A Model Fiancé

by Kaye, Nikky

  All of this was irrelevant at the moment. I had a job. Audrey had a job. We had each other, and our weird little support network—most of which was here in Vegas on the spur of the moment. I’d texted Dierks to ask if he could come, but he said he had to pay Tanya back for taking over when he was sick, with some kind of photo shoot trade.

  So, it was just the two of us, Brett and Shannon, and my parents.

  Forget that—it was just the two of us.

  As we walked through the garden, Audrey was the only person I saw. She outshone every ray of spring sunlight. Her blush was prettier than every flower in the place—assuming there were flowers; I didn’t notice.

  She wore a simple, cream silk gown that flowed down to her ankles, which only wobbled a little on strappy, gold-colored sandals. To my surprise, it wasn’t all she wore.

  My mother had fixed a red and gold chunni to her head like a veil, and traditional Hindu wedding bangles called choora jangled on Audrey’s wrists. Her dark hair was pulled back in a low bun, but as she turned to say something to my mother, I saw a jasmine gajra nestled in her hair like a bundle of white stars.

  Audrey was always gorgeous, but at that moment she had never looked lovelier. I wanted to steal her away and show her off to the world, all at the same time.

  “We ready, Dev?” My father’s voice shattered my little fantasy about crushing the jasmine blooms’ perfume into our wedding bed later. “Clock’s ticking.”

  We’d paid a hefty fee to the hotel not only for the services of a wedding officiant but also to lock the doors to the garden for twenty minutes. Nobody knew we were doing this, but I didn’t want it splashed all over social media, either.

  This was for us.

  Once we were all gathered in a kind of cone of silence, the officiant quickly and mercifully reminded everyone that we had written vows to each other and that he was just here to rubber-stamp the whole thing.

  God bless Las Vegas.

  Audrey and I stood together about ten feet away, in our own little bubble. The setting sun glinted off the gold in her veil.

  “You look nice,” she said as she touched a button on my shirt, her blue eyes like a calm ocean.

  “You look amazing.”

  The officiant cleared his throat. Right. Audrey and I joined hands, our eyes only on each other.

  I grinned at her. “Six months ago I offered you a ring, right over there,” I began, tilting my head toward the path. I couldn’t exactly announce to everyone, especially the officiant, that it wasn’t a real proposal when it was all over social media. “It was the beginning of a journey I didn’t really expect to take. I promised you something amazing, but you’ve been amazing me for more than six years already. I know there was a time when you weren’t in my life, but I don’t remember it now. I knew you before you were grownup, and I wanted you before it was a good idea.”

  Audrey’s cheeks bloomed.

  “Then we met again here,” I continued, “and you flung yourself into my arms.”

  Her eyebrow lifted with amusement. “Really?” she murmured under her breath. “Flinging?”

  I nodded, grinning. “I told you that together we could explore the world and try new things.” Like food poisoning and airplane sex. "The truth is that I wanted to see you fly. I wanted to see you choose your own path and strut down it on those gorgeous legs of yours.” Reflexively I looked down at her thighs shifting beneath the silky gown.

  “I’m so fucking proud of you, and I’m not saying that as a patronizing asshole.”

  Audrey bit her lip as someone muffled a giggle nearby.

  I squeezed her hands. “You inspire me. You inspire me with your loyalty, your creativity, and your compassion. Your intelligence, sense of humor and good taste have no equal—”

  She leaned forward and, good-naturedly, stepped on my foot.

  “Okay, okay.” I laughed then sighed. “In all seriousness, I really fucking love you. It’s been quite a trip and I can’t imagine taking it with anyone else.” When her eyes watered, my voice finally broke. “I-I had to go around the world with the girl next door to realize that she was my home.”

  A tear spilled over, falling down her cheek. Without even thinking about it, I leaned forward and caught it with my mouth.

  “Hey, no kissing the bride yet!” I heard Brett yell.

  “Ooops.” I drew back and raised our joined hands. “Okay,” I said with a nod, “it’s your turn.”

  Audrey laughed. Sniffled. “Give me a second, you charming bastard,” she said shakily.

  My heart almost burst out of my chest, and I was glad to be done speaking.

  Audrey shook her head slightly. “Dev, I can never complain that you never took me anywhere. You took me everywhere.”

  Now it was my turn to raise an eyebrow. Yeah, I have a dirty mind, but so did my girl.

  She took a deep breath then went on, “You are my past and my future, and always my present.”

  I opened my mouth, but she beat me to it.

  “Yes, Dev, you’re the gift that keeps on giving.”

  Another snort from the crowd.

  “Before, I thought I was broken.” Her gaze swept down to the ground, then back up at me with renewed focus and strength. “But you have to be whole, first, in order to break—and I’m not whole without you. You gave me time and space and freedom, and now what I want more than anything is a million years right by your side.”

