Chapter Four: Mr. And Mrs. King

Doubt pervaded Sasha’s mind on the day of the wedding. Even though she had never been one to care about marriage, her first wedding ever being a fake bothered her. Tatiana was the only one there to support her because she had decided against telling her mother. She had told her instead that she was going on a two-month work trip.

The only thing her mother hated more than her singleness was a divorce. If she knew about the marriage and learned that they were divorcing only two months later, she would never stop saying it was her lack of submissiveness that threatened men. Sometimes, Sasha was tempted to tell her that if she had divorced their father when she needed to, they wouldn’t be in the situation they were in.

The wedding was held at the garden in Darnell’s grandfather’s estate. Apart from Tatiana, Grandfather, Joshua, and his wife, Maya, and the wedding officiant were at the wedding. Tatiana walked Sasha down the aisle to no music, and joined her with Darnell next to a floral arch and the officiant.

As the officiant read the wedding sermon, Sasha struggled to maintain eye contact with Darnell, who had no issue looking into her eyes with a smirk across his face. It was soon time for the vows and the officiant began with Darnell.

“Repeat after me. I, Darnell,” he started.

“I, Darnell,” Darnell repeated.

“Take you, Sasha.”

“Take you, Sasha.”

“To be my lawful wedded wife.”

“To be my lawful wedded wife.”

“To have and to hold, from this day forward.”

“To have and to hold, from this day forward.”

“And to love and cherish.”

“And to love and cherish.”

“For better for worse, in sickness and in health.”

“For better for worse, in sickness and in health.”

“To love and cherish, till death do us part."

“To love and cherish, till death do us part."

Even though they had practiced it, the vows felt too heavy to say to a fake husband, in a fake wedding, in front of their own families, but when the officiant turned to Sasha and said the words, she repeated the lies. After the exchange of rings, the officiant declared them husband and wife.

“You may kiss the bride,” he said.

That was the part they never practiced. Darnell began to lean in, and Sasha closed her eyes. But he bent his neck so that the back of his head was facing the audience and pecked her on the edge of her lips.

He pulled away and smiled at her as everyone clapped.

“Welcome to the family, Mrs. King,” he whispered.

When the ceremony was over, Grandfather hosted a lunch at his dining room. A large table that occupied almost the entire room was covered with food, with a whole roast suckling pig as the centerpiece. Sasha changed out of her wedding dress before she and Tatiana joined the rest of the family. Grandfather was wheeled to the head of the table while everyone else took the sides—Darnell, Sasha and Tatiana all on one side, and Joshua and Maya on the other side.

Grandfather was a frail man due to his illness, but still maintained some looks for his age. His coily white hair was full but trimmed. White stubbles appeared along his jaw and under his neck. Two guards stood behind him at the far end of the room, near a giant window.

“So, tell me about you,” Grandfather said to Sasha as they began to eat.

She swallowed her food forcefully and coughed. Not once did she think she’d have to talk about herself.

“My name is Sasha…” She regretted the words as soon as they came out, but it was too late.

It felt odd introducing herself to her new family like a total stranger. What kind of family was this that didn’t think only knowing their family-in-law on her wedding day was suspicious? How couldn’t they see that the marriage was a total sham?

“I grew up here…where I’ve lived my whole life,” she resumed. “I love to paint and…” her voice trailed off as she tried to avoid giving specific details, just as Darnell had warned her.

“And your parents?” Grandfather asked. “Oh, don’t answer that. Darnell told me you are an orphan. Accept my apologies. I’m a very old man. My memories are failing me,” he added in-between breaths.

“No apology needed, Mr. King,” said Sasha.

“Please, call me Grandfather.”

Sasha’s chest tightened. Why had she agreed to deceive this poor man on his last phase of life?

“I have arranged for you and Darnell to have your honeymoon at my resort in Sacramento. Danny tells me you don’t want to be far away from home. You can stay there for as long as you like.” Grandfather smiled as he announced the news.

“Oh,” Sasha breathed. She nudged Darnell. “You obviously wanted to surprise me about the honeymoon, didn’t you?” she said with a fake smile.

“Don’t worry, we’re not going,” he whispered in her ear.

“I’ve also made arrangements for a jet to take you there,” Grandfather added.

“Oh, thank you so much, Grandfather,” said Sasha. “We’re so excited for this.” She turned to Darnell. “Aren’t we, honey?”

Darnell pressed his lips together. “Yes, we are. Thank you, Grandfather”

Lunch was over in a few hours. Sasha and Darnell headed to his home after saying goodbye to the family. The drive was long, quiet and awkward. They soon made it to his estate and Sasha heaved a sigh of relief when the car ignition was turned off next to a fountain.

“Home sweet home,” Darnell said as he opened his side of the car door.

The driver opened Sasha’s side of the door. She’d never been to Darnell’s home, so she took in the massive estate. As she turned around, her eyes met his.

“Ready to go inside?” he asked.

She nodded in the affirmative, and he gestured her ahead. At the entrance of his mansion, he pushed the door open to let her inside. His butler, Andrew, carried her luggage and led her to her room upstairs where Mary had arranged her new wardrobe. The room was twice the size of her room at home, with a king-sized bed and a walk-in closet. She strolled to the window and pulled the curtain open to scan the view of the compound.

