Ash’s sunglasses and baseball cap drew hardly a raised eyebrow with the midnight shopping crowd at Walmart. Skye bought the basics—an extra change of clothes, a sweater to layer, and added in a scarf and mittens to battle the harsh Upstate New York weather.

When Ash joined her with his nearly bare shopping basket, she turned him around with a shake of her head. “You’re going to need something more than a pair of gloves.” His leather jacket offered little protection against the freezing temperatures. “Go get a sweater and maybe a long-sleeved shirt. You’re going to freeze your ass off.”

Briefly, she considered sending him for a winter jacket, but she knew he’d resist. If he bought a hat, gloves, and a sweater, she’d be happy. It was important to pick the battles she knew she’d win.

His smile crinkled, and the fluorescent lights glittered in his eyes. “Bossy much?”

“No. Just realistic about the weather.” She shoved him back toward the men’s section, following him this time. After grabbing a long-sleeved shirt—he’d refused the turtlenecks she tried to shove in his basket—she was able to convince him to add a lightweight sweater to his collection.

They headed to the checkout counters, paying separately, and then called the limo.

After their essential shopping trip was completed—toothbrushes, shampoo, and deodorant purchased—the limo driver took them to their hotel where they checked in a little before one a.m.

The suite had a main sitting area and two separate bedrooms. While Ash deposited his shopping bags in the other room, Skye collapsed in bed, too tired and exhausted to brush her teeth. A picture window looked out into the inky-black sky. Niagara Falls roared, its awe-inspiring sound muffled by the glass.

Ash came to her a few minutes later, pulling back the covers and lying beside her. “Skye,” he whispered.

“Yes?”

“You asleep?”

She rolled over. “No.”

He brushed back the hair from her face and kissed her forehead. “You’re keeping me awake,” he teased.

Turning his back, he yanked the covers over his shoulder. When she tucked into him, he flipped over and tugged her into his arms, cuddling without demanding anything more.

She allowed her eyes to drift shut. Being held in a man’s arms, without the demand for sex, was an unfamiliar but welcome sensation. And, while his breathing turned soft and measured, she was left to wonder whether to remain in his embrace or scoot away.

In the end, she stayed where she was. Ash’s gentle hold made her feel safe.

With thoughts of him spinning in her head and his gentle snores whispering in her ears, Skye snuggled into his warmth.

When she woke, his side of the bed was empty. She pushed the hair back from her face and blinked at the strong morning light spilling in through the open curtains. Niagara’s roaring thrummed in the air, and she climbed out of bed to get her first glimpse of the falls.

Ice crystals coated the edges of the windows, and the plate glass rippled with age. Beyond the frosty glass, Niagara Falls carved out its signature horseshoe shape in a spectacle of water and ice.

The bedroom door was closed. Beyond it, the gentle strumming of a guitar melded with the low vocal melodies of the sexiest voice she had ever heard. The song had matured since the last time Ash sang it.

Replaying the last few notes, Ash changed the sound, deepening it with a quality she couldn’t describe. It tunneled directly into her heart. He picked up from the beginning, his voice carrying the soul of the song, painting a picture, complementing the vibrancy of the music his fingers picked out on the strings.

The song was about her. It was about him. It was about the insanity that was them. It was a song about love, but she couldn’t shake a feeling that there was more.

She grabbed her shopping bag full of clothing and toiletry items and headed to the bathroom. After a quick shower, she tossed on her new clothes—a pair of jeans, a turtleneck, and a cable sweater.

With a look in the mirror, she regretted not purchasing anything from the makeup aisle, but at midnight and after the emotional roller coaster of finding out Ash’s rock-star status and confessing the tiniest bit of her past, mascara and eyeliner had been the furthest things from her mind.

She dialed room service.

“Mrs. Willy, how may I help you?”

It took a moment to remember the alias Ash had used to book the room. He had called it his Free Willy card and had checked in under the pretense of them being newlyweds, saying it made more sense with their lack of luggage.

“I’d like to order room service.”

“Yes, ma’am, but your husband has already ordered. It should be arriving within the next fifteen minutes. Is there anything you would like to add?”

Her husband? She chewed on her lower lip, uneasy with the lie. “I’m sorry, but what did he ask for?”

The operator rattled off the standard breakfast fare and then added, “He didn’t request the champagne, but it comes with the honeymoon package. Would you like to add it to your order?”

“Yes, please.”

Normally, she would never consider drinking first thing in the morning. But today? She deserved an alcoholic splurge.

“What else comes with the honeymoon package?”

“A tour of the falls and the city.” There was a pause at the end of the line, and then the operator returned. “If you want, we can schedule your tour for later this morning?”

