by Zoe Dawson
He bent his head and dragged his hand across his eyes again, then inhaled raggedly. “God, River—”
I brushed my fingertips across his cheeks. He looked away, the muscles in his throat convulsing, and I nearly broke down before I got the words out. “I’ve ruined everything. I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.” My desolation stripped me bare, so I made one last, desperate plea. “Please, Brax.”
As if against his will, he finally looked at me, and again I saw the shimmer of tears in his eyes. I moved toward him, anguish stripping me of control. “Don’t you know you’re all I’ll ever want?”
“Ah, God, River,” he whispered, his face contorting with raw emotion as he reached for me. “I’m not mad at you,” he murmured.
I went into his arms, and I felt a shudder course through him while he locked his arms around me in a rough, desperate embrace. “I’m happy. Unbelievably happy. I didn’t want you to see me…break down. I tried to get away,” he whispered hoarsely.
Catching him by the back of the head, I closed my eyes and hung on to him, unable to stop a flood of tears. Brax crushed me even closer, his fingers tangling in my hair. “Yes. I’ll marry you. You and me sugar were meant to be. That was the perfect question.”
With a hoarse sound, he found my mouth, dirt and all, and his savage kiss tasted like happiness, hope, and total commitment.
He broke the kiss, a joyous laugh breaking from him. I felt it rumble deep in his chest, and then I was laughing, too.
“We’re dirty, muddy, wet, and messy.”
“That’s life, Braxton. It’s damn messy.”
“As long as it’s always messy with you.”
He slipped his arm around me, and we went into the house and showered together, staying close. We lost control once we were clean, and he was smooth, hot and male beneath my palms. One arm hooked behind me, arching my back, he took my budded nipple into his mouth. My breath fluttered with anticipation. I trusted him implicitly, and when he lifted me up, I clasped my arms around his neck, his dark expression a mask of need. I offered myself totally, opened myself, wound my legs around his hips.
He filled me. His eyes were on mine, giving me his essence, and I welcomed him and was embraced by the warm glow in his eyes. Pressing deeper to my soul, until I gasped his name, he was completely mine, so mine. When we were joined this intensely, even our love paled in this growing storm of emotion, then expanded, grew into something more, something so tangible I could feel it on my lips, beating in my heart, pumping through my veins.
We moved together as one in pleasure, melding and molding ourselves into what we wanted to be for a future that was ours to take and hold.
After we came back to ourselves, shut off the water, and dried off, he said, “Get dressed in something beautiful and sexy. I’m taking you out tonight.”
“Are you? That sounds wonderful.”
We helped each other dress. He zipped up my dress, his fingers brushing my skin from my butt right up to my neck, then kissed my nape. I buttoned his shirt, tied his tie, kissing his mouth with every move.
Once that was accomplished, we went into the hall to the garage. “Just a minute,” he said as he made a quick dash to the kitchen, shoving something into his dress pants pocket. I was glowing inside, so warm and happy.
He drove, and when we pulled into an empty Outlaw parking lot, I smiled. “Oh, Brax.”
“Shhh,” he said, caressing my lips with his thumb. He went around and opened the door for me, and I slipped off the seat and right into his arms. He took his time kissing me, then slipped his arm around my shoulders and tugged mine around his waist while we walked to Outlaws. When we got to the door, he whispered in my ear and I shivered at his warm breath. “Close your pretty angel eyes.”
I complied, and he led me through the doors and deeper into Outlaws. “Okay, open them.”
I gasped. The place was full of candles everywhere. Above us, white lights were festooned across the ceiling. He pulled me with him into the kitchen, where he took off his jacket.
“What are you making me?”
“Crab cakes with remoulade sauce and roasted veggies—carrots, red potatoes, shallots and green beans; deep fried white fish with garlic tartar sauce on sourdough; baked white barbeque chips; and Cajun egg rolls with jezebel sauce and dirty rice.”
“That’s what you made the first time we were together. I thought you didn’t repeat your menus.”
“I don’t normally, but I know you loved everything on that menu and it…fits for tonight.”
