Page 155 of A Temporary Forever

“Excuse me. Do you have an appointment?” a frantic female voice calls after me, but I’m already bursting through the gray double door of the waiting hall.

A quick scan of the grim place confirms Celeste must still be in there. What was the name of that officer? I rush, reading the name tags quickly.

Martinez.

That’s it. I push the door open, and the first thingI register spreads pain through my chest, spiking my heart rate.

Celeste is crying.

Dominic stands up and is about to say something, but I stretch my hand to stop him.

“You can’t do this.” I look at a woman who must be Martinez. “This might have started fake. Perhaps a string of one-night stands. But it’s way past that. Because casual is forgettable. And this woman is on my mind constantly. Whether I’m with her or away from her, it doesn't matter.”

The officer widens her eyes, and my mind registers Dominic’s voice, but I don’t stop.

“She’s etched on my mind, in my heart, and slowly but surely stealing parts of my soul. I don’t remember who I was before her.”

I turn to Celeste. “And I sure as hell don’t want to meet myself after you. The only version of me worth being is the one I am with you.”

Celeste blinks, her cheeks wet from tears. Fuck, she’s beautiful.

She sniffles. “Cal—”

I raise my finger, because I have more to say. I don’t even know where the words are coming from, but I turn back to Martinez, whose countenance has shifted slightly, a smirk on her face. Fuck it.

“If you deport my wife, she’ll be taking pieces ofme with her. Vital, irreplaceable pieces. Because this marriage is fucking real. And my wife stays by my side.”

Dominic swears under his breath. Celeste stands, a sob escaping her.

Martinez folds her arms. “Well, Mr. van den Linden, thank you for your unsolicited testimony. I don’t appreciate the amount of cussing involved, so please control yourself next time. I’m going to gloss over your suggestions of faking this marriage at the beginning.” She scoffs and clears her throat. “Because as I was just informing your wife, I find the presented evidence sufficient at this moment, and we’ll proceed with her green card application process.”

Several things happen at the same time.

A rock I didn’t know I’d been carrying dislodges from my chest.

Celeste sniffles and giggles at the same time.

People in the hallway clap.

And the officer from the front desk comes in, panting. “You can’t be here, sir.”

I clear my throat and straighten my tie. Grabbing Celeste’s hand, I turn on my heels. “We’re leaving, anyway.”

I nod and march out of there. As soon as we’re in the hallway, I pull my wife to me and kiss the hell out of her.

“You’re staying.” I lower my forehead to her. “Why are you crying?”

“Because I’m happy.” Her breath hitches as she holds onto my lapels.

“Why the fuck did you go to the airport?”

Perhaps this is not the time and place to unravel that. Perhaps it doesn’t matter anymore, but the question leaves my lips before I can stop it.

“For a brief moment, I believed that it would be easier for you. For Mia and Merged. They need you here. But I couldn’t do it.”

“So you didn’t return for this?” I reach to my pocket and pull out her old watch.

I almost forgot I put it there in my hurry to leave the house this morning, when the delivery from the watchmaker arrived.

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