  “Would you settle for a hundred?” I choked out.

  “If I play my karma right, I think we can do better that that.”

  I nodded, trying to swallow around the lump in my throat.

  We both fell silent, absorbing all the words and emotions swimming in the space between us. It was a lot to take in. Shit, no wonder people cried at weddings.

  The officiant cleared his throat again. “Do you have rings?” he asked.

  “Yes,” Audrey said, surprising me. I didn’t know that she’d gotten me a ring. She looked me in the eye and dropped her voice. “I got you a ring.” Then she dropped her gaze, and her hands fell from mine.

  My heart stuttered. “For my…?”

  “No!” She bent over in shocked laughter. “Oh. My. God.” We both giggled like idiots at the memory of when I gave her the ring as she waved Shannon over.

  “With this ring, I thee wed,” she said softly, sliding a band on my finger. “With my body, I thee worship—don’t even say it, Dev.” Eye roll. “I know you’re a god and all.”

  The officiant cleared his throat again.

  “With my soul,” Audrey continued, “I thee adore, and with all my worldly good I thee share.” Then she blinked at me. “You’re already pretty well-endowed.”

  At this point we’d gone over our twenty minutes and our guests were openly laughing.

  “If that’s all,” I heard a voice call. “By the power vested in me by the State of Nevada, I now pronounce you—”

  “Wait! I have a ring, too.” I reached in my pocket and pulled it out.

  Audrey took one look at it and gasped. “Is that…? Are you kidding?”

  “Baby, I’m deadly serious.” I took her trembling hand and slid the massive ring on to her finger.

  Then I lifted it to my mouth and licked it.

  “Um, is that a ring pop candy?” someone said.

  “Inside joke,” I called over my shoulder. When I turned back to her, I couldn’t tell if she was laughing or crying—probably both.

  “You… weirdo,” she gasped, her face bright pink and her eyes streaming as she looked at the candy ring.

  “You wanted a million years, but the diamond I gave you took a billion to form. That’s almost enough time to love you.”

  “But—”

  Under my breath, I said to her, “I gave you a real ring for our fake engagement. It seemed only right I give you the fakest ring I could find to symbolize the real love I have for you.”

  “Oh, Dev,” she sighed, glowing from happiness and the setting sun behind her. “
You’re amazing.”

  I shrugged. “What can I say? I have my moments.”

  THE END

  Epilogue

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  About the Author

  Nikky Kaye writes funny, sexy romances about sassy women in fabulous shoes and the alpha heroes who sweep them off their feet.

  A former college professor, Nikky’s life now revolves around her twin boys, writing, napping, half-finished DIY projects, and hiding how much Diet Coke she drinks from her husband—in that order. [Okay, the last two could be flipped around.]

  She is a procrastinator and a perfectionist—someday, she’s going to be awesome.

  www.nikkykaye.com

  read@nikkykaye.com

  Acknowledgments

  I loved writing this book, but it took a lot longer than I expected. Life has a tendency to get in the way, after all. Thanks to all my readers for their patience and trust. You keep me going, truly!

  Sarah Hansen of Okay Creations (http://www.okaycreations.com) deserves applause for her drool-worthy cover. Thank you for your creative genius and endless patience with me.

  The all-star team at Give Me Books have given me peace of mind and encouragement for months on end, for which I’m eternally grateful.

  The following people helped me when I couldn’t see the forest for the trees: Sylvia Kane, Melanie Thomson, Lesley Stuart, and Catherine Coffman. Also, Kristina Hack of Temys Designs for her innovative design when this book was titled Instalove.

  Special shout-outs to my RomCom ladies and Happy New You collaborators, CaRWA members (especially Kelly, Jill and Jenna), and my Make it Happen peeps.

  Then there are the incredible people I met at Romance Author Mastermind in September 2018—some old friends and some new. Skye Warren, Becca Hensley-Mysoor, Maya Hughes, Pippa Grant, Ilsa Madden-Mills, Bria Quinlan, Kylie McDermott, Julia Sykes, Amelia Wilde, Maria Luis, Christine Reiss, Brighton Walsh, Donna Alam, Erika Kelly, Charlotte Byrd, Jami Albright, Olivia Rigal, Penny Reid, and Anna Zaires and Dima Zales. I’m sure I’m missing people, but hopefully I’ll see you next year!

  I would also like to thank my neurologist, who kept me alive while writing this book. Yay for living!

  Finally, my family—especially Dr. K and the mogwai, as well as Vivian Tabonda and Crystal Kook. Your support and patience is amazing. I love you.

  Copyright © 2019 by Nikky Kaye

  Cover design © 2019 by Sarah Hansen, Okay Creations (http://www.okaycreations.com)

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  To sum up: Pirating and other unauthorized distribution is illegal. It is also a dick move.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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