a glance at the ring on my hand. “But I want to do this.” Because it was him. And somehow, I felt more comfortable with this stranger than with the three women I’d spend the last several days with.
“I want to, too.” I don’t know why that surprised me so much. After all, he’d agreed to do this. But hearing him admit to it without the pressures of any outside forces—ahem, Katy—settled me for the first time since we’d arrived at this little venue.
“Who’s the bride and groom?” a tired-looking woman asked as she exited double doors.
“It’s us,” I said, my stomach full of flutters.
“This is a commitment ceremony, right?” she asked, staring down at a clipboard. “You chose the Protestant vows, modified slightly. Right?”
Liam nodded. “I hope that’s okay,” he said to me.
“Sounds good.” I gave him the first real smile I felt. With Liam holding my hand, this wasn’t nearly as scary as I’d built it up to be.
“It says you don’t need us to provide a professional witness?"
There was a rustle from behind us as Katy, Bekka, and Lauren moved to stand. “That’s us,” Lauren said.
The woman peered over the group of them and looked bored out of her mind. “We only need one.”
“Me,” Bekka and Katy said at the same time.
“Bekka,” I said with finality, knowing Katy would simmer with rage.
“No photos,” the lady said. When Katy started to protest, the woman lifted her head like a parent getting ready to pin an argumentative child with one chilling look and repeated, “No photos. After the ceremony, we’ll have some photos with the photographer.” She glanced down at her clipboard. “I’ll have the bride follow me and the minister will be out in a moment to go over the details with the groom.” She eyed us both over her glasses. “Ready?”
Looking at Liam one last time, I said, “I’m ready,” before separating.
“Not even real champagne,” Katy said from the room I was supposed to get ready in, which was adjacent to the conservatory we’d be married in. She sniffed the glass of sparkling juice and curled her lip.
“Maybe they don’t have an alcohol license,” Bekka said, fluffing the small bouquet that had been provided for me: six white roses, bound in twine and encircled with baby’s breath.
I looked around the room, taking in the lighted white marble vanity and the pretty black and white floral wallpapered room. It was something out of an old movie, maybe, but it didn’t look old at all. As my first impression of a Las Vegas chapel, this one was better than expected. Though, I supposed Liam must have known that when he’d booked our reservation. The roses were a nice touch, an upgrade he’d purchased. Was I about to fake marry a romantic?
Taking in my gold dress in the mirror, I was embarrassingly aware of just how amateur we must have seemed, considering that I wasn’t even in traditional wedding garb. So, the small touches meant a great deal to me. I wondered what this kind of thing had set him back. I’d promised I would pay, but he’d taken care of it when he’d booked the reservation, apparently.
“Let’s get a picture of you, holding this,” Bekka said, pushing the bouquet into my hands and picking up her phone. “Since we can’t take any photos during the ceremony, let’s get one in here at least.”
I stood in front of the pretty wallpaper, holding the white roses between my hands and smiled for the photo.
Turning, I faced the mirror above the vanity and took in my reflection. My hair was smooth and out of my face, my makeup looked pretty decent considering the rush I’d been in when I’d touched it up. I leaned forward to reapply my lipstick and paused as I stared at my reflection. My stomach clenched, and I wished for nothing more than to get the hell out of this room and reunite with Liam. He had this power to unsettle me, of catching me off guard. But he also possessed the ability to calm me when my nerves tried to get the best of me. Dangerous combination. I’d need to be careful around him—depending on where things went between us after all of this.
“Oh, that’s a good one,” Bekka said breathlessly, causing me to turn. She held her phone up in front of her face and the flash went off. “I wanted a few candids, too. I feel bad that you aren’t getting the real wedding experience