Page 52 of Deadline for Love

Despite the sometimes-depressing topics, we still had a lovely time—it drew us closer, but there was still a certain distance...

On Sunday evening, just before we left to return to Steel Valley, we sat in the living room of the hotel room; Nathan had papers on the table to represent our marriage certificates.

“Wow, that looks like the real thing,” I gasped and looked closer at the papers. “Even my signature looks real,” I murmured, stroking my name next to Nathan’s.

“Yeah, it’s a weirdly useful skill.”

I laughed and knocked on his shoulder. “I guess that’s what I expected from a designer.”

He smiled and pulled a small box from his bag, lying next to the table. “But we still have the most important thing to do.”He opened it, and two golden wedding rings appeared.

Nathan wanted to kneel in front of me, but I stopped him, which made him pause, confused. However, I grabbed my wedding ring, put it on myself, and said, “We don’t have any witnesses today, so you don’t have to do this.” My heart was racing, and I tried to suppress my excitement. It would have felt too real if he had put the ring on me while kneeling. I didn’t want to set any kind of expectations for myself or for him.

“But that’s what I wanted to do,” his deep voice whispered, which made my stomach tingle. He looked disappointed, so I explained, “I don’t want to experience such an important step inmy life if it’s not real. I want to be loved and be in love with the person I do this with.”

He said nothing but tilted his head and regarded me calmly.

“I’m sorry; I know you’re trying. But I only genuinely want something like this if it’s real. Seeing you kneeling before me and putting the ring on me doesn’t feel right.”

Nathan didn’t answer, but now he didn’t look disappointed either. His eyes radiated complete calm and serenity. Then he gently took my hand where the ring was and kissed the spot. My whole body warmed with this simple gesture, and I could no longer control my racing heart.

“You’re right. Next time... I’ll do it right.”

My mouth opened slightly, and my brows flew up. His confidence made all my emotions spiral out of control. I looked down at the ring and then back up at Nathan, who moved closer.

“Until then, I’ll still do my best to be a good husband.” He kissed my cheek and then clicked his tongue. “Fake or not.”

I finally closed my mouth and looked into Nathan’s beautiful eyes, which looked at me lovingly and teasingly. He had a cheeky grin on his lips, which literally tempted me to get it off his face with a kiss. But I held back and created more space between us by sliding away a little.

“And I’ll do my best, too,” I promised, glancing at our fake certificates.

“Hopefully, it will work, and we’ll catch the killer.”

We drove the long distance back to Nathan’s apartment that evening; listening to slow music and watching the scenery was pleasant.

When we got home, we settled into bed, though neither of us could sleep. My mind just wandered. What would happen? And what if... the person sending those letters got mad and caught me? Did I even have a chance of surviving? What if this calm already meant that I was the next victim? I hadn’t had those thoughts before. I had never felt that I was in serious danger before, but now these thoughts were buzzing in my head like an endless pounding. I was a little scared and nervous, though I hadn’t considered all the consequences that could affect me.

“Bella?”

Nathan’s voice rang out, and as if on cue, my mind stopped spinning. I glanced his way and realized that he was very close to me.

“Can I hold you?”

My eyebrows, which had been tensely pressed together a moment ago, relaxed instantly—right now, I really wanted to be hugged, so I gladly complied with his request.

I broke through the last few inches and wrapped my arms around his hard body. I felt more comfortable at once and enjoyed feeling his warmth.

“This is new,” I muttered, hiding my head in his chest.

“I thought I’d better ask you today.”

I tilted my head so I could see him, but I still lay on his chest. “Why?”

He slowly ran a hand over my hair and gently kissed my forehead. “I just had a hunch.”

And I was glad that he had that hunch—in fact, I was more than happy that he had asked me instead of us falling asleep and waking up in each other’s arms.

“Thank you.”

---