Chapter 6

I should be given an award in endurance; in fact, there should be a statue of me located in Heald Square just next to George Washington, and it would be titled "For Your Enduring Spirit."

Because here I was, standing in front of my husband, a title that would officially be his in 5 minutes if the damn priest would stop acting like a sloth.

I ignored the words of admonition he was dishing out, choosing to focus on my man. Decked in a single-breasted beige suit from Husbands Paris, he was breathtaking. His hair had been pushed back, and with the undercut, he was lethal.

He had ditched his glasses for contact lenses the exact color of his eyes, and they reminded me of the skies in the winter. Slowly, I blinked, as if taking a snapshot of him, committing the entire look to mind because this would be the last memory of him in my dying bed.

“I love you.” He mouthed, his eyes twinkling with so much love, and I was weak against those words, especially coming from those lips I so desperately wanted to kiss.

“I love you too.” I whispered, giving him my hands as he reached out to it, and all of the memories of our first meeting flooded my mind.

We had met at a fundraiser for children with congenital disease, and he had spilled wine on my dress in a hurry to go out.

I was as pissed off as any rational human would be. The Maria Lucia Hohan dress was my favorite, and it was the first time I was wearing it. Of course, I had blown up on him, but Davy, ever calm and collected, had only asked for my address, and about four days later, I saw two of the dresses in my front door.

I reached out to him, demanding he take it back, but Davy was stubborn and evaded every attempt until I finally tracked him down. Somehow, the dress was forgotten, and we ended up in bed.

Ironically, I wore the dress for our first date, and we have been going steady since then. That was about 7 years ago.

It was also how I earned the nickname "Red," for the color of wine that spilled on my clothes and for my ‘anger,’ although he was only lying.

“Do you, Davy Hale Walton, take Anna Sinclair to be your lawful wedded wife?” The priest asked, jolting my focus back to the reception, and I looked on in anticipation.

“Yes, I do.” He said firmly, and I swallowed, my eyes already glistening.

“Do you, Anna Sinclair, take Davy Hale Walton to be your lawful wedded husband?” The priest repeated, and the reply was already spilling out before I could think so much about it.

“Yes, I do.” I said with so much conviction and assurance, and the audience erupted in cheers.

The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur. We said our vows, my handkerchief dabbing desperately at my eyes as I tried to catch the stray tears. From the corner of my vision, I spotted my makeup artist shaking her head, silently pleading with me to show mercy to my face.

After the priest’s final blessing and his declaration of us as husband and wife, it was finally time for our first kiss and for the first time since the ceremony began, I flushed.

The hall was packed with friends and family; all gathered were here to witness our joining. My brother was literally in the hall, and there was no way I would be locking lips with a man when they were all staring at me.

“Don’t tell me you are growing shy on me, Anna Walton.” Davy teased, his arms wrapping around the small of my waist, and my breath caught in my throat as I felt the tingles just from his touch.

“Hmmm, Walton,” I whispered, my arms circling around his neck.

“It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?” He teased, cocking his brows, yet his eyes were solely focused on my lips, his desire made so plain that I rubbed my thighs together.

Lord have mercy. I needed to be able to get through this reception.

“It sure does.” And no sooner had I spoken than he reached out, joining our lips together.

Fireworks exploded wherever we touched, his hands burning a hole in my waist. His lips were nice and soft, filled with so much love that I fell even deeper for him.

It was easy to forget the cheering crowd, easy to forget everything and focus only on the feel of his lips on mine, and my fingers eased higher, getting tangled in his hair.

And we would have progressed farther than that if my best friend hadn’t disrupted us.

“You want to save that for the honeymoon, babies.” Kim yelled, and the hall erupted once again in laughter, but we parted, reluctantly. However, our fingers remained tangled with each other, needing an excuse to continue touching.

The wedding was finally over, and we filed to the second hall, where the reception was to be held.

My eyes took in the decorated hall, nodding slowly. I had to give it to my mother-in-law; she was a great planner, and even though I wanted to rip out every yellow decoration, which currently covered the entire hall, it was still beautiful.

“May I have the attention of the couple?” My dad said, tapping his glass with a fork, and the hall became quiet. “First I must congratulate my beautiful daughter and now my handsome son, sorry Aaron,” he yelled to my brother, but he only waved them off. “I am one of the happiest men alive, and to spread the joy, I will be gifting the couple a beautiful 2025 Prado jeep.”

Gasps erupted throughout the hall, mine the loudest, my jaw hanging open.

“Dad!” I whined, already standing up to meet him, and I hugged him fiercely. “Thank you.” I whispered into his shoulder, blinking back tears that were already making their way down.

My father had always been my safety net, reassuring me that no matter how high I climbed or how hard I fell, I would never land alone. It was one reason I had never gotten a car with my money because he had that covered.

I leaned further into him, inhaling the expensive Arabian perfume he had decked himself in, all that smelled undeniably of home, when another tap of the glass broke us apart.

My in-laws stood, their shoulders raised high with so much pride, and I could almost see the words in their eyes.

To them, this was a challenge, and they were not going to back down, but right now I couldn’t care.

“May I see the new couple?” Margaret spoke with a haughty voice that had me rolling my eyes, but Davy noticed it, and he shook his head.

He held out his hands, and I drifted towards him before we walked to meet our in-laws, and we both stood in front of them.

“It pleases me to see the union of such great individuals. My son is a respectable gynecologist raised by two equally great doctors, and I have no doubt he will be a wonderful husband,” she began, her gaze fixed firmly on Davy, as though I were a decorative addition rather than the woman he would be spending the rest of his life with.

Davy squeezed my hands gently, his hold the only thing keeping me sane. “We will be giving the couple an all-expense-paid honeymoon to any place of choice for two weeks, complete with a private jet and a property in any estate of choice.”

My jaw dropped open, and I glanced at my husband, but he shook his head.

A pathetic ‘thank you’ was all I could manage, Davy immediately taking over and saying something more suitable than the mumbles that were leaving my lips.

Soon enough, the music picked back up, and we went back to dancing and pretending our lives weren’t ridiculously perfect.