Page 63 of Kingpin

“That’s not what I’m saying at all.”

I reached out for her, but she took a step back. It was an obvious move to put space between us as her silent tears fell.

“Bonnie, I didn’t legally marry you. Legally, I married your—”

She quickly turned back around. “Yeah. I know.”

I sighed. “They aren’t even binding with all the wrong names on them. They were worthless the second they were signed.”

“Maybe to you.”

I drew in a deep, calming breath. “We’ll have to take everything one step at a time. For now.”

“So, you’re entertaining the idea of getting married again? You and me?”

“I don’t know. Maybe someday we could have another wedding. Try all of this again. But I’m not ready for something like that. Not yet, anyway.”

“Well, if we aren’t married, then I have no obligation to keep spending the evenings with you.”

“I know. Which brings me to my next point. You can choose any room in the penthouse to move into, and I’ll move your stuff. You shouldn't have to do it after everything you’ve—”

“I’m a capable woman, Israel. I can do it myself.”

“I’m not questioning that. Not at all, after what you’ve endured at my side. At least let me do this for you.”

She snickered. “You informed me that you destroyed our marriage papers. That you had no intention of filing them. That you might want to get married again someday, but you're not sure. You’ve done enough.”

I clicked my tongue. “Right. Okay. Well, choose whichever room you like. But if you want my opinion—”

“I really don’t,” she said flatly.

“Bonnie.”

I saw her shoulders hitch

“Bonnie, turn around.”

She slowly turned to face me. “Yes?”

“Hello, Bonnie.”

“Hi.”

“I’m Israel Rossi.”

Her eye twitched. “I’m Bonnie Moretti.”

“It’s nice to meet you.”

She sighed. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”

“Bonnie, I know you’ve been through a lot these past few weeks. I know you’ve lost a lot, and you feel like you’re drifting aimlessly. What I did with our marriage papers wasn’t to hurt you. On the contrary, I wanted to give us a fresh start.”

She nodded slowly. “I can understand that.”

“Now, I can use your own name. I can address you as I should, and when I think about you, I won’t be using it within the context of you being someone else. It’ll just be…you.”

I watched her face soften. “That doesn’t sound too bad, actually.”

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