Page 15 of Love's Most Wanted

“Yeah.” She nodded, falling back onto her pillow as I left the room.

I went to Aurora’s to check for her, and when I noticed she wasn’t there, I ventured to the backyard, which was her favorite spot to be because of the jacuzzi. Like I knew, she was sitting in it, holding a glass of champagne.

Her pretty brown skin had a sheen to it from the heat, and though she wore no makeup and had her hair clipped up, nothing special, she was beautiful as hell.

“Where mine?” I jested, squatting down some. She peered up and over at me before offering up a soft but super subtle ass smile. “I meant what I said, love. I’m sorry. I had other shit on my mind, and she caught me off guard.”

“I know. She’s always doing little shit like that.” She sighed.

“Yeah, and I got on her ass about it.” I looked off into the trees filling my backyard. Glancing back down at Aurora, I continued. “But it’s my fault too. Had I not forgotten, it wouldn’t have happened. I gotta be the mediator, the middle ground in this shit, and I failed at that. So for that shit, I apologize.”

“Okay.” She smiled a bit more genuinely this time as she looked up at me. I kissed her slowly. “Want a sip?”

“Nah, I’m good. You keep enjoying yaself. I got an early flight tomorrow. When I get back, though, I’m gon’ end the night with you.”

“Really?” She beamed.

“Really.” I hooked her chin, looking her over for a minute. A part of me felt like Aurora was too much of a good girl for this type of situation, but she’d agreed to the shit. She wasn’t being held hostage and could leave anytime—so long as she didn’t mention leaving a nigga, I wouldn’t give the thought anymore time. “Good night, pretty girl.” I kissed her again before rising back to my full height.

This shit was more work, but it was either do the work or be single, because I refused to settle or be forced to be lonely.

“Mr. Duarte will see you now,”the receptionist stated, causing both Unique and I to stand up.

“I thought your brother was a lawyer,” I whispered as we started to the back of the office suite.

“Criminal defense. He don’t handle shit like this,” Unique answered, just as the door to the office we were approaching swung open to reveal an older black man with a full head of black and white hair and a matching beard.

“Mack Duarte.” He extended his hand to shake mine and then greeted Unique who already knew his name. “Have a seat.”

Mack sat behind his desk while Unique and I sat across from him. I was a bit nervous and new to this, so I didn’t say anything. I’d never needed a lawyer in my life, thankfully.

As soon as I glanced to my right at Unique, he started. “So as I kind of explained to you, we basically need to get an annulment and fast.”

“Right, but I need you to tell me what happened.” Mack put a pen to his legal pad, ready to write.

“Umm, I used to think shit like this was fake until it happened to me.” Unique sighed. “We got drunk and woke up married, to make a long story short.”

“Okay. Well, I was able to check and verify that you are, in fact, married, so the license you found is real. Usually, the officiants are supposed to turn you away if you appear to be inebriated, but clearly, that didn’t happen here. So now we have to prove that you were drunk and didn’t know what you were doing.”

“Prove it?” I frowned. “How can we do that? Can’t we just stand in the court and say we didn’t mean to do this?”

Mack chuckled, and it made my stomach feel like I’d swallowed a damn brick.

“I wish, Mrs. Compton?—”

“Kenneth. My last name is still Kenneth,” I corrected.

“Well, Miss Kenneth, no, it is not that easy. There are only a couple reasons that the courts in California will grant an annulment, and while intoxication is one of them, it has to be proven. It’s Vegas, so someone saw you two drunk out of your minds. Whether that was the bartender who served you, the officiant at the church, or even a driver of some sort, assuming you two didn’t drive yourselves anywhere.”

“No. I remember us having a driver for a minute, but I can’t remember his name or… what he looked like.” I huffed, massaging the bridge of my nose.

“Okay. Bartender?”

“Yeah. She was white, dark hair, green eyes, and big titties,” Unique ran off, making Mack laugh and me look his way in disgust.

“Do you find every single woman on this Earth attractive or pay them all close attention?”

I wouldn’t marry Unique even if he were single. I liked my niggas to be all about me, and Unique was too friendly. I noticed it in the past when he would be around AJ and me, but I never really paid it much mind.