“This is the start of everything I’ve ever wanted.” I tucked my fingers in his beltloops and pulled his body close. My core throbbed with desire for his hard length. Not because I was some waif requiring a man to save me, but from the timeless belief that by giving ourselves to each other, we were sharing the most intimate physical bond. It was secondary to the spiritual bond we’d already experienced, but our circle wouldn’t be complete until we shared everything. “Aren’t you supposed to obey your wife?”
“It wouldn’t hurt to start practicing.” His wicked grin sent a rush of relief through me. I’d honestly started to worry he was going to make me wait.
“Make love to me.” I whispered against his lips.
“Only if you’re prepared to have my children. All it takes is one time.”
“Then I’ll count my blessings, whichever way they lead me.”
He kissed my forehead then stepped away and grabbed a blanket from the stack of donations on the shelf. With a shake, it unfolded and Eli guided the fabric to the ground, smoothing it.
If paralyzed disbelief was a thing, I was experiencing it. Only hours before when my alarm had gone off, I’d feared the backlash of the congregation as I had to face them for the first time after my sinful kiss had been made public. It had heinously crossed my mind that it would be easier if Eli didn’t show up for church. How wrong I had been.
Eli stood in front of me and took my hands. “I spent countless nights trying to figure out why my good, wholesome choices, left my life a mess. I prayed for guidance, agonized over the seeming lack of it, and cursed every being I could for creating endless obstacles. But I’ll never forget the second I took back every curse I’d muttered or even thought. The moment your voice rose above all others like an angel calling to me, I looked up, surprised no one else seemed to notice. I turned my head toward the choir. When my eyes landed on you, every decision and every consequence in my life became clear. I’d never redo anything because I couldn’t risk a single change taking you away from me. In that moment, I knew I would love you forever.”
My heart melted. My attraction had been simple and profound, as well, but I couldn’t put the words to it. Anything I said was likely to sound juvenile after his confession. Ripping my hands from Eli’s, I grabbed his head and kissed him with all the love that had been building my entire life.
He lowered me to the blanket and stripped me of one piece of clothing at a time, kissing the exposed flesh as he went. When he finished, I stretched bare in front of him while he stood and peeled his own clothes.
The shock of his erection springing free filled me with even more urgency. Our bodies were destined to be intertwined and every second that passed was one less that we could fully know each other. I slid my thighs together relieving some of the building pressure, confirming my wetness.
He knelt beside me. Wrapping his fingers around my knees, he pushed them open.
My exposure, my desires, my sin… everything felt right.
“You’re more than I deserve,” he said repositioning himself between my legs and running a hand up my thigh.
“My future husband’s humble.”
The tease of his fingers inching closer to my sex heightened the intensity of the fire, electricity, and life flowing through me. There had to be release. There had to be resolution to the unbelievable level of cravings I was experiencing.
“I don’t have to be humble to wonder what I did to deserve you.” He lightly ran his fingers over the curls of my untouched center.
A shiver roared through my body, making him chuckle. He ran them over me again, letting me get used to his touch.
“More.”
He inched a finger into my innocence.
The foreign sensation made me gasp but I wanted everything. No waiting.
Sliding his finger back and forth, the sounds of my wetness were more stimulating than I could rationalize. Eli made it all seem normal. It was normal.
The drip of cum on his tip had me frustrated that any of it was being wasted.
I wanted to carry his children. I wanted to live out my dream. “We better hurry. Wouldn’t want another interruption.”
“Door’s locked.”
“And you think Mrs. Davis doesn’t have a key to every room in this place?”
“That’s almost a mood killer.” He lowered himself over me and the sensation of being his enveloped me. First his scent, then the enclosure of his arms, and the flesh of our bodies becoming one. The most incredible sensation in the world.
I wasn’t sure what to do. Technically I understood, but questions flooded my mind. Arms, legs… was I supposed to move, should I say something?
His lips pressed onto mine and every worry washed away with the coordinated union of our kisses. His tongue explored me and a natural understanding of how to give and take following his gentle guidance took over.
He shifted and his hot length pressed between my legs, not quite begging for entrance, more like a gentle caution.
I pushed against him.
He stilled.
Another push and his tip parted my folds, forever changing my status. Only the beginning of the life I wanted.
I wrapped my arms around him in an effort to hold onto the moment. Hold onto my entire world.
The thickness of his erection began filling me as he slid farther. The stretch was overwhelming. A good pain.
“You okay?” he asked causing me to realize I’d closed my eyes.
“Keep going.”
