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I get swept up in reminding myself over and over again that she’s only important to me because her family can give me something I want. That we have an arrangement, and that’s all it’ll ever be. But fuck, I didn’t expect this wedding to feel so real. That has to be why I’m completely thrown off.
Before I know it, we’ve made it to the part of the ceremony where we exchange rings.
“If you’re ready, I’ll have the two of you hand me the bands. The ring has no beginning, no end…it represents the circle of life—the circle of love. May they be given and received to remind you of the vows you have made on this day.”
I don’t want to, but I let go of one of Winnie’s hands long enough to slide my hand into the hidden pocket of my tuxedo. My fingers connect with the dainty wedding band I’d chosen for her while picking out her engagement ring.
I’m so lost in making sure I don’t drop it that I miss that she’s let go of my other hand and is slipping a simple gold band offher thumb. I’d been holding her hand and hadn’t even noticed it there.
She doesn’t look at me; she focuses on the priest as he blesses both of our wedding bands. I’d planned on picking one out for me that was just for show at some point, but I’d been more concerned about her rings than mine that I hadn’t given the exchanging of rings today much thought.
All I wanted was to make sure she had a ring on her finger so the world knew she was under my protection. That she was my wife.
The priest hands me her wedding band carefully, gesturing for me to take her hand. I attempt to keep my hands steady as I take her hand in mine once again. I raise her small hand, her fingertips barely brushing over my chest with the movement.
“Repeat after me,” he instructs as I line the band up with the tip of her finger. “In token and pledge of my constant faith and abiding love, with this ring, I thee wed.”
I repeat after him, sliding the wedding band all the way down her finger. Before I can think better of it, I raise her hand a few inches and lay a kiss to the diamond on her finger. It’s cold against my lips as I kiss the physical representation of the union we’re agreeing to.
Her eyelids flutter shut for a moment, and I’d give anything to be able to take a look into her mind. Are regrets swarming through it? Or is she opening up to pretending together? I can’t ask any of that, but I do let my lips linger on the ring I bought her for a few perfect, drawn-out seconds before I pull away and softly drop her hand.
The sound of a camera clicking almost breaks me from the moment, but I’m too caught up in watching her blush as she takes the simple gold wedding band she’d been wearing from the priest to look over at the shuttering camera.
Winnie repeats the same words I just did, her hand steady as she slides the band down my ring finger. Itisn’t the right moment for it, but I still fight the urge to ask her where she got it—ask why she got it.
The wedding mass seems to go by in a blur. All too soon, the priest is presenting us to the few witnesses we have. “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
I’d lifted her veil earlier in the service, but it still frames her face perfectly. It seems like the entire church is silent as I lean in closer, anxious for all the attention on us. Our parents know that this kiss solidifies something that is for business only, but there are people here who have to believe that we’ve kissed a million times—and that this kiss will be the start of our forever.
A happily ever after between two families everyone thought were feuding.
Slowly, I take either side of Winnie’s face. Her skin is incredibly soft against my fingertips. Without even thinking about it, my thumb traces her high cheekbones. It might be hopeful thinking, but I swear she slightly leans into my touch. My heart pounds at the thought of kissing her.
“Just do it,” she whispers. Her voice is so low that I almost miss it, meaning there’s no way anyone else heard it but me.
My eyes fall to her lips. They’re slightly parted and perfectly pink, inviting me to press my own against them. I lean in, our breaths mingling as I place our lips inches apart. She angles her head slightly, allowing me the perfect position to press my lips against hers.
The moment they connect, she rises to her tiptoes, her hands finding my chest to help steady herself. Her lips are so soft it occurs to me I could get lost in them forever. She lets me lead as her hands tighten against my chest. She grips me so possessively that I can’t help but pull her even harder into my body, despite the audience bearing witness to this.
It isn’t the longest kiss, but even though brief, it makes more of an impact on me than I’d care to admit. The gloss coating her lips tastes like vanilla, and I’d give anything to slip my tongue between them and discover what her tongue tastes like, too. Iknow it isn’t necessary, but I want to deepen the kiss despite the audience we have.
I don’t, but I do go in for one more chaste peck against her lips after the first one ends.
“I’m delighted to introduce Mr. and Mrs. Archer Moore for the very first time,” the priest says with glee, snapping his Bible shut.
For a typical wedding, this is where everyone stands and cheers with happiness for the new couple. They might throw rice or confetti or blow bubbles. None of that happens because this isn’t a wedding celebrating love, and most of the people here to bear witness know that.
Yet, I still hold her hand in mine as if it were real. I still walk down the aisle and give the photographer a stiff smile like I’m a dashing groom dazed by finally getting to marry his blushing bride.
CHAPTER 10
WINNIE
The wedding almost felt real—allthe way up until the moment Archer’s driver shut the door to the town car and Archer and I were left alone in silence.
He sits on one side of the car, staring out the window with his knuckles pressed to his lips as he gets lost deep in thought. I, on the other hand, sit all the way on the other side, awkwardly shifting in my seat because I hadn’t thought about removing the veil before getting in the car, and now it keeps getting caught.
My pulse hammers through my veins as I try to think if I should break the silence between us or let him take the lead. An hour ago, we were locked in a kiss that felt far more real than I was expecting. Worse, it almost felt familiar. Like we’d done it before, like my lips knew his.
