Sandi Lynn - When I Lie With You

Tears sprung to her eyes. “Ian,” she whispered.

“Let me finish, sweetheart.”

I got down on one knee and pulled a small red velvet box from my pocket. “You’re the reason I breathe every day and I love you more than anything in the entire world, and I want to spend the rest of my life loving you and taking care of you and our children. I need you by my side. Will you do me the honor, Miss Sinclair, and marry me?”

Rory

My heart was beating at the speed of light and tears started streaming down my face. Ian lifted the top of the box, and inside sat the most beautiful princess-cut diamond I’d ever seen in my life. The way it sparkled was incredible. I let go of his hand and placed mine over my mouth. I was shocked because I didn’t expect it at all.

“YES! Of course I’ll marry you!” I smiled and cried at the same time.

Ian pulled the ring from the box and placed it on my finger. He then brought my hand to his lips and softly kissed my ring.

“You’ve made me the happiest man alive, Rory.” He smiled as he hugged me.

“And you’ve made me the happiest woman alive, Ian. Oh my God, I can’t believe this.”

“Believe it, sweetheart, because it’s real and you’re going to become Mrs. Ian Braxton.”

“I love you so much,” I said as we kissed.

I couldn’t stop looking at my ring. It was stunning and elegant. Ian did the best job picking it out.

“You had this all planned out, didn’t you?”

“I sure did and I have another surprise for you, sweetheart.”

I didn’t know if I could handle another surprise. I was already on Cloud Nine.

“I professed my love for you in front of this beautiful tower once before, and now I asked you to marry me in front of this tower. Tomorrow at noon, you and I will be getting married and becoming one in front of the Eiffel Tower.” He smiled.

“What? Tomorrow? Are you serious, Ian?”

“Yes, sweetheart. I have everything arranged. Tomorrow at this time, you will be Mrs. Ian Braxton.”

“Oh my God, there’s so much to do. How did you—”

“Shh, I’ve taken care of everything. Adalynn and Daniel are already here in Paris and they’re going to be our witnesses.”

“But you said you had a meeting here in Paris.”

“I do, and that meeting is with you and our nuptials.” He smiled. “I had some wedding dresses sent over to Adalynn’s place and they’re there waiting for you to pick one that you want to wear. So, I think we should head over there so you can see them.”

I couldn’t stop smiling. I was in awe of this man and how much he’d changed since the first day I met him. We climbed into the limo and headed to Adalynn’s apartment. As soon as she saw the limo pull up, she ran to the door and hugged me, but then she pulled back.

“You said yes, right?” she asked.

“Of course I did.” I smiled as I showed her my ring.

Ian and I followed her inside and Ian stayed with Daniel while I went to Adalynn’s bedroom. “Tell me he said the most romantic things to you.”

“He did. He literally took my breath away and I’ll never forget this night. I can’t believe he arranged for us to get married tomorrow. That’s the most romantic thing in the world.”

“Can I be honest with you? I didn’t know he had it in him and I know he was worried you were going to say no,” Adalynn said. “Oh, and by the way, I know nothing about the wedding. The only thing he told me was the he needed Daniel and me here to be your witnesses and he was having dresses sent over. Speaking of which, let me show you these beauties.”

She opened her spare closet and it was filled with beautiful white wedding dresses. I felt like I was at the bridal store. I walked over and started to look at each dress.

“This is going to be too hard. I think I love them all,” I said.

“Here, let’s pull one out at a time,” Adalynn said as she stood next to me and pulled the first dress out.

After trying on the first four dresses, and loving each one, it was the fifth dress that made me feel incredible the moment I put it on.

“Oh, Rory. You look like a total princess in that dress. It’s gorgeous on you.”

I looked at myself in the mirror and stared at the white princess ball gown wedding dress with the sweetheart neck line. Even being pregnant with twins, this dress made me feel as if I was the most beautiful woman ever to wear it.

“This is the one, Adalynn.” I smiled.

“Beautiful choice, Rory. Here’s the veil they sent with it. It would look perfect with your hair up in curls.”

“What are you wearing?” I asked her.

“I’ll show you. It’s stunning. Ian picked it out and said it would be perfect for me and he was right.”

She showed me an empire waist, princess line, strapless dress in a light pink. She was right, it was perfect. We walked out into the living room and Ian smiled at me. I sat down on his lap and put my arms around his neck.

“Did you pick a dress?” he asked.

“Yes and I can’t wait for you to see it.”

“Tomorrow, sweetheart,” he said as he kissed me.

Something dawned on me. “Ian, I don’t have a ring for you,” I said with worry.

He laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. When I picked yours, I also picked my three favorite rings and someone from the jewelry store will be by tomorrow morning for you to pick which one you like the best.”

I hugged him and buried my face in his neck. “You’ve thought of everything. I love you.”

“I love you more, sweetheart.”

“Okay, you two, time to say goodbye to each other,” Adalynn said.

“What?” I asked in confusion as I looked at Ian.

“You’re going to stay with Adalynn and Daniel tonight because it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding and I don’t want any bad luck.”

“That’s not true and I know for a fact you don’t believe that,” I said.

“Listen, sweetheart. I don’t want to be away from you and the babies any more than you do. There will be many people here tomorrow to help you get ready. So, I’m going to go back to the hotel and go to bed, while you’re here with Adalynn and Daniel.”

I pushed out my bottom lip and gave Ian my sad eyes. “I’ll miss you too much.”

