by Smoke, Lucy
“Promise?” he whispered against my mouth.
I nodded, sliding my tongue out and letting it twine with his as he fumbled for the button of his jeans. Undoing the clasp and unzipping in record time, I groaned as Taylor rose up once more, his hands moving to grasp under my thighs as he pushed his cock towards the entrance of my pussy.
“I promise,” I gasped out as he thrust inside. “Fuck...I promise…”
“Good,” was all I heard as a reply before all of my senses dissolved into pure lust and adrenaline as he pumped into me, reaching between us and flicking my clit as we were flung incredibly fast towards a sparkling release waiting just beyond the edge.
He pushed me up and over the cliff of orgasm faster than ever before and then—together—we fell into the abyss.
* * *
Something warm surrounded me, firm and secure. I cuddled closer, pressing my nose into the strong throat I weaseled my way under. Taylor grumbled against me, shifting as he moved his other arm out from beneath my body to curl over my shoulder. I smiled without opening my eyes. That is until…
“Jamie?” I groaned, peeking my eyes open and flashing them to the doorway. Cody stood there, frowning. “Sorry,” he said, “but you’ve got a...erm...visitor.”
My brows drew down low over my eyes as I quickly and quietly extracted myself from Taylor’s grasp. He grumbled once more but rolled over and pulled a pillow to his chest as compensation for my absence.
“What’s going on?” I asked as Cody led me into the hallway. “Who is it?”
“It’s your mother.” I looked up when rather than Cody, who I'd expected to answer me, it was Dex.
“My mom? What’s she doing here?”
He sighed. “I assume to talk about what went down tonight.”
I lifted my hand and bit the edge of my thumbnail. Should I go? Should I ask them to tell her to talk to me tomorrow—when everything was over? Or was that the cowards way out?
It was totally the cowards way out, I decided with a frustrated huff.
“Where is she?” I finally asked.
“Living room.” Dex gestured behind him. “Everyone’s been off and on the phone all night. Dare’s finally asleep. She tried calling us, but we knew you weren’t answering, so we didn’t either.”
“How’d she know where to find us? We just moved in.”
Cody grimaced. “I’m afraid, I might have something to do with that,” he said, rubbing the back of his head, ruffling the red strands of his hair so that they all stood up at an awkward angle. To be fair, though, he still looked like a fucking model—especially since he wasn’t wearing anything more than a pair of low-slung sweats. “When I was talking to them earlier, I told them that we were living at the Balden Suites. She must have looked it up.”
“But how’d she know which one?” I mused. “Unless you—”
“No, no, she said she asked the doorman if anyone new had moved in and which floor they were on,” Cody answered quickly.
I nodded. “Well, I guess I can’t put this off anyway,” I said.
“You want us to leave you alone with her?” Dex asked.
“Yeah, I think that’d be best.” I headed for the living room. “Don’t worry. She’s my mom. She’s probably just worried about what this all means. Come tomorrow, we’re still getting married.”
Dex snatched my hand up as I passed him and pressed a kiss to my knuckles. “I’m not worried in the least, Baby. I love you.”
I smiled, curling my fingers against his briefly before I tugged them away. “I love you too.” I looked back over my shoulder. “And you, too, tattletale.”
Cody blushed. “Sorry,” he muttered.
I laughed quietly. “I’m just teasing. I love you both. Why don’t you go to bed? I’ll let my mom out when we’re done talking.”
“Come find me when you’re done?” Dex asked.
I shook my head. “Hell no, you’re not supposed to see me the night before the wedding, much less sleep with me.”
His nostrils flared and he stepped forward, causing me to quickly scramble back as a deliciously wicked glint entered his eyes.
Before he could say anything else, I took a step towards the living room. “I’ll see you in the morning. Good night!”
I rounded the corner and found my mom sitting in the living room, dressed in the same clothes she’d been wearing for dinner, despite how many hours had passed. She sat with her purse clutched in her hands. I glanced around, half expecting my father to be with her, but my scan came up empty. She was alone.
