Make Believe Wife

I almost hit the floor. I know what that is. What it has to be. Suddenly I remember that we are already supposed to be engaged and the wedding is practically already planned. Like shit, I have to pick a dress!

“Is that…”

Helen opens the box. The ring is a simple white gold band and the gorgeous pale pink rock twinkles at me from a deep setting, edged with ribbons of white fire.

“Shit.”

“I have to say, that’s not the answer I was expecting.” Helen asks wryly.

I stare at the ring. And stare at it.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” She sounds panicked.

I cross my arms and glare at her, trying to hold in my grin.

“Aren’t you going to ask me something?”

Helen laughs. She lets her head shake and her chest heave. Her blonde hair shimmers around her and I think, not for the first time, that it looks like a glowing halo.

“Roxy. Will you marry me?”

I can’t keep the cheeky grin off my face. “Well. Considering the whole shebang is pretty much planned, it would be a shame to say no, I guess.”

“You guess!” Helen tackles me, wrapping her arms around me and pinning me to the couch. She kisses me long and deep and I relax under her touch.

“You do better than guess. My love.”

My face becomes serious, my gaze going deep into her eyes.

“Yes Helen. Yes. I’ll marry you, I’ll take you, good or bad, sick or well, all I want is you.”

She leans down again and presses me to the couch, all else being lost as we focus on each others’ lips.

Thirty-Three

Helen

After lingering over breakfast, I get ready to head into work. Even though it’s the weekend I’m keen to get my pictures in and start organizing them. I’ll have about ten pages to fill and I want to start with a Shibari special.

“Who are you getting pretty for?” Roxy stops by the bathroom door.

“I’m just going to pop in to work for a couple of hours. If I load up the pics today and do some page layouts, then I can work much faster on Monday. Lisa wants this section in the next issue, and it has to be approved this week.”

“I thought that we could hang out and watch movies.”

“Well we can. I won’t be gone long.”

Behind me, Roxy says nothing. I finish with my lipstick and turn around, hoping she’s not upset.

She’s standing there leaning on the doorframe, twisting a lip between her fingers.

“You okay, baby?”

“Well… I think I’ll come with you.”

“Really?” I can’t hide my enthusiasm.

“Yeah. Let me hunt around for something to wear.”