bonus chapter 1 - our marriage

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

Grayson:

"I can't believe we're going to Italy!"

Four hours into our flight to the country of her dreams, Talia still can't sit still out of pure excitement for our trip. She stares out of the plane window with wide eyes as if she is imagining she is already there. Her smile illuminates her face in the dim lighting of the plane's cabin when she looks at me.

"That's your fifth time saying that tonight," I say. I pick up her hand to hold.

Her smile softens. "I know, I just can't help it." She stares back out the window. "And you got the tickets to everything, right? The museums, the show, and the train ones? I don't want to forget anything, because that would be awful, and—"

"I took care of everything, daisy, don't worry," I reassure her. I wrap my arm around her and brush my thumb against the back of her hand. Her shoulders, which I didn't realize were so tense, relax. She leans into me. Usually I'm the tense one, but I guess we've switched for today.

Two months ago, I graduated from Duke after being drafted into the NBA for the New York Knicks. I had been working deals with the New York teams ever since Talia began her apprenticeship at one of the tattoo shops there.

The decision to go pro after college was an easy one. After my dad passed, I honestly thought basketball wouldn't be the same. I was right. Basketball never returned to its normalcy, but I embraced the connection to the sport that seemed to grow. Talia has helped a lot. Sometimes after a good win for the team, I find myself drawing into a mental space that wished my dad was there to watch me play. She talks me through my feelings and doesn't give up until a genuine smile forms on my face.

From signing my agreement with the team, I was given a hefty amount of money, which I divided to begin our lives together with.

One of the expenses went into renting our apartment together, which was the best decision we ever made. I wake up every day with her next to me, get ready with her at our double sinks in the bathroom—plus take showers together if I'm lucky—, and I get to eat meals with her. Talia shows me pictures of the tattoos she designs and talks to me endlessly, and every time she does that, I feel like I should be waking up from a dream.

With my new income, I also secretly planned this trip for us. It had three purposes.

One: to help Talia live out her dreams of visiting historical and Renaissance locations in Italy.

Two: to make memories together that we could always hold onto.

And three: to propose to the love of my life.

Twenty-two might be a little young to get married, but I don't give a single shit. As I bought the ring two weeks ago, the only thing I could think about was setting this new bond by making her my wife. The ring has an oval-cut emerald instead of a diamond, because I just couldn't resist the color green. It's simple in style with a small diamonds adorning the sides and a gold band. When I saw it, I couldn't stop imagining her wearing the ring and referring to me as her fiancé. Those thoughts alone made my heart pick up its pace.

I have the whole proposal planned out already; but moments like these, where I have her close to me and completely happy, I think about throwing them away. For the first time in my life, I'm impatient. Now is the word that keeps ringing in my head, threatening to eliminate the perfect moment I have written in my calendar.

"You're still okay with me dragging you around the museums?" Talia asks.

I smile, even though she can't see it from the way she's snuggled into me. I kiss her forehead. "I'm always okay with it. Now go to sleep. We have seven more hours of the flight."

"Mhm," she mumbles sleepily.

My girl adjusts her head on my shoulder and cuddles with my outstretched arm. As I lean my head on hers, all I can feel is happiness.

***

"Hurry up, we have to get there before the crowds roll in," Talia complains, dragging me by the arm towards the Trevi Fountain.

It's day three of our trip, and Talia hasn't shown an ounce of tiredness while here. We spent the first two nights in Florence so she could find every piece of Renaissance history. I found my happiness in watching her face react to everything with such wonder. We took a midnight train to Rome and arrived an hour ago, right as the sun rose.

From the advice I read from other travelers, I heard that in order to get a good view of the Trevi Fountain, we needed to get there as soon as the sun came up. It's now thirty minutes past sunrise, and Talia can not handle the idea of being in a crowd with the landmark.

We enter the courtyard with the fountain and she stands still. She looks up at me with a finger pointed to the marble structure and an open mouth. She's beautiful.

