The courthouse is an enormous, cement building with huge glass facades and steps all around. When I look up at it, I’m hit by the reality of what Adam and I have done. The edifice emanates authority and officiality. We’ve undertaken a legal marriage. Now we must go through the proper bureaucratic systems to make it go away.

Adam doesn’t seem as daunted as I feel. He strides straight toward the steps and bounces up them, turning back once he reaches the top to wait for me. I follow him slowly. He holds out his hand to me, but I don’t take it.

Instead, I offer an apologetic smile. “It’s not going to look good when we ask for the annulment.”

He withdraws his hand. “You’re right.”

We stoically walk into the building side-by-side. My arms are folded across my chest, and Adam’s hands are in his pockets. His bold, confident footsteps echo around the large reception area as we enter. We have an appointment to meet with a legal adviser to get the ball rolling.

The receptionist puts out a call, and moments later our advisor appears. She’s an immaculately dressed woman wearing a tight black pencil skirt and tailored jacket. Her dark hair is pulled back into a tight bun on the back of her head. Her makeup is flawless. She carries a designer-looking soft leather satchel.

“Mr. and Mrs. Taylor?”

Adam holds out his hand. “That’s us.”

The adviser shakes it briskly. “I’m Natalie Reynolds. Please come with me.”

I feel more intimidated with each step I take through the grand courthouse. Everyone seems to be on red alert. There are people weeping, people raising their voices, and others who sit on the benches leaning against the walls with distant, broken looks on their faces.

Natalie leads us down a long hall to a private room. It has a long, oak table surrounded by a dozen high-backed chairs. The windows overlook the street outside. It’s stuffy in here, and the standing fan in the corner only seems to push the hot air around. I pull my hair up into a pony and fix it in place with a tie.

Adam and I take seats next to each another on one side of the table. Natalie sits opposite us. She opens her satchel and pulls out a notepad and pen. She holds the pen poised over the paper before she lifts her gaze to us.

“Let’s start at the beginning,” she says. “Tell me everything. How did you meet? How long have you known each other? What were the circumstances behind the marriage?”

I look across at Adam to see if he’s as rattled as I am. Am I under interrogation? When I married him, I never thought about having to justify my actions to a sharp-eyed woman in a courthouse the next day. Thinking of how I could explain it to her, I feel like an idiot.

Luckily, Adam takes the lead in answering her questions.

“We met three weeks ago at Diamond Casino Hotel where I was staying on business and Laura was visiting on vacation. We got to know each other during the first week. I invited Laura to stay with me for the remainder of my stay.”

Natalie scribbles furiously.

Adam continues. “We got to know each other better, and before we knew it, it was our last night in Vegas. I guess the excitement got the better of us. We saw a chapel and decided to—”

“Engage in a legally binding marriage?” Natalie raises her eyebrows. Disapproval is plastered all over her face. She lets out a long breath and sits back in her chair. “You’re far from the first couple of tourists to treat the institution of marriage as a joke. It’s all fun and games until the morning. Tell me how much you’d had to drink at the time.”

Adam and I exchange glances, but I’m the one who replies. “Adam had a gin on the rocks. I had a gin and tonic.”

Natalie snaps her head up and fixes me with a withering glare. “And?”

“That’s it.”

She looks back down at her notes, tapping her pen against the edge of her bed. “Let me get this straight. After three weeks, when you’re practically completely sober, you decided to get married on a whim?”

Adam clears his throat awkwardly. “We got caught up in the moment.”

“Why do you think you’re eligible for an annulment?”

I look across at Adam like a deer in headlights. For the first time, he has a look of panic on his face. He leans forward slightly and swallows.

“We made a mistake.”

Natalie snaps her pad shut and starts to rise from her chair. “A mistake is not sufficient grounds for annulment. And even if it were, you’d have to be a resident in Nevada for six weeks before you could submit a complaint, which would not be approved.”

“Why not?” I sit up in my chair, looking up at Natalie desperately. “What counts?”

She pauses impatiently and lets out a frustrated huff. “Lack of parental consent for a minor. Lack of understanding or insanity. Fraud or deception. Incest. Bigamy. Neither of you are minors. I’m assuming you’re not siblings. And neither of you are already married. You’ve admitted you were both sober and consenting at the time. Two grown adults understand what getting married means. Unless he tricked you into marrying him, you haven’t got a leg to stand on.”

Adam’s chair topples as he shoots up out of his seat. “Are you’re telling us there’s nothing we can do?”

Natalie shakes her head. “Of course there’s something you can do. Get a divorce. I’ll let you see yourselves out. I have another appointment.”

Adam and I are left stunned.

“What a bitch!” I breathe out slowly. “She didn’t try to help us at all.”

“She probably sees this all the time. It’s Vegas.”

“Even so, what are we going to do?”

Adam shrugs. “I guess we’ll have to file for divorce.”

“What’s the process for that? How long will it take? How much will it cost?”

He closes his eyes and frowns as his body slumps against the table. “We’ll have to do our research.”