“That sounds perfect. Can you book us for eleven?”

Ash mentioned he’d never seen Niagara before. The tour would be a surprise she hoped he loved.

Another brief pause. “Yes, of course. We recommend rain gear for guests. You can purchase—”

“We’ll purchase whatever you recommend,” she cut the woman off in her eagerness to get off the phone. The music had stopped from the other side of the door. “Thank you.”

“Very well. Thank you for choosing—”

Skye hung up as Ash gently knocked.

“Skye?” His voice sounded hesitant. “You awake?”

“Come in.”

The door swung open. Damp hair curled around his ears and the nape of his neck. A puffy white towel was wrapped tightly around his hips. The firm six-pack begged her fingers to explore.

Skye forced her gaze upward and away from the temptation beneath his towel.

“Are you hungry?” He gave her a peck on the cheek.

“Famished.”

“I called room service. Breakfast will be here soon.” He rolled his shoulders and flexed his neck. The tattoo moved with him, nearly giving flight to the dragon eternally trapped on his skin. “I’ve been up for a couple of hours. Had to get that song out of my head and write it down.”

“Did you sleep at all?” She searched for signs of fatigue on his face.

He shrugged. “I got up around five, and I’ve been working with Bent and Bash.” His eyes widened with excitement. “They’re totally stoked.”

“Worked on it? How did you do that?”

His characteristic smirk perked up his face. “Modern video chat, babe. I heard the water running, so I took a shower in the other room.” He glanced around. “Where the fuck did I leave my clothes?”

“You left them in the other room, remember?”

“Why the hell did I do that?” He curled his upper lip. “Ah, I remember now.” His hand went to the towel. “My grand attempt to be a gentleman, but we know how that’s going to end.”

His fingers gripped the towel, and as he was about to reveal his nakedness, a knock sounded at the door to their suite.

“Go put your pants on, Casanova.”

His smile turned upside down. “Cockblocked by room service. Now, that’s a new low.”

“Sounds like your next big hit. Now, go get dressed. I have a surprise.”

He disappeared as she let in room service. A tall man in his late sixties wheeled in a tray covered with a silver dome. A bottle of champagne chilling in an ice bucket sat to the side. With a flourish, he revealed their morning repasts.

“Would you like me to open the champagne?”

“Yes, please.”

He pulled the bottle out of the ice and used a white linen napkin to wipe off the condensation. With a twist and a pop, he had the cork free.

“Congratulations on your wedding,” he said with a twinkle in his eye as he poured two glasses.

“Thank you.” She handed over a generous tip.

While Ash took his time in getting dressed, she took a sip from her glass and then another. She wandered over to the expanse of windows and stared at the spectacle of Niagara. Ice pillars had formed at the extreme edges of the cascade, but nothing could contain the fury of so much water.

Ash’s solid footfalls sounded behind her moments before he wrapped his arms around her waist. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Kind of takes your breath away.”

He nuzzled, kissed, and licked the hollow of her throat, making her squirm and nearly drop the champagne.

“It’s amazing.”

But he was the one who stole her breath with a nibble to her earlobe.

She giggled and brushed him away. “Stop that.”

Ash spun her around. He was dressed in a pair of denims, perched low over his hips, and a white T-shirt that strained across the muscles of his chest.

She poked him. “You’re going to need more than a T-shirt. It’s going to be cold at the falls.”

His brows crinkled. “I have no intention of leaving this room.” He reached for the edge of her shirt.

She batted his hand away and sidestepped him. “Our food is getting cold, and I booked a tour for eleven.” She tilted the glass to her lips. “This champagne is amazing, compliments of our nuptials.”

“Uh, yeah, sorry about that.”

She waved him off. “I’m not mad. In fact, I kind of think it’s funny.”

“You do?”

She poured herself another glass of bubbly and sat down at the table. “Definitely.”

The heavenly scent of pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, and sausages drifted up as she inhaled. “Oh, this smells wonderful.”

She took a gulp of her second glass, her nerves suddenly flaring with the thought of staying in the penthouse suite with nothing but a long day stretching out before them.

The honeymoon suite would tempt the most practically minded individual. With thoughts of Ash ravishing her body, she poured the rest of the champagne down her throat.

Grabbing a plate, she stacked two waffles and topped them with strawberries and cream and then refilled her glass.

She gestured to the champagne sitting in front of Ash. “Grab your plate and join me. We can talk about what we want to do after the tour.”

He sat and made his plate. Instead of taking the champagne, he poured a glass of orange juice.

