Sealed With a Kiss

Thirty

XXX: Fate

EVERYTHING WAS SET. Remy (quite reluctantly might I add) had drawn up the paperwork and all that was missing was Cole's signature on the dotted line.

I was smiling cheekily on Tuesday morning as we did our morning routine and got ready for the board meeting together. Cole of course didn't know about this. This was a game changer, the freedom that will result from naming him my proxy. Cole will now be the majority share-holder with a whooping 48% of the company. Now he will be able to make changes and exercise the company's funds in any way he wants.

And he had no idea. It was my wedding gift to him.

"What's got you so smiley today, Mrs?" Cole asked me in the car.

I leaned over the console and kissed him on the cheek, "You."

"Did I do something good or something stupid? Because you've been acting giddy for days and I've been trying to figure it out."

"Probably a mixture of both, actually." Cole pretended to scoff and used the fact that we were on a red light to kiss me.

I signed, feeling completely content, and took his hand as the car lunged forward again. "You just make me so happy."

Cole was abnormally quiet for a second. "Do I? You're sure?"

"Where did that come from?" I asked once we were parked. "I thought we were both happy. Happily married, I should say."

Cole gently cradled my face in his hands and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead. "I'm not myself when I'm with you. You make me think straight, you make me think about wedding bells and suburban homes and babies. It's scares me, I really don't want to fuck up."

I pulled back far enough to look into his sad, stormy eyes. "I love you. You make me immensely happy, never doubt that."

"I love you too," he whispered, his lips brushing softly against mine. "So so much."

AS EXPECTED, EVERY SENIOR MEMBER ON THE BOARD WAS PRESENT. As Nicholas made his way inside the room, I reached in my bag and took out a Manila folder.

"Alright, good morning," Nicholas said taking a seat. "In just a moment we'll begin the presentation to decide on a champaign to make a donation for."

"Actually gentlemen," I said standing on shaky legs, "if you all would give me a moment I'd like to take this time to make an announcement first."

Nicholas raised his eyebrows but like a gentlemen he graciously allowed me to speak. "Please proceed Mrs. Richmond."

"Thank you Nicholas." I made eye contact with Cole and ignored his confused expression.

"As you all know, Cole and I have recently gotten married." The men nodded and I took it as encouragement to keep going. "And as such, we as a unit amount to 48% of the company."

They could see where I was going with this if the panicked look on Nicholas's face was any indication. "It's obvious that I am not suited for board meetings and annual budgets. I studied Art History while all of you are graduates of Harvard business school.

"It is because of that reason that I have decided to hereby formally declare my husband as my proxy to represent me in the board."

The look on Cole's face. I would have paid anything to have gotten a picture of it. His jaw fell slack. He was completely gobsmacked.

"Poppy," Nicholas said in a painfully tense voice, "perhaps you should think about this. Speak to a lawyer. You're entrusting 25% of an international multi-billion dollar company on a man you just married. Perhaps we should adjourn so that you may think through--"