Page 24 of Wake Me Up (New England Bay Sharks #5)

I look down at Freya, and even though I know she pulled a random ivory-colored sweater dress from her closet because she told me, I still think she’s the most beautiful bride.

She’s not wearing much makeup, only something to make her lips pinker and a bit of mascara maybe, but I can tell that, at any moment, that mascara could be running down her pretty cheeks because it’s obvious as fuck that she’s trying not to cry.

I don’t think anyone could ever prepare you for the moment when you look into the eyes of the person you’re about to marry and watch her heart break more with every second that passes.

It’s supposed to be the opposite; she’s supposed to be looking at me with happiness in her eyes. Instead, she looks like she wants to run.

She looks haunted by this entire deal.

This isn’t what she wants, and I’m not what she wants.

Her lip trembles the slightest bit, and though she tries to fight it, those beautiful brown eyes of hers swirl with regret.

She’s doing this for her daughter—that’s it.

She’ll never fall for me, and I’ll never be the man she looks at like I hung the moon.

No. That’ll always be her first husband, and that’s okay.

If someone put a gun to my head right now and asked me why I was about to marry her, I wouldn’t have a fucking clue how to answer.

There’s just something about her, something about her kids, that makes me want to do and be better.

I was drawn to her the first time we met, yes.

But I suppose I could say the same about her kids too.

Her parents watch from beside us. While her mom looks surprisingly at peace with this, her dad looks mad.

When she told me she had called them this morning and asked them to be here, I was worried her dad might actually kill me.

He may have been fine with me at the game, but I’m sure his daughter marrying me this suddenly is a tough pill to swallow.

He didn’t say much, but the few times he opened his mouth, his wife would give him a look, and seconds later, his lips were closed.

When it gets to the part where the officiant is asking if I’ll take her to be my wife, I look into her eyes.

Though she grows more nervous, she doesn’t look away.

And when it gets time for me to say those two tiny words …

I don’t hesitate because I don’t want to give her a reason to think I’m not okay with this.

“I do,” I say, nodding once and keeping her small, cold hands in mine.

Now it’s her turn, but it won’t be as easy for those words to roll from her tongue, I’m sure. She’s not looking at me like I’m intolerable, but instead, she’s upset. When tears gather in her eyes again, I give her hands a slight squeeze to let her know it’s all right and that … I’m here.

I wish she’d just let me fucking be here.

Here it comes. Her turn to promise me that long slew of things that he just read off. I know she won’t mean them, and I know this is nothing but a business arrangement, yet when the two words spill from her lips … warmth spreads across my chest.

The man, with his button-down shirt and glasses, speaks once more, but it’s just the tail end of what he says that I catch. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Fuck … I get to kiss her. She’s my fucking wife. And her mom and dad are watching like hawks.

Her eyebrows knit together slightly, and it’s almost like she’s waiting for a painful slap instead of a kiss.

But the last thing we need to do is make it obvious that this isn’t a real marriage, so slowly, I reach forward and slide my hand against her cheek.

Moving my body forward, I position my face downward and bring my lips closer and closer to hers.

She looks scared, but just seconds before my lips touch hers, her eyes flutter shut, and so do mine.

I don’t kiss her quickly or selfishly. Instead, I take my time, pressing my lips to hers and parting them slightly.

I cup her cheek, and even though, at first, her lips stay coldly together, after a few seconds … she faintly kisses me back.

My cock twitches in my pants, and I kiss her a little longer—not wanting this moment to end because it may be the only time I ever get it. I feel like my entire body is being hit with electric waves before I hear her father clear his throat, as if to send me a message to wrap this kiss up.

Finally, I slowly pull back. Within seconds, her eyes flutter open, revealing a dazed look, and I give her a tiny smile before kissing her forehead. It’s not for show. It’s just to tell her that I’m here and that it’s all going to be okay.

Lacing my fingers with hers, I wink. “What do you say we get out of here?”

She looks from me to her parents and back to me before nodding shyly. “I’m free until the kids get out of school,” she whispers. “I guess now that we’re married, we should … well, go somewhere and talk? Make a plan?”

From the corner of my eye, I see the officiant eyeing us over. We should be bursting with happiness or emotional—anything that tells him that we’re in love and that … we’ve waited our whole lives for this moment.

Lifting her hand to my lips, I press a kiss to it and watch her cheeks turn an adorable shade of red.

“Anything you want, darlin’,” I murmur, and not a word of that is for show or to try to make someone believe I actually care.