I watched him cook. It was a pleasure, and he teased me with tastes and kisses. Finally, when everything was done, he laid everything out on a big platter and slipped his jacket back on. We went to the table with a white lace tablecloth and he set the food down. He dished some of everything onto two plates, and we ate.
“This tastes even better then I remember. You really are the Huckleberry Chef, self-taught, gorgeous, and you’re going to be a star.”
“Ha! Who cares? I just love to cook. Maybe somebody out there will learn something new, and it’ll inspire their taste buds.”
“Maybe. So, you went diving in shark-infested waters, huh?”
“Yeah. Henry wanted to see a freaking sea turtle.”
“That was brave, and hearing about it made me so proud that you will be the father of my children. You’ll be so good at it.”
“How far along are you?” his eyes dropped to my abdomen, his voice husky. I’d never heard him sound so sexy.
“Two months. Something must have gone wrong with the birth control.”
“Sounds to me like something went very right. I couldn’t be happier about this, sugar,” he said when we finished the meal. Then he pulled out the box that was in his pocket.
“I know I already agreed to marry you. But…” he went down on one knee. I sent my fingers into his silky hair.
“River Pearl Sutton, my beloved, momma of my children, will you marry me?”
He opened the box and the yes that had been on my lips froze there. “Oh, my God,” I breathed. “It’s gorgeous, Braxton.” Tears stung my eyes. There were four diamonds below a raised setting that sported a spectacular 16mm blue pearl. The colors changed as it caught the light, like liquid sliding across the surface. On either side, holding the pearl in place, were two tiny but exquisitely detailed waves. “Your cousin is so talented.”
“He made it, but I designed it for you. The diamonds are the river below the bridge and above, you, the pearl. River Pearl. You are my bridge.”
“Oh, Braxton. It’s beautiful.” I folded down into his arms, and he pulled the ring out of the box and set it on the table. He picked up my hand while he cradled my body against him.
“Your answer?” he whispered. “I need to hear it.”
“Yes,” I said, as he slipped it onto my finger. His mouth lowered to mine, and we sealed our bargain with the sweetest kiss we’d ever shared. His hand went to my abdomen, pressing gently.
“All mine,” he breathed. “Now the circus begins? I wish I could just marry you right this minute.”
“Maybe you can,” I said, as something wholly Outlawish occurred to me. “How about this? How about you and I go to Vegas, get hitched, and don’t tell a soul? It’ll be our secret. We’ll even have a secret wedding anniversary.”
“What? Are you joking? You’re starting to think like me. That’s great.” He swooped down to kiss me again.
I laughed against his mouth. “Think about it. We’ll be married, and then we can smirk and prance and parade around for the benefit of my family.”
“Um, sugar. I don’t prance, not even for you.”
“Oh, you’ll prance, and you’ll like it, mister.
“Don’t you want a princess wedding? Wouldn’t I be depriving Suttontowne of the wedding of the century? And your daddy still has that loaded shotgun.”
“Oh.” I winked and grinned. “We’ll have the wedding of the century, but we’ll know that it’s nothing but a circus,
because we’ve already had our own ceremony. It would be our secret. Forever.” So, I had been wrong. There was another secret, but this was a good one.
“Now, that is a secret I think I can keep.”
Epilogue
BRAXTON
“Hell, let’s go for the deluxe,” I said as we stood in the lobby of the hotel on the Vegas strip. We picked up my wedding band at Tiffany’s, just plain white gold. Creed in his wisdom had designed a band to go with River’s engagement ring. It was nestled in the box, and perfectly mirrored the waves on either side of the pearl.
After we booked the wedding, a car picked us up at the hotel. We got our license, and then it was onto the Chapel of the Bells. River was dressed in a short white dress with a flouncy skirt, the bodice covered with appliques of pretty flowers. I was in a velvet burgundy blazer with satin lapels, black tuxedo pants and a black button-down. I was so damned Vegas cool.
River ran her hands over the velvet. “Brax, you look so sexy. Very Vegas.”