“Mom?”
Her head jerked up as I entered. She stood quickly. “Jamie, I was hoping I could talk with you.”
“Yeah,” I said, gesturing for her to take a seat again as I moved through the room and sat across from her, “I see that.”
She hesitated for a moment, but finally, she sat once more. Silence stretched between us and I raised my brows.
“Well…” I started, “you wanted to talk, so…”
She cleared her throat. “I was very shocked by the announcement you made at dinner tonight,” she said.
“Yeah,” I replied, reaching up to curl a strand of my hair around my fingertip. “I’m not surprised to hear you say that.”
“Your father and I came up here with the idea that you would be marrying one man, not four.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I know.”
She swallowed, her fingers clutching at the top of her purse as though she needed something to grab onto. “We want you to know that we still love you.”
I stopped tugging on my hair, untangling my fingers and setting my hands in my lap. “I’m glad to hear that,” I said slowly. “I mean...to be honest, I didn’t think this would make you stop loving me. Was there ever a chance of that?”
My heart pounded against my ribcage, so loud in my ears, I was afraid she could hear it from across the room. But she didn’t seem to notice as she turned her gaze downward.
In a quiet, barely there voice, she answered, “No.”
“Okay, then, why are you really here?” I asked. “Is it because you want to tell me not to do this? Because if that’s the case, Mom, it’s kinda too late.”
I waited for her to speak, but nothing came. The quiet crawled under my skin, shredding me from the inside. I hated it. It made me itchy. So, I kept talking. Anything to bring sound to the room.
“I love them,” I professed, “and I’m sorry I never told you and Dad the truth. I’m sure it’s shocked everyone, but we didn’t want to start our life together with all of our families in the dark. I’m not going to leave them. We—”
“I’m not going to ask you to,” she finally said, stopping me.
“You’re not?” I sucked in a breath.
She shook her head as she looked back at me and smiled—albeit, a bit sadly. I frowned, confused. If she wasn’t here to talk me out of this then why was she sad?
“I’m so worried for you,” she admitted, her voice thick with emotion. She sniffed hard before she began digging into her purse, bringing out a wad of tissues. Instead of using them, however, she merely clutched them in her grasp as she moved her purse to the side and leaned forward, pressing her forearms to her legs. “The world is not as accepting as I wish it was,” she said.
Though my throat had mysteriously dried out, I managed to croak back a response. “I know that.”
“People are going to judge you. They’re going to call you horrible names.” She gasped as a tear escaped and slid down her cheek and she quickly pressed the wad of tissues to her cheek, soaking it up before it could make it to her chin. “You’re my baby. My little girl. I don’t want that for you. It breaks my heart.”
“It doesn’t matter to me,” I said. “What other people think or say. I’m happy with them, the guys. Everything else...it just doesn’t matter.”
She nodded. “I know. I can see that.” Mom lifted her gaze. “I see the way they look at you—the way they treated you tonight at dinner when every
one was getting so upset.”
I blushed. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that...I just…”
“You were overwhelmed,” she finished for me.
I nodded.
“I understand that, sweetie. And they saw that and they took care of you.”
“They always take care of me,” I said. “I know they always will.”
She sighed. “I know that. Which is why—” She paused and stood, reaching down for her purse. I watched as she slid it up her arm and then turned to me. I rose to my feet as she took a step closer. She reached out and with her free hand, she cupped my cheek. “Which is why your father and I will be there tomorrow.”
I bit my lip as she smiled at me, trying not to cry. There had been far too many tears tonight. “We’ll have all the bells and whistles on,” she assured me, “and your father will be walking you down the aisle.”
“Why isn’t he here telling me this?” I asked quietly.
She rolled her eyes. “He drank himself stupid,” she admitted.
I gaped at her. “He did what? Dad doesn’t drink.”
