Spring Romance: NINE Happily Ever Afters

by Tessa Bailey

  “I think this is it,” Diesel says. “I call dibs on the bride-to-be.” He waggles his brows before stepping up the stairs.

  “Oh my God.” I groan, following him. “Should’ve known this was a bad idea the second you blurted it out.”

  He pats my back as soon as we’re on the bus, shoulder to shoulder with partygoers. “You’ll be thanking me, man. Guaranteed.”

  “You guys showed up!” Summer shouts with a drink in her hand. She’s wearing an obnoxious crown and sash like last night, but this time, she has a pink boa around her neck.

  “Wasn’t about to miss out on the bachelorette party.” I wink at Zoey, then push my way through the crowd and sit down next to her. The seats line the windows to give everyone a view of the pole in the middle. Diesel immediately helps himself to the fully stocked bar in the back.

  “You’re aware a bachelorette party means girls only, right?” she teases, crossing her legs.

  “Are you saying no boys allowed?”

  “Not unless you’re the strippers,” Chelsea answers.

  “Now that can be arranged…” Diesel stands and starts unbuttoning his shirt.

  “Sit your ass down,” I tell him, pulling on his arm. “We’ve all seen the show, and it’s not that impressive. Never has been.”

  Zoey pulls back, giving me a look with her brows raised. “You’ve seen his strip show more than once?”

  Diesel chuckles, not denying it.

  “We grew up together. Just because the bastard’s finally legal doesn’t mean it’s his first time drinking or stripping. Alcohol makes him loose.”

  “We’re also roommates,” Diesel says.

  “Ahh…this is all making so much more sense.” Zoey laughs.

  “Let me grab you a drink before we get to the club. What’s your poison?” I ask, making my way toward the bar. “No girly shit here, though.”

  Zoey rolls her eyes at my accusation. “Good, because I like the hard stuff.”

  I arch a brow. Interesting.

  “Alright, I’ll get us some shots then. Get this party started for real.” I smirk, then walk up to the bartender and order. After he hands them over, I go back to Zoey and give her one.

  “To a night we’ll never forget…” she says in a slow, seductive tone that alerts my dick to how close she is to me.

  “Cheers.” We clink glasses, then shoot the booze down.

  A night I’ll never forget indeed.

  Before we arrive at our first destination, Zoey and I are three shots in. With each one, she became more courageous, moving closer to me, and now, she’s nearly sitting in my lap. Not that I mind, because there’s obvious chemistry between us, one I wish I could explore for more than one night. But I’m taking whatever I can get.

  The bus eventually slows in front of the first club of the evening. The perks of this tour include no cover charges or waiting in line, and we get full VIP access. Not too bad, considering the price wasn’t outrageous. Every stop is ninety minutes long, and there’s a set time and location to meet before the bus takes off again. If we’re not there, we’ll be left behind.

  As soon as we’re inside, we immediately go to the bar and order drinks.

  “Do you dance, cowboy?” Zoey taunts, giving me a sweet, seductive look that’s hard to resist. “Or is two-stepping more your thing?”

  I smirk, admiring how damn cute she is. “Why don’t we hit the dance floor, and you can find out for yourself, Arizona?”

  She removes her straw and sucks down the rest of her drink. “Show me whatcha got.”

  Drake’s “One Dance” blasts through the speakers, and I take her hand, guiding her out. The moment her back touches my chest, my hips move to the beat of the music. Pressing one hand to her stomach and grasping her waist with the other, we sway in sync as she looks over her shoulder.

  “You’ve got some moves, who knew?” she teases, but I see the blush creeping up her neck and face.

  The corner of my lips tilts into a knowing grin. She hasn’t seen anything yet.

  We continue to dance, our bodies rubbing together until Cardi B starts. Zoey pops her ass out, then drops to the floor. Amused, I watch the private show she’s giving me, though it’s not really private, considering the swarm of people around us. But I know this is for me.

  She continues moving her sexy little body, and when I find her hip, I pull her chest against mine and bring my lips to her ear. “You like teasing me, Zoey?”

  “Maybe.” She bites down on her bottom lip, then pulls it between her teeth. “Would you be interested if I was?”