“And you look like a delectable confection. Let’s go get hitched, sugar.” Right before we were to go in, I took her hands. “If you look up and find yourself lost…simply take a breath and look for me. I will always be there for you, my angel, my sugar.”
Her smile lit her eyes. “The same goes for you, my heartbreaker, my Outlaw.”
The chapel minister did his thing, and we did ours while we gazed into each other’s eyes. We would have another wedding, but this one was real, and everything I wanted was standing right in front of me. She was carrying my child, all my tomorrows in her eyes.
Saying I do was so fucking easy.
RIVER PEARL
Brax tightened his hold on my face, then kissed me with infinite care, moving slowly inside me. We were completely naked and decadent in the honeymoon suite of a sumptuous hotel right on the strip.
The loving had been urgent and out of control and completely unprotected, and my breath caught while he moved against me now, my body still super-sensitized. Releasing a satisfied sigh, Brax broke off the kiss and looked at me, the light from the city washing over his face like moonlight, highlighting the angles and lines.
He gazed down at me, his eyes warm and intimate, softened by a glimmer of amusement. He smoothed his thumbs across my cheekbones, a smile tugging at his mouth. “So how does it feel to be Mrs. Outlaw? An official part of the bad boy legacy?”
I turned my head and kissed the palm of his hand, then gave him a wry grin and slid my hands up his naked back. “Don’t get a big head about it. Only I know, and when we get home, you’re going to be lead clown in the circus under the Sutton big top.”
He grinned at me, then leaned down and gave me another kiss. “God, but you’re sassy. That’s not going to win you horn toots from this clown, sugar. And I hate to disagree with my wife, but I think the main spotlight is going to be on you. Big, floppy shoes and all.”
Giggling, I savored his soft, sensual lips, loving the feel of him still inside me. I’d missed him so much.
He heaved another contented sigh, then braced his weight on his arms and looked down at me, brushing a strand of hair off my face. He gave me that slow, lazy Outlaw grin. “I think I’ll keep you around. You’re not a half-bad kisser. I can put up with the big floppy shoes.”
“And the horn?”
“Yeah, that, too.”
Gazing at him, I rubbed my hands across his heavily muscled shoulders and down over his thick biceps. “You’re not too bad either.”
His expression sobered, and he smoothed his knuckles along my temple. “Happy?” he asked, his voice low and husky.
Blinking against the sudden well of tears, I nodded. “Incredibly.”
His face grave with emotion, he cupped my head and drew his thumbs along my damp lashes. “The stars are out. Want to go on the roof and stargaze?”
“I’m pretty content right here. But stargazing makes me think of that verse from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and when I think of that, I think of you.”
“Really? How’s that go?”
“‘Take him and cut him out in little stars/And he will make the face of heaven so fine/That all the world will be in love with night.’ ”
“Why does that make you think of me?”
“Because of your dark hair and your dark past. And your crystal blue eyes, so like the stars. I do love your eyes, Brax. You are so beautiful, and stars can’t shine without darkness.”
He snuggled into my neck, breathing deep. “I once told Booker that love is in the details. Little things make big things happen.” He settled his palm against my bare stomach and kissed me there.
I felt his mouth move lower, the silky brush of his hair tickling my skin, the heat of his big, muscular body right up against mine.
“I think I like you best naked,” I murmured.
He came back to my stomach. He started to sing nursery school songs, beginning with “Itsy Bitsy Spider,” and I started to laugh. He worked his way right through “I’m a Little Teapot.”
“Do you even know your handle from your spout?” I asked, very innocently, just as I had when I caught him singing to Duel two years ago. The moment when my heart had melted and melded with his. The moment when I realized that I loved him.
He chuckled, obviously remembering that conversation. “I know the difference. Let me show you, sugar,” he said in his bad boy growl, making me melt.
“I’ll show you my horn, if you show me yours.”
He laughed. “Is that another bad clown joke?” The amusement spread to his eyes, making them sparkle.
