Hidden from Sight by Betty Bokor
Mary/Marshall. Mary wakes up after the shooting and everything starts to change.
Spoilers: All episodes, including Second Season Finale.
Disclaimer: The In Plain Sight original characters belong to USA Network and Universal Media Studios (UMS). This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

Hidden from Sight

Chapter 36

A.N. No fluff this time. I was in a very different mood and the characters followed me. Please, let me know what you think.

While the priest talked, Mary had to do a great effort to concentrate in his words and not turn to look at her backyard. When Raph had walked her out of the kitchen and allowed her to have a first glance at it, she had been shocked. There were flowers everywhere and the whole place looked like a magazine wedding setting. First, she had imagined they would get married at the Courthouse; then, when Marshall had explained that they would have an evening wedding, she had thought that their time frame had obliged him to take whatever was left available. The rehearsal had taken place in her own living room ─because, as he had explained, with such a small wedding party there was no need to go anywhere else─ so she had never had a hint that they were fixing her own patio for the marriage.

Marshall's appearance kept distracting her, too. She knew he would be in formal wear, but the way he looked in his white tie was more than she could have imagined. It would have been alright for her if they just stopped the whole thing and escaped to the house to have some deserved sex. That had been a rough week and Marshall looked like just what she needed to put it all behind. If only they did not have all those people sitting right behind them…

To Marshall's relief, everything went as planned. Mary followed all the instructions she had been given during the rehearsal and smiled with genuine happiness, at least in her mother's eyes. Jinx was thrilled that one of her daughters was finally married. When Mary had reached forty, she had started worrying that she would never settle down and have a family. All that was taken care of now and, if Brandi's relationship with Raph continued as well as it was going, there would be another wedding soon.

After the ceremony, the reception went as well as it could be expected. Mary got to meet the rest of Marshall's family and she tried her best not to appear rude or antagonistic to them. She could see in his eyes that he was afraid that she would not make a good impression on them. He had told her many times during the years they had known each other that she was an acquired taste and it occurred to her that his family would not have enough time to acquire such a taste.

When dinner was served, Mary felt extremely happy about the menu choices and enjoyed her ribs as if they were her first. After dinner, there was dancing and Mary and Marshall got a chance to dance with most of their guests. When they finally got reunited on the dancing floor, she giggled as she hugged him.

"Wow. I think I've never danced with as many different people as tonight."

She almost lost her footing and he held her. "Are you okay? How many glasses of champagne have you had?" he asked.

She scoffed. "Of course I'm fine. And none; I've had none. I wouldn't do it. I just can't wait for this whole charade to be over." She looked at him alluringly. "You look remarkably handsome tonight."

Marshall was not smiling. He stopped dancing and looked at her. "What do you mean charade?"

She felt impatient. "Charade, show, whatever you want to call it… I just want to be done and go to bed… with you," she said, back to her sensual tone.

He shook his head slightly, grabbed her by the arm, and walked with her to the kitchen. Once they were inside the house, he stood in front of her and asked again, "What do you mean charade?"

She was annoyed. "I already told you. This is just a show people put to make others happy. The truth is I could care less-"

"You didn't want to get married?" he asked with genuine surprise.

"Did you ever hear me say that I wanted to get married before all this started? I'm not like all those girls that spend their childhoods dreaming about prince charming and their wedding day. I didn't have time for that. I was too busy keeping my mother from drowning in her own vomit when she was passed out drunk."

"Then why on Earth did you propose to me?" His voice showed that he was hurt, but she missed it.

"That's what you wanted, wasn't it? The same Raph wanted before you… Marriage, kids, the whole enchilada."

"What I wanted was to spend the rest of my life with you," he said softly.

"Well, that's what you're getting and it starts as soon as the show is over."

Her attitude not only hurt him, but upset him deeply. "A wedding is not a show. It's a rite of passage, a ritual to symbolize a profound change in someone's life."

She rolled her eyes. "Jesus, Marshall, spare me the drama. We got married; it's done. What else do you want from me?"

He looked at her as if he were looking at a stranger. "I… don't really want… anything that way," he said slowly. "For me, this was a commitment, a transformation of our relationship."

"What do you mean? We're the same people as before. We'll just keep on going. Nothing has really changed. You don't really believe all that crap about 'till death do us part, do you? It's just for dreamers; a romantic notion that doesn't apply anymore."

"So it'd have been okay for you if we hadn't done any of this?"

"We're having a kid together; that's a fact. We're great in bed and we're awesome as a team at work. We have everything we need. This demonstration of our love" she said with a dismissive gesture of her hand and in a very mocking tone, "isn't really necessary."

"Many people spent a lot of time and effort putting together that show for you," he said pointing at the yard.

"And I'll thank them properly, but don't ask me to-"

"You know what?" he interrupted her. "That's fine. Have it your way."

For a few seconds he looked at her with a look that froze her blood in her veins. She recognized the look as the one he gave to the criminals they often had to deal with right before he put them in their place. It was a look that she had only seen in U.S. Marshal Mann's eyes and she had witnessed many men backing off because of it.

She had no time to react when he grabbed her by the waist and sat her on top of the kitchen counter. She was still shocked when he approached her and gave her one of the most passionate kisses she had ever experienced. She almost fell to the floor when he walked away from her towards the back door of the house.

"You're free," he said. "I won't hold you to a commitment that only has meaning for me. I was wrong; I admit it. I thought this would work, but…" he seemed to have trouble continuing. She was sure he had tears in his eyes. "This whole thing was a mistake, from the very beginning, but something good came out of it. We're having a child together and I'll be there every step of the way for both of you, but we don't need anything beyond that. Come Monday, we're back to being partners as before. I promise I'll have this whole thing annulled by the end of the day. Don't worry. I'll take care of it."

She was stunned. She could not say a word.

He opened the back door and held a hand to his forehead as if it was hurting. "Give me a few minutes; I'll… I'll walk down the block for a while and I'll be back to end the charade. I just need to calm down a bit. I just…" he looked at her one more time, shook his head, and went out. He carefully closed the door and left a bewildered Mary behind.