The pressure of him inside of me battled with the pressure growing throughout me, like I was going to explode. No one had explained that part. It had to be my building orgasm and I sank into the whirlpool of chaos and beauty, surrendering myself to the carnal bond sealing our connection.
Each of his movements left me in a higher state of arousal until bliss shot from my core, weaving its way through my entire body, blinding me to everything except Eli’s continued pumping and the low growl in his chest.
I quieted my release with heavy breaths as his thrusts uncovered deeper layers of my climax.
He buried his head in the crook of my neck and heaved into me harder and more punctuated than before. My nickname on his breaths and other utterings I couldn’t quite make out accompanied the warmth of his seed filling me, spilling out of me, and hopefully giving me a baby.
Moments of nothingness, and yet everythingness passed as we basked in the manifestation of our love before he rolled to the side and propped himself on his elbow.
“I hope I’m not leading you down a wayward path.” He ran a finger over my nose and dropped it onto my lips.
I kissed his fingertip then he rested his hand on my stomach. I said, “It’s not wayward. You strengthen my beliefs.”
“How do you figure?”
“After meeting you, there’s no possible way I could covet anything of my neighbor’s. I have everything I want right here.”
He ran his palm back and forth across my belly. “I do too. And if we created another life, then I have even more than I could have wished for.”
Epilogue
Four years later
It turned out we had as many friends rooting for us as we had naysayers.
We finished the pre-marital counseling as fast as the church would allow, which was the longest month of my life because we held off announcing my pregnancy until we finished it.
Although his mom had nearly had a heart attack when Eli pledged himself to me, she and several of her bible study friends came to their own understanding of how God worked his hands into our situation.
The most obvious revelation was that Eli’s marriage was necessary to produce Carson. Carson was the tool that brought Eli back to the church, to me.
There were a lot of heavier revelations, but the important thing was that we ended up together.
And not to dismiss how much it meant to me when Eli took a knee in front of everyone, but when Carson did the same, I was filled with double certainty that beco
ming their wife and mother was the mission I was meant to fulfill.
Carson had needed a mother. Eli had needed a partner.
I’d wanted to be all of that, and personally viewed it as a match made in heaven.
Any question of whether I was ready to be an instant mother was quickly put to rest when I moved in with them. With me embracing mom duties, we easily made our life together work.
I’d finished culinary school during my first pregnancy. Luckily morning sickness hadn’t been a problem so the cooking assignments were enjoyable. Eli didn’t mind grading me, although I was pretty certain I could have served tap water and gotten an A+.
And I was thankful Eli and I were on the same page for me to stay home and raise the kids. Plus, with the addition of a new one each year, I got to practice all of my cooking skills.
Another Easter service came to a close. Carson grabbed his two sisters’ hands and led them to the luncheon, although they knew exactly where to go. The girls were two and three years old and viewed Carson as the coolest person on the planet. Next to his dad, he possibly was.
Eli held our wiggly one-year-old and I had the three-month-old sound asleep in a snugly carrier wrapped around my chest.
Mrs. Davis materialized right on cue and asked to hold ‘Baby Number Four’. I think she couldn’t keep up with the names. I also figured she hoped some of her wholesomeness might rub off if she held our kids enough. At least she meant well.
We’d gone through with giving recommendations to the Revitalization Committee and the church had implemented some of our suggestions, tripling the young adult engagement in the last four years. A good thing since we had a few kids coming through the ranks. That didn’t mean everyone agreed with all of the new policies, but there was enough flex we were able to get the young adults through the doors which meant they could be an active part of our church community.
Mrs. Davis’ plan to include Eli in the committee so no one would trust the recommendations had backfired. She’d never confessed that to us directly but I’d overheard a conversation and had cracked up when I finally understood her crazy choice of asking him to participate.
I carefully slipped Baby Number Four out of the carrier and into her arms. A little part of me wished she’d call him Baby Number Five because it felt like she left Carson out, but the truth was neither she nor I had known Carson as a baby.
Eli winked at me, and the possibility of providing Mrs. Davis with Baby Number Five was growing more real by the second.
It humored me that she’d been holding our youngest child each time we got pregnant with the next one every Easter. A detail we didn’t intend to share.
True to our post-Easter service ritual, I excused myself and went down the hallway to the library. Closing the door, I said a prayer of thanks for everything. I offered a few more details, but everything summed it up best. I had so much to be grateful for.
After a moment, I popped my head into the hallway, caught Eli’s attention, and nodded.