“I’ve got a million of them.” I reached down, and he gasped when I touched him. “Handle or spout?” I asked, in my best teacher voice, moving my hand over him until he was breathing hard, loving the fire in his eyes, loving him so much I thought I might explode with it.
He gave me a smoldering look and an Outlaw grin. “Aw, sugar, who cares?” he said with a smoky rumble. “Clearly, you know what to do with it.”
#
When we got home, my nude painting arrived from New York and Jean Claude. Brax was blown away. He kept me in bed for two days. Nice little honeymoon bonus. He couldn’t stop looking at it, and kept saying my body was beautiful, especially with the additional curves from my pregnancy. He was thankful that I had it done, even though he still wanted to break Jean Claude in two. We gave ourselves two weeks of bliss until we had to tell my parents we were engaged.
But before we went over there to let them know, Brax and I had our sonogram.
I was lying on the table, with Brax holding my hand, while we stared at the monitor. Dr. Rust went over my stomach, then he hesitated and went over it again.
“Is something wrong?” Brax asked.
“Well, nothing’s wrong, but you’ve got yourself a couple more boarders here.”
“What? What is he saying?” I said, looking up at Brax. Then Brax’s jaw dropped and he looked down at me, groaning.
“He’s saying were having triplets. Right, Doc? That’s what you’re saying?”
“In my highly trained medical opinion, when you have six feet inside one woman’s tummy. It’s triplets.”
All the way over to my parent’s house, neither one of us spoke until we were walking up the stairs. “Three,” Brax murmured, turning toward me, taking my hands and then pulling me against him hard. “We’re having three. Why am I so happy about that?”
“Because, you’re one of three and you know how close they’re going to be.” I looped my arms around his neck. “I’m giving birth to another three-ring circus.”
He laughed and we went in together. Everyone was there and plenty of whoops and hugs to go around when we announced we were engaged. Then the bigger news dropped like a hammer and we watched the shock roll across everyone’s faces, except my momma-in-law. All Evie did was smile at me with that knowing way that said I was going to be one-hell of a momma and I would have the joy she’d experienced when she’d birthed her three wonderful, unpred
ictable, wild, and heartbreakingly beautiful trips.
Then, once the shock wore off, my momma went right into ringmaster mode.
Brax said, “Bring it on, Momma Sutton. Tuxedo, white, purple, rainbow-hued. This Outlaw will rock any damn monkey suit you put me in.” Then he kissed her full on the mouth and went and sat down at the table full of bride magazines spread out to study.
My momma looked at me, and then she threw back her head and laughed.
“Oh, we’re going to plan ourselves the biggest, grandest, most spectacular wedding this town ever did see. Suttons and Outlaws joined in love, in family…and one big, fat, over-the-top freaking wedding.
My jaw dropped, the room quieted while every head turned towards my momma.
The silence was broken by Braxton who laughed until he was choking.
“I think I’m getting the vapors,” I said.
My momma grabbed me around the neck and said, “I can fix that. Verity, let me see that wedding gown sketch, young lady. Tell me the fabrics you need, and I’ll purchase everything. My daughter will have the gown she wants to wear.” She turned to look at Braxton, “And for you, young man, gray cutaway, white shirt, striped ascot, no purple in sight.”
“All right. Plant it right here beside me, and let’s get this thing planned.”
He looked at me then, my heartbreaker, my Outlaw, my man, my secret husband…and it was a secret I would keep until my dying day. All our own, the last secret we’d ever have.
Seven months later
RIVER PEARL
So much had happened in seven months. Shortly after we got back from our secret wedding in Vegas, Aubree had the twins. A boy and a girl. Morgan Sawyer Outlaw and Nola Payton Outlaw, and they were beautiful. They were now seven months old, and even though Verity looked exhausted, she and Boone were glowing, they were so happy with their brood. Minnie and Deke’s wedding had been spectacular, and her designed gown one of a kind. Emmie’s wedding was just as beautiful and full of love as she pledged herself to Travis and became Mrs. Blackwood. They were graduating in two months, along with Deke, and Travis would take her back to his ranch in Texas. Rory and Savannah just got engaged and would be having an October wedding.