The Earl's Outrageous Lover Page 0,50

he’d held her in his arms during that evening of dancing. She’d tried to fight it, but he really was an amazing man. He was her dream man. And where other girls found their dream man and were disappointed, Edward just continued to surprise and impress her. She’d found him fascinating before. Now she was completely and utterly in love with the man, mysteries and all.

She had no idea why Julianna wouldn’t be upset by the wedding, but that was a question for another day. Edward had to nudge her when it was her turn to say “I do,” and fifteen minutes after walking into the office, they turned around and left, husband and wife, forever bound by the laws of the courts.

She knew that he’d kissed her to seal the vows, but she didn’t remember the kiss happening. She knew that the others in the room had offered her congratulations and wished her a happy future with Edward, but she didn’t know what they’d actually said or even who they were. She felt dizzy and confused and scared. Why had she done this? She’d worked hard to be crazy and outrageous since leaving her parents’ house for university, wanting to live her life on her own terms but had she just made the biggest mistake of her life?

She could feel the shivers start but couldn’t do anything to stop them. She and Edward were back out on the street and she could see Tim grinning in the distance as he held the door for her and Edward but she was so terrified of what she’d just done she couldn’t smile back at him.

“Congratulations, my lord,” Tim said and bowed as the two approached.

“Thank you, Tim. I’m not sure Ms. Livingston has really accepted the reality though. Give her time,” he said as he nudged her into the back of the limousine.”

Jessica sat in the back, staring straight ahead, her gorgeous dress floating around her. The vehicle wasn’t as dark as normal, her mind thought. She looked around, forcing her mind to come out of the stupor the ceremony had put it under, trying to make sense of everything. When she focused on her surroundings, her eyes widened and she gasped in delighted surprise! There were roses everywhere! Red roses on every seat except the two she and Edward were occupying. There was even a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket nestled off to the side.

Her lips were numb, her mind barely functioning, but she looked over at Edward and realized that he was just staring out the window himself. He was holding himself stiffly, his fist underneath his jaw as he rested his elbow against the door. The image popped into her mind of the day of his mother’s funeral, the first time she’d seen him and the similarities were painful to view. Was he just as confused and overwhelmed as she was? Her fingers twitched as she attempted to work up the courage to touch him, to comfort him just as she needed to be comforted right now. She wanted his arms around her and she wanted to hear his deep, strong voice tell her that he loved her, or at least that they would be happy and could make this marriage work.

Edward looked out the window feeling like a fool for wanting this day to be special. Jessica was barely going through the motions, so stunned and out of it that she might not realize where she was. He wondered if she even realized that they were married, she’d barely acknowledged the judge and his wife who happily agreed to stand as their witness. Edward had tried to make light of Jessica’s wide eyed gaze throughout the ceremony, but she had barely even blinked when everyone laughed. She just bowed her head as if she’d just been sentenced to the gallows for the rest of her life.

Now, sitting in the back seat and smelling all those roses, she’d barely realized what he’d done. Well, to be fair, he’d instructed Tim to do it but it had still been his idea to fill up the back seat with roses. It had been such an abrupt ceremony and Jessica was an emotional little woman, he’d wanted to do something as outrageous as she was to help her through the day, to show her that they could get through this together.

But he hadn’t realized that she viewed their marriage as a punishment. A lifetime sentence to be dreaded and