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Prologue
Maggie
The red carpetwas worn beneath our feet. The altar was a single step, also carpeted in red, on which we stood, along with theofficiant.
The officiant wore a black leather motorcycle jacket, a faded Steppenwolf T-shirt, ratty jeans and biker boots. A black leather bible decorated with silver studs lay open on hishands.
I wore a pinkdress.
The room was small, and there were no windows. The ceiling was arched and the walls were black, strewn with neon beer signs and replica platinumalbums.
There was a row of eight gunmetal chairs, four to the right of the aisle and four to the left, two of which were occupied. A woman I didn’t know stood at the back of the room with a polite smile on her face. A man with a gun stood guard at thedoor.
Outside, traffic rumbled by, occasionally vibrating the kitschy junk on thewalls.
In the next room, an awful song played faintly on repeat. A cheesy, sleazy rock song about aschoolgirl.
Near me, someone wastalking.
But all I could hear was that old Steppenwolf song, “Magic Carpet Ride,” playing in my head. I heard it the way Zane once sang it, as we sat around a campfire drinking Jäger from a bottle someone passed around, his voice so raw and smoky and beautiful it gave me goosebumps. I heard it the way my mom used to play it, loud, on her wonky old turntable, as she danced in the kitchen in one of her flowy blouses and a pair of cut-offs.
I could see her now, dancing in her bare feet, and looking so, soyoung.
And I wished she washere.
I was holding hands with him, and my knees were quivering. I could feel his heartbeat in his fingers wrapped tight around mine. His thumb smoothed back and forth across my knuckles, over the new ring on my finger, as I breathed, shallow andslow.
He was looking at me. I knew he was. I could feel the heat of his gaze moving over myface.
“Maggie.”
I took a breath and felt his heartbeat, once… twice… Then I looked up into that gorgeous face. His arctic blue eyes held mine. He squeezed my handsslightly.
Zane.
Me.
Holding hands at thealtar.
Holyshit.
“That’s your cue, babe,” Zane said, and I realized the man in the leather jacket had been the one speaking. To me. Everyone was looking at me andwaiting.
And I just stared atZane.
The corners of his eyes twitched. He smiled slightly and I couldn’t stop myself. I never could, when it came tohim.
I smiledback.
“Yeah,” I said, in response to the man’s question, but the word cracked and came out a whisper. I cleared my throat and found my voice. “Ido.”
Chapter One
Maggie
Two hoursearlier…
Istoodin the middle of the massive, glittering bathroom, trying not to imagine how much this hotel suite would’ve cost if we had to pay for it. And trying not to think about why wedidn’t.
