“That’s too bad.”
“They didn’t have any children, but at least they had a beautiful wedding.”
Will shrugged. “You can have the finest wedding ever, but if you don’t have a good marriage, the wedding won’t count for much except a total waste of time and money.”
Her gaze met his. “That wedding wasn’t a waste. It was a lovely celebration. A day for the bride and groom to remember for the rest of their lives.”
“A wedding and a marriage are two completely different things. One is an event on a given day. The other is alive. It grows and changes and lasts.”
“Only in rare cases does it last.”
“Do you seriously think any couple wants to remember their wedding once they are no longer married?”
“I…” Kelsey had to think. She’d always believed the wedding and the marriage were separate entities, so the memories would be separate, too. It wouldn’t matter if the marriage ended badly. The wedding would still be thought of fondly. And that reminded her. “Yes, my dad is this way. He has fond memories of his and Mom’s wedding. He said everyone had a blast.”
“So he remembers it more as a party and less of a symbolic union as a couple.”
“I suppose.” She motioned to the newspaper. “Can I have this article?”
“Go ahead and take it,” he said, sounding snippy, but then he half laughed. “It’ll be a stellar addition to your divorce book.”
Anger surged. She ripped the page out of the paper. “It’s a scrapbook, not a divorce book.”
“It’s sad, that’s what it is.” He stared at her, an observant gleam in his eyes. “Show business marriages have a higher rate of divorce than other marriages. Bet that validates your unhappily-ever-after belief. Is that why you became the Wedding Consultant to the Stars?”
Her temperature spiked. He’d struck a nerve because they seemed to get along well except for their views on marriage. “I had contacts in the entertainment industry. It just happened.”
“You allowed it to happen. With your reputation and skills, you could work anywhere, with anyone. Yet you stay in Tinseltown, catering to divorce-happy celebrities. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
He was ridiculous. She huffed. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yes, I do.”
She wanted to respond to the challenge in his voice, but her tongue felt thick in her mouth. Her brain wouldn’t function. His words were spinning around in her brain. She couldn’t tell her right hand from her left. Nothing made sense. Nothing at all. He was wrong. He had to be wrong. If not…
He was wrong.
Kelsey straightened. “Divorce is a fact of life whether you’re in Hollywood or Hoboken. The latest statistics show—”
“Marriage isn’t about statistics.”
Will sat next to her, plunging her senses even further into chaos while he seemed totally level-headed. He’d showered and smelled amazing. Wait. She was upset with him.
“It’s about a man and a woman who want to spend the rest of their lives going to bed and waking up next to one another,” he continued.
“Waking up next to the same person every single day of your life?” She shuddered. “Now that’s a scary thought.”
“Marriage is beyond scary. It’s about a love so all-consuming you can’t see beyond it. You don’t want to see beyond it.”
Maybe in his world, not in hers. Love meant misery and pain. All the things she’d seen her parents go through time and time again. Kelsey shrugged, even though the last thing she felt was indifference. “I can’t imagine feeling that way about anyone.”
“That’s only because you haven’t met the right person. Once you do, everything falls into place like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. You feel complete. It’s like magic.”
She’d never felt anything remotely like that. An empty space in her heart ached.
“Look, I’m not trying to upset you, Kelsey. I don’t want to argue or goad you, either. But you push my buttons like no one else and…” He blew out a puff of air. “I only want to show you what you’re missing out on. What you can’t afford to miss out on. Love. It’s a wonderful thing.”
She realized how lucky Sara was to have found a man like Will, even if they hadn’t had long together. Will Addison was one in a million. Kelsey’s chest tightened.