As he dug into his food, his eyes kept darting to the bedroom, and a wistful expression filled his face. He said nothing more about staying in for the day, perhaps sensing she wasn’t ready for him to fulfill the promise he’d made the night before.

The words of his song rattled in her head. The chorus had caught her and wouldn’t let go.

Insanity,

It has to be.

You belong with me.

In a day and a half, she would return to her duties in the emergency department, and Ash’s music and fans would once again consume Blaze, his rock-star persona. She would fade from his life, a tiny blip of adventure, while he’d remain forever imprinted in her heart. The inevitability of their separate futures bore down upon them.

Her fingers clenched around the champagne flute, and she downed the amber liquid with another long swallow. She cut into her waffles as he moved eggs around on his plate. Already, the alcohol surged in her blood, warming her from the inside out and numbing her to the pain of their eventual separation.

Cold didn’t even begin to describe the Niagara Falls winter experience. Even with her heavy coat, scarves, mittens, the cheap poncho purchased from the tourist vendor, Ash’s arms wrapped firmly around her waist, and way too much alcohol floating in her veins, Skye was freezing. She couldn’t feel the tip of her nose, her butt, or her thighs.

She shivered against the arctic breeze blowing over the falls, but Ash didn’t seem affected. He held his phone out, snapping picture after picture, wearing his jacket and T-shirt.

“Can we go yet?” she asked for the fifth or maybe even tenth time. Although visiting the falls was her idea, she couldn’t wait to get back to the heated interior of the limo.

Ash pulled her back against his chest, but the warmth of his body failed to penetrate beneath all the layers of clothing separating them. Even his breath froze on her neck.

“You wanted to hunt waterfalls, babe. We’re at the mother of them all. Now, smile for another selfie.”

Her teeth chattered so hard that a smile was impossible.

He kissed her cheek, leaving a cold spot.

“I never asked to fly to the frigid north.”

The mists of the falls filled the air, carrying the damp and settling a chill deep into her bones, making her wonder if she had ever in her life been warm.

Ash’s low chuckle weakened her knees. “I checked the weather report. Those mountains are buried under almost two feet of snow. If we’d been there, we’d be out of power, out of food, and snowed in for a week. I call this a win. Hey, come on,” he said. “The group’s moving on without us.”

Their tour group consisted of them and an elderly couple, Ben and Edna, who were celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary.

The falls had frozen at the edges, forming massive ice pillars, but water still roared through the center, making it difficult to carry on a conversation. Mist coalesced into a thick fog, saturating their group in freezing rain.

“It’s fucking amazing,” Ash said. He hummed the first few verses of a new song, “Hunting Waterfalls.”

Ben wandered over. “Do you mind taking our picture?” He held his camera out to Ash, a smile lighting his cloudy eyes.

Edna held on to Ben’s arm for support. “Can you believe it?” she said. “Fifty years.”

“Congratulations,” Ash said. “That’s a long time to be married.”

Edna nodded. “We got married here.”

Ben sucked in his gut and straightened his shoulders. “We eloped,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. “Her father didn’t speak to us for years. Took us having a kid for him to—”

The flush that spread on Edna’s face moved down to her neck. “Oh, Ben.” She kissed his cheek.

Ash snapped a photo the moment Edna’s lips touched Ben’s cheek.

“Now, give her a kiss, Ben,” Ash encouraged. Then, he proceeded to ask questions about how they’d met while getting them to pose for more pictures. “So, was it love at first sight? My father says it was like that with my mom. I didn’t realize you could get married here. Isn’t there a waiting period?”

“No waiting,” Edna said. “That’s why we came.”

Ash framed the misty backdrop of the falls behind them.

Edna continued, “On the US side, you have to wait twenty-four hours, but in Canada, you can get married just like in Vegas.”

“We’re renewing our vows today,” Ben said, puffing his chest.

Ash handed them back their camera. “That’s awesome. Who’s with you to celebrate?”

Ben snorted. “Ha! The kids are working, and the grandkids are in college, busy with exams. It’s just the two of us.”

Skye’s brows pinched together. That seemed so sad.

“We were a little upset at first,” Edna said. “But then we thought, what better way to celebrate our fiftieth than the way it all began?”

Ben shook his head. “Not just us. Remember that couple who was just as crazy as we were?” He turned to Ash to explain, “They acted as our witnesses, and we did the same for them.”

Edna’s eyes misted over, and she wiped the corner with a handkerchief. “Don’t worry; it’s going to be perfect.”

Ash winked at Skye. “We can make your day perfect and be that couple for you. We’ll re-create history. It’s fate all over again.”

