Marcus doesn’t say a word for the longest time. As if he’s thinking about it and I wait with baited breathe. Will he do to me what I did to John? Karma may be rearing its ugly head. I would deserve it if he did.

“Sophie, sweetheart,” he starts to say. Oh no, here it comes. I close my eyes shut, bracing myself.

“Open your eyes, babe.”

I look deep into his penetrating eyes and my heart still skips a beat, that’s how much I love him.

“Babe, I thought long and hard before I asked you to marry me. I know deep in my heart that I want forever with you. There isn’t a single doubt in my mind. Now what about you? That’s the big question. You don’t think I worry about it. Why do you think I’m pressing for the wedding as soon as possible? You’re the one I worry about bolting, you’ve done it once before. I know how skittish you can be about love and relationships. Some might say I’m the one taking a chance on you.”

I let his words sink in. I never looked at it that way, in my heart I’ve always felt like I was the one taking a chance on the player. I suppose I see his point, as much as his words sting, he’s right about me. He’s always been right about me. He seems to know me so well because we’re so similar.

“I never thought of it that way, but I suppose you’re right. I’ve just always thought I was the one taking a chance on the player,” I say, as I trace a finger along his luscious and kissable lips.

“I love you, Sophie,” Marcus murmurs as I watch those words roll off his lips.

“I love you too.” I can’t believe how easily I can say those words now. It took me a lifetime to say them and mean them once I followed my heart back to Marcus.

Chapter 11

Marcus

The wedding goes off without a hitch. Lauren and Kyle are pronounced man and wife, he kisses the bride and the bridal party files out behind them down the aisle. I meet eyes with Krista and offer her my arm to escort her down the aisle together. It’s an awkward walk as our past together flashes through my mind. There might have been a fleeting moment in our long history together where the thought of us being together forever did cross my young and stupid mind.

As we walk down the aisle arm and arm together, my eyes meet Sophie’s gorgeous eyes. I feel a little sheepish because of what I was just thinking about Krista and I.

I offer Sophie a smile and she doesn’t smile back, but turns away. Clearly she’s not happy with me. Could she have read my thoughts?

Krista laughs and flirts with me and hasn’t let go of my arm as I see Sophie heading towards us, then she turns on her heel and walks the other way, back towards the hotel lobby. Where is she going?

“Sophie,” I call out to her. “Excuse me,” I say to Krista, extricating her from my arm.

“Pictures Marcus, you can’t leave,” Krista pleads.

“I’ll be back in five,” I reply, walking briskly to the elevators.

Sophie’s gone by the time I get there. I press the going up button, anxious to get to her and calm her down. I get to our room and slide the card key into the slot and walk in to our suite.

“Sophie,” I call out as I walk through the sitting room and into the bedroom. I find her sitting on the bed, and she just looks at me with a blank look on her face.

“Why did you leave? The reception is starting soon,” I ask, as I sit down next to her on the bed. She looks down at her hands.

“Babe, look at me. What’s wrong?” She doesn’t say anything, so I cup her face in my hand and turn her towards me.

“I don’t like seeing you together. I can’t stand watching her fawn over you and you don’t seem to mind either. You make a lovely couple, you look like Ken and Barbie,” she says with sarcasm in her voice.

“Sophie, please, she means nothing to me.”

“How many times have I heard that line from you? It seems many of your past ladyloves meant nothing to you. Do you even have a heart? Or is all this just a smoke screen, are you faking that you care about me too? Like all of these past women, at some point down the road will you say I meant nothing to you?” Sophie spats out at me, in her version of a jealous rage.

“Sophie, sweetheart. You are the only girl I have ever been so in love with as to propose to. I want you for my wife, doesn’t that say it all to you?”

My phone starts ringing in my pocket, it’s Kyle, and he needs me downstairs for pictures.

“I need to go, freshen up and come down. Will you?” I ask, leaning in for a kiss and she pulls away. “Come down in half an hour, please?”

“For Kyle and Lauren I will come down, but not for you.”

It’s kind of cute to see Sophie jealous. It shows me she cares about me and about us, which is always a relief to me, considering our more than rocky start.

“Krista, you have to knock it off,” I say firmly, once I get back downstairs and join the bridal party on the beach for wedding photos.

“Knock what off?” she asks, with a flirtatious lilt to her feminine voice.

“Stop coming onto me and flirting with me. I am one hundred percent in love with Sophie and we’re getting married before she gets away. I’m not going to let you ruin what we have. I’ve worked so hard to get her right where I want her and I’m not going to let you win. Not this time, not ever again.”

Krista is actually left speechless. She doesn’t say a word for the longest time.

“Marcus, I’m still in love with you,” she breathes out softly, for my ears only. You could knock me over with a feather. She never would admit she even loved me the first time around and now she’s telling me she “still” loves me.

“Still, I never knew that you ever loved me,” I reply in shock.

“I realized it the last time we reconnected in London a few months ago. I have always loved you, Marcus.”

“You sure didn’t seem to way back in college, you dropped me pretty quickly once that other guy came around. You didn’t give me or what we had together a second thought, so it would seem.”

“I was young and naïve back then, a young girl who followed her every whim,” she tries to defend herself.

“So are you saying you’ve grown up now?”

“Yes, don’t you think so?” she asks, pressing her whole body against mine. I look around in a panic hoping Sophie can’t see us.

“Krista, I told you to give up. I’m spoken for now, and happy about it.”

“Here comes your future bride now,” Krista says and I pull away from her quickly. Maybe too quickly, I hope it didn’t look obvious.

I glance over at Sophie and judging by the look on her face she did see us. I’m in trouble again. Damn Krista, why does she have to drop this bomb on me and claim she still loves me? It’s total bullshit. If I recall correctly, when I told her I loved her back in college, she almost laughed in my face. I never said it again, although I felt it in my heart.

We are finally done with pictures and I head over to the open bar, and Krista is stuck to me like glue. I need a drink, and I have got to shake her. After I get my cocktail, my eyes scan the reception area looking for Sophie. I finally spot her in the crowd and she’s smiling. Whew, that’s a good sign. I walk over towards her and I see that she is talking to a tall, dark and handsome stranger. Who is this guy?

I walk right up to her and wrap my arm around her possessively. “Hi babe,” I say, pulling her into me.

“Oh Marcus, this is Jordan, he works with Kyle in Los Angeles,” Sophie says, introducing me to Mr. tall, dark and handsome. I eye the guy from head to toe before I say it’s nice to meet him.

“So, you know Kyle from Harvard?” Jordan asks.

“Yes, we were roommates freshman year and have been close friends ever since,” I reply.

“Can you introduce me to that beautiful blonde you escorted down the aisle?” Jordan asks boldly. The guys got good taste. First he sidles up to my Sophie, now he wants to try his luck with Krista. Be my guest, be my guest. Take her off my hands, please distract her, I feel like saying out loud. I glance at Sophie and she gives me an encouraging smile.