A huge grin lit his face. “Now look who’s getting corny.”
“What can I say?” I grasped the dark hairs that curled against his neck. “We bring out the cheesiness in each other.”
“And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
I let Trace lead me into the courthouse and through security. My heart was racing and my hands shook. I was nervous, but not because I was unsure of Trace. I was excited too. And scared. Yeah, definitely scared. Marriage was a big commitment, and while I was ready to be married to him, it still frightened me. So many marriages these days ended in divorce, and I didn’t want to be another statistic. But I knew in my heart and soul that what Trace and I had was special. We were the exception to the rule and I was incredibly lucky to have found him. All it took was one flat tire to completely change the course of my life. It’s quite amazing how life works like that.
Trace was speaking with the security guard, asking for directions, but I was completely zoned out.
In a matter of minutes, Olivia Owens would cease to exist and Olivia Wentworth would take her place.
“Thank you,” Trace said to the guard as he headed for a set of stairs.
I hurried behind him—actually, he kind of dragged me since he held my hand and both of us were smiling goofily. This was it.
He turned right, heading a short ways down a hallway. He stopped in front of a set of double wooden doors, blowing out a breath between his lips. He put his hand on the knob but didn’t turn it.
“Ready?” He looked down at me with happy green eyes.
“Do you even need to ask?” I responded.
With a grin, he pushed the door open and we stepped inside.
There were wooden benches set up and I was surprised to see several couples scattered around. Some had friends and family with them, but most were like us and had no one.
Trace sat on one of the benches and pulled me down beside him. The Justice of Peace finished performing the ceremony for one couple and they quickly left the room with huge smiles in their faces.
He called another couple up and my heart raced even faster. I counted three more couples ahead of us.
“Your hand is sweating,” Trace whispered in my ear.
“Sorry,” I blushed, trying to pull my hand from his but he wouldn’t release it.
“It’s cute. Are you nervous?” He asked.
I nodded. “Aren’t you?”
“Baby, I never get nervous,” he smirked.
“Of course not,” I rolled my eyes, my lips twitching as they threatened to turn up in a smile.
“I don’t want you to be nervous either,” he grazed his thumb over my cheek.
“It’s a good kind of nervous,” I assured him. “I promise.”
He smiled at that and then jumped as if frightened. I looked around thinking something in the room had caused his reaction. It would be my luck that his ex, Aubrey, would show up. Or something as equally ridiculous. But that wasn’t the case. He pulled his vibrating phone out and frowned at the screen. I could see that it was his mom calling. He pressed a button, directing her call straight to voicemail, and turned the phone completely off.
“I’ll call her later,” he whispered.
“Are you going to tell her?”
He nodded, releasing my hand and rubbing his on his jeans, a nervous habit of his. “Yeah. No point in waiting. She’s going to get pissed either way.”
“We can wait,” I placed my hand on his forearm. The muscle was tight from tension.
“No,” he shook his head. “I want to marry you today. I’m sick of putting everyone else’s happiness before mine. This is for us and no one else.”
“Trace—”