Only one other group is near the fountain, so we stroll right up to the front without having the shove our way through. I hold her hand the whole way. Once there, I fish through my pocket for the two five cents Euro coins I placed there this morning.

"Here," I say, holding out one of them to her.

She gladly accepts the copper coin with a smile. For the millionth time on this trip, I think about going on one knee for her. It's so tempting when she looks at me like that. Less than twelve hours, I repeat to myself, then you can finally take out the little black box.

We turn our backs to the fountain, my right hand in her left. She stares at me. "What are you going to wish for?"

"I thought wishes aren't meant to be shared," I say, arching an eyebrow.

She gives me her meanest glare. "Whatever."

I smile and lean down to kiss her lips slowly. Once I separate myself, I say, "I wish for us to have a long and happy life together."

"I wish for the same." A blush finds its way to her cheeks as I move back to my full height. Honestly, there's a blush across my own face.

"Okay, ready?" I hold up the coin, preparing to toss it into the fountain to seal the wish.

She nods. "Another kiss for good luck?"

I laugh as I bend back down to press my lips to hers. Then, we close our eyes and toss the coin behind our backs, hearing the sound of a faint splash a moment later. I pray to whatever fountain god there is that our wishes come true.

***

"I think this might be better than the ice cream at home," I say to Talia after another spoonful.

We sit on a patio overlooking the city, eating our post-lunch desserts and enjoying the atmosphere. Talia's sunglasses rest on top of her head and she watches everything around her as if it's the most interesting thing in the world. I sit across from her on a metal bench observing her, knowing she is the most interesting person in my world.

She laughs. My heart warms. "It's gelato, not ice cream, Grayson."

"Seems like the same thing." I lift another spoon of my almond flavored gelato to my mouth and enjoy it, not caring about the dessert's change of name.

Talia lifts her own treat to her mouth, which is in a cone. I watch as she licks the side of the cone where melted gelato drips, my mind straying elsewhere. Specifically, last night, when her tongue was licking something else that was dripping down my—

"Stop that," she interrupts, scolding me.

I raise my eyebrows. "Stop what?" I ask innocently.

She rolls her eyes, so I bump my knee into hers under the table. "I know what you're thinking of, so stop."

"I don't know what you're referring to." I lean back in my seat and do a once-over of her body with my eyes. Actually, it's a twice-over, because I can't get over how beautiful she looks in this setting. "Can you tell me what you think I'm thinking of?"

The redness that spreads across her face tells me she's thinking of it, too. "I'm not saying anything."

I hum in amusement, but my emotion does not last long. Talia smirks and licks her gelato again, going painfully slow as she never strays her eyes from mine. She drags her tongue across her lips to have the residue that smeared there. I'm so distracted, I nearly drop my cup of gelato. My recovery is not subtle.

"Is something distracting you?" Talia questions, her face contorting to express fake concern.

I put my cup on the table separating us and lean forward. She innocently licks her gelato again and slightly leans forward herself. My male brain goes into overdrive seeing the way her breasts are in perfect view in that dark blue dress of hers.

"You're playing a dangerous game, baby," I say, only watching the way her lips and tongue move.

She smiles. "I don't know what you're referring to." Talia throws my past words straight into my face. "I'm only eating my gelato, baby."

"Fine," I state. "If that's how it is."

Finding it better to play along with whatever it is we're doing, I reach my fingers up to the top button of my grey dress-shirt. I unbutton it, allowing a part of my chest to peak out for her viewing. She watches while she eats her dessert in an equally torturous way. I undo the button at the end of my sleeve and roll it up to just below my elbow, repeating that with my other arm. Then, I lean back into my chair in a casual position to observe her, resting my right arm across the back of the bench.

The slight breeze ruffles through her hair as she stares at me with her green eyes. We just stare at each other, waiting for the other's next move.