“Are you comfortable?”

The voice startled her. She twirled to see Darnell standing at the door, occupying the entire frame.

“I’ll fit in just fine,” she responded.

“Good,” he said. “Get some rest. Tomorrow, we leave for our honeymoon,” he added and walked away before she could protest.

*

Early the next morning, Sasha was woken up by a knock on the door and was informed by Andrew to pack up for her flight to Sacramento. By the time she got into Grandfather’s jet, she didn’t have to worry about any awkward silences between her and Darnell, as she’d slept off like a newborn as soon as the plane went into the air. About an hour later, she was woken up with a tap. She opened her eyes to see Darnell standing above her and staring down at her.

“Rise and shine.” He smiled.

She propelled herself upward and followed him out of the plane to Grandfather’s Kingdom Resort, taking in the luxurious view as they strolled down to the reception room. The place was surrounded by palm trees and a pool of water that meandered around it.

“Mr. King. Mrs. King, it’s a pleasure to have you here,” the receptionist said as she saw them. “Your honeymoon suite has been made ready for you.” She turned to the porter that was carrying their luggage in a carrier. “Please, show Mr. and Mrs. King to their suite.” She handed him a key card.

Sasha called to Darnell when the porter was ahead of them.

He turned to face her. “Yes?”

She leaned in and asked in a low voice, “Are we sharing the same room?”

“It’s a honeymoon suite, what do you think?” He smirked.

“I want a separate room,” she said.

“And raise suspicions? What if Grandfather has someone spying on us?” he joked.

She frowned.

“Fine.” Darnell headed back to the receptionist and spoke to her. He waited for her response, then returned to Sasha. “Unfortunately, all the rooms are occupied until tomorrow. Looks like you’re stuck with me for the night, mon amour.”

The porter had kept their luggage in the corner of the room by the time they arrived. He handed Darnell the key card and Darnell squeezed a wad of cash into his hand before he left.

“I’ll give you some space to freshen up,” he said to Sasha and left.

Left alone, Sasha took in the aesthetic of the room. It was where Afrocentrism met modern architecture. The large window opened up to a view of the pool, and the huge bed’s frame had a spiral pattern. At least, she wouldn’t have to worry about sleeping too close to Darnell, she thought.

She decided she needed to cool off in the pool before taking a shower, so she changed into her bikini, smeared on some sunscreen, and opened her phone to text Tatiana when she saw a missed call. Her heart skipped a beat. Even though she had deleted the contact, she recognized the number. After ten years, it was impossible to forget. His text was also on her screen. She clicked it:

Hey, Sasha. It’s me, Trey. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and I realized how much I miss you. I’m sorry for hurting you. Text me back?

She closed her eyes and fought back the tears that threatened to fall. Of course, now he wanted her back, just like Tatiana said he would. He wasn’t sorry. He couldn’t fathom the idea that he didn’t mean so much to her after seeing her get married so quickly. Now, he knew exactly how he’d made her feel.

She texted Tatiana to update her on her arrival and headed toward the door. She pulled it open and nearly bumped into the familiar figure in front of her.

“Sorry,” she uttered.

He didn’t mean to, but Darnell’s eyes landed on her breasts. They sat perfectly cupped in her red bikini bra. He forced his eyes away and looked into hers. She tilted her head to look up at him. The way her beautiful eyes shone and her lips parted tempted him to pull her face in. On the inside, he fought the urge to step back so he could see her full figure without so many clothes.

He wasn’t sure how long they stood there staring at each other, but he eventually moved aside to let her walk past him. Perhaps, he had imagined it, but she almost looked disappointed. When she was a few steps away, he allowed himself to stare at her full body. Even with a scarf around her waist for modesty’s sake, her rear moved in a way that lured him like a siren song to a pirate.

At the pool, Sasha unwrapped the scarf around her waist and lowered herself into the cold body of water. She rested her arms and the back of her head on the edge of the pool, so that her face was to the sun. She closed her eyes and relived the last few minutes between her and Darnell and began to regret playing hard to get in the first place. Maybe, he was a shitty man, but he wasn’t worst off than most of them. At least he was hot. Very hot.

A few minutes later, she went back into their room. It smelled of male cologne, and she immediately thought Darnell must have freshened up and headed out somewhere. She couldn’t help imagining how he’d taken off his clothes, headed into the shower, and let water run down his dark, muscular body.

She snapped out of it and headed into the shower herself. After a short bathe, she climbed on her bed and navigated her phone. When she got bored, she read a book. Someone rang her doorbell and she nervously opened it, but it was only the cook bringing her lunch.

As night grew closer, she grew more anxious. She began to pace around the room, wondering what it’ll be like between her and Darnell when he returned. Another ring on her door made her jump. She opened the door, but her heart rate return to normal when she saw that it was the cook again bringing her dinner.

After dinner, she took another shower and brushed her teeth, applied her creams, and smeared on a scenting lotion. If Darnell returned and decided she was getting lucky, she needed to smell good.