  A low growl escapes my throat. Is she fucking with me?

  “Hell yes,” I answer, pulling her closer as our eyes remain locked. We continue dancing until we realize it’s been nearly ninety minutes since we arrived. I lost Diesel the second we walked in, but he’s more than capable of telling time on his own.

  Hand in hand, I lead Zoey back to the bus, and when we step on, I see Diesel working the pole, giving the party a show.

  “Jesus Christ,” I mutter, laughing and shaking my head at his poor attempt, knowing he loves the attention. “I think they saw enough last night.”

  “After you dared me, asshole,” he spits, thrusting his junk toward Chelsea.

  I sit, and Zoey snorts, taking a seat on my lap. “I’m picking the shots this time,” she declares once we start moving.

  “Be my guest,” I tell her.

  “Yeah, we’ll see if you can handle it.” She smiles as if she’s up to something.

  Moments later, she returns with two glasses, wearing a shit-eating smirk. “Ready?”

  I eye it cautiously, not recognizing the light amber liquid. “What is it?” I ask, taking it from her and smelling it.

  “Guess,” Zoey says.

  “It smells like you mixed a few liquors together, and you want me to puke my guts out later,” I respond, watching her expression.

  She shrugs, not denying it. “If you don’t think you can handle it, then don’t drink it.”

  Before I can respond, she shoots hers back, and after blinking a few times at what I imagine is a funky ass taste, she smiles. “Easy peasy.”

  “Might put some hair on that chest,” Diesel goads.

  “Shut the fuck up.” I laugh, brushing a hand over the facial hair on my chin as I stare at the shot. It’ll probably make me sick as hell, considering everything else I’ve drunk already, but I refuse to be a puss.

  After counting to three, I sling it back. The burn has me wincing, and when I look at Zoey with wide eyes, I start coughing.

  Zoey nearly dies of laughter and pats me on the back. “Wow, I thought you cowboy types would be able to take your whiskey, bourbon, tequila, vodka shot mixes without any issue.”

  “That was fuckin’ disgusting.” I cough again, setting the shot glass down. “There’s no way you had the same thing.”

  “You’re right.”

  Immediately, I grab her waist and pull her down onto my lap, causing her to release a yelp. “I’m gonna make you pay for that,” I whisper against the shell of her ear. Her body shivers against me, and it’s all the confirmation I need to know she feels what I do. Even though we just met, an electric current undeniably soars between us. I refuse to let this night go to waste and want to take advantage of every second I get with her.

  When we enter the second club, we continue to dance and drink. Eventually, she mentions needing to find a bathroom, but I don’t let her go alone.

  “I’ll join you.”

  Zoey gives me a weird look but doesn’t argue. I’m a damn gentleman, after all. I hold her drink and wait in the hallway. Once she’s done, I take her hand and lead her to the outside patio where we can sit for a minute.

  “Is your sister gonna be upset that you’re spending your time with me instead of her?” Even though she sits so close that our knees touch, I want her even closer.

  Zoey sips from her straw. “Highly doubtful. The other girls are giving her plenty of attention.
Not to mention your friend.”

  I smirk, knowing how much of an attention whore Diesel is. “Don’t worry, he’s actually harmless. He wouldn’t touch a soon-to-be married woman.”

  “What about you? You have someone waiting for you at home?” she asks coyly, which causes me to grin.

  “Nope. I work a lot on the ranch, and when I’m not, I’m helping at my family’s bar. When I first turned twenty-one, I’d go out often, but work and family come first,” I tell her honestly. I haven’t dated since high school, but I don’t mention that. I’ve had hookups, but it never turns into anything more.

  “How old are you exactly?” she asks.

  “I’ll be twenty-three in July. What about you?”

  “Twenty-one.”

  “Ah, so you’re just a baby,” I tease.

  Zoey snorts. “You’re less than two years older than me.”

  “But with life experience, I’m much, much older.” I wink.

  A Missy Elliot song starts playing, and everyone, including Zoey, loses their shit. “Oh my God, super old school! We gotta dance to this.” She sets down her now empty drink and pulls me inside before I can protest, not that I would’ve.

