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them sign the two copies and then
notarized them.
    A few minutes later, they had the license and
the agreement in hand and headed down the hall to see Justice
Turly. The door was open. He stood to greet them. White hair was
evidence of his age and of his life experience. A couple of stray
clerks had been rounded up to act as witnesses. The women stood at
the side of his desk.
    He grinned as he shook Zack’s hand. “So she
had to knock you around to get you to propose, did she?”
    Zack caught Sondra’s eyes and flashed one of
his half smiles. “Yep. That’s exactly how it happened.”
    Sondra was too nervous to laugh. She wasn’t
sure if Justice Turly felt the deception in their marriage. She was
sure he’d met with other nervous couples before, but she doubted if
he’d ever officiated over what was meant to be a very temporary
arrangement.
    She couldn’t concentrate on Justice Turly’s
discussion about the importance of family and keeping each other’s
interest as their primary focus. Their arrangement was so far from
that ideal Sondra had to bite back hysterical laughter. By the time
he had finished his speech, she was on the verge of tears. She was
an emotional mess. And she wasn’t even pregnant yet.
    Zack seemed to sense her emotional upheaval
and kept her hand gently cupped in his. As the ceremony commenced,
Sondra couldn’t stop the tears from flowing over.
    Zack reached up to gently gather the first
couple of tears off her cheek with his thumb and then rescued her
with some tissues from the box handy on the Justice’s desk.
    After the ceremony was over and the Justice
said they could kiss, Zack bent down and offered a whisper of a
kiss that barely touched her lips. His sweet tenderness nearly had
her unloading another barrel of tears. Instead, she sent a watery
smile in the direction of Justice Turly. They had already signed
the necessary paperwork.
    Sondra asked one of the clerks to take a
couple of pictures with the Justice and then some with just her and
Zack.
    After the photography session, Sondra asked
if the clerks wanted to participate in a bouquet-tossing ceremony.
They giggled and gathered a few other single employees. Sondra
hadn’t inspected the group before she tossed the bouquet behind
her. Zack was handling the video portion during the event. To her
delight, Livvy caught the bouquet. Her bubbly personality had
helped Sondra through a rough spot. She hoped Livvy would have more
luck in love than she had.
    Zack hadn’t even commented about her desire
for pictures. She wondered how he was feeling about the whole
event. She couldn’t read his expression.
    She hadn’t known what to expect during the
ceremony. This heavy weight like she was carrying the world on her
shoulders wasn’t something she planned on. She wondered if it had
something to do with the fact their marriage was a sham. She
shuddered. Perjury was a crime. She never pictured herself on the
lying end of a legal document, but didn’t they both have good
reasons for this temporary arrangement?
    * * *
    They stopped at a quaint restaurant not too
far from the courthouse to enjoy their wedding luncheon. Sondra
tried in vain to block out the thought her family should be there
celebrating with her. She swished her food around the plate and
tried to eat.
    After Zack finished, he noticed her full
plate. “Aren’t you hungry?”
    She could only shake her head. He narrowed
his eyes thoughtfully but didn’t comment. She appreciated his
silence. Any word might have brought out another flood, and she
already felt humiliated. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d
cried, and it seemed to be all she was doing this weekend. You’d
think I was already pregnant.
    He interrupted her thoughts. “If you don’t
mind, I’d like to see my dad, but we have a stop to make
first.”
    Sondra nodded. She didn’t trust her
voice.
    When they parked in front of a well-known
jewelry store, she couldn’t remain silent. “No. I won’t let