Page 43 of Embraced in Ink

“I thought it would be awkward and weird.”

“We’re always awkward and weird. That’s us.”

“But I don’t want things to change.” She closed her eyes. “That was stupid.” She opened her eyes again. “I don’t wantusto change. Or at least alter the fabric of where we started.”

“Then let’s not have that happen.”

“Okay.” He reached out and gripped her hand, then ran his thumb over hers. “Let’s start with twenty questions. Or a few questions,” he amended.

“What do you mean?”

“Off the top of your head, what are important things to know for someone going into a marriage. Let’s start with that. Because we already know everything else about each other. We know our favorite colors, we know how we sleep, we know what our first cars were, our first crushes. We know our first boyfriends and girlfriends. We know all of that. Because we’ve lived it together. So, let’s go into what we want. What do we see our path becoming?”

“That’s a really good idea. I feel like I should be taking notes.”

He squeezed her hand, and she let out a little sigh. She loved when he did that. “We don’t need a notebook. Although, I’m sure you’re going to want to write it down later.”

“You do know me.”

“Okay, so, our future. You and me. What do you want to know?”

“Are you okay if I don’t take your last name?” She asked the first thing that came to her mind. She had no idea why that was it, but there it was.

Marcus nodded. “Professionally, you are Bristol Montgomery. And I know you and your family love your name like a clan. You’re even tattooed with it.”

“With the Montgomery iris, not the name itself. You were there when I got it.”

“I remember. On your hip. Right below where your panties usually lay.” His eyes darkened, and she swallowed hard.

“You know, once we’re married, you should get it, too. Everyone that moves into the family gets it.”

“Like a cult.”

“It’s not a cult.”

“Well, I think you need to call your dad because you’re in a cult.”

“You listened to like three episodes of that podcast, and you make more jokes about it than I do.”

He shrugged.

“Pretty much. Okay, so I don’t need you to take my name. Unless you want to legally, instead of professionally. Or, you could even hyphenate it. Whatever you want to do. Because it’s not like ownership. You’re still going to be the same you, and I’m going to be the same me, and then we’re going to figure out what we are together.”

“Right. I know that I can’t change it for work. It would be like a pen name at that point if I were an author like Liam.”

“That’s true.”

“And Arden and Holland and even Lincoln are all changing their names. I don’t know.”

“I know one of your cousin’s husbands changed his name to Montgomery for his wife, but I’m not going to do that,” Marcus said, laughing.

“Because your mother would hurt me if I tried to get you to do that. No, maybe I’ll hyphenate it.”

“Maybe I will, too,” Marcus said, and she grinned.

“Really?”

“If we have kids, what name would you want them to have? If they have the hyphen, it might be easier if I do, too.”