How could she say no? And, as far as her goal went for keeping them away from the hotel room, witnessing a wedding would satisfy the bill.

She directed her comment to Edna, “If you don’t mind a couple of strangers, we’d love to act as your witnesses.”

Edna’s eyes lit up. “Oh, Ben…”

Ben kissed his bride. Then, he stood and shook Ash’s hand. “It would be my honor.”

“Fine, it’s settled then,” Ash said. “Where’s the chapel?”

Ben rubbed a finger under his nose. “No chapel. We’re headed to Canada and City Hall.”

“Oh, Ben”—Edna patted Ben’s hand—“can we get some champagne?”

“I’ve got a better idea,” Ash said. “Edna, have you ever ridden in a limo?”

“A limo?” Edna looked to Ben.

Skye poked Ash. “Don’t you dare forget the champagne.”

While joining Ben and Edna on their adventure sounded fun, her champagne buzz from breakfast was wearing off.

Ash arranged for the limo to pick them up and had the first bottle of champagne flowing before they even moved. Ben and Edna had no problem with throwing back the fizzy liquid, and Skye found herself hard-pressed to keep up with their pace.

Ash popped the cork on a second bottle before they made it to the border. He didn’t drink though, digging around in the small fridge for some water.

Skye’s head thickened with the alcohol. It heated her body with wicked desires, and if Ben and Edna weren’t sitting in the limo with them, she would have jumped Ash, throwing their no-sex clause out the window.

His jeans needed to come off. Her fingers ached to stroke him. Her mouth watered to claim him. She needed to make his body explode with the pleasure she could not experience herself.

Instead, Ash refilled her champagne flute.

Edna’s hands flapped. “Oh, we’re almost there.” She grabbed Skye’s coat sleeve and pulled her toward the window. “See there? That’s the courthouse where Ben and I eloped. I’m so excited.”

Skye tilted the champagne flute to her lips and downed her drink in one swallow. Her lips still felt numb from the cold.

The limo came to a stop at the foot of the stairs, and the driver opened the door. Ash exited first and helped Skye out of the limo.

She wobbled a bit before finding her balance and wrapped her arms around Ash’s neck. “I want to lick you all over.”

He lifted her, steadying her on her feet. Desire burned in the depths of his voice as he cupped her ass and yanked her hips against the hard length of his arousal. “Stop teasing me, or I swear…”

Oh, how she wanted to test the limits of his restraint. “Or you’ll do what?” Her words slurred.

He laughed. “You’ve had a bit too much to drink, babe.”

Ash helped Edna out of the car.

Ben followed, camera in hand. “Do you mind taking pictures?” he asked. “I want something to show the kids and grandkids.”

Ash palmed the tiny camera. “Love to.”

Edna headed up the stairs. “Come on.” For a woman closing on seventy years, Edna had no problem with navigating the long flight of stairs. Once inside, she made a beeline for the Department of Vital Statistics, her stride purposeful and determined.

“Don’t you need an appointment?” Skye called out to Edna.

Ben eyed Skye, giving her a wary look, when she leaned on Ash to keep herself from tripping over her feet.

Edna shook her head. “Don’t need one. All you need is your passport and the patience to stand in line. You fill out the paperwork and pay the fee, and then a justice of the peace makes it official. Bingo. You’re married. Now, which office is it?” She separated from their little group to read the directional signs.

“Sounds painless,” Ash said, tugging Skye to his side.

She wasn’t sure if Ash wanted her close, or maybe he thought she might fall over. She had some concerns about that, too. The room seemed to be spinning.

Ben’s cheeks colored. “I want to say thanks, in case I forget later. It’s real nice of you to witness for us.” His eyes turned misty, and he lowered his voice. “Edna is a bit superstitious. She wanted to re-create the day exactly like it’d happened. You have no idea how much having you here means to her.”

“We’re honored to be a part of making this day extra special for you both.” Ash lifted the tiny camera. “And I’m going to get everything on film.”

Edna returned and yanked on Ben’s sleeve. “The city clerk’s office is this way.”

She urged their group down the hall and beyond a set of frosted glass doors. Inside, eager wedding hopefuls were queued up.

Ash tightened his grip around Skye’s waist. He whistled the tune to “Insanity” and then slipped into “Hunting Waterfalls.”

She jabbed him in the ribs, which seemed to be all the prompting he needed to sweep down and capture her mouth in a kiss.

“We’re standing in a wedding line, Skye.” His brows lifted as he tugged her close and kissed the top of her head. “Think about it.” He leaned down and sucked her earlobe into his mouth. “Maybe my next song should be ‘Going to the Chapel.’”