“Oh, he drinks,” she said. “Just not in front of you and not so much. He was so upset tonight, though. Shocked and hurt that you kept this from us. He said some things—he knows he offended your boys...men, they’re men,” she corrected herself. “He’s hoping they won’t hate him tomorrow. He told me before he passed out back at the hotel that it doesn’t matter what happens or who you’re marrying, he’s going to be at his little girl’s wedding if it kills him. So, just know, sweetie, the world may not care for your choices, but we’ll always love you.”
I knocked her arm to the side and catapulted myself at her, wrapping her up in a tight hug. She gasped and then sighed as I squeezed her tight, pressing my face against her shoulder. “Thank you,” I choked out. “I was really scared. Losing you guys would be the biggest heartbreak. I love you.”
I felt her arms come around me and then her whispered, “You’ll never lose us, baby girl. We love you. Always have. Always will.”
Chapter 7
“Heard it was crazy,” Roxi said as she fixed her braid before licking her thumb and wiping a bit of smudged eyeliner from under her eye.
“That about sums it up,” I replied as I sat down and moved the layers of my fluffy white bridal gown out of the way, searching for my shoes. Once I found the heels under the chair, I then went back and removed the fabric, trying to get to my feet.
“Oh, geez, gimme those.” Roxi snatched the heels out of my hand and in her far more practical bridesmaid dress, bent down to help me get them on. “You’re lucky you’ll have not one extra set of hands, but four tonight. You’re going to need help to get all those pearl buttons undone.”
“You’re the one who talked me into the pearl buttons,” I replied. “I didn’t know it’d be this hard to get all of it on in the first place.”
She snickered as she buckled the strap of my heels. “Oh, I did.”
I narrowed my eyes on her as she rose and straightened her dark purple gown. “You convinced me to get the pearls on purpose!” I said with a pointed finger.
She smiled and winked. “Guilty as charged. It’s going to drive them crazy,” she replied. “They might actually rip the dress from your body. How hot is that? You can thank me later.”
“They better not,” I grumbled. “This was fucking expensive.”
“Ahh, but a hot first night with your husbands is priceless.”
I rolled my eyes but then sobered. “Can you peek out and see who all showed up?” I asked. “I know my parents are here...but I don’t know about the others’.”
She gave me a sympathetic look and nodded, turning and heading for the dressing room exit, leaving me alone. I glanced up and stared across the room at the tall floor to ceiling mirror. I had to admit, her suggestion of stopping at a salon to get both my hair and makeup done had paid off. My dirty-blonde hair was piled up on my head with little ringlets drifting down against my cheek and neck. My makeup was understated, not too overdone, but just enough so that I’d look perfect in the following pictures for years to come.
I twisted my hands in my lap as I waited for Roxi to return and when she did, I looked to her face for a hint of what was to come. She smiled at me, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“Who’s missing?” I asked.
“Taylor’s parents are here,” she said.
“Guess he was right about them being open…” I said, biting my lip. “Who else?”
“Your parents obviously. Giselle and her mom are here.”
“And Cody’s parents?”
Roxi turned her eyes downward. “I’m sorry, Jamie.”
My breath hitched, and I stood abruptly. “I have to go talk to him.”
Her eyes widened. “Are you crazy? There’s no way I’m letting you out there right now. Can’t you wait until after the ceremony?”
“Please, Roxi, I have to see him.” I started for the door, a flurry of panic and pain welling up within me. What must he be feeling? Did he have regrets? This was all my fault. Like a dragon guarding lost treasure, Roxi dove in front of the door and growled at me, drawing me up short.
“You are not leaving this room,” she snapped. “I’ll go get him if I must, but you are not ruining how the others are going to look at you when you walk down the aisle, because make no mistake, woman, you will be walking down the aisle—parents be damned.”
I blinked at her and backed off as she pointed at me meaningfully, reaching back with her free hand and turning the knob as she cracked open the door. “Stay. Here.” Then she was gone.
