He kisses me on the top of my head, then stares into the screen. "Today, I am the happiest man in the world. Today, the woman who means everything to me is finally mine." He turns to me. "I love you, Isla. I promise to honor and cherish and protect you. I promise to be there for you always. You’re my true north…and my south and east and west." He peers into my eyes. "You’re who makes my life worth living. The first face I want to see when I wake up in the morning. The last before I fall asleep at night. You make me so happy just by being yourself."
My heart flutters in my chest like I’ve been subjected to an electric shock. My stomach feels so light; my chest, arms and legs, every part of me seems to have come unmoored. I’m rising, flowing up in the air. I’d float away, if not for his firm grip anchoring me to him, to us.
"I didn’t even realize what I was missing until you came along. I was half a life, half a man, half a soul, and then I found you. And now?" He leans in closer until I can make out the individual strands of his ridiculously long eyelashes. "I can’t wait to make memories with you, to hold you and love you as only I can, for the rest of our lives. I’ll always love you, Isla, no matter what." He searches my features, and somehow, it feels like he’s communicating something else to me. But what? What is he trying to say?
"Always and forever. I promise you, Isla."
I open my mouth to reply, but he closes his lips over mine. He must stop filming at some point, for he wraps his other arm around my waist and lifts me straight off the ground. He keeps kissing me, keeping me suspended in the air, and now I’m really flying. Soaring up, up and away. My head spins, and my heart feels so full, surely, it’s going to burst out of my chest any moment. Still kissing, he lowers me slowly to the ground, making sure every part of me connects with every inch of him. Making sure I feel the thick rod between his legs outlined against his crotch. When my feet touch the ground, and he’s ensured I’m steady, he finally releases me. I’m flushed and panting, and so is he. My heartbeat seems to have reached warp speed, the way it’s banging into my chest. But so is his. I feel it, sense every vibration that pulses through his veins like it’s my own.
Dimly, I hear claps, whistles, and hoots from behind us. Guess our friends and family watched us filming. Guess that’s what made him kiss me with such intensity. It must have looked good on camera. It’s perfect, really. So off-the-cuff that even the most cynical of paparazzi would have to admit it was unrehearsed. Which it was. I think. He didn’t mean what he said. He couldn’t have. He hasn’t known me long enough. In fact, he doesn’t know me at all. And when I share my secret with him, he’ll take his words back. He has to. I pull away from him and am about to step onto the sand when he scoops me up in his arms.
"Hey," I gasp, "what are you doing?"
"So many questions, wife. Don’t want you spoiling your stilettos in the sand. Also, can’t you simply accept the fact that I want to take care of you?"
Wife? He called me wife?I am his wife, but hearing him say it… sends a thrill of something complicated through my veins.
"And since when do you want to take care of me?" I mumble.
"Since we have our friends and family watching us closely to see what we’re going to do next."
I glance over his shoulder, and sure enough, most of the crowd is still focused on us. All except Zara and Hunter, who are glaring at each other. Even across the distance, the animosity between them is potent.
"Those two need to talk out whatever it is that they don’t like about each other. I know they don’t see eye to eye, but they take loathing to an all new level."
"Or maybe they should fuck it out," he offers, knowing exactly who I’m talking about. We’ve been on the same wavelength that way from day one. Only we used that synchronicity to hate each other, and now… Now, I’m not sure what it is we feel toward each other.
"I can’t believe you just said that." I scowl at him.
"You mean, you haven’t noticed how they can’t keep their gazes off of each other when they’re in the same space?"
"I did… but sex is not the answer to everything."
His lips twist, "In my experience, there are very few things sex can’t resolve.”
"Spoken like a man.” I roll my eyes. “If they sleep together, it’s only going to hurt her.”
"If anything, it’s Hunter who’s likely to be decimated." He scoffs.
"Now, who’s completely missing the big picture?" I wrap my arm about his neck and raise my chin. "Zara has a soft heart. She’s the most generous, most empathetic person I know. It’s why she puts on such a ball-busting front. That, and the fact that she’s built a career in a role where she needs to be strong."
"As does Hunter. He’s going to be running for Prime Minister."
"Being in the public eye is not easy. It’s probably best they hate each other.” I raise a shoulder. “If feelings ran the other way, the tabloids would have a field day. In fact, that’s what I thought they’d with our announcement, but luckily, they seem to have backed off."
"Luckily," he agrees.
Something in his tone makes me glance at his face. "You wouldn’t happen to know why that happened? I mean, they should be blowing up my social media feed after that last post, but instead, things seem to have settled down."
"Maybe we’re not as newsworthy as you think we are," he offers.
"Funny, that’s what Zara seems to think, too."
"Well, you should listen to Zara. She has lots of experience in media-related situations, after all."
"Hmm…" I purse my lips. "Or maybe they’re waiting for the announcement of our marriage before things get out of hand."
He heads toward the jetty. That’s when I spot the plane. It’s not the one we came in because this one has propellers and skis. It bobs gently on the waves. I blink.