When the Last One Falls

Chapter 7

Keris~

Three days hadn't been nearly enough to come up with a health care plan for Lindsey. I had even toyed with asking Faron to give her a job, so that she could collect health insurance through Impressions, but I had quickly nixed that idea when I realized how unfair it'd be of me to ask Faron to foot the bill for something that wasn't his problem.

So, after hours and hours of talking to different health care providers, medical program directors, etc., I hadn't come up with anything that would keep Lindsey receiving the quality care that she was getting. If I'd had more time, then maybe I could have found some sort of solution, but I hadn't been granted any extra time. However, I had received a text from my father yesterday to remind me of what was at stake if I didn't show up at the Kingston home this morning.

When I'd gotten here, I'd been ushered in by my parents, quickly escorting me to one of the sitting rooms that made up the incredible residence. I had walked into see Darius and Lorna Kingston standing near an alcove that led to a library of some sort, and Brantley Kingston had been standing next to a man that I presumed was the minister. No one else was in attendance, but then why would they be?

The biggest problem about my marriage to Brantley Kingston was that he was absolutely hotter than the sun. Standing well over six-foot, he had black hair, blue eyes, long lashes, a classically masculine face, broad shoulders, a tapered waist, and strong legs. He was dressed in a suit, but I'd bet my next paycheck that the man had a six-pack underneath the expensive fabric. Brantley Kingston looked like the type of man that could hold you up as he fucked you in a moving elevator, and you'd let him.

I walked over to introduce myself, but as soon as I was within a couple of feet of him, he turned towards the minister, then said, "You can start now."

Not sure of what to do, I pasted on a fake smile for the minister's sake, then turned and faced him. Brantley was standing next to me with his hands in the pockets of his slacks, and nervousness had me clasping my hands in front of me.

When the minister got to the part about the rings, Brantley's mother presented a small, delicate, satin pillow with two ring boxes sitting atop. I watched Brantley grab the box with his ring in it, and instead of allowing me to slide the ring on his finger, he put it on himself. When he made no move to put the other ring on my finger, I quickly repeated his actions, humiliation coloring my face.

What a fucking asshole.

As the minister kept talking, I kept having to remind myself that this wasn't a real wedding. This wasn't a marriage forged from love and respect. This was a business transaction, and it was hard to keep the contents of my stomach from coming up the further along that the minister got.

Things only became more awkward when the minister pronounced us as husband and wife, and when he gave Brantley permission to kiss his bride, ignoring me, Brantley stuck his arm out to shake the minister's hand. "Thank you. We appreciate your time," he said.

I stood there like a fool as Brantley walked off, heading towards...well, I had no idea. However, my humiliation was complete when the minister touched my shoulder, pity in his kind brown eyes.

Desperate to salvage some pride, I said, "Thank you for performing the ceremony. You did a lovely job."

He smiled at me as he produced a card from behind the Bible pages. When he handed it to me, he said, "If you ever need someone to talk to, you can reach me anytime."

I could feel the sting of embarrassment on my cheeks, but I still did my best not to take it out on this nice man. "Thank you. I appreciate the gesture."

"Of course," he replied softly.

When I turned away from the minister, I saw everyone looking at me with that same pity, and that just pissed me off. Though Brantley and his father were missing, the others were looking at me like I was the one making the mistake here. They were looking at me as if I'd been the one responsible for finding myself in this mess, and I could feel myself getting angrier and angrier.