Legally Yours

- 5 -

Gianna

A question I get asked a lot is why I don't go by my first name, which to most people is weird and confuses them. I prefer my first name as a name, everything else I just don't like. My dad named me, he wouldn't let my mom pick mine or my sister's first names. Our middle names she picked, which ultimately makes me prefer my middle name. I don't really have an explanation why I feel more comfortable with Rose but I do.

Legally I wouldn't change my first name, for one it costs too much, I really do not have the money for that. Plus I'm not going to ask Aiden for money to change my name, when most people call me Rose anyways.

Also I have never actually noticed just how attentive Aiden is to things, like the ring? I would've never noticed that if someone pulled that little of a face at something. It's stunning though, it doesn't feel right for the situation at all. It's a fake marriage, legally its real. But we feel nothing for each other. I work for him, I have for a year. I am nothing more to him then an assistant. 

I'm okay with the situation now after sleeping on it, I realise the benefits long-term. Plus it's not like it's going to last forever, maybe two and a half years? Just so he can clear his reputation and I can clear myself of all my debt.

Trust me I feel really fucking bad about the money, I will never, ever be able to pay him back. He's spending an insane amount of money, I don't know why he's doing it. He can't possibly be that desperate for a clean reputation, since it's incredibly obvious that he isn't quitting drugs.

Maybe he will, I don't think I give him enough credit. No definitely not, I know him well enough to know how predictable he is.

I think I have to tell my mom soon, preferably before it shows up on the smaller news channels that my mom happens to watch. She has always liked hockey, so I guarantee if I don't tell her she'll find out. I don't want to do it over the phone, but the plan is that we're both posting about it on Saturday so I really have to go see her today. It's not how I want to spend my afternoon off, explaining it to her without saying its fake so she can get her treatment will be so hard.

I'll probably tell her we've been engaged for a while, complaining to her about him was just a cover up. She knows about his reputation on and off the ice so she'll disapprove.

I don't know how I'm going to explain the rest, I do have my ring now though. In my possession and on my finger. I've found myself wearing it while I don't need to, which I didn't expect to do but I'm not against it. The ring is just perfect and matches my necklace. I haven't picked my wedding ring yet, Aiden is going to send me two options later today. Preferably before I leave to see my mom, so the explaining isn't to hard.

Fuck, she's going to ask me two questions I really didn't think about.

One: Why wasn't I invited or why would you do it without me there.

And two: Do you have any pictures.

Both I'm really going to struggle to answer, especially the second one. Who gets married without taking pictures? I guess I can say it was a really quiet thing in a courthouse and he didn't want anyone to leak anything before we were ready to talk.

Actually I like that, I'm using that.

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"What are you going to tell her?" When I said Aiden is going to send me the rings, I didn't think he would be coming with them. "Who? Oh, my mom. I'm not sure, she'll have too many questions."

"We need a story, just in case we get asked separately and we say different things. Which will completely blow our cover." I put the ring box down and sit up, facing him, "Okay, start with how we met. Which is obviously at work." I say, we can't make this too complicated, we'll forget.

"Okay, I took you out for coffee for our first date."

"How romantic." I say, rolling my eyes.

"Have you got a better idea?"

I think for a minute before saying, "Not really, carry on." 

"I thought as much, anyways. How long were we dating before we got engaged?" 

"Well you hired me over a year and a half ago, so it has to be less then that. So I'll say seven or eight months?" Really trying to brainstorm here and it doesn't help when I have two rings in front of me on my coffee table that are worth ten times more then what I have in my bank account.

"Say eight, longer the better. We were on vacation when we got engaged, I had a trip to Europe during that time anyways."

"God you're so much better at this then I am." I tell him, pulling my throw blanket over me. He shrugs calmly, "Okay, so today is the day we get married. So that's why you're seeing your mom now and I'm going to my lawyer."

"You're going to your lawyer alone? Surely it'll be more believable if I'm there."

"Do you want to go, really?"

"Good point, but still. I can put off seeing my mom for a hour, I saw her on Monday." I do think I need to go with him, I don't want to but it'll help our story if we go.

"You seem really insistent?"

"Do you not want this to look real? I'm trying here to make this look real." 

"I need it to look real, I need to get her off my back for a while." He says, resting against the doorframe with his arms folded. "You know what would also get her off your back? No drugs."

"Easier said then done." He shrugs, surely it's harder to get them then quit? Is that just a misconception? "Anyways, which one?" He glances over to the rings again, before glancing back up at me. I have to admit he looks really good against the doorframe stood like that.

"I like the top one the most, I think." I pick the box up again, examining the rings again before picking the top on out of the box.

"That's so convincing."

"Never claimed to be convincing." I shrug, taking my other ring off before sliding my 'wedding' ring underneath it. They do look really pretty together, I do kind of wish they meant something. I put the other ring back on my finger, admiring them together for a minute before looking over to him.

"Happy?" He asks.

"About what, the rings? Yeah, they're really pretty."

You know what I am not happy about, having to live with him. I wont need to be here since my mom can finally have treatment and will be in the hospital so I do actually have to live with him. Anything for the media, right?