”
“I’m too embarrassed,” I said, lowering my head.
Zach ignored my request and gently brushed the sand off my cheeks. “I’m sorry,” he said. “This is my fault.”
I shook my head, trying to push him away, but he persisted in helping me.
I looked around to see if anyone else had witnessed my embarrassment. “No one else is here on the beach. Don’t worry.”
I groaned. “This is still embarrassing. Why don’t you head back, and I’ll catch up with you later?” I tried to coax him so I could keep what little dignity that still remained.
“Not a chance. Look at me Emma.”
I reluctantly brought my eyes to meet his.
“I don’t want you to ever feel embarrassed around me.”
I nodded at the intense look in his eyes.
When I didn’t say anything, he continued. “I don’t think there’s anything you could do or say to get me to back away from you.”
I nodded again as he moved closer to me, erasing what little space that remained between us. He wove his fingers into my hair, lightly brushing another piece of sand from my cheek with his thumb as he pulled me closer to him. His lips connected with mine, only this time it wasn’t a light kiss.
All of our pent-up emotions were released all at once. He drew me closer, exploring my lips. Making me want to never be apart from him. Making me want to turn this marriage into something real.
He seemed to have an urgency as his lips roamed over mine. His fingers were still in my hair, exploring just as much as his lips were. I leaned in closer to him so he knew I welcomed his closeness, and opened my mouth to give him complete access.
He groaned before welcoming it then pulled away suddenly, looking around.
I swallowed, getting hold of my senses and coming back down to earth.
“You’re going to be the death of me,” he said, grabbing my hands and pulling me up.
My body involuntarily leaned into him again, letting us both know I wasn’t ready for this to end.
He placed his hands on my shoulders to stop me. “Let’s go back and make dinner,” he said, placing another kiss on my forehead.
“You do remember we are married, right?” I asked.
He smiled. “Hold on.”
My embarrassment rose as he rubbed his tongue to the roof of his mouth.
“I think I got some sand.”
My eyes widened and my cheeks flushed again.
He laughed, spitting out the sand, then he grabbed my hand, interlocking his fingers into mine so I couldn’t get away.
We walked home in silence until we were almost at his condo. I tried to pull away from him so I could disappear and gain my composure but he stopped me. “Can we at least do that again?”
I slapped him on the shoulder.
“What? It was an honest question.”
“Never. Never again,” I said, breaking his grip to run ahead of him.
The last thing I hea
rd was a laugh coming from my husband. Come to think of it, this was his fault. I needed to find a way to get back at him to even the score, only all I could think about was that kiss.
8
Emma
“Zach, where did this—” I stopped my sentence as I heard a familiar company name coming from Zach’s lips.
“I know I said I would be back in Florida in two weeks, but I can do everything I need at Vanguard technologies remotely. You don’t need me on site,” Zach said over the phone.
Confusion hit me like a brick. Vanguard Technologies was based in Florida, and I knew for a fact they had no office in Oregon. But Zach worked for Vanguard technologies? It didn’t make sense. Why in the world would he have me move all the way here if his job was in Florida—where I’d lived?
I backed out of the doorway slowly and quickly left the condo. I had to clear my head. Zach had lied to me just to get me to come to Oregon. And I had willingly followed him here on a lie. Was my family right when they told me I was a fool for quitting my job and leaving everything I knew and had built up in Florida, for some unknown in Oregon? I was starting to believe they were.
I ran down the planked steps that led to the beach then took off in a jog in the sand, the cool breeze warming my hot skin. What had he been thinking? What had I been thinking?
The two weeks we had spent together seemed almost perfect. The computer algorithm had done its job in matching us together and I was ready to make a full commitment to him. Only now, I knew I had been lied to this whole time.
As I jogged farther down the beach I slowed my pace, moving to the wet sand, letting the water splash on my feet. There really wasn’t anything I could do about the situation except to turn around and go talk to Zach about it. You couldn’t solve problems by running away from them. I reluctantly pivoted, walking back in the direction of Zach’s home. I was afraid it would never be my home now. A marriage couldn’t be built on a foundation of lies and he had completely lied to me about his job. My mind raced at all the other things he could be hiding from me.
I passed various groups of people on the beach. For some reason it was more crowded than a normal weekday, at least the ones I’d seen since coming here. I didn’t want to be around people, but I wasn’t ready to have this conversation with Zach yet. I slowed my pace but stopped abruptly at the sight of Zach leaning on our neighbor’s picket fence, smiling at her. She was leaning into him, talking in what looked like an intimate manner. His positioning. Her glow. It was all wrong. It looked like they were both flirting.
Had he come after me only to be stopped by her? I shook my head, walking closer then stopped abruptly again when I overheard what they were saying.
I had eavesdropped on two separate conversations with Zach and neither of them shined a favorable light on our relationship.
His words chilled my blood. “It’s a date then. Let’s go out next week. I should have my condo to myself by then.”
I stepped closer, ready to give him an earful when I had to stop again. I studied his features closely. This man wasn’t Zach. He looked like him, but it most definitely wasn’t Zach. I racked my brain trying to place him. By now they had stopped their conversation and were staring at me. The woman looked as if she was waiting for me to say something. But the man who looked like Zach but wasn’t Zach had a shocked look on his face as he studied me. Which was the moment it hit me, and the missing pieces fell into place.
