Page 15 of Keeping You

She crosses her arms over her chest, and there’s a collective gasp from the girls. Zoey is the first up and rounds the table, grabbing her left hand and inspecting the ring.

“How did you hide this the entire game?” she asks as she continues to tilt Hannah’s hand, looking at the ring.

“It’s easier when you guys aren’t looking for it,” Hannah huffs.

Hannah’s now surrounded by all the girls as they look at it. She narrows her eyes at Bailey. “Why don’t you look surprised?”

Bailey’s eyes flick to Caleb as he takes a sip of his beer. Hannah’s head flips to him immediately.

“I’m not keeping secrets from my fiancée,” he says.

“And who told you?” she asks as she glares back at me.

I put my hands up in a defensive position. “Hey, I didn’t tell him anything. He saw my ring when he picked me up, but I didn’t say who I married.”

“Oh, no, Caleb and I figured that out on our own,” Bailey says. “He told me that Grayson came back from Vegas married and I knew you also went, we put two and two together.”

Thank God, because Hannah’s already pissed at me for outing us, I don’t need her any more mad.

Everyone takes their seats and the questions start.

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Olivia asks, sounding hurt.

Hannah rolls her eyes. “Yeah, I was really looking forward to telling my best friends, ‘Hey, I went to Vegas for work and ended up marrying Grayson, you know the man I barely tolerate.’ That’s exactly what I wanted to do.”

Her words hurt even though I expected them. I take a sip of my beer, hoping to hide how her words affect me.

“You know we wouldn’t judge you, right?” Eliza asks.

“Yeah, but it doesn’t make a mistake Vegas marriage any less embarrassing.”

Olivia worries her lip as though she’s deep in thought. Her eyes meet mine and a small smile spreads across her face before she looks back at Hannah and I look down at the table.

“You know, maybe this doesn’t have to be a mistake,” Olivia says, and I could kiss her if we both weren’t married.

Hannah’s jaw drops as she stares at her friend. “You did not just say that.”

“Maybe Liv’s right,” Eliza says. “They say there’s a thin line between love and hate, and if your feelings are this strong, maybe there’s a reason behind it.”

Hannah’s pissed. “Zoey, what do you have to say?”

She blushes slightly before she lifts a shoulder. “I kinda agree with the girls.”

“For what it’s worth, I do, too,” Bailey says.

Hannah balls her napkin and throws it down on the table before pushing back in her chair.

“So glad to know,” she says before turning and leaving the restaurant.

I quickly stand and throw some bills on the table to cover both Hannah and my bills. “I’m her ride. I’ll talk to you guys later,” I say before following behind Hannah.

I have to jog to catch up to her. She stops at the passenger door and turns, glaring daggers at me.

“You promised you wouldn’t say anything and give me time to tell my friends.”

I step forward, placing my hands on either side of her head, caging her between me and the car. I lean in real close to make sure she doesn’t miss a single word of what I’m about to say.

“Spitfire, I did respect that, but then Luke touched you. I’m going to make this abundantly clear, so listen closely. I. Don’t. Fucking. Share. You may not want to be in this marriage, but you are. We are married. You are my wife, and I am your husband. And while we’re married, no other man will touch you. If I see another man’s hands on you, I will break his fucking fingers. Do you understand me?”

---