Page 30 of Hail Marry
I don’t respond.
“It’d probably be pretty nice to keep the story from the hospital alive for his benefit.”
I open my mouth to argue, but he keeps going.
“I’m not judging you, Victoria. I don’t like the guy, either.”
I give a soft laugh. “Because of what Tyler said Ryan thinks of you?”
Luca shrugs. “I don’t like when people doubt me.”
“Doubting people is a favorite pastime of Ryan’s. It’s why he makes a good lawyer. It’s also why he made a crappy boyfriend. But this isn’t about him. Would it be nice for him to see me happily married? Yeah, of course. But that’s a bonus. And, to reiterate, I’m not just doing this for you, either. I’ve been asleep at the wheel for a while, and finally, I’m awake. But ifyouwant an annulment, then?—”
“I don’t.”
His swift response after suggesting and then arguing for one catches me off guard.
“I want to play in the NFL,” he says more calmly. “So, if you’re really in and you’re not doing this out of guilt…I’m in too.”
I smile, feeling a surge of anxious excitement. “In it to win it.”
8
TORI
Most brides spendhundreds of dollars designing the perfect wedding invitation to give people ample warning of their intent to get married and to invite them to participate in the celebration. Their moms, sisters, and friends might sit around a big table and make an assembly line for stuffing envelopes, stamping them, and addressing them.
I, on the other hand, am about to tell my family via text message that I got married–past tense—while I sit with Luca on my couch, filling out immigration paperwork.
I’d wager a guess most brides also didn’t spend their wedding night giving their ring back to their husband, waving as his car pulled away, and then searching Amazon for cheap but passably real-looking wedding rings until it was time to go to bed. Alone.
But I’m not trying to live a normal life here, am I?
So, here’s what I’ve got in the “compose” box.
Tori
Hey fam! I did a thing the other day: I got married! Not an April Fools’ joke. The final Sheppard is officially off the market! I can’t wait for you all to meet Luca and see what a great guy he is, but for now, we’ll be enjoying newlywed bliss *wink emoji*
In this case, newlywed bliss is code for filling out Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, while Luca sits next to me on my couch, doing similar paperwork. We have a meeting scheduled with Zach’s immigration lawyer friend, Preston, tomorrow, but until then, he emailed us a bunch of forms to fill out.
From what I can tell, on this particular form, I’m promising to support Luca financially until…Armageddon. Luckily, the likelihood of that is extremely low. I mean Luca needing my financial support. Not Armageddon. As far as I know, that could happen any day.
Meanwhile, I’m learning a lot about my husband, like how he’s doingquitewell for himself, thanks to the brand deals he’s gotten as one of USC’s star players. It’s kind of wild to me that he’s so well-known in his sphere, while just over a week ago, I had no idea he existed.
I press send and set my phone aside. Part of me is nervous, but mostly, I wish I could be there to see my siblings’ reactions.
I know. I’m evil. This is so much worse than breaking up with someone over text, but the alternatives were…impossible. For instance, telling my family in person? Get out of town. I’d be hounded and hounded until I was forced to admit everything: my idiotic venture into oncoming traffic, pretending I had a boyfriend-turned-fiancé to save face, and finallyactuallygetting married. They’d probably squeeze a bunch of other things out of me too—long-forgotten guilty secrets from childhood.
The point is, before Ryan, I was already the Sheppard who makes questionable choices. Siena, Troy, and Austin are all married and successful, while here I am: the perma-secretary who got dumped by the guy she defended to her family and has had to ask that family to spot her money on multiple occasions.
I’ve given up trying to fight my familial reputation, though. Here’s to embracing it and turning it against them for once! Eventually, I’ll let them in on the prank and tell them the real story, but for now, I plan to enjoy having the upper hand and freaking them out.
“You sent it?” Luca asks.
“Yep,” I say with a mischievous smile.
He shakes his head, typing into one of the entries on his current form. “And what do you suggest I do when your dad and brothers show up with a shotgun?”
