"I'm not. I'm not laughing at you. You're just fuckin' adorable and I love you. Take all the time you need."
"But not too long," Silas yells. "It's our turn next."
Terra laughs, sniffles again. "You make it seem so easy, but I know you never heard that, either." She squares her shoulders, takes another deep breath. Looks at me. "I…fuck!" She stomps her foot. "It won't come out."
I just laugh and pull her against me. "Don't force it, honey. I hear it." I look at the officiant. "Ask the question."
To me, he says with the Elvis sneer: "Do you take this woman, this hunka-hunka burnin' love, this tongue-tied babe, to be your lawfully wedded wife, as long as you both shall live, no matter what?"
"I do," I say.
"And you, darlin'—do you take this man, who you've just confessed to murder for in a room full of witnesses, to be your husband, your main squeeze, your big daddy, forever and always, no matter what?"
"God, you're so cheesy, Jesus." She swallows. "Yeah, I sure the fuck do."
"Then, by the power invested in me by the great state of Nevada, I now pronounce you m-m-m-married!" He does the Elvis hip twist. "Kiss her, my man!"
I do. I kiss her.
A few minutes later, Silas and Naomi are up there, and the officiant waves at Silas. "I'm guessing you have something to say."
"Damn right, I do." Silas looks up, shrugs, laughs. "Eh, that's good enough. Damn right, I do."
Naomi giggles. "I do, too."
She reaches up, pulls him down, and kisses him so long and hard we all whistle.
"Well, I guess you're married, or something. Ya'll are some odd ducks, man." The Elvis officiant looks around. "Anyone else?"
No one pipes up, so the four of us sign paperwork and fill out forms, and then we're back in the SUVs.
Total time elapsed: Less than an hour.
I look back at Terra. She still seems upset. "Hey. You good?"
She smiles at me, but I see thoughts swirling behind her eyes. "Yeah, I’m good."
I laugh. "Liar. But we're almost there."
We give her a tour of the Club, starting with the main floors and then our private quarters area beneath the club, ending with my personal room.
Once we're alone, I lay on my bed, snag Terra, and haul her back down with me, cradling her head against my chest. "Talk."
"No."
I laugh. "Something is bugging you. Just tell me. Second thoughts about getting married? Or moving in here?"
"I don't how to say it."
My heart pounds. "Just blurt it out, like ripping duct tape off."
She sits up. "I haven't been alone since we met. I…what you may not realize about me is that I'm a loner. I've always been alone. And Em…she saved my life, literally. I was…I was not in a great place when we met, and she pulled me out. So…I've got her back, too. But I'm still…alone. And…And since we met, it's just been this whirlwind, and I haven't had a chance to breathe, to think."
"We can get it annulled," I say, my voice hoarse.
She turns to me, eyes wide. "No! No, no, no. God, I'm fucking this up so bad." She rests on my chest, palms on my cheeks, thumbs on my lips. "That's not what I’m trying to say. I don't want an annulment. I want to be married to you. I want to live here."
"Well then, I'm fuckin' confused, because you seem upset and it came out of nowhere, and I don't know what it is or what I did, or how to fix it."
