"Want to sit with me Olie? He reached out to her and to my surprise she instantly turned to him raising her hands for him to lift her, I watched as he tried and failed to pick her up leaving him looking frustrated. I lifted her to him and he smiled as she snuggled up to his chest. I couldn't help but smile at the sight which he noticed because he asked: Want to join us? He gave me a handsome smirk Oh he must have been a heart breaker before. I cleared my throat and shook my head no tilting my head down to look at Olivia who started playing with the ring on his finger.
A few moments later I looked up to see him still staring at me, making my cheeks turn red forcing me to look away. Just then a priest appeared and without even introducing himself he started with a very basic ceremony before announcing us man and wife "You may now kiss the bride". I hesitantly sat on the edge of the bed, allowing him to cup my cheek with the one hand that wasn't holding a now sleeping Olivia and he pulled me into a gentle kiss. As I moved away my face was even more red, he smiled and on closer inspection I could see the varying shades of green in his bright eyes, no matter how bad his illness was, it couldn't steel his light or his warmth.
In barely above a whisper, he said: You look beautiful by the way. I gave him a grateful smile Oh I'm fucked and thankfully Julia interrupted us allowing me to lean away from the warmth of his hand: Okay so Lizzie, I have a nurse that will take Olivia to her crib since she's clearly exhausted. As I went to argue she added: She will be cared for but just to put your mind at ease. She walked to the TV across the room and turned it on, changing the channel till a large nursery appeared on the screen, the nurse walked in and took Olivia carefully from Daniels arms and brought her to the nursery as I watched the screen for a few minutes to make sure she was okay.
Julia cleared her throat to get my attention and said: Well, I'm going to leave you two to become better acquainted. She left the room before I could say anything. I was still sitting at the edge of the bed looking down, as I studied the pattern of the comforter to keep from looking at him. Daniel reached over taking my hand in his, I let out a breath I had unknowingly been holding and inhaled sharply at the sheer comfort his hand brought me. I don't know what I expected but it wasn't this, he's sweet, charming and handsome, if he wasn't dying Id actually want to give into how good his hand feels on mine.
"So, what exactly made you agree to marry me?" My brows knitted together: You don't know? He shook his head and raised his brows as he waited for me to explain: Well… Olivia has Leukemia and I can't afford the treatment for her. Julia agreed to pay for her treatment and then some if I agreed to marry you.
He pulled his hand away from me and his face became stern and he sighed saying: Of course she did! He looked back up to me and continued: I will pay for her treatment regardless… and I'll stop Julia from turning in the marriage certificate so it isn't legally binding. Your free to go!
He reached to a table for his phone and opened the contacts, I could see him tap Julia's number and without even thinking I reached for his hand, our eyes met as I pulled the phone from his hands gently. I went to speak but could barely get the words out: I… I'd like to stay, if that's okay with you? I don't know why I did it but something told me to stay, my parents always said "Trust your gut" and my gut instinct was telling me I needed be here.
"Why?" his face was expressionless, but I could tell he was hurt. It was obvious that no woman would choose to marry him for love when they had never even met him. However, most women would say yes just for the money in which case they would be happy to marry him but it was clear to me now that he didn't have a clue where Julia had been looking for his prospects, he didn't think his step mother would resort to leveraging a little girls life to force someone to marry him.
I set his phone back on the side table and took his hand once more before replying: Well, for one I happen to believe in the sanctity of marriage, I made a commitment to you "Till death shall we part" I intend to keep my commitment. For two… I hesitated to continue because admitting the truth to a total stranger was somewhat daunting and made me feel vulnerable, but I chose to continue anyways: For two, something tells me you are… just as lonely as I am, and I am quite lonely. For three, Olivia clearly likes you already. I smiled and felt his grip tighten on my hand slightly as he smiled and nodded without saying anything.
We sat for a few hours talking about ourselves, our likes and dislikes and getting to know one another. I told him the truth about Olivia, about my parents accident, the struggle I went through getting custody of her and the struggles we now faced with her health, I cried at the thought of losing her and he pulled me into his chest to let me cry. He told me about his mother leaving when he was young, his father passing away from the same illness he now faced.
It was strange to have only met a few hours prior and yet it felt like we had known each other for years and were catching up, I felt like I could tell him anything and I could be myself and he wouldn't judge me. By the time the nurse came in to give him his medicine my head was resting on his arm facing him, we were truly enjoying each others company and the friendship we were forming.