I sagged back into my chair and gripped the sides of it. I wanted to cover my face with my hands or grab hunks of my hair and yank it out of frustration, but she was right. We’d spent far too long on the whole ordeal of getting ready as it was. I wasn’t about to go through all of it again.
Moments later, there was a brief knock at the door and Cody’s voice drifted through the wood. “Jamie? Roxi said you needed to talk to me. Is everything okay?”
I stood and took two giant steps to the door. I grasped the knob and turned, reaching out and yanking him inside by his jacket. All I saw for a brief moment was the shock registering on his face and his gorgeous auburn hair before he was inside and I had him pressed up against the door.
I panted. Oh, my god. I couldn’t believe that I did that. Just yanked him inside and shoved him against the door. What was I thinking? Maybe Roxi was right. Maybe this could’ve waited until after the ceremony.
“I heard about your parents not showing up,” I admitted before I could stop myself. I looked down. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to know how you were. Roxi wouldn’t let me out of here to go find you.”
Silence. I peered up at him and found him unresponsive—staring, open-mouthed, down at me.
“Cody?” I shook him a bit. “Are you okay?”
“Jamie…” He choked on his words. “Y-you…”
“What?” I blinked at him. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “No,” he finally managed to get out. “Nothing’s wrong. You look fucking beautiful.”
Heat stretched up my neck and infused my cheeks. “Oh.”
His hands grasped my shoulders and he spun us, until my back was pressed against the wall and his lips came down on mine. Hard. I sucked in a breath and then moaned as his tongue slid into my mouth, rubbing against mine. My eyes closed and I reached up, fisting my fingers into his hair as he kissed me into oblivion.
Cody cupped the sides of my face as though I were a delicate creature and it only made me want him more. He kissed me reverently, like he was worshipping something precious and fragile. I shivered under his ministrations.
“Cody…” I whispered his name and the sound of my own voice seemed to jar something in my mind. I began to slow, but it was hard to stop altogether.
“Cody.” I blinked, breaking the kiss. I hadn’t said his name that time. My name followed his. “Jamie? Come on,
guys, it’s almost time. Hurry up,” Roxi whisper-hissed through the door.
Cody swallowed and backed up. He looked down at me, cheeks flushed. His freckles stood out on full display. I wanted to lick each and every one of them.
“Y-your parents never showed,” I reminded him.
He shook his head. “They called me last night and told me they weren’t coming.”
I blanched. “Are you okay with that?”
He shrugged, swiping a thumb over his bottom lip as he looked away. My eyes zeroed in on how that thumb pulled the fullness of his lower lip to the side. My panties grew damp. But there was no time.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. He turned back to me and pressed another kiss to my lips. I whimpered when he pulled away. “I love you, and I always will. It’s you and me, Jamie. And the guys; they’re my family too.”
I closed my eyes and squeezed him tight. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
“Jamie,” He framed my face with his palms once more and forced me to look at him, “they made their decision and I’m making mine. I choose you. Don’t ever apologize for that. I sure as hell won’t. Do you understand me? You are it for me. It’s just you. Hell, maybe it always has been. I don’t want to lose you. I won’t lose you,” he said.
“I love you,” I said as tears began to gather behind my eyes.
He shook his head with a grin and released my face, leaning down to press a quick kiss to my forehead. “And I love you,” he replied. “Now, are you ready for this?” he asked.
I pulled away and nodded. “As ready as I’ve ever been in my entire life,” I replied.
He grinned and took my hand as the door opened and Roxi’s head popped inside. “Alright, lovebirds, let’s go,” she demanded.
“We’re ready,” Cody announced.
“Oh great, then we can begin the ceremony everyone else has been waiting forever for. Let’s get this show on the road, kiddies.” Roxi booty bumped Cody and he released my hand. “Get a move on. Go-Go,” she shooed him. “Get up there with the others. I promise, you can be apart from your lady love for like five minutes. You’re not going to die.”