Part 2 of 3

I hurried towards the exit, willing tears not to fall although I could already feel them filling up my eyes. I hated to cry more than anything; nothing sucked more than showing your emotions for the whole world to see, letting them know how easily you could break. And I looked fragile because of my size but always felt especially so though I would tell people I was strong.

Dante, or Dominic, or whatever his name was now, had been a big mistake on my part. I had just lost Jesse and then Lucky too and went down to Vegas for the weekend where I met him drinking in one of the casinos. He came on to me though of course I noticed him sitting there two stools down, noticed he was the only guy worth looking at who wasn't wearing a Stetson. In fact, in the casino he had looked almost underdressed in jeans and a tee-shirt like he wore tonight, but he had caught my eye. We talked, we schmoozed as the saying went, and we drank. A lot. I can't even remember whose idea it was to get married but we did. Right in front of an Elvis impersonator of all things. We woke up in the morning together, naked, and realized what we had done. Neither wanted a lifetime commitment - or so we said - so we agreed to just walk away and pretend it never happened. We didn't even bother filling out annulment papers because we honestly didn't think we'd ever have to see each other again. How wrong we were.

Tears continued to burn my eyes and I realized as soon as I had walked out the exit that I was in the alleyway. Great. Dirty, smelly trash everywhere. I stepped over something suspiciously brown and started walking out of the alley. I figured Lulu would find me eventually and we could go back to our place and forget this horrid night ever happened. I would be sure to also tell her emphatically that I would never, ever go on another double date with her. Not in a million years.

I was walking out of the alleyway when I heard him approaching me and felt his hand on my arm, pulling me back. "Mad Max, don't go," he said.

I sniffed. He had nicknamed me "Mad Max" that weekend in Vegas because he thought I was the wildest woman he had ever met and I resented him using it now to butter me up.

"Let me go!" I snapped. "Leave me the fuck alone!" I tried wrenching my arm free but he held tightly to it.

"Can we talk? Please?" He asked in a low, pleading voice.

"No because I don't talk to strangers, DOMINIC," I said sarcastically.

"About that ... Look I'm undercover. It's my first big case and -"

"Uh huh..."

"Seriously. You have to believe me. I would tell you about it but it's absolutely classified. You can't tell anyone about my real identity."

"The hell I can't!" I snapped, finally wiggling my arm free. "I am going to tell everyone what a lying, manipulative piece of crap you are!"

"Mad Max, you don't mean that."

"Yes I do and stop calling me that!"

"Why are you so mad at me?"

"Because you had the audacity to just show up and take me by surprise and I don't appreciate it at all."

"I told you, I had no idea who I was meeting."

"So you were cheating on me then!"

"You're being irrational. I thought we agreed to move on after that crazy weekend."

"We did."

"And you did, right?"

"Yeah ..."

"So why are you bitching me out now?"

I crossed my arms. "Because I can!" A tear rolled down my cheek then and I went to wipe it away but he was already doing that for me. His hand felt impossibly warm on my skin and I wanted to hate him for touching me again but I couldn't. I didn't pull away.

Not even when he leaned over and kissed me!

XoXoXo

I don't know why but I needed to kiss her. Maybe it was to shut her up. Maybe it was just because I wanted to. Maybe it was because I had never seen more luscious lips than that of my quasi-bride.

I leaned over and pressed my lips to hers, fully expecting her to revolt and slap the shit out of me but to my surprise she kissed me back. She eased her mouth open and I slid my tongue inside her lips, exploring every part of her warm mouth. She tasted like heaven. Cheesy but true.

Finally we parted for the sake of breathing and I rested my forehead against hers. "I should slap you for that," Maxie said.

"Oh come on, isn't that what spouses do? Fight and kiss and makeup and fight and kiss and MAKEUP?"

Maxie sighed. "You're not suggesting ..."

"Would I suggest that?"

"Yes you would. I mean, our marriage was a big mistake."

"Maybe but it was also my favorite mistake ever."

"Shut up. You're stealing from Sheryl Crow with that!" She said but she was laughing.

"But it is true," I said and reached for her hand, threading my fingers through hers. "Hey want to see something?"

"Depends on what that something is ..."

"Just come on," I said and when she nodded, I led her to my car.

I unlocked the door and pulled it open. Then I reached for the glove compartment and pried open the little compartment. I ruffled through the papers, wrappers and other assorted minutiae until I found what I was looking for.

"Aha!" I said and turned around holding it up so the parking lot lights fell on it.

"Ohmigod is that -"

"Uh huh," I said and lowered it so she could see that it was indeed what I claimed it to be.

"Your wedding ring," Maxie said with a smile. "You kept it?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I? I had to remember you somehow, didn't I, and memories weren't enough."

"I kept mine too," she admitted sheepishly.

"Oh really?"

"Yep," she said and went for the latch on her purse. She had to go through like six pouches but she finally held her own ring up triumphantly. "Told you!"

"So what does this mean?" I asked as I grabbed her around the waist.

"I don't know ..."

"You never forgot me, I definitely never forgot you so ..." I took the ring from her hand and slid it back on her finger. "What do you say, Maxie? Will you be my bride? Again."

Maxie smiled even as a tear ran down her face and I reached out to wipe it away. "You don't mean that. What about your undercover career?"

"I will work the case and then when it's over ... We'll announce to the world that we're already married."

"Seriously?"

"Yep. In the meantime, we should definitely get to know each other."

"In the biblical sense, I assume," she said.

"Would I say that?"

"Yep," she said and took my ring and slid it onto my finger. "We'll wear these tonight and then take them off but we'll put them back on when the right time comes."

I nodded. "Sounds like the perfect plan," I said and leaned over, capturing her perfect lips in another kiss.