  Just as Missy tells us to get our freak on, Zoey wraps her arms around my shoulders, pulling our bodies flush. I hold her body to mine, then slide down to her ass, squeezing. People bump and grind all around us, singing obnoxiously loud, but my only focus is on her as I think about how gorgeous she looks in my arms. The look she’s giving me tells me she wants more than just this.

  The music fades, and another song roars through the club, and I have to taste her. Cupping her face, I capture her mouth, causing her to gasp as I slip my tongue between her beautiful, soft lips. I slow my pace, allowing her to push me away if she wants, but when she doesn’t, I tilt her chin up and deepen the kiss.

  “Mmm…” She moans as she twirls her tongue with mine.

  “Fuck, Zoey.” I kiss my way down her neck before finding her soft lips again. “Don’t make those kinds of noises when I can’t rip off your clothes.”

  Her eyes are open and on me in a second. Lust fills them, but I can’t tell if my words offended her or if she’s thinking the same thing. By the way her breathing hitches, I’m willing to bet it’s the latter.

  Chapter Six

  Zoey

  By the time we’re dropped off at the third stop, I’m beyond buzzed, though part of me thinks the alcohol isn’t the only thing making me feel high on life. The moment Riley’s lips touched mine, my world tilted, and I never wanted anything more than to get lost in his kiss.

  I love how he can’t keep his hands off me, the way my body responds when he’s close, and the harsh feel of his facial hair against my soft skin. I want to scratch my nails down his back as our bodies rock in rhythm on the dance floor. His movements heighten my senses, making me wish we were alone so I could do inappropriate things to him.

  There’s a nice rooftop patio at the club, and it’s where we all meet. My sister is happily plastered, and she has that glassy look on her face that tells me she’s not feeling a damn thing. Tomorrow, we’ll undoubtedly all feel like shit, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip, so I’m taking full advantage of letting loose while I can.

  “You feeling okay, sis?” I ask with another drink in my hand. It doesn’t even taste like alcohol anymore, and I’ve lost count of what number this is.

  “Never. Better.” She pronounces her words slowly and carefully, making us giggle.

  “To Summer’s last week of freedom!” Chelsea shouts, and we hold up our drinks and cheer.

  “You excited to be tied down to one man forever?” Diesel challenges.

  “They were high school sweethearts,” I explain. “They’re sickly in love!”

  “He’s always been the one,” Chelsea slurs with a cheesy grin.

  I adore him and am really happy they’re finally tying the knot after all this time.

  “Are you excited for the big day?” Riley asks. “Or nervous?”

  “I’m only nervous about something not going right because our mother is a type A neat freak. A perfectionist. It’s kinda annoying, even if she means well, but other than her stressing me out, I’m not at all apprehensive about marrying Owen.”

  Diesel claps his hands, grabbing all of our attention, as usual. “I just had the best fucking idea ever for your payback dare.”

  Riley groans, and I roll my eyes. “Of course you do.”

  “Payback dare?” I inquire as I sip on the last of my drink.

  “Yeah, the asshole dared me to do that amateur stripper show last night, and now it’s time for my revenge,” Diesel explains, rubbing his palms together.

  “This ought to be good,” Riley provokes, putting both of his arms behind his head.

  Diesel flashes a devilish smirk that even makes me concerned. “You—” He points at Riley. “And you—” Then he points at me. “Get hitched in Vegas.”

  I start laughing as do the other girls, but Riley just scowls and shakes his head at Diesel. What is it with guys always having to one-up each other?

  “That’s not a dare.” Riley scoffs.

  “You know what happens if you don’t do it!” Diesel taunts. “Or do I need to remind you like you so nicely reminded me?”

  “Uh…” I interrupt. “What exactly happens if you pass on a dare?”

  “Don’t ask—” Riley begins, but Diesel cuts him off.

  “He—”

  “Fuck off.” Riley shoots him down again. “I’m not bringing Zoey into this.”

