Page 67 of The One I Need
“Really? You’re not wearing yours, and I shouldn’t have even—”
“No.” I interrupt. “That’s me. Who knows how long we’re going to be married. Have some fun with it.”
He smiles the smile that gets me every time. The one that reminds me how good of a person he is, and how much better off he is with me just as a friend.
“Thank you, Mrs. Price.”
“Oh no. No, no, no. I will not be changing my name, and that’s even if we were staying married. Which we’re not.”
“That’s fine. Izzy McCall-Price has a fine ring to it.”
“I was thinking more like Oliver McCall.”
He smiles and brings me in for a quick kiss on the temple. “If that’s what needs to happen so you stay married to me, consider it done.”
Chapter23
Oliver
“Okay,so what are we going to do about this?”
I nearly get whiplash as Izzy storms into my house and sits down on the couch. “Nice to see you too, my wife.”
“Stop with that wife shit,” she says. “I’m not your wife.”
“The state of Nevada begs to differ. Also, where’s my nice wife from yesterday? The one who told me to wear the ring?”
She lets out a deep sigh like she’s already had enough of my shit. “That person was tired, hungover, and confused. But Oliver…we need to figure this out. Right now.”
It’s been twenty-four hours since we returned from Las Vegas, and I still can’t wrap my head around the fact I’m married. I knew Izzy needed some space to think after we got back, and honestly, so did I.
Though judging by the way she stormed in here this morning, I assume we were thinking about very different things. If I had to go back to Vegas to make a bet, I’d put money on the fact she had already drawn up divorce papers. Then there’s me, who used the last day to try to figure out how I can convince her to stay married.
“Do we? Do we really need to figure it out? I feel like it can wait.” I know I shouldn’t be messing with her right now, but it’s too much fun.
Izzy looks at me like I’m nuts. “Yes. We do.”
“For the sake of argument, can I ask why?”
“Because, Oliver. We were drunk and didn’t know what we were doing. Because I don’t believe in marriage. Because you live in Rolling Hills, and I doubt you're about to move to Nashville. Because I love our friendship, and I don’t want it to be thrown away because of our Elvis wedding. Did I mention because we were drunk and didn’t know what we were doing?”
“Once or twice,” I say with a smirk.
“How are you smiling right now? I know I said you could keep wearing the ring, but maybe you need to take it off, because this whole husband thing is going a little bit too much to your head.”
“Nope. You said I could keep it on. So it will be on my finger for the next sixty days.”
Izzy stops moving. Maybe stops breathing. I think she’s more shocked at this moment than when she realized we were married.
“What do you meansixty days?”
“Married. We have to be married for sixty days.”
“Says who?”
“The state of Tennessee.”
“Who the fuck does Tennessee think it is, telling me I have to be married for sixty days?”
