Page 9 of The Awakening
That was it? After all, that build up? All the tension I felt? The guilt brewing in my gut didn’t disappear but had been reduced to a simmer.
I shook my head and took the hand he still offered to me. “Where did you come from, Gavin Morton?”
“Texas.” He said with a straight face, and I couldn’t help but laugh. He pulled me to him, his eyes locked on mine, and for a brief moment, I thought he might kiss me. But instead, he turned and led us out of the bathroom, and back to the altar.
The old man stood from his chair. “You’re back.”
Gavin gave him a curt nod. “Sorry, sir. We’re ready now.”
The old man smiled, the laugh lines around his face crinkling. “Where was I? Oh right. Elyse, do you take Gavin as your lawfully wedded husband?”
“I do.” My voice was strong, and even though I knew this was a marriage of convenience, the moment felt special.
“Gavin, do you take Elyse as your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do.” He didn’t hesitate and never took his eyes off me.
“By the power given to me by the state of Montana, I am pleased to pronounce you husband and wife. Mr. Morton, you may kiss your bride.”
Gavin’s eyes grew wide, and he hesitated for a split second before he leaned in and kissed me. The magnetic pull between us from the night before returned, and what was intended to be a quick peck turned into so much more. Gavin laced his fingers in my hair and pulled me closer, his mouth fusing more securely to mine. The kiss deepened, but I couldn’t tell you who was in control. He groaned against my lips as I ran my hands up his back. He could have whisked me away anywhere in that moment and I would have gone without question or hesitation.
Janet clapped from behind us. “Save something for the honeymoon, you two.”
We broke our kiss, and I searched his eyes, looking for clues as to how he felt about the connection we’d just shared. I half expected to see regret, but he only smiled down at me. I couldn’t help but return it, feeling more at peace than I had in a long time. As I signed the paper that made us legally husband and wife, there was a tiny part of me that wished it hadn’t gone down the way it had. I wondered, if we’d met under different circumstances, would we have married for the right reasons?
No, don’t go there.
I pushed those thoughts from my mind. It had happened the way it had, and it would end when the time was right. I owed him for my safety and my freedom, and the best way I could repay him for his overwhelming act of kindness was by keeping a level head about this whole situation.
I was Gavin Morton’s wife on paper, but nothing more.
Chapter Five
Elie
We arrived at the airport, and I—a bit bewilderedly—followed Gavin to a private plane. First class would have been more than I could have imagined. A coach seat, crammed between Gavin and a woman with a crying baby, would have been perfect. I’d never flown before, and always hoped I one day could. But a private plane? The nerves returned. How different was Gavin’s life from mine? Was he used to this kind of luxury? Maybe I was more of an inexperienced mountain girl than I’d realized. After all, I hadn’t even been out of state before.
Gavin turned back to me. “Are you going to stand there all day?”
“This is a private plane, Gavin.”
“Would you rather fly commercial?” He didn’t wait for me to respond. “We can if it would make you feel more comfortable, but it seems kind of pointless when the plane is already here. Tony had to leave his family early this morning to get here.”
“I’m sorry, I was just surprised. I haven’t flown before, let alone taken a private plane.”
Gavin doubled back, giving me a gentle push toward the plan. “There’s a first time for everything. Go on, we have things to discuss.” He grinned when I finally got my feet unstuck and moved toward the plane. How was he so relaxed about all this? Our worlds had been flipped upside down, and he acted like flying in a private jet with his new wife to surprise his family was an every-day occurrence.
He followed close behind as I walked up the steps to the open door of the plane.
The seats were leather, the color of buttercream. A couch ran along the one side of the cabin, with a table and chairs across the aisle. There was a large television on the back wall, and a bar in the corner with a smiling flight attendant standing behind it. The plane was fancier than the home I’d grown up in. Who was I kidding? It was fancier than any home I’d ever set foot in. “Whose plane is this?”
“It belongs to my family. Since I fly back and forth to Montana so frequently, it was the practical thing to do.” Gavin said nonchalantly.
“So practical.” I didn’t see the practicality in it at all, but I nodded and at him, anyway, moving my head in a way I hoped would be convincing.
His laughter reverberated through the cabin of the plane. “I guess it’s somewhat impractical, given the way you grew up. But it’s been our normal for quite a while.”
I stood in the aisle. He was right about that. It wasn’t something I was accustomed to at all. Again, why would a man like him, who had the world at his fingertips and could jet off anywhere he liked in a private plane, tie himself to me?
