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When I got out of the bathtub, I finally felt clean enough to lay in my white sheets. Von had helped his mama with Ana, giving her directions to the hotel five minutes away. I took my time brushing my hair and changing into a nightgown Mariang had bought for me, and Von had laid out on the counter next to the sink. I caught occasional glimpses of Von’s toned silhouette through the shower curtain as I brushed my teeth, and he washed the horrible day off himself.
I poured myself another finger of Scotch, drinking quietly by myself at the kitchen table when Von came out in his boxer briefs, freshly shaved and smelling like the kind of man you want to see in nothing but his underwear. “Where’d you get the good stuff? I thought you only kept beer and vodka around the house.”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
He poured himself a glass and sat down across from me. “I heard from Ezra while you were in the bath. Ollie, Alton, Lynna, Danny and Mason are safe at the mansion. The council’s convening as soon as they sort out what’s what. Ezra’s going back down to Silo to help Kabayo sort out the damage. Apparently, there were limited casualties, however the councilmembers were all wounded, except for you, Kabayo and Mason, of course. It’s like Sama was sending a message.”
“Message received. I almost want to go to sleep without you just once so I can thrash him right good for everything.” I rubbed my forehead while Von stilled.
“If that’s your idea of a joke, you have a terrible sense of humor. You can never, never sleep without me as long as Sama’s alive. I mean it. He could put you in a coma, just like Allie. Once he has you, he’ll never let you go.”
I was quiet for a second as I let that thought settle over me. “For a second tonight, I thought Ezra might bleed out and die in my arms on the day of his daughter’s funeral. I’m just... I’m barely holding on anymore.” I finished my drink faster than my throat was comfortable with, but I managed to swallow the last mouthful with only a minor wince. I ran my hand across my chest bone, and noticed my pink X-marked scar on my forearm was glowing with a faint blue. “Something’s wrong with Kabayo. Not dire, but he’s real worked up. I can feel it.”
“What happened with Finn while I was gone?” He crossed his arms over his chest when I looked up at him, caught. “You think I didn’t notice part of your cleaning frenzy had something to do with him?”
I chose my words carefully, not ready to spend our only night we could actually sleep lost in a fight. “Finn’s not going to be an issue anymore. I think I made things clear enough.”
Von studied my face and nodded. “You know, that’s just evasive enough to work tonight. Well done. If you ever want me distracted so I can’t interrogate you, wear exactly that.”
“What, this?” I asked of the nightgown. It was white, with thin, silk straps. The gown was loose, but still showed a hint of my curves. It fell mid-thigh with a lacy ruffle on the hem and a small slit up the side. Mariang had bought it for me, knowing I’d never have the guts to go into a store and walk out with something like this.
“Like you don’t know you’re toying with me.”
“Hello, you picked it out from my drawer.”
“Yes, well, apparently, I love torturing myself.” Von finished his Scotch and set our glasses in the sink, sighing when I stood at his side and started washing them. I knew he wanted to go straight to bed, but I wouldn’t be able to rest if there were dirty dishes in the sink, growing whole planets of bacteria. “I think it’s time we get some sleep, darling.”
We went to the bedroom hand-in-hand, sliding into the covers and pulling them tight around us. Von slid my nightgown up to my waist in the dark, toying with the band on my underwear lazily. He kissed my lips just enough to make me swoon, but not nearly enough to sweep us both away. The blue and gold started to fall like pitter-patters of rain around us, and the bells tinkled a lovely tease of a song that muted out all other sounds. My legs fell open as Von moved atop me, deepening the kiss as he sucked on my tongue, his body moving like a slow-motion wave over me. I could see our park, but just when my feet were about to step down, the magical world faded.
Von rolled off of me and lay staring up at the ceiling, his hand on his chest. “I want to set a date for the wedding,” he said, catching me off-guard.
“Um, okay. I’m a little too tired to get out my schedule, but we can talk about it at least.”
“We should start thinking about what we want. I know there’s a fair amount of duty on our shoulders, but it can’t always be everyone else pulling our strings. We have to choose a few things and stick to it.”
I mulled this over, liking the logic that put the drama of Terraway on the back burner. “We haven’t actually talked about what kind of wedding we want. What are you thinking?”
Von laced his fingers through mine under the covers, and then dipped his toe under my calf to coax my leg to drape over his. His thumb lifted the edge of my nightgown and traced the inside of my thigh. He drew ticklish circles into my sensitive skin, scrambling my brains to where I would’ve said yes to whatever ridiculous kind of wedding he wanted. “I was thinking Fiji or someplace tropical for the honeymoon. I’m bored of Georgia. I want something new, something beautiful.”
“Works for me. Anywhere that’ll put a stamp on my passport, I’m cool with. What about the wedding itself? What kind of big day did you want?”
“Ah, now that’s your department. I’m all about the honeymoon. I’m seriously rethinking this whole virgin until you’re married thing. Were we set on that?”
“I think so.” I debated a few seconds, but decided our lives were too harrowing on a daily basis for me to enjoy something that was meant to be amazing and special. “I don’t have any wedding plans swimming around up in here.” I orbited my hand around my head like it was a globe. “I was kind of thinking about eloping.” I held up my hands to stave off any protests that might spill out. “Hear me out. Any kind of big deal thing means the council will have to be involved. You saw what happened when Sama knew they were assembling in Terraway. I don’t want Ezra to get shot in the back with an arrow on my wedding day.”
“Blood on a white dress would be agony to scrub out, sure.”
“When I think about marrying you, my imagination goes straight to our Brady Bunch life. I don’t think much about the actual ‘I do’s.”
Von spread my legs wider and tickled the inside of my thigh with the tips of his fingers as he mulled over my suggestion. “Can I wear a tuxedo? I look like a British spy in a tux.”
I grinned. “Sure. I’ll wear a white dress, if you want. Justice of the Peace on a Tuesday, and that’s that. Then we’re Mr. and Mrs. Vandershot.” My eyes widened as soon as the words escaped my lips. “Whoa. That was way serious.”
“First time it dawned on you we’re actually doing this?”
“I didn’t realize I was changing my name until I said it just now. October Grace Vandershot.” I shivered. “That’s freaky.”
“So you don’t want a big circus, and we can get married just us and our families?”
“Unless you hate the idea, yeah.”
“If I wasn’t about to pass out from exhaustion, I’d tear your clothes off and make love to you right now. Perfect woman, you are. Deal. Let me break it to Mum, though. She had her heart set on a grand affair.”
Von had teased the inside of my thigh too much for his own good. I had chills and desires and all kinds of too much swirling through my body. My hips started to move of their own accord as I bit down on my lower lip. “Let’s get married sooner rather than later. I want to be your wife already.”