because Kelly’s delicate perfume invaded his senses and all he could think about was how that scent on her neck intoxicated him while her arms and legs were wrapped around him last night. A wave of tenderness tightened his chest.
He met her gaze. “Are you ready?”
* * *
THE MOMENT FELT SURREAL. Kelly nodded first then forced the word from her lips. “Yes.”
The smile crossing Evan’s mouth tugged at her heart. He seemed so calm. So sure that they were doing the right thing. She wished she could have his confidence. Instead fear nipped at her insides. Until she remembered Michael’s admonishing words. Evan is the perfect weapon...
Weapon, indeed. He looked so unbelievably handsome right now in his dark suit, his black hair brushing his collar, those lips—oh, Lord, she could still feel them trailing down her neck. She thought she’d melt if he kept watching her as if she was the only person on earth. The attorney cleared his throat as if waiting for them to stop staring at each other.
When she looked away, Evan turned his attention to Quince, as well.
He began.
“Evan Thomas McKenna, do you take Kelly Ann Sullivan to be your wife?”
Evan’s smile was devilish. “I do.”
“Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect her, forsaking all others and holding only unto her?”
He nodded once as if the seriousness of the moment settled in his mind. “I do.”
The minister turned to Kelly. “Kelly Ann Sullivan, do you take Evan Thomas McKenna to be your husband?”
Kelly released a breath. With the way Evan was watching her, if nothing else in the world mattered, she would not hesitate to reply. “I do.”
“Do you promise to love, honor, cherish and protect him, forsaking all others and holding only unto him?”
Oh, Lord, was she lying? “I do.”
Quince addressed Evan. “Do you have the rings?”
He pulled them from his pocket. He gave Kelly an apologetic look. “I had no time to engrave them. I was thinking we could get to that task when we are clear on what we’d like to say.”
Behind her, Michael cleared his throat.
She gazed at the circlets of gold in his palm. He’d gotten rings. She hadn’t even thought of them. Now he was concerned because they hadn’t been engraved. She wanted to reach up and press away the crease forming between his eyebrows. This simple gesture, holding rings in his open palm, weakened her knees. He cupped her hand when he handed her the one he’d chosen for himself as if depositing a precious talisman in her care. Was the man a hopeless romantic?
“They are beautiful, Evan. Just as they are.”
His smile reflected relief.
She wanted to kiss him.
Quince continued. “Evan, repeat after me. ‘I, Evan Thomas McKenna...’”
Evan didn’t wait for Quince to lead him. He took Kelly’s hand in his. Placing the ring at the top of her finger, he began, “I, Evan Thomas McKenna, take you Kelly Ann Sullivan, to be my wife. To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer. I promise my love to you all the days of my life. With this ring, I thee wed.”
He slid the ring onto her finger with the utmost care. When it fit, he breathed a sigh of relief. He lifted her fingers and kissed the ring.
The slip of gold along her skin made Kelly light-headed. She watched his bent head as he kissed the ring and decided Evan was either a consummate actor or he meant every word he said. While the delicate band felt light as a feather and cool on her finger, she felt like she’d just accepted the weight of the world.
Quince was watching her. He sensed her trepidation because gentleness filled his gaze. “Repeat after me, Kelly...”
She gave him a grateful glance. “Wait, let me see if I can do this. You correct me if I make a mistake.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
Her heart thudding in her chest, she reached for Evan’s left hand. The heat of his palm in hers had the same effect it did last night. Electricity. She inhaled a deep breath and placed the ring on his finger, just above the first knuckle.
Staring at the gleaming gold band, she said, “I, Kelly Ann Sullivan, take you, Evan Thomas McKenna to be my husband.” That damned lump started rising in her throat. She swallowed hard. If she was going to get through this she needed Evan’s help. She raised her gaze, letting the intensity in his sky-blue eyes pull her in like a magnet.