Keep Me Safe

Chapter 101

Spencer Hastings? She'd been married for eight months! In her fit of anger and confusion, she almost forgot Toby was standing right behind her. Sensing her anguish, he rested two hands on her shoulders. Leaning in, he whispered in her ear, "What's up?"

Making up her mind, Spencer answered quickly and shoved the license in her bag. "Nothing, I'm just going to take this home, frame it there." She felt awful lying to Toby, but she was sure the typo would only upset him.

She immediately started out of her office, telling Emma that she was going to run an errand. Composing a quick text to Toby who was currently speaking with her parents, she hopped in the car and was on her way to city hall.

She stumbled around the building for at least fifteen minutes before finding the floor where business licenses were issued. She waited for another half hour before she was even able to speak to the man in charge. Upon finally entering his office, Spencer was frustrated, lying to her husband (could she even consider him her husband?) about why she left, and tired from the day.

She fished the license out of her purse and laid it on Mr. Swanson's desk. "My business officially opened today and I noticed that my legal name was incorrect. I got married in January, my name isn't Spencer Hastings anymore," she explained.

Mr. Swanson leaned back in his chair, clearly at ease, and inspected the document. He grunted before speaking. "I can submit it for revision but it'll take twenty-four hours for your new license. But we usually double check these things. If your name is incorrect it's probably because your marriage license was invalid or the minister was not ordained."

Spencer sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "Okay, but I'm pretty sure I would've noticed if I didn't have my husband's last name."

"These things happen. It can take a while to figure it out because not everything requires your legal name, and your ID doesn't include it anyway until it expires. If it turns out that you weren't ever legally married, all you need to do is stroll down here and get married with an actual ordained priest. Easy peasy," he finished casually.

"Well, thank you. Although I am a very cautious woman, and I am ninety nine percent sure that I filed everything correctly, so I am sure that it is your mistake. Have a great day." Spencer sat up and strutted out off the room, feeling less at ease than before.

The thought that she had gone through the past eight months calling Toby her husband when in reality, they weren't even legally married, caused her to question everything. It didn't really change anything, but it all felt so damaged.

She returned home after stopping for groceries to a home filled with her friends, parents, and Toby. He held out a glass of champagne to her, which she gladly accepted. He pulled her into a kiss and Spencer wondered what she was even worried about.

She did the usual hostess things, made her way around to guests, kept the appetizer spread full, and somehow managed to avoid Toby most of the night. Their home was small but when it was crowded, it was easy to get lost in the crowd. After everyone had left, she found him in the hot tub, strangely enough.

She joined him after pulling on her bikini, bringing two glasses of champagne with her. She settled herself in his lap, indulging in the way his strong arms felt wrapped around her. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, he whispered something almost incoherent into her ear.

"I still can't believe we're married."

The sentence suddenly chilled her. She figured it was time to break the news.

"Tobes," she began, reeling in his attention. "I stopped by city hall today. The legal name on my business license is Hastings. And when I asked to get it changed, the man there said probably was no mistake. And while I didn't believe him at the time, and I though it was just a typo, I've been thinking about how unlikely that is. We might not be technically married."

She expected to see confusion, maybe even anger in his eyes. But instead she saw nothing but love, maybe even more than typical. The raw look in his eyes met a worried look in hers.

"Tobes, why aren't you upset?"

He merely laughed. "Don't you get it, Spence?"

She turned around in his arms, a concerned look spread across her face.

"It doesn't really matter that we aren't legally married. Sure, I love you having my last name, but all that matters is that we love each other. They say home is where the heart is, and as long as my heart is here, with you, it doesn't even matter. Nothing matters except the fact that you are here and that we're together."

Spencer let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob, and soon she was crying in his arms. "If there really was a mix up with the marriage, can we get married again? Well, obviously, but can we have another ceremony? There are some things I think we skipped over last time."

Toby laughed that beautiful sound she would never get tired of hearing. "Sure. I would love to get married to you again."