“Mr. Howard, do you care for Ms. Medford?” the judge asked.
“Of course, I do,” he said.
He did? That was so sweet. “You do?” Marlee asked. “Really?”
The glance he tossed her way had a touch of the look drunken Eli had melted her with on their wedding night.
“Yeah, Mar. I think we covered that on our wedding night.” He caught himself when the words left his mouth.
Marlee shifted her gaze to the judge. “He just means—”
“I know what he means, Ms. Medford.” McJudgey pursed her mouth into a very unflattering line. “Mr. Howard, are you and Ms. Medford both over the age of eighteen?”
“Yes.” He was fisting his hands so hard his knuckles were turning white.
“And you’re not related by blood?” the judge asked.
“No, Your Honor.” The hives were creeping up to his jawline. He’d probably need one of Marlee’s emergency Benadryl soon.
“Ms. Medford, do you concur with Mr. Howard’s statements?” McJudgey asked.
Marlee squirmed under the direct questioning. What? Oh, right. Not related. And not under eighteen. “Yes…Your Honor.”
“And did you both, at the time of the marriage, understand what was happening?” She glanced between them.
“Yes.” Eli slumped against his chair.
The judge glanced to Marlee. “Ms. Medford?”
“Yes.” Marlee tried to sound confident, but all the Barbizon training in the world hadn’t prepared her for this moment.
“Did anyone force either of you to enter into this union?” McJudgey picked up the pen and started scribbling some notes once more.
“No,” Eli said first.
“No,” Marlee echoed. A dare probably didn’t count as forcing. However, it was worth a try. “Actually…”
“Yes, Ms. Medford?”
“Does a dare count as forcing someone to get married?” The no-cleavage blouse was starting to get really warm.
Eli wasn’t breathing. Marlee reached for her inhaler, but he took a thin breath before she even got the first button of her blouse undone in order to reach for the inhaler tucked in her bra.
“What would the consequence of the dare have been had you not done it?” McJudgey asked, glaring at Eli as though he’d been the one to issue the dare.
“No consequences. My sister and Marlee’s friends dared us. All in good fun.”
“They were my bridal party.” Marlee heard herself say.Shut up. Shut up.Technically, the dare was issued so much earlier in the night that it really didn’t count. “We just wanted the pictures,” Marlee whispered.
“So there were no consequences to this dare?” McJudgey continued with the questioning.
“No, Your Honor,” Eli spoke clearly, not even looking Marlee’s way.
Marlee was wrecking this. No more talking, just yes and no. “No.”
“Neither of you are married to anyone else?”
Close, but, “No,” Marlee answered.
