“Congratulations on the shotgun wedding!”
“Thank you. We’ve been stunned by how positive the response has been.”
“How do your families feel about the surprise nuptials? Is Hale upset that your families weren’t there to witness your loving union?”
“My parents understand that life doesn’t always wait for perfect timing.” Aksel pauses, drawing a steady breath beforecontinuing. “They’ve known I wanted Hale from the moment I met him, so they’re comfortable with how everything happened.”
“And Hale’s family?”
Aksel’s jaw tightens almost imperceptibly. “Hale isn’t in contact with his family, so I can’t speak for them. But I hope they’re happy knowing their son found someone who loves him unconditionally.”
“Thatsounds…complicated.Wouldyouliketoexpand on why Hale isn’t in contact with his family?”
“No.”
Chapter Seven
Hale
Inside the little coffee shop, one that feels like it belongs in a sleepy Connecticut town instead of Las Vegas, we sit at a bistro-style table, nursing our coffees. Eric demolishes a tray of assorted donuts in the center of the table, while my stomach rebels at the mere thought of sugar.
The silence is palpable, heavy and oppressive. Seriously. You could hear a whisper from across the café with howquiet we’re being. I can’t figure out where to start. How did we go from seeing each other for the first time in forever, to a strip club, tomarried? I need a visual timeline.
Which reminds me.
“Yousaidtherearevideosandphotosfromlast night?”
Eric promptly chokes on his chocolate donut with the rainbow sprinkles, laughing hard enough to draw stares from the workers behind the counter. He shows absolutely zero sympathy for my amnesia-filled misery. “Oh,hellyeah, therearevideos.I’vegotoneofyouproposingatthestrip club, one of all of us outside the Forever a King Chapel singing Katy Perry at the top of our lungs, and one of you two kissing as husbands for the first time.” He sighs dreamily and wipes a very fake tear from his chubby cheek. “It wassoromantic.”
My head is spinning. We actually fucking did it. We got married. A small, irrational part of me had been clinging to the hope that this was all an elaborate prank, but the way they’re both looking at me tells me otherwise. This is real. And apparently, there’s video evidence to prove it.
Wait.
“You said I proposed?”
Eric nods enthusiastically. When I look at Aksel, he just nods too and takes another calm sip of his coffee, like waking up married in Vegas is part of his regular morning routine.
“That doesn’t sound like me,” I murmur, my voice thin. “Why did you say yes? I was obviously too drunk to understand the long-term consequences of what I was doing.”
My chest tightens as the thoughts pile on top of each other, fast and sharp. I can’t stop them. My breathing picks up, shallow and uneven, and I’m suddenly teetering on the edge of a full-blown hissy fit.
I’m pissed.
At Aksel.
At myself.
At this entire absurd situation.
I glare at him, heat prickling under my skin.
But underneath the anger, there’s an uncomfortable truth I don’t want to look at. This isn’t entirely his fault. It takes two to tango and all that bullshit. We’re both adults. He could’ve said no when I proposed, but I also could’ve not proposed in the first place.
For the first time today, Aksel looks genuinely angry. His nostrils flare, his brows drawn low over his eyes, the teal darkening until it’s almost black with his rising ire. When he finally speaks, his alpha bark is loud enough to snap me upright in my chair.
“News flash, Hale, I was just as out of it as you were,” he snaps. “The only reason I’m not losing my mind right now is because I’ve already seen the photos and videos. I’ve had a little more time to wrap my head around this.”
He exhales sharply, dragging a hand through his hair before continuing, his voice tight but controlled.
