She turned to the minister. “I guess I should officially say ‘I do.’”
He nodded.
So she said, “I do.”
Then even before they were instructed, they were both leaning in for a kiss. It curled Kendall’s toes, seared her heart, and shattered her ability to think.
“You need to put the rings on,” the minister told them.
“Oh. Right.” Kendall broke away from Evan, but stayed close to him, eyes still locked on his, not wanting to put any space between them. “Remember I will get you a better one than this,” she said as she took the silver band they’d bought at Walmart on the way over from Elec’s. She slid it on his finger.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “It’s what it stands for, not the ring itself.”
Then he pulled a ring out of the box Elec was holding and put it on her finger. Kendall looked down at it, amazed that it was ten years old, surprised at how pretty and delicate it was. She had braced herself for something gaudy, given Evan’s age at the time. But it was lovely, a silver band with a princess-cut diamond. Simple, sweet, stunning.
He slid it on her finger and they were married.
Kendall was aware that around her Tamara and Elec and the minister were offering congratulations, but she couldn’t do anything more than grin and nod, her focus on Evan.
They were married.
How crazy was that?
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
KENDALL let out a startled yelp when Evan lifted her legs out from under her at the door to their hotel room. “What the hell are you doing?” she asked him.
He didn’t think it took a genius to figure it out, and Kendall was pretty damn smart. She was just fussing, which he had noted over the last ten years, she liked to do. “I’m carrying you over the threshold.”
Evan looked down at his grinning wife. His wife. Even as her ass started to sink and he bounced her to get a better position, he couldn’t help but just stare at her as she smiled up at him. They were married.
“I thought you were supposed to do that at home, not a hotel.”
“There are rules on it?” Evan wasn’t big on rules. Pulling the key card out of his pocket, he realized he should have opened the door first, then picked her up. This romantic crap was complicated.
But this was their wedding night and he intended to persevere.
“Wait, where are we going to live?” Kendall’s eyes went wide. “We have two condos and two motor homes. Which ones are we keeping?”
Evan shrugged, more concerned with holding her one-armed while he crammed the key into the slot then with whose house they were going to live in. “Whatever you want, sweetheart.”
“One should be yours and one should be mine. To be fair.” She was biting her lip. “Do we have to let go one of our motor home drivers? I’d hate to do that. I don’t have a lot of furniture in my condo, so maybe we should move into yours.”
Had he mentioned he didn’t care? He just wanted to enjoy the moment.
“What do you think?” she insisted.
“I think that sounds fine.” Evan shoved the door open and walked quickly to get her inside before it slammed shut on them. The overnight bags they had packed he left hastily in the hallway, hoping she wouldn’t notice.
“You left the bags in the hallway.”
Damn. “I know.”
“Someone is going to steal them.”
Evan set her down on the bed. “Kendall.”
“What?” She looked past him to the door, clearly worried about the bags.
“Do you hear that?” he asked her.
She cocked her head. “Hear what?”
“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It’s just you and me in the hotel room tonight, our wedding night. There are no condos, no worries, no nothing. Just you and me.”
Her eyes softened. “You’re right.”
Then, because he knew her and loved her, he went for the bags, dumping them at the foot of the bed.
The corner of her mouth turned up and she smiled shyly. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now forget all that other stuff and let me make love to you the way a man does his wife.” Evan yanked on his tie, loosening it.
Her breath caught. “Oh? And how is that?”
“All night long.” Evan balled up his tie and tossed it on top of the bags she’d been so concerned about.
He loved the way she looked, resting on her elbows, ankles crossed as her legs dangled off the bed. Her dress flowed over her thighs, her hair down over her shoulders. Evan could count on one hand the number of times he had seen Kendall in a dress, and he had to admit, he liked it. It brought to the forefront all those soft and feminine curves she had. Of course, he thought she was just as hot in a racing suit, but here, right now, on their wedding night, he appreciated the dress.
“You look beautiful,” he told her, kicking off his shoes. “The most beautiful bride ever.”
She smiled, her eyes sparkling. “I don’t even look like a bride, but thank you.”
“You look like a bride to me.” Evan reached down and pulled her shoes off her tiny feet and set them carefully by the suitcases. “But are you sorry we didn’t have a traditional wedding?”
“Of course not. I proposed, remember? And you know, I’m not exactly a traditional kind of girl.”
Evan climbed onto the bed with her, sliding his hand up the smooth skin of her calf. “I noticed. Just one of the many things I love about you.”
She leaned closer to him, a grin on her face. “Do you love me?”
Evan paused, his throat suddenly tight. There was no way to express what he felt. “I love you beyond measure.”
“I love you, too.”
No words had ever sounded sweeter to him. Evan moved his hand farther up her leg, caressing the inside of her thigh. “So no regrets? I could propose to you now if you want, just so we’re even.” He did worry about that. Didn’t every woman want some crazy-ass romantic marriage proposal?
She laughed, reaching out and undoing the top button on his shirt. “Nah, I’m good. But maybe someday you can serenade me.”
“Serenade you?” Evan brushed his thumb over the fabric of her panties, finally having made his way all the way up her leg. With her own fingers teasing over his second button, he had to admit, he was losing the thread of their conversation. “What does that mean?”
Kendall kissed the inside of his neck. “You know, like sing to me. In public. Where other people can hear you.”