“But we were so drunk, we don’t even remember last night,” Sierra says.
“Maybe by the end of the night, but when you came here, you didn’t seem to be intoxicated. I mean don’t get me wrong, it was obvious you’d both had a drink, but you weren’t falling around all over or slurring your words. And I didn’t get the impression you two had just met. In fact, I know you hadn’t because you told me as much. Two years is it?”
“We’ve known each for two years, yes,” I say. “But we weren’t in a relationship or anything.”
“I know.” Jane smiled. “You told me all about it. How you had worked together for two years and it took coming out to Vegas for business for you to see that you had real chemistry and that your relationship was so much more than just colleagues.”
“That sounds kind of like drunken nonsense,” Sierra says.
“It did to me at first too,” Jane admits. “Until you told me the rest.”
“The rest?” I prompt.
“Yes. How you threw yourself into work because you didn’t think you’d ever find the one, and that she was right there in front of you all along, but by the time you realized you had feelings for her, you’d been working together so long, it would have made things awkward if you told her, in case she didn’t feel the same. You really don’t remember any of this?”
I shake my head. For once, it’s me that’s blushing rather than Sierra.
“You told me how your brother is getting married. You’re here for his Bachelor party right? And how you thought it was stupid until you and Sierra talked and you said now you get it, but that you didn’t want all of the fuss that came with Sebastian’s wedding. You just wanted a quiet ceremony where you could celebrate your love for each other without having all of the frills.”
Sierra looks at me out of the corner of her eye, looking surprised. She can’t possibly be as surprised as I am by all of this.
“That doesn’t sound like me at all,” I say.
Jane shrugs. “Ultimately, it wasn’t your words that convinced me you were for real. It was the way you were together. Looking at you two, all I could see was a deliriously happy couple, who had realized they were deeply in love and didn’t want to waste another minute not being together. The way you looked at each other, the way you couldn’t keep your hands off her.”
Sierra smirks at me. “He couldn’t keep his hands off me?” she says.
“Not even for a second. He touched your arm the whole time we were talking, and he kept stopping to kiss you.” Jane smiles. “Honestly, I was starting to think he was going to walk down the aisle with you because he didn’t seem to be able to bear the idea of not being by your side, even for those few minutes.”
“Are you getting all of this Chance?” Sierra asks, giving me an innocent smile that is anything but innocent.
I can see the light dancing in her eyes. She’s really enjoying the way Jane’s words are making me squirm. I mean I know Jane has no reason to lie to us, but I can’t imagine myself saying those words, or going on the way she is describing. It sounds like she’s talking about someone else. The kind of someone else who would have me rolling my eyes and declaring them an idiot. “Loud and clear,” I reply through gritted teeth.
Sierra just beams at me.
I turn my focus back to Jane. “So the thing is, the whole marriage thing was a mistake. And we need to get the marriage annulled. I know you seem to think we were all loved up and shit, but the truth is, we were just drunk.”
“Maybe you should get him drunk again,” Jane says to Sierra. “He was so much nicer than this last night.”
Sierra giggles but then she turns serious. “Look we obviously had a good night and we were clearly in high spirits. But Chance is right. The wedding was a mistake and we really do want to get this whole thing sorted out.”
“Okay,” Jane says. She opens her top drawer and pulls out an envelope which she slides across her desk. “All of your certificates and things are in there. You’ll need a notary and—”
“I have one arranged,” Sierra cuts in. “But we need a witness who can testify to the fact that I was intoxicated. Who witnessed our wedding?”
Please not Matt. Please not Matt.
“You two came here alone,” Jane says.
Thank God for that. At least one thing is going our way.
“I told you that you’d need two witnesses. Chance, you went out into the street and convinced a couple walking past to come in and act as your witnesses. Their contact details are on your paperwork.”
“Thank you,” Sierra says. She stands up.
I do the same and I nod my thanks to Jane.
“You know, it really is a shame to see you two ending your marriage. I honestly had you two pegged to be lifers,” she says.
Why the hell do people keep saying that?
“You’re actually the second person who has said that to us today,” Sierra says.
Jane gives a soft laugh. “Sometimes, it takes outsiders to see what you can’t see yourselves,” she tells us.
I really wish people would stop confusing this matter. We made a mistake, we’re fixing it. That’s all there is to it. And the people who keep telling us we’re in love or whatever, don’t know us. They can’t know more about us than we do. Can they?
I hate the uncertainty they’re causing me to feel. I know how I feel about Sierra. She’s a great assistant, amazing at her job. She’s polite and kind. And apparently, she’s funny, which granted, I didn’t know until today. But that’s it. She’s not my soul mate. She’s not my destiny or any of that shit. And