  “Well, let’s ask the future Mrs. Bishop, shall we?” Diesel turns toward me with a shit-eating grin. “Don’t you want to help this hunk of a Southern man, total gentleman, and from what I’ve heard—a great lay—go through with his dare so he doesn’t have to pay a hefty fee? Or plan B—baring his ass to the whole city?”

  “Oh my God, he said it…” Riley’s head falls back on a groan, making me laugh at how embarrassed he is.

  “So every dare you pass on equals showing your ass?” I ask.

  “That was part of the original rules, but as we got older, we decided money was a better punishment. So if you don’t do a dare, it costs fifty dollars for every year we’ve been friends. We’ve been best friends since I was five years old, so we’re up to eight hundred bucks now,” Diesel explains. “And your boy is cheap as fuck when it comes to dishing out cash, so he always does the dare instead of paying up. Neither of us has ever passed.”

  I snicker at the way they give each other shit. But then I look at Riley, who looks fucking irresistible. “Okay!”

  “Okay, what?” he asks, furrowing his brows in confusion.

  “Let’s do the dare!” I jump up. “C’mon!”

  Riley whips his head back and forth between Diesel and me. “For real?”

  I hold out my hand, arching a brow. “Unless you’d rather pay up or moon us all?”

  “Dude, you better marry this one before I do!” Diesel shouts, standing next to me.

  Riley pulls me in to his arms and kisses me hard. “Lead the way.”

  We make our way down the Strip and find a 24-hour wedding chapel. The guy at the counter, Marcus, explains the package options, and we opt to buy wedding bands there. We don’t go overboard or do anything fancy, so our ceremony is a quick five minutes with standard vows.

  “I do,” I say, smiling like a fool.

  “I do,” Riley repeats, grinning at me just as wide.

  When we exchange rings, I’m shocked we’re doing this. Then Marcus announces we’re married, and Riley kisses his bride. Me. He wraps his hand around my neck and pushes our mouths together for a white-hot kiss. By the time we break apart, I’m seeing stars.

  My sister and her friends cheer loudly as we walk down the short aisle hand in hand. Diesel’s smiling like an idiot.

  After we sign the marriage certificate, Riley scoops me up and kisses me.

  As soon as our Uber arrives, Riley sets me down and opens t
he door for me. After we’re inside, Riley shouts out the window. “Diesel, find somewhere else to sleep tonight!”

  “Don’t worry, I’ve been invited to the bachelorette suite!” he calls out with his arm around Chelsea. I nearly die of laughter because I can totally see the two of them hooking up.

  The booze from the past several hours continues to rush in my veins as Riley leads me into his hotel room. We don’t even bother with small talk. The moment the door slams shut, Riley pushes me against it and claims my mouth.

  “Fuck, Zoey. I’ve wanted to do this all goddamn night long,” Riley hisses against my ear as his hands make their way down my body and cup my ass. He grinds himself into me, and I feel how hard he is when he pulls me up. My legs wrap around his waist as he carries me to the bed.

  “Tell me all the things you’ve wanted to do to me…” I prompt as he towers over me.

  He growls. Fucking growls against my neck. I love the way his beard scratches my chin, and I wonder how it’d feel against my thighs.

  “I want to taste every inch of you.” His mouth moves down my throat. “Feel you tighten around my cock.” His palm finds my breast, and he squeezes. “Hear you scream my name.” His other hand slides up my leg. “Fuck you so hard you’ll be feeling me all the way back to Phoenix.”

  “Yes. God yes. I want all of that.” My head falls back.

  “You realize you married me tonight?” He shakes his head with a sly grin. “You’re officially Zoey Bishop.”

  “That has a nice ring to it,” I say. “I quite like it.”

  “Good.” He pulls off my dress. “Because I’m about to mark you as mine. My wife.”

  Hearing him say it aloud sends a shiver down my body. I know I’ve drunk my weight in alcohol tonight, but I can’t find it in me to regret anything. At least not yet.

  “Take off your clothes, hubby. I’m about to burst if you don’t fuck me,” I beg, pulling at his shirt because I need to see all of him.

  Riley undoes a few buttons and then reaches behind his neck and swiftly removes it. My eyes widen at the glorious sight of him. Holy mother of God.