The look on his face as each step drew him closer still made my core tingle. But we really needed to consider how many years in a row we should keep carrying out our ritual. We could do most of the routine without producing a baby every single time. That was an issue for a different year, though.
But since I was exclusively breastfeeding and hadn’t had a period since before our first Easter together, we assumed it was meant to be.
Eli closed and locked the door then wrapped me in his embrace. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
“Make love to me.” I whispered against his lips.
“Only if you’re prepared to have my children. All it takes is one time.”
“Then I’ll count my blessings. I’m not out of fingers and toes, yet.”
“Careful, I’ll give you as many as you want. Bunny, you’re my salvation.”
I hope Sin, Salvation, and Serenity offered a little escape!
Be sure to check out the two other books in the Hoppily Ever After series:
#2 Hop Stuff by Shaw Hart
#3 His Easter Bride by MK Moore
Want more:
https://amazon.com/author/barbracampbell
Coming up next… my short story cowboy series, 8 Seconds to My Heart. It’s hot, it’s insta-love, and it starts with UNBROKEN!
If you love dirty-sweet short stories, check out my latest…
Luck of the Ink series: CLAIMED (Book 1), DELIVERED (Book 2), EDUCATED (Book 3) and PLANNED (Book 4)!
And the rest of my stories…
Impossible Duet, from the multi-author Taking the Leap series.
Passionate Wishes, my first cowboy romance
Take Care of Me Series
The Way You Are: Alpha Doctor and Amnesia Patient Romance (Take Care of Me Book 1)
Healing My Heart (Take Care of Me Book 2)
Virginal Valentine (Take Care of Me Book 3)
Desperate Pleasures: Lesbian for You (Take Care of Me Book 4) by Lily Lust
Hot Enough Series
Hot Enough Series Bundle
Crazy Enough: An Older Alpha Firefighter Romance (Hot Enough Book 4)
Lucky Enough: An Alpha Firefighter and Single Mom Romance (Hot Enough Book 3)
Nice Enough: An Older Alpha Firefighter, Opposites Attract Romance (Hot Enough Book 2)
Persistent Enough: Alpha Firefighter and BBW Romance (Hot Enough Book 1)
Morgan Brothers at the Beach Series
Alpha Billionaire Brothers Bundle: Morgan Brothers at the Beach
Convincing Her: An Alpha Billionaire and BBW Romance (Morgan Brothers at the Beach Book 3)
Protecting Her: An Alpha Billionaire Romance (Morgan Brothers at the Beach Book 2)
Winning Her: An Alpha Billionaire and BBW Romance (Morgan Brothers at the Beach Book 1)
Getting Wet on the Beach Series
Getting Wet on the Beach Bundle: Books 1-3: Alpha Males and Their Heroines Who Get What They Want
Surprise Virgin Seduction: A Missed Encounter Alpha Male Romance (Getting Wet on the Beach Book 3)
SEALed Seduction: A Navy SEAL Alpha Male, Second Chance Romance (Getting Wet on the Beach Book 2)
Single Dad Seduction: An Alpha Male Romance (Getting Wet on the Beach Book 1)
Hockey Match Hook Ups Duet
Stripping Him Down: An Alpha Male Meets His Match (Hockey Match Hook Ups Book 2)
Playing His Game: An Alpha Male Meets His Match (Hockey Match Hook Ups Book 1)
Tales of the Nightie Series
Tales of the Nightie: Novellas 1-4 Steamy Romance Bundle
Thankfully Yours: Saved by an Alpha Male (Tales of the Nightie Book 7)
My Lucky Halloween: A Brother's Best Friend Romance (Tales of the Nightie Book 6)
My Christmas Risk: A Curvy Girl Puts it All on the Line (Tales of the Nightie Book 5)
Logan and Vanessa: A Forced Proximity BBW Romance (Tales of the Nightie Book 4)
Jessica and Darius: She's Tired of Being Sweet (Tales of the Nightie Book 3)
Lachlan and Gypsy: An Opposites Attract Doctor and Spunky Girl Romance (Tales of the Nightie Book 2)
Alexis and Chris: A Forbidden Professor Student Relationship (Tales of the Nightie Book 1)
Anthologies
Leave Me Breathless: The Moonflower Collection
Dangerous Curves Ahead: An Anthology
Wickedly Ever After: An Anthology of Retold Tales
I also have TWO on audio! (Email me if you need links for UK, France, or Germany [email protected])
US: My Christmas Risk
US: Nice Enough: An Older Alpha Firefighter, Opposites Attract Romance
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Sin, Salvation, and Serenity Page 5