in smoke. She couldn’t walk away from this man, even if she wanted to. And she desperately didn’t want to. She’d deal with the fallout when she was forced to, and not a moment sooner. She pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Shall we?”
“Definitely. I’m not giving you a chance to get cold feet.” He took her hand as she slid out of the car and shut the door behind her. “The judge already signed the paperwork, so we’re good to go.”
They walked into the courthouse. Callie had been here a few times over the years, but it felt different now. She would be walking out the doors as a married woman. Trying to wrap her head around that fact just gave her a headache. So she didn’t think about it. There were far too many things she tried not to think about these days.
She occupied herself with filling out the paperwork, and then they were being ushered back to say their vows. The dim little room wasn’t anything like she imagined their families had wanted for them. There was no bouquet, no family, no elegant white dress. She wouldn’t dance with her new husband, staring up into his eyes and feeling her heart full nearly to bursting with love. It was strangely fitting.
Teague repeated his vows after the minister, his gaze never leaving hers. His thumb stroked soothing circles on her knuckles, as if he knew exactly where her mind had gone. He finished with, “Till death do us part.”
Now it was her turn. She spoke her vows through numb lips, unable to summon even the smallest reassuring smile for him. Marrying Teague was what she wanted, but the fear that worked its insidious way through her threatened to send her to her knees. He will never forgive me. Her last words came out as barely more than a rasp.
The minister moved on, his voice so monotone, he could have been reading from a phonebook. He did manage a smile as he pronounced them husband and wife, but it was a cynical one. He patted them on the shoulders. “Good luck.”
Callie blinked. That was…uplifting.
She let Teague tug her over to where Micah and Emma stood in the first row. Emma’s eyes were shining, but her son didn’t look any happier now than he had been when Callie first asked him to stand as one of the witnesses. He shook Teague’s hand, but his attention was solely on her. “Your father isn’t going to be happy.”
“I know.” But, as much as she didn’t want to hurt Papa, she refused to let anything stand in the way of their doing this today. Her father most certainly would have objected. She turned to Emma and took her hands. “Thank you for being here.”
“I can’t believe it. I knew you were all grown up but…” She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “Your mama would be proud of you, and your papa will be fine.”
Words tried to stick in her throat. She doubted her mother would be proud of any of the things she’d done, but marrying a man she cared about in the courthouse instead of having a fully Catholic wedding was the least of her sins. “Thank you, Emma.”
Teague’s arm settled around her waist. “We should go.”
She nodded. “Micah, we’re going to Teague’s apartment.” He’d proven his loyalty to her time and time again. She wasn’t going to compromise it further by running off with her new husband and making Micah search for her.
He nodded once and then stood with his mother and watched them walk out of the room. She was half-sure she felt his gaze on the back of her neck even after the door closed between them, but it was most definitely her guilt talking. They made their way through the building and out into the light. She couldn’t breathe any better out here, despite the fact that there were no walls to close in around her. She pressed a hand to her chest.
Oh God, what have I done?
“Angel?”
She looked up, the tired happiness on his face grounding her further. This was why she’d agreed to marry him—she’d never met a man who made her feel so incredibly safe and wanted and cared for. No matter how twisted up inside she felt, she wasn’t simply going through the motions for the sake of their respective families. She wanted Teague as her husband. She just flat-out wanted him.