I’d grocery-shop on a fucking Sunday at peak hours if it meant I could hang out with her a little longer.

And I hate grocery shopping. Even when it’s not the busiest day of the week.

Her eyes dart to the floor, and she fights a small wince. She might not be able to look me in the eye for more than a few seconds, but I’m going to show her that I can be exactly the man she needs me to be. For her … and her kids.

I’ll stick around for as long as she needs me to.

Or … for as long as she lets me.

I sit in the passenger seat of Tripp’s truck while he runs into the small grocery store. I try to stay relaxed, doing my best to not have a massive panic attack at the realization of what we did less than an hour ago.

An hour ago seems like a second has passed, but looking down at my clothes, I remember that, in that time, I’ve changed out of the ivory sweater dress I was wearing—because to be honest … I couldn’t stomach being in anything sort of white when I feel like I’ve deceived Jamie.

I can’t believe that I married Tripp Talmage. Vowed to cherish him. Forever. And be faithful. In sickness and health.

All the things.

Dear. Fucking. God.

Every time I look at the ring on my finger, a pain shoots through my chest. It’s not because the ring I’m wearing right now isn’t pretty.

It is. It’s a simple, single stone ring, but still breathtaking.

It’s one of the ones you’d see in a bridal magazine, I’m sure.

Probably on the finger of a woman who had perfectly manicured and polished nails, unlike my own.

So, no, it’s not the ring itself that’s making me want to die a little. It’s just the fact that I’ve taken my other ring off. The one I wore for so many years.

Sure, I’m only doing this for our little outing to celebrate our arrangement, and before I pick my kids up or see my family, I will certainly slip my real ring back on. It’s just the point that I’ve taken it off. That in itself feels like a betrayal to my husband.

My real husband.

The back door opens, and when I turn my neck, I see Tripp has a paper bag. Flashing me a smile, he slides it into the back seat before closing the door and getting into the driver’s seat.

“What do you have there?” I ask, nodding my head toward the back seat as he shifts the truck into drive and leaves the parking lot.

“Well, you’ve got a few hours before school pickup, right?” he asks, glancing at the clock. “So, I figured we’ll have ourselves a picnic. And don’t worry; where we’re going, no one will see us.”

My spine straightens, and I frown. “Wh—why would we want to be somewhere private?” I ask, narrowing my eyes.

I know we’re married now, but it’s very presumptuous to assume that we’re going to need alone time suddenly. I’m not going to have sex with him just because we tied the knot.

“Well, you don’t want your kids to know the truth about us, so I just assumed you wouldn’t want to be seen out and about with me.” He gives me a sharp look when he sees my shock. “I’m not a complete caveman, you know.”

I relax in my seat, though I’m slightly embarrassed for assuming the worst. “Sorry,” I utter.

“Yes, good point though.” I chew my lip.

“I’m going to be honest with you, Tripp.

My kids are kind of like my security blanket.

And when it’s just you and me … I’m awkward.

” Sighing, I look at him. “I know I’ve told you this, but I just want you to know I really appreciate what you did for me.

I know this situation between us is insane, at best, but it really shows your character, you know … that you’d do this for a little girl.”

His expression grows somber, and a look of puzzlement flashes across his face. He’s quiet for a moment as we turn down a driveway.

“It’s no big deal, Freya.” He shrugs. “Really.”

“It’s a huge deal.” My tone is almost grouchy, though I don’t mean for it to be. “It’s marriage. A vow. A promise.” I look out the window, trying not to shake my head. “And you’re too nice because you agreed to it just so that my kid could have health insurance.”

I don’t know why it upsets me so much that Tripp doesn’t seem to understand how big of a deal it is that he married me, but it does. Perhaps it’s because he’s never been married—at least not to my knowledge.

“Have you been married before?” I blurt out, suddenly curious if this is something he just does randomly and thinks it’s not a big thing.

“Nope,” he says vacantly, only getting under my skin more, though, deep down, I know if he’d told me yes, I would have been more pissed and maybe even a little jealous.

“Well, what you did, it’s a huge deal, Tripp,” rushes from my mouth. “So, stop downplaying it, would you?”

“Aye, aye, captain,” he says, keeping his mouth in a straight line.

It’s obvious I’m not getting anywhere with this conversation, so I choose not to say anything else.

And as we drive down the driveway, we’re both quiet before he pulls in front of a house.

It’s hard to tell how big it is because of all of the trees and plants surrounding it, but when he parks his truck and I look around a bit, I realize … this is his house.

And his house is fucking beautiful.