Page 9 of Desire

“I haven’t met him yet.”

“You haven’t—Desire, you’d better get to explaining or else, young lady!” he barked as he stood.

“Okay, okay! Calm down, please. You’re making me nervous.”

“Talk!” Ma shouted.

“I saw an ad for a company called Arranged Hearts. It’s basically a matchmaking service, but the first time you meet your match is at the altar.”

“Are you crazy? Do you know what kind of nut jobs are out there? You can’t marry a complete stranger.”

My father was on a roll. He’d been pacing since I blurted out the news, and I needed him to calm down.

“Desire, I know you’ve dreamed of getting married and having a family since you were a child, but this isn’t the way to do it,” my mother reasoned.

“It’s the way I’ve chosen to do it. It would mean the world to me if you supported me, but I understand if you don’t want to be there.”

I pushed away from the table and stood. My parents looked at me with confusion, disappointment, and anger.

“Desire, please, just think about this logically,” Ma pleaded. “Marrying a stranger is risky.”

“I’ve thought about it and want to do this, Mama. The company is reputable and has been very successful. Look them up and see for yourself.”

“The internet makes everything look and sound good, Desire. What if this man turns out to be an asshole?”

“We can divorce after ninety days. Destinee and Dream?—”

“They know about this nonsense and didn’t tell us?” Dad grumbled, more to himself than me.

“I asked them not to, but they’ve agreed to support me. If you decide to come, the color scheme is dark purple and gold. I’ll text you the rest of the details.”

I all but ran out of my parents’ house because I didn’t want to continue listening to their negative talk. They had legitimate concerns, but my mind was made up. I was getting married tomorrow, whether they supported me or not.

“Oh my God, sis! You look beautiful.” Destinee beamed.

“Yes!” Dream said. “Your soon-to-be husband is a lucky man. I hope he’s not lame and matches your fly.”

I arrived at the wedding venue at seven a.m., which I thought was too early, but I didn’t question it. Based on the itinerary, the wedding and reception would be over by noon, and we had a three o’clock flight to catch to our honeymoon destination.

The makeup and hair stylist had come and worked their magic, and the photographer had just left my suite after taking pictures of the entire process, including photos of me with my sisters.

“You both do, too. Thank you for being here. I know this whole thing is wild, but your support means the world to me.”

“Now you know damn well we weren’t letting you do this alone,” Dream assured.

I took a few deep breaths as I admired myself in the full-length mirror. The gold strapless dress I chose was fitted with a detachable skirt halfway around my body, exposing the front. My shoes were clear with rhinestones around the sole, a gold four-inch heel, and a thin gold ankle strap. I looked amazing and hoped my future husband would agree. A few taps on the door pulled me from my thoughts.

“Come in,” I called out.

A staff member from Arranged Hearts came inside but remained near the door.

“Miss Chambries, this is for you.” She handed an envelope to Dream and disappeared just as quickly as she arrived.

“What is it?” Destinee asked.

Dream flipped the envelope over and read what was written aloud, “To my future wife.”

The three of us gasped as Dream gave me the envelope.

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