AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Is that his name?” she asks, trying to stifle her laughter.
“I don’t know actually, but it sounds funny.”
Joey tries to sit up, and I’m just eager enough to help her. I like the way I feel when I’m touching her. It’s like serenity. She makes me feel like I belong.
“Are you real?” she asks just as she pokes me in the forehead.
“I’m not going to pop, if that’s what you think.”
Sighing, she glances at the door before she looks at me. “I don’t know what to think. This seems all too surreal.”
I run my hand through my hair and decide to sit down next to her. “Yeah, I guess getting married to a stranger can be surreal.”
Her head starts shaking back and forth very slowly. “The surreal part is that I’m married toyou.”
two
Joey
Someone pinch me.No, that’s not good enough. Someone needs to slap me across the face, repeatedly, so I can wake the hell up. This can’t be happening. I’ve dreamed of meeting him, of shaking his hand and having a photo taken with him. Those are my daydreams. At night, this is the man that I’ve fantasized about, the one I have wet dreams about, the one I play The SiMS with on the computer and have wild monkey sex with over and over again. He’s sitting next to my sprawled out body, running his hands through his hair and telling me its surreal being married to a stranger?
Um, I’m married to Joshua freaking Wilson. It doesn’t get any more surreal than that!
I try to sit up by myself, but no, he has to touch me. Why is this happening to me? I know this has to be some sort of joke, right? Am I on some sort ofI feel sorry for you, so I’m going to marry yougame show? Joshua Wilson does not need to come onMarried Blindto find a wife! He has a girlfriend. I always see her in the tabloids and I hate her. She’s pretty and perfect, and everything I’m not.
I’m trying to focus, but I can’t. My eyes are moving from his eyes to his hands, his jaw, smile, fingers, chest, oh God, his arms. . . he’s going to think I’m a freak. Closing my eyes, I count to ten twice. Nothing is working.
“We have to leave in a few minutes for the house. Are you going to be okay?”
I nod then shake my head. He laughs. Great, now he’s laughing at me.
“How did you end up on this show?” I ask the question that is plaguing my mind.
Joshua sits back, but not far enough away that he’s out of my personal space. I know I like him in my personal space, but I also know this isn’t real.
“Yeah, about that,” he says, pushing his hand through his locks. “I suppose you get the shit end of the stick by being married to me, but I got drunk, lost a bet, and signed the contract.” He shrugs as if it’s no big deal. It probably isn’t to him, but to me it’s everything. “I never expected Barry to call me out on it and make me hold up my end of the deal.”
“Barry?”
“One of the producers.”
My head moves up and down as I bite my lip. I won’t cry and admit that my dream guy just crushed my already broken heart into a million tiny pieces and lit them on fire. No, that would be admitting defeat in the man department, and I’m not there yet. Give me three months when life and reality come crashing down on me.
“Anyway, I figured we’d win and we’ll split it down the middle, except I’ll pay your portion of the taxes.”
I’m going to need some extensive therapy after this is all said and done.
“Right, so at the end we go our separate ways. Makes sense,” I say through a broken voice. I know I shouldn’t have the emotions that I do, but it does sting a little knowing he’s not committed. I mean, we just got married, and he’s already put an expiration date on it. It’s Hollywood, right?
“I want to win, Joey, and I think we can. I saw those other guys and am pretty confident I can beat them in most of the competitions. I studied how the game has been played the previous two years. I think we can do it.”
“Okay,” I agree because what else am I going to say? He should’ve just paid the producers to make sure he married his girlfriend. At least then, he’d be able to win this game and actually act like a husband to someone. But nah, I’m weak, heartbroken, and madly in love with the man sitting in front of me. . . in the fantasy sort of way.
“Great. This went easier than I thought.”
Of course it did. You’re Joshua Wilson, the most sought after twenty-something actor. I’m putty when it comes to you. You could tell me to jump off a cliff, and I’d be like “okay!”. . . duh. I know I’m being childish, but I can’t help it. I have a feeling there’s going to be a lot of eye-rolling coming from me in the next few months. I hope America is ready for it.
The loud knock on the door followed by a shout of ‘five minutes’ is our sign that we have to go. I’m not allowed to change out of my dress even though I so desperately want to. Joshua takes my hand in his and leads us out of the room, down the hall to the exit where a limo is waiting for us. Another assistant hands me a bouquet of flowers, and I realize that this is our “leaving the church” moment. As soon as we step outside, viewers have the opportunity to throw birdseed at us, as if we’re a normal couple.
