Winston jerks and stiffens as he explodes inside me. His body presses me deeper into the mattress, his face buried in my neck, his skin sleek with sweat.

My body feels alive underneath his, flooded with heat and ecstasy beneath the expensive sheets.

“I knew I couldn’t live without this.” He kisses me on the lips. “I had to have you for life.”

I giggle. “I’m glad you asked.”

He holds me for a long time afterward. I’ve always craved this, always wanted him to hold me a little longer, to ask me to stay. Now here we are.

He finally rolls off me with a satisfied sigh and kisses my arm. My skin is still sensitive to his touch.

Moments later, he falls asleep next to me for the first time, still naked. Before he proposed, he never did this. As soon as sex was over, he got dressed.

In the dim light I take another glance at my engagement ring and something shifts inside of me. A tiny shift with a big impact. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I’m starting to question my decision.

I’ve been on a rush the entire day, gazing at my ring, replaying the scene that had happened in his office when he first fired me then proposed. Not once did I doubt I made the right decision. Until now, when the rush is wearing off and my feet are finding solid ground.

Marriage is a big deal. Shouldn’t I have given it more thought before saying yes? It had felt so right in the moment, but what if it doesn’t work out? My heart tells me we’re perfect for each other, but what if perfect is an illusion? What if fairy tales don’t exist?

I lower my hand next to me and breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth as I do during yoga. The smell of white roses is suddenly overwhelming.

He went all out. When I arrived at his place, I found every corner of his penthouse decorated with white blooms and candles. The color matches most of the furnishings in his home.

My heart is thudding as I slide one leg out of bed, followed by the other. The satin sheets sigh against my skin with each movement.

I get to my feet, careful not to wake him, and tiptoe to the marble bathroom, which is also decorated in various shades of white as the rest of the house.

The floor is cool under my feet, but it fails to cool my racing thoughts. I move to the lit up mirror and look into my green eyes, which are stark against my tanned skin.

Is this what you really want, Jenna?

The whispers of the little voice inside my head are getting louder and now that the world is quiet, I’m finding it hard to shut it off.

I know why I’m having doubts and it has nothing to do with my feelings for him, which are so intense they make my heart full to bursting. There’s only one problem. We haven’t had a real relationship. We jumped from sex straight to wanting to get married. Together we only experienced the thrilling side of life. Not one argument, not one real life issue discussed. It terrifies me to think that one day when real life problems show up, they could break us. Everything is all bright now, but what would our relationship look like when the sky becomes cloudy?

My hands clutch the edge of the sink, my heart hammering inside my chest. How could I have been so impulsive? Did I do the right thing walking away from a job because of a man?

Earlier during dinner prepared by Winston’s personal chef, I’d brought up the topic of looking for another job. He told me not to stress myself, said I don’t actually need a job because he’ll take care of me. The response had nagged me a little, but I ignored the feeling. I didn’t bother to pursue the topic.

The truth is, I’d never allow myself to be fully dependent on a man, even one worth billions. I cherish my freedom too much. I came to New York not to find a job, but to build a career. Now here I am giving it all up for a man. What would my family think? They would be shocked that after six months of dating someone, I’m already on my way to the altar.

As I stand in front of the mirror, taking in my naked body, I admit to myself that I’m afraid. I’m afraid that all this could suddenly go south. I’m afraid that one day I’ll wake up from this dream to find that our reality is not as beautiful as I thought it would be.

I look into my eyes again, but my body jerks when I catch sight of Winston’s eyes. He’s standing in the doorway, well-defined arms crossed as he leans against the doorframe, a quiet smirk on his face.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

I force my heart to calm down and turn to face him. “Winston? Are you sure this is what you want?”

He walks into the bathroom and stands opposite me, eyebrows drawn. “What I want? What do you mean?” He tucks a curly strand of my coal black hair behind my ear.

“I mean, do you really want me...us? Forever?”

“Of course it’s you I want. I wouldn’t have asked you to marry me if I wasn’t sure. I never make decisions I’m not sure about. That trait got me far in business.”

“But this is not business, Winston. This is personal.”

“Believe me, Jenna, you are my right choice. I want you for the rest of my life.”

“But we didn’t really have a proper relationship. We hardly went out on dates. We never had meaningful conversations.”

His finger traces the length of my jaw to my chin. “We’ve had plenty of conversations between the sheets.”

I purse my lips. My cheeks blush when I recall all the times we made love in random places. “Come on, you know what I mean. We’ve been together for six months and we only had sex. Not once were we together without ending up between the sheets. We didn’t really get to know each other.”