I was staring at Brandon. He looked exactly like the picture that was sent to me through the marriage website. I turned around without saying a word and headed back for the condo. Zach had a lot of explaining to do.
“Wait Emma,” I heard Brandon say, coming from behind.
I ignored him as he walked in step beside me.
“What did you hear?”
“Why did you send Zach to the airport to pick me up? I’m assuming he’s your brother,” I said, the anger in my voice seeping through.
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t go through with the marriage.”
“And so you sent someone else to what, marry me instead?” I asked, the disgust in my voice apparent.
“No, I sent him to break it off with you and the idiot married you instead.”
I stopped, turning on him. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“No it doesn’t, does it?” Brandon said, his feathers ruffled now.
“And why did you go along with it?”
“I didn’t.”
“You let him use your apartment to deceive me. I haven’t seen you the entire time I’ve been here.”
He lifted his hands up in the air as if to surrender to me. “I was not going to get in the middle of a married couple’s love spat.”
“Something’s wrong with your family,” I said, ignoring him to go talk to Zach.
I pushed into my apartment and headed straight to my room, wildly packing my belongings into the suitcase I brought with me. I felt embarrassed and hurt. But mostly I was mad. Who would do such a thing? I wasn’t even sure if the marriage was legal. Did he even use his real identification to marry me? None of this really made sense. The fact that I had bonded so quickly with Zach didn’t help the situation. It just made the betrayal sting more. I was so focused on what I was doing, I didn’t hear anyone come into my room until I felt a soft hand on my shoulder. I pulled away from him and spun, glaring at Zach. Only he wasn’t the only one in the room. Brandon, if that was even his real name, was standing in the doorway.
I ignored the concern in Zach’s eyes, walking into my bathroom to gather up my toiletries.
“Emma, let’s talk,” he said, his voice pleading.
“What is there to talk about?” I asked.
“I have no idea what you’re thinking right now, but it’s not as bad as you might imagine.”
I placed my toothbrush back down on the vanity to look at him. “Are you the one who signed up to marry an email-order bride?” I asked.
It took him a minute to answer. “No.”
“Then I don’t think we have anything else to talk about. You’ll be hearing from my lawyer shortly so we can get this thing annulled.” I picked up my toothbrush and brushed past him, placing the rest of my items in my suitcase.
He grabbed ahold of my arm and gently pulled me to him. I struggled for just a moment before my traitorous body relaxed into him.
“Please just let us talk and then you can do whatever you want,” he whispered.
I looked at Brandon, then back to Zach. They were both disturbed which softened my heart just a little.
I broke free of his arms and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch and folding my arms in front of me. They both followed and when they sat down, I said, “Talk.”
“This is my brother Brandon, the man you were supposed to marry.”
I didn’t say anything.
“He got cold feet at the last minute and sent me to the airport to break things off with you because he’s a chicken.”
I glanced at Brandon to see what he thought about his brother making a jab at him, but Brandon just nodded.
“So why didn’t you just break it off with me?” I asked.
“Because when I saw it was you, I couldn’t go through with it.”
“What do you mean ‘when you saw it was me’? You really expect me to believe that it was love at first sight for you?” I scoffed.
“I’ve known you since high school,” he said.
“What?” I asked, shocked as if someone had splashed cold water right onto my face. “I’ve never seen you before. We did not go to high school together.”
“Saint Pete Highschool, Westlake Minnesota, class of 2014. You were a cheerleader and on student council. You had swarms of guys around you at all times so there was no way a lanky nobody like me could get close enough for you to notice me.”
I racked my brain trying to place him. Unless he had studied up on me on a stalker level, there was no way he could know all of that information. It was accurate. Then I rea
lized he had looked at my yearbook.
“You expect me to believe you? You’ve seen my high school yearbook. Of course you know that information.”
“Every day at lunch you shared your meal with Liam Novack. I thought you and he had a thing until I realized he didn’t have the money to pay for lunch.”
I glared at him, not believing. He really was a stalker.
He went on. “You helped Mrs. Caldwell clean her room once a week.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Where did you get this information?”
“Hold on.” Zach stood and moved out of the living room.
I glanced at Brandon awkwardly, but he smiled and confirmed Zach’s story. “My parents still live in the same house in Minnesota.”
Zach came back and opened my yearbook to the senior class photos then placed the book in my lap, pointing to a picture. I stared at a picture of a very skinny, awkward looking Zach. His name below confirmed it was him.
“How?” I asked.
He just shrugged. “After graduation we both went to different colleges and spread out across the country. It’s a typical American story. I don’t think it’s that hard to understand.”
“Yes, but how do I not know you? I know I was shallow in high school, but you’re cute. I’m not proud of saying this, but I would have noticed you.”
“I hadn’t grown into my body yet. It’s very easy to understand how you could have overlooked me.”
“Then was marrying me your way of getting back at me for not noticing you?”
He cleared his throat. “I’m not necessarily proud of what I did, but I had a crush on you my entire high school experience. Only you were untouchable. I couldn’t even get you to look my way.”
My stomach twisted because he was right. I did have a lot of guys around me in high school. I was shallow and superficial, and him knowing that stung. “So you did want to get back at me.” I deflated like an untied balloon.
“No, not at all. When I went to college, I started working out and built my confidence with the purpose of seeing you again, hoping to make you notice me.”