Michael simply returned her stare. "Do you regret you came here?"
"I had no choice, don't you know that by now?"
A lonely tear slid down her soft cheek. He reached out and caught it, cherishing the sparkling drop, wishing with all his heart she'd ne...
Two such simple words- hard to believe they carried such weight. This was not the first time he had spoken them, so why was this so difficult? What a world of difference between his mood and expectations for the future when comparing his first wedding to this current disaster. Then, he had been full of hope, full of enthusiasm, and full of love. With every fiber of his being had had looked forward to not only to the wedding night and making love to Lisa as his wife for the first time, but also to his promising and golden future with her and their family. Now, he was signing a business contract in an effort to satisfy expectations that were not his own. He dreaded having to share his name and his life with the woman next to him, whom he had long respected as friend, but whom he had no sexual interest in whatsoever. The wedding night was out, therefore. Unless… No, there was no unless. He would find a loophole. Glancing over at her, he wondered about her overly happy smile and glow. She knew this was all about legitimizing the gift she was giving him- his child, so why was she going overboard with all these expressions of love and happiness?
His eyes returned to his focal point on the floor as he studied the design of the carpet. His voice had been barely audible as the vows were forced from dry lips. His throat was on fire, and he felt dizzy. It seemed that every cell in his body revolted and protested this current predicament. The blood pounding in his ears, he was not sure he heard her part of the vows. Not that he cared to. The words were devoid of any personal meaning. Well, no, there was something important connected to them as they guaranteed him full legal rights to his child, his mothers’ approval, and an ongoing funding stream from his benefactor. The drawback was that once again the media would go ape-shit with digging into his private life. Surely, no one would believe this quickie wedding. Well, at least he was consistent. This was not the first quickie wedding , so the speed of the nuptials was not too much of a stretch of the imagination. His choice of bride might require some bending of the mind, but hey, surely people married their friend and nurses who promised to carry a child for them all the time. His choice could not be that unconventional, could it? So, other than being married to someone he did not love as a husband should love his wife, everything was just peachy.
The hammering of the headache became overwhelming and intrusive. He lifted his head to ensure it was really over and that he had survived. One might think this was a terrorist attack or an execution, not a wedding. Kind of hard to duck for cover when you are the one with your neck in the noose.
“Mr. Jackson, you may kiss your bride.”
Do I have to? He said ‘may,’ so it should be optional…
Well, really, it was not that he minded kissing Debbie- on her cheek. He really cared for her, after all. She smiled at him hesitantly and raised her face to him. Michael’s cold lips found hers and he give her a chaste peck, almost missing her mouth.
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