“So that’s it?” I lean on the table edge, folding my arms across my chest, and look down at the ground. “I’m flying back to Illinois today as a blushing bride?”

Adam looks up with a faint and weary smile. “Consider it the consequence of spontaneous living.”

I put my face in my hands. “Shit.”

He stands and comes to me, placing his hands on my upper arms and crouching slightly to catch my eye. “It’s going to be okay, Laura. We’ll get this sorted out.”

“I know, but it’s going to take months of communication and legal fees.”

“Don’t worry about the fees. I’ll take care of that.”

I let out a long breath. “What were we thinking?”

“We both wanted to break away from the routine and prove we can still live life to the fullest.” He sinks down onto the table beside me. “I know we’ve ended up in quite a mess, but it was some night, wasn’t it?”

I smile. “It was.”

He pats my knee. “I’ll sort everything out. Don’t worry.”

“Okay.” There’s nothing else I can say. We did something reckless and irresponsible, and now we must deal with the aftermath. “I guess we’d better head to the airport then.”

Adam pauses. I can see his mind whirring with thought. He tilts his head to one side and looks at me inquisitively. “How important is it you get back to work on Monday?”

“I’ve been away for a long time.”

“Your partner has kept the boat afloat without you, hasn’t she?”

“Well, sure, but I can’t stay away forever. Why? What are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking that I drive through Illinois on my way back to Michigan. You could come with me. Let’s extend our time together a little further. It’ll give us a chance to figure out a plan of action for the divorce thing.”

“How long will that take?”

Adam shrugs. “A month, at least. Maybe six weeks.”

“Six weeks?” I laugh. “No way. I can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

“I’ve got work and my mom. My apartment is sitting empty. I can’t be away for that long.”

My heart is saying contradictory things. I don’t want to walk away from Adam. I want more time with him. There’s a part of me, deep down, hoping that if we have a little more time, it might open the possibility of something real developing between us. I know I love him.

“I’m going to call Hannah,” I tell him. “I want to let her know I’m coming home.”

I leave the courthouse and stand on the steps outside. I pace around as I pull out my phone. I’m close to tears when she finally picks up. Her voice is full of delight when she hears my voice.

“Laura! What’s up? Is it about the Pickering order? You don’t have to worry. It’s already been processed. I got your email.”

“It’s not that,” I say. “I’m coming home today. Is the offer for a ride still on?”

“Already?” Hannah sounds surprised. “Wow, you’re right. I didn’t realize today is the day. Gosh, that went quick. You’re really coming home today?”

“Adam’s moving on.”

“That’s a shame. You sounded like you’ve been having the time of your life. I bet you’re devastated.”

“It’s worse than that, Hannah. I’ve done something stupid.”

I lower my voice as a middle-aged couple and their lawyer make their way up the steps a few feet away from me.

Hannah pauses. “Like what?”

“I married him.”

There’s a long pause on the end of the line, and then a nervous giggle. “You’re joking, right?”

“No. We went to a chapel last night. I don’t know what got into us. We were egging each other on. We thought it would be an adventure and that we’d have an amazing memory of our crazy night.”

“You’re definitely never going to forget it.”

I squeeze my eyes shut, and a couple of tears roll down my cheeks. “In the moment, I was on cloud nine. It was so unlike me. Now we’re at the courthouse. They told us there’s no way for us to get an annulment. Divorce is the only option.”

I try to hide around the edge of the building. I don’t want passersby to hear my conversation. I don’t know why I care about what they think, but everything sounds stupid when I say it out loud.

“What does Adam say?”

I lean back against the building, resting my head against the concrete and staring up at the blue sky.

“He’s being pretty nonchalant. He wants me to stay with him for the rest of his trip. He has to drive through Illinois on his way back to Michigan.”

“Do you want to?”

I put a hand to my head. “I don’t know.”

“What are you thinking?”

“I think I’ve fallen in love with an unavailable man.”

Another long pause. “He’s only unavailable because he’s your husband.”

I sniffle, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. “This was supposed to be a fun fling. Now I have to walk away from someone who’s made me feel truly happy. But it’s not really walking away, is it? We’re going to have to go through a whole divorce proceeding. I don’t think I can bear to have him in and out of my life.”

Hannah breathes softly down the line. “Love makes us do crazy things. Maybe you shouldn’t come home yet. Stay with him and see where a little more time takes you.”

“What if it takes us nowhere? Then I’m dragging out the inevitable.” I let out a groan. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Give yourself some time to figure it out. Stay with him longer.”

“What about work? What about my mom?”

“I’ll take care of both. Give yourself another few days, at least. If it’s working out, keep going. If you want to come back, I can pick you up from the airport anytime. Don’t leave with everything up in the air. You’ll only drive yourself crazy.”

“Do you really think I should stay with him for the rest of his trip?”

“Yes.”

I pace in agitation in a small circle. “I’ll give it a couple more days to figure out whether I want to stay or go. Adam and I really need to talk about this.”

“I think that’s a good idea. I’ll keep everything running here. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”