Talia is the first to move her pawn. She stands up and decides on sitting next to me where my arm rests behind her. Her tongue licks another drop of gelato from her cone before holding the treat up to me.

"You said you wanted to try the pistachio gelato," she says in a soft voice. I wonder how quick a cab ride to the hotel would be. "Do you want some of mine?"

I nod my head, finding myself in a position where I would say yes to whatever question she might ask. She lifts the gelato to my mouth and I take a sample from the spot her lips already touched. The pistachio gelato is good, but the way she's looking at me brings much more enjoyment.

I decide on kissing her. The sweetness of the dessert can be tasted from her lips, and all I want is more and more. Perfect. How can someone be this perfect?

"I love you," I say against her lips.

She relaxes her weight into me, smiling. "And I love you."

***

"Come on, Talia."

At 4:40 in the afternoon, I'm now the one dragging her to the next location: the Sistine Chapel.

"Why are we going right now?" She questions. "It closes at five."

That's true. But it's also so close to closing, that there will be little to no people inside. Which means, my proposal to her will be much more intimate. "Then let's hurry up."

She doesn't say anything else and allows me to lead her inside. I already mapped out the route to where The Creation of Adam painting is, so all I need to do is guide her the spot. I called the offices of the Sistine Chapel, just to make sure it would be all right to stay a few minutes past closing. I anticipated Talia becoming distracted by the other artwork along the way. Tomorrow I will take her here for a second time, but right now, there is only one real reason why we are here. She just doesn't know it yet.

After stopping a few times, we reach our destination, and I'm thankful that it is basically empty.

Talia gasps. "Oh, my God, it's gorgeous," she exclaims. Her head tilts up and she walks in tight circles as she admires the paintings on the ceiling.

This is it. I never imagined my heart would be beating this loud, or my palms would be this clammy, or there would be a ringing in my ear; but here I am, experiencing all of those things. I hear a small giggle from Talia with her back turned towards me, and I know this is what I have been waiting for.

The small box is an even heavier weight in my hand, I realize, as I sink to one knee behind her. I open the box and face the inside to her. My face is neutral and my mind is overridden with fears of what will happen next.

Me and her, for the rest of our lives. She just needs to say yes.

Finally, when my nerves are at their peak, she turns around. At first, her line of eyesight is placed above mine, expecting to see me standing. As her eyes meet mine and she notices my stance, her body freezes in place. Her hand reaches up to her heart, as if she's holding onto it, and smiles.

"Yes!" Talia exclaims.

Any feeling of nervousness escapes me. I smile at her. "I didn't even ask yet."

She releases a giggle, and a line of tears form in her eyes. "Don't keep me waiting, Grayson."

"Talia Eloise Chase, will you let me love you forever and marry me?"

"Yes," she whispers. As happy tears fall down her cheeks, I pull her by the hand and perch her on my extended knee. I wipe them off before grasping her left hand, removing the ring from the box, and sliding it onto her finger. She examines it and the tears begin all over again. "It's green."

"I thought I should stay on theme," I whisper into her neck, kissing her everywhere I can reach. She holds onto the side of my face with both hands and kisses my lips with no self control. I'm pretty sure we're both crying.

But who cares about the tears?

We're getting married.

***

Three months later:

"That little shithead is trying to sneak in here," Katie complains after reentering what Quinn likes to call the glam room. "He's trying to get mom to let him in."

Vivian scoffs from her lounging on the coach. "Katie, help me up," she says, reaching her hands out to her sister. Viv is almost half-way pregnant with her second baby, one the doctors claim is a boy, but everyone in the Summers family insists is a girl. "I'm going to beat that idiot up. Come on, Serena. Let's go beat up Uncle Gray-Gray."

"Yay!" Four-year old Serena shouts, the equally dramatic and violent daughter of Vivian. Her tiny flower girl tutu bounces as she skips towards her mom, apparently on their way to bully my fiancé.