“I’ll tell you what. I’ll stay here until you fall asleep. Okay?” he asked as he tapped the end of my nose.

“Okay. I’d like that. I didn’t bring any of my things.”

“I packed you an overnight bag and had it sent over while you were asleep,” Ian said.

This man, my fiancé, my future husband, and my best friend, formulated a plan and executed it with perfection. He was my hero and he’d also be the hero of his daughters. I climbed into the bed I slept in when I stayed here the first time and Ian climbed in next to me. He put his arms around me, kissed me, and softly rubbed my tummy as I fell asleep.

Ian & Rory

It felt like the longest night of my life. I couldn’t sleep a wink because I couldn’t wait to make Rory my wife. After tossing and turning, I finally got up and poured a few shots of whiskey. Whiskey always helped me sleep. I felt like I’d only been sleeping a couple of hours before the alarm went off. I got up, showered, made some coffee, and sat down at the table with my phone.

“Good morning, my future wife. I hope you slept well.”

“Good morning, my future husband. I didn’t. I hope you did.”

“I didn’t either. Too excited about today.”

“Me too. I love you, and I can’t wait to marry you.”

“I love you more, sweetheart, and I can’t wait either.”

“Morning, Ian, Adalynn here. I have to take your bride’s phone away because it’s time for her makeup. She’ll see you in a few hours. Love you!”

I rolled my eyes and chuckled at the same time. There was a knock at the door and it was Daniel. The man from the tuxedo shop was going to be here shortly with our tuxes.

“Good morning, Daniel.”

“Are you nervous yet?” he asked.

“Nah. I’m fine. Cool as a cucumber.” I smiled.

“Good. It’s craziness over at the apartment. People were all over the place.”

“Did Rory and Adalynn’s flowers arrive?” I asked.

“Yes, and I must say, they’re exquisite. Rory burst into tears when she saw her bouquet. I can’t believe how fast you pulled this off. You’ve outdone yourself and I can’t wait to see the expression on Rory’s face when she sees the other surprise you have for her.”

“I can’t either. She’s going to be so happy.”

We put on our tuxedos and it was time to head to the Eiffel Tower. When we arrived, everything was set up perfectly in the park that surrounded the tower and the minister had already arrived. I walked around and said hello to the guests that attended the wedding and then took my place where the beautiful floral archway stood. No expense was spared to make this wedding memorable for Rory.

Rory

“I’m so nervous,” I said to Adalynn in the limo.

“Don’t be. I can’t wait until Ian sees you. His cock is going to go straight up and he won’t be able to control it.” She smiled.

I let out a laugh and she winked at me. “See, did that help you relax?”

We arrived around the corner of the tower and the limo driver told us that he was told to drop us off there. Suddenly, the door opened and a hand reached in and helped me out.

“Andre!” I squealed.

“Look at my beautiful American bride. You are gorgeous, Rory.”

“I tried to call you last night, but you didn’t answer.”

“I was afraid if I spoke to you that I’d ruin the surprise. This is where I begin to walk you down the aisle.”

Music began to play and Andre told Adalynn to start walking along the red carpet. “I can’t believe this,” I said to Andre.

“Believe it because it’s real and it’s happening. You are a very lucky woman to be marrying Ian. He loves you more than life and those babies too. He told me so.”

I kissed him on the cheek and followed Adalynn a few feet behind. Once we reached the entrance, I gasped at the scene before me. Tears started to fill my eyes when I saw Jimmy, Rosie, Richard, Mandy, Veronica, and Connor and Ellery standing by the white chairs that were decorated with flowers.

“You can’t cry, Rory. Your makeup, remember your makeup,” Andre said.

He was right and I looked up at the beautiful sunny sky to stop the tears from falling. As I looked straight ahead down the aisle, I saw my future husband standing there with his hands crossed and a big smile on his face. My heart was racing with excitement. When we finally reached where Ian was standing, he held out his hand and Andre placed mine in his. He kissed me on the cheek and patted Ian on the shoulder. The minister spoke a few words and then told us it was time to say our wedding vows. I looked at Ian and bit down on my bottom lip because I forgot about vows and I didn’t prepare anything. He looked at me and smiled.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. I didn’t prepare because I’m just going to say what’s in my heart.”

“I love you,” I mouthed as he took my hands.

“Rory, these are my vows to you. I will love you and cherish you forever. You’re the light in my day and the stars in my night. You’ve held me up during the most difficult times and you’ve been my rock. I will forever be faithful to you and I will honor you for the rest of my life. You have my word, my promise, and my love forever and always. I will be there for you in sickness and in health until death do us part. You’re the sun in my rain and the rainbow that shines after. My love for you is eternal and nothing will ever change that. With this ring, I thee wed.”

I tried so hard to hold it together, but I couldn’t. I loved him so much and the tears had to fall. He took his thumb and gently wiped them away. “Ian, these are my vows to you. You showed me a world that I had only ever dreamed of. You saved my life and you saved me. You’re my rock and solid ground. You have filled my heart and my world with love and I’m going to spend the rest of my life thanking you. You are mine for eternity and I will love and cherish you forever. I will be there for you in sickness and in health and through the good and the bad until death do us part. I also promise to make sure you have blueberry muffins every day. With this ring, I thee wed.”

Ian let out a light laugh and smiled at me as I slipped the ring on his finger. “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your beautiful bride.”