𝐏𝐈𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐄𝐃 // 𝐇.𝐒.

67.

My wife.

I married the love of my life and she was right. We didn't need papers to tell us our marriage was real. I'm married to her and maybe someday we could recreate this moment in front of her mum and dad... but as of now, this was ours.

We must've stayed on the roof for hours. We might've even fallen asleep, but sometime before sunrise, we wrapped up our honeymoon and traveled back down to the safe house. Quietly, we snuck into our room.

There was a moment when she stood in the hallway before following me into our room. I watched her slowly come back down to earth, probably wondering how Penny and Sophie were after the tragedy.

We found out much later in the day that their father's body was cremated and that Penny was the one who insisted. Of course, my Elle went out of her way to check how she and her sister were doing.

We kept our marriage on the rooftop to ourselves. Maybe because there was already too much going on or maybe because we both silently agreed this would be our private oath. Though, we wore our rings proudly—even if hers fit her a little too big.

"Paco is ready for us," she tells me when the time to meet Zayn by the pier again has come.

I promised her we could meet with Zayn again. She wanted to make sure he was okay with the plan when it includes him. Because I promised to give her anything she wants, I had sent Zayn another discreet message that would send him running to the pier.

"Then let's go," I say, taking her hand before we leave together and head for the van in the alley.

In the back of Paco's white van, she sits between my legs and with her back against my front. I hug her as we rock from the motion of the moving vehicle.

"I don't know about this anymore," she speaks up after a long moment of quiet.

"What do you mean?"

"Am I asking Zayn for too much? He doesn't owe me anything."

I figured she was overthinking in her mind from how quiet she was. "No," I answer. "I think it might be convenient for him. It's been days since Dante has asked him to bring you to him. Zayn doesn't have long until he punishes him for not doing the job." Despite my hatred for this plan, I couldn't lie to her about the reality.

"I don't want that," she says.

I know she doesn't.

Taking in the scent that her beautiful hair gives off, I feel comforted. I then kiss her shoulder.

We arrived at the pier just in time. The sun hasn't set, giving us enough to walk to a lonely bench. With hoods over our heads, we hop out of the van and walk hand in hand. As we get mixed into the crowd, I'm comfortable enough to take my hood off. She does the same but hugs my arm to keep close.

"I gave the stuffed animal I won last time to Sophie," she tells me as we pass the carnival rides and games.

"Did you?" I smile at that. "Did she like it?"

"Oh, she loved it. She told me she wants a dog one day... Which reminds me to ask you, can we get a dog when we move in together?" She looks up at me at the same moment we find a bench almost nearing the end of the pier.

I press my lips into a thin line as I sit down.

"Should I have asked you this before we got married?" She's grinning.

"In my vows, I promised I'd give you anything you want... so yes, we can get a dog," I tell her.

"We can?!" Throwing her arms around me as she is next to me on the bench, I smile as she kisses my cheek. "Wait, are you sure? Dogs are amazing. How come you don't like them? Are you a cat person?"