WEDDING ANNIVERSARY:A celebration of another year of marriage, no divorce, no separation. Whew! Friday morning, I called up Adam. I wasn’t really mad at him. I knew that he was only looking out for me. I told him that I would catch a ride with him, as I wouldn’t be going with Ryder to my parents’ party.“And if they look for Ryder, what will you tell them?” Adam asked.“That we’re taking time off. That I wasn’t ready. Ryder is a wonderful guy, but he was too serious about getting married and I’m not ready for that commitment yet. Plus, he’s in Manhattan eighty percent of the time.”“And what will you really do about Ryder, Astrid?” he asked.I took a deep breath. “He’s not my boyfriend. He’s… my boss apparently. I’ll keep working on this, until the profits sta

BOND:A connection that fastens things or people together. The next morning, I woke up Ryder with kisses. He smiled at me and then he held me by the waist, pushed me on my back and pinned me between his body and the soft mattresses of his bed. There was no need for words after that.It was almost noontime when we got up from bed. I knew that Ryder would leave soon and this made me want to cry already.“What time’s your flight?” I asked him.He smiled and pulled me to him.  “Tomorrow at ten.”“Why?” I asked in surprise.“I canceled things today.”“Ryder… why did you do that?”He kissed me. “I wanted to. A day won’t hurt. It’s our first day together… for real. The first day that didn’t have to end.”I gave him a hug. “Geography&rsqu

VELLUM:A thin, transparent or semi-transparent type of paper the effect of which resembles a frosted glass, commonly used in wedding invitations. Ryder. When I woke up at the hospital, my first thought was that I was late for my meeting in Malibu. I just opened Oil Rig and would soon open another bar, Rig Style.When I opened my eyes, my family and friends were staring back at me curiously, all with tears in their eyes.That’s when I realized that something must have happened to me. Judging from the throbbing pain I felt in my head, the fact that I could barely move my body due the tight bandages wrapped around me in the rib area, I guessed that I was in a car accident.Damn! I wonder which of my cars I have to say goodbye to. I hope it’s not my McLaren. I just bought it a month ago and the price was not sweet at all. I would hate to

PRENUP:A legal document filed before marriage that states what would happen to the couple when they get divorced, particularly in terms of their finances and property. Ryder. Four months since the accident, and I’m slowly returning to my old shape. My wounds have healed. Minor broken bones and stitches… nothing I cannot recover from.Except for one—the wound in my brain. There is still this veil that keeps one year of my life from my consciousness.One year. I thought, how significant could that year be? I can read year-end reports from my businesses and I should be fine. I can spend a day on the net and catch up on what happened to the world.I can heal from this and still go on with my life. No hassles.I feel normal. I feel like nothing happened at all. I still have the people I love around me. Pari

KISS:The groom kisses the bride at the end of the wedding ceremony to seal their union. Astrid. “I want you to stay here while I’m gone.” His words echoed in my head over and over. Tears were rolling down my cheeks.Okay, Astrid. Better cry now than later. Better here than in front of him.I couldn’t show him how affected I was. No matter how much I beg, it’s not helping him. I didn’t give up on him yet. But I knew that putting pressure on him would only make him run away more.He did tell me that he was always cautious about girls. Now, he doesn’t know me. So I fall into the general category of women who just might like Ryder Van Woodsen for money and not for who he is inside.Quite ironic, actually. He accuses me of the very things that ke