"Are you sure you want to marry our little brother?" Sophie asks from behind me. She looks at me through the mirror I'm turned to after she fixes another pin in my hair.

I smile. "I'm pretty sure."

The day is here. After only a few months of planning a small, intimate wedding ceremony, we made it. It seems as if one of us is more anxious than the other considering this is not Grayson's first attempt to see me the day of the wedding. Every single time, he has been shot down by one of his sisters.

Speaking of his sisters, each one of them is one of my bridesmaids, as well as Quinn. Jessica is my maid of honor, because who else would I choose? Now, they all wear sage colored dresses, because, again, what else would I choose?

For Grayson, he couldn't decide between Rowan or Jake for his best man, so he had them be his best men. I was told Jake sobbed like a little baby and Rowan held in his tears. Two basketball teammates from college make up the rest of his wedding party, Nico and Mikey.

"My dear sister!" Jessica shouts, rushing into the room with Quinn on her tail. "It's time to go."

Deep breath in, deep breath out. It's not a big deal. All I have to do is walk down an aisle, recite a few words, then, boom, I'm married. There's no need for my hands to get all sweaty, or for my heart to beat rapidly, or for butterflies to erupt in my stomach.

"Okay," I simply say. "Let's go."

All of the wonderful ladies I have had the honor of meeting usher me out of the glam room and into the cabin's hallway. Our venue consists of a cute little cabin located on a secluded lake. My job is to walk to the back porch, where there will be stairs leading down to our makeshift aisle of grass and flowers—it's more of a meadow than anything. We will be married overlooking the edge of the water, surrounded by our close friends and family.

Of course, the ceremony would not be complete without my bouquet, composed of daisies for the main flower. Daisies also decorate the ends of the chairs. It's wholeheartedly us.

"Look at you," my dad says upon seeing me walk into the back room of the cabin.

My dad has become a new person over the years. He's been having less hours in the office and has been traveling the country with his new friend group—which I tell him is adorable every time I see him. My mother still works the same amount, but she somehow managed to make time for my wedding today. I didn't invite her to be a member of the wedding party, just a guest.

I do a little spin in my white dress, and by the time I turn back around, my dad is nearly crying. My own tears threaten to spill. "Dad, don't make me cry."

"I can't help it, Lia," he says, wiping away a tear. He sucks in a breath. "You grew up too fast. You look beautiful."

I smile and hug him. "Thank you."

The wedding party is already heading down the aisle, and I catch the sight of Rowan and Jake I exchanging a ten dollar bill. My eyes narrow. It's not just one of them making an exchange, it's both of them. Both Jake and Rowan started with a ten dollar bill in their hands, gave theirs to the other, and ended with a new one. Everything about the exchange confuses me as they give me a thumbs up on their way out. Then goes Sophie, Katie, Vivian, and Quinn.

My sister gives me a hug. "I'm so happy for you, Lia."

"I'm happy for me, too," I say with a laugh.

She returns it while wiping away a tear. Why does everyone feel the need to cry on a day like this? We should be celebrating, not crying.

My dad holds out his elbow to lead me off to my marriage, which I accept. A new life begins today.

Upon arriving at the steps of the porch, everyone's head turns to face me. Soft piano music plays when I make the first step down. Everyone rises from their seat. They hardly seem important to me anymore.

There's Grayson. Waiting for me. As always.

My eyes lock into his, and I think that's when my first tear of the day falls. I guess crying is normal for weddings, because Grayson's own tears rim his eyes. Jessica told me if he didn't cry when I walk down the aisle, he's not allowed to marry me. I'm happy he passed her test.

And as the two of us struggle to keep our tears from falling, all I can feel it the love that connects the two of us. The same love that brought us to this moment, with these people, together. Who knows what might happen tomorrow? That's not an issue. Right now, the only thing on my mind is how much I love him.

My dad takes my hand off of his elbow and places it to

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net