“We have the rest of our lives to do that.”

“But—”

“No buts.” He kisses the tip of my nose. “There are couples who date for years, then they get married and it doesn’t work out. Some even divorce soon after exchanging vows. What does that tell you?”

I shrug. “You’re right. It’s wrong to judge the quality of a relationship by the length of time a couple has been dating.”

“Exactly.” He winks and places both hands on my shoulders. Before I can say another word, he spins me around to face the mirror again, positioning himself behind me. I gasp when one of his hands cups my vagina, while the other guides his dick into me. I bite into my lower lip and lean forward, making it easy for him to enter.

I ignore the voice at the back of my mind warning me that this is exactly the problem. We can never carry out a conversation for long before falling into each other’s arms. But I can’t stop myself now. My body is already reacting to his touch.

I reach behind me, urging him to slide in deeper. He gives me what I want without holding back.

“How much do you want it?” he asks. “How much do you want me?”

“You know how much I want you.” My voice comes out in quick gasps.

“I want to hear your words, baby.” He gives me one deep thrust and stills. “Tell me.”

“I want you so bad,” I breathe, my hands tight around the sink, my feet on tiptoes so I can better reach him.

“That’s my girl...my fiancée.” He gives me a slap on my butt cheek and picks up the pace.

The moment lasts only a few minutes and at the end of it, we’re both panting, laughing, and rolling around on the bathroom floor. I was being silly worrying about making the wrong decision. What we have is what many people search for their entire lives. It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been together. Every time Winston touches me he lights a fire underneath my skin. He has to be it for me.

Shortly before 1:00 a.m., he ushers me downstairs to feed me ice cream in the spacious kitchen.

“Why don’t we enjoy these in the bedroom?” He winks.

“Sounds like a plan.”

He picks up the ice cream bowls and we return to the bedroom, where he lights the glass fireplace and feeds me the cold, sweet dessert in bed. The atmosphere is so romantic. With so many windows, it feels as though we’re sleeping outside.

With each breath, I find myself calming down, feeling more sure about our decision to get married.

We barely speak, but the exchanged glances hold so much more meaning than words ever could.

“Tell me you’re happy,” he whispers. “Tell me you’re happy with me.”

In this moment, right now, next to him, inside our little bubble, I think I am. “I am happy,” I say, even though I don’t really know what happiness is.

“That’s the most important thing. Never try to sabotage your own happiness. Some people never get happy because they spend their lives questioning whether it’s too good to be true. What we have is not too good to be true.” He puts down his bowl and turns me to face him. “When you look into my eyes, what do you see?”

“Darkness.” I giggle like a little girl. His eyes are so dark they’re almost black. They give him an air of mystery.

“What else do you see?”

“My face.”

“That’s the right answer. You see yourself reflected in my eyes. You’re the only woman I want to be looking at.” He places my hand on his heart. “I love you, Jenna. I can’t get enough of you. I want all of you, every part of you. I’ll take such great care of you in every way.”

“I know you will.” I toy with a lock of my hair. “But I will find a job. I know you said I shouldn’t find another job because you’ll take care of me, but I need to work.”

He pulls away ever so slightly, but I notice. “I don’t understand why you would do that to yourself. We don’t need the money.”

“I know, but it’s not only for the money. I actually enjoy working.” I can imagine work would be even more satisfying when there’s no pressure to earn a living.

His eyes seem to have darkened even more, his lips forming a thin line. “Is that what you really want?” He sighs. “Fine. I understand. I respect that. Let me know when you’re ready to go job hunting and I’ll make a few calls.”

“That’s not necessary.” I square my shoulders. “I’ll find something on my own.” This is the most meaningful conversation we’ve ever had. But I don’t understand why I’m so relieved. I shouldn’t need his permission to work.

“I want you to be happy. If slaving away in an office is your idea of happiness, then I’m all for it and will support you one hundred percent. But when you come home, you are all mine.”

“I really do love you.” I place my hands on both sides of his face and beam at him. “How did I get so lucky?”

“I’m the lucky one.” He lays his hands on top of mine. “I’m about to marry one of the most beautiful women in the world.”

“I find that hard to believe.” I laugh. “You dated gorgeous models and celebrities. I’m only a small town girl.”

“You’re more beautiful than all of them combined. You’re a real natural beauty.”

“Well, I’m honored to hear that, Mr. Slade.”

“It’s the truth.” He kisses my cheek. “Now let’s get some sleep. It’s late.”

When I close my eyes, I dream of us many years from now, sitting on the beach with our kids running around us. This real life fairy tale doesn’t end at midnight.