Page 58 of Doctor's Demands
The next words have me nearly fainting, ‘Marry Me?’
My knees give out, and he picks me up and holds me as he looks into my eyes. I see his pinky wiggling out of my peripheral vision. An enormous diamond sparkles in the sun’s light as it hangs around his finger.
Sobs begin, my eyes blur, and his lips press against my forehead. “Baby, don’t cry.”
Hanging onto his neck, I bury my face in his chest. “This can’t be real. It can’t be! I was supposed to come to Portland to make money to pay for college. I wasn’t supposed to fall in love. Everyone told me that would never happen. The doctor that I watched, and had fantasies about, came and won me. This can’t be real. It has to be a dream. The whole thing has to be a dream. Things like this don’t happen.”
“It’s real,” he whispers. “And I want you to marry me, Petra Bakari. I want you to marry me today, in Las Vegas. Then I’ll take you to the Fiji Islands for a month-long honeymoon. All you have to do is say, yes. Petra, will you make me the happiest man in the entire world and marry me?”
The knot in my throat is huge. I can’t speak. I can’t think, either. Then his lips touch mine, and it’s all gone. All the nerves vanish. “Yes, Owen Cantrell, I will marry you.”
He shouts, “Yes!” Then he puts that monster engagement ring on my finger and the heaviness of it does something to my heart. It stops, then starts up again with a pounding force.
I’m getting married!
I laugh as he carries me out of the room. Down the stairs we go, and all the way through the mansion. Out a back door he goes, as Grant holds it open. “Congratulations, you two.”
I smile and wave as Owen hurries to get me to a waiting, shiny, black helicopter. “Thank you, Grant. For everything.”
He nods and waves, then closes the door. Owen puts me into the seat, and I scoot over so he can get in. I see my purse is on the seat. I pick it up and look at him for an explanation.
“I went to the hotel this morning and got our things. The van had been picked up, thanks to Isabel. Our cell phones had been taken to the hotel and the staff put them in our room. You’ll need your identification to marry me. And we’ll have to do some shopping before we head out. I didn’t pack for a tropical island. I sent my bags back home. Back to our home, Petra.”
My stomach hurts a little, as I think about all the changes I’m making. “I’ll have to empty out my apartment.”
“I’m going to have that taken care of. I’ll have it all packed up and sent to California. You get to pick which place we go home to, the mansion in Big Bear or the Malibu beach house.”
He buckles me up, then the pilot starts the engine and lifts the machine up. I scream and hold tight to Owen’s hand. After we’re up and moving, he takes some headphones that are hung up in front of us and puts a set on me. Then he puts on a set. I speak into the small microphone that’s attached, answering his previous question, “Um, how about we go to your home in Big Bear? We’ll apparently be doing the beach for a month. We don’t want to get burned out.”
“First, never call anything just mine again. Everything is ours. Got it?” He taps the end of my nose, as if he needs to get my attention.
He has my attention.My undivided attention!
“Ours?” I ask, as I shake my head. “This doesn’t seem real. I’m about to be ultra-rich just by marrying the man I love. It’s crazy, Owen!”
“No, it’s love, Petra. I’ve never known love until I knew you. I’ve never been whole until I held you. And I want you to share all the things I have, as you’ve shared your heart and soul with me.” He kisses my cheek, and I start bawling like a baby.
He can’t be this sweet. Things can’t be this easy. Life doesn’t work that way!
Owen
“The answer is no, Roger. I won’t be going back to that show. I don’t want to be a part of it any longer.” I rub my temples, then sigh as Petra leans against my back and takes over.
“Allow me, my sweet husband.” Her fingers move with a delicate touch, making circles and easing the pain the phone call from the head producer has caused.
“Dena’s off the show. You have nothing to worry about. When we found out the whole truth, we cut her quick, and in a hurry. We don’t want people on our show who seek to find a scandal to hurt their co-stars.”
“It’s not just her, Roger. I’ve been unhappy for a long time with not only the show, but also my practice. I’ve been looking around online since I’ve been out of the country on my honeymoon. There are so many better places I can work, that help people. I’m thinking about joining Doctors Without Borders. My wife has told me she’d like that a lot. She’s going to finish up her teaching degree, and she can help out in the areas I go to. It’s a win-win for us. A real no-brainer.”
Petra kisses my cheek, then walks in front of me with her little teal-colored bikini on. The tattoo on her left arm matches mine and looks sexy as hell on her. We wanted something even more permanent than the wedding rings we have. So, we picked out a tribal tat that means forever. Because that’s what we are, forever.
Roger’s voice is faint in my ear as I watch Petra step off the front porch of our bungalow to get into the clear, warm water. “Okay, you win. You can have your show, Owen. Just you. Wherever you want. We’ll make it happen.”
“I don’t want my own show. But it sounds like my fans have been outspoken about me. That’s always nice to hear. I’ll Tweet my fans my appreciation and how I want to do more with my life and my talent. They’ll understand.”
“What about us?” he asks, as if I give two shits about the people who’ve plagued me for the last five years.
I had a nice practice in Beverly Hills. I did regular maintenance on a few of the stars. But I did a lot of serious stuff too. When I saw dollar signs and had visions of being a star myself, I took their offer. At first, it was great. I was popular, and the women swarmed all over me. Money and chicks were what I thought I wanted.
