by S. M. Shade
After saying goodbye to everyone and congratulating Dare and Ayda again, we head outside. It’s a beautiful night and the moon throws sparkles across the lake. This is the perfect opportunity.
“Let’s walk down by the dock,” I suggest, and Sadie smiles up at me, slipping her hand into mine.
She’s quiet for a bit, just taking in the beautiful night. “Spring is almost here,” she murmurs. “I’m glad. I hate the cold.”
Our steps on the wooden dock echo through the still air, the lights and sounds of the restaurant behind us fading away. “I’ll keep you warm.”
“In your bed?” She turns and gives me a teasing look that makes me want to strip her right here. A light breeze lifts her blond hair, and she brushes it out of her face. Fuck, she’s beautiful. Her lips droop into a frown. “Justus? Is something wrong?”
Great, I’m just standing here gaping at her like a moron. I have to do this. I have to know she’s mine forever. She steps back when I drop down on my knee.
“Sade, I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. From the first moment we spent together I knew you were different. You make me want things I’ve never even considered before. Even in the beginning, it was never fake for me.”
Tears fill her eyes and she clamps a hand over her mouth as I produce the ring she gave back to me from my pocket. “When I bought this, it wasn’t just a ruse to trick your mother. I know it’s crazy, but even then, I thought about you wearing it, showing the world you’re mine. Will you wear it? Will you be my wife, my Sadist, forever?”
A sob escapes before she nods and pulls me to my feet. “Yes!”
The word barely leaves her mouth before my lips are on hers. “I love you, Sweets.”
“I love you.” She steps back and wipes her eyes, allowing me to return the ring to her finger. Looking up at me, she laughs, and I grin at her.
“Not the way you pictured your marriage proposal?”
“Being asked by a zombie unicorn while covered in fake blood? Not exactly, but it’s perfect. We never do normal.”
“Normal is stale. Let’s avoid it at all cost,” I suggest, wrapping my arm around her waist as we walk back toward the car.
“Agreed. We should wait a few days until we announce our engagement so we don’t take away from Ayda and Dare’s special day.” She holds up her arm that’s streaked with fake blood. “And we have to come up with a wedding crazier than this.”
“I have a few ideas.”
“Mom is never going to believe us when we tell her.”
Sadie
“I can’t believe we’re doing this!” I squeal, climbing into the hot air balloon.
Justus, the officiant, and the photographer slash balloon pilot are already inside. “You said you wanted an exciting wedding,” Justus says, grabbing my hand.
“And you delivered,” I giggle, nerves getting the best of me. “I can’t believe you’re afraid to fly in an airplane but not in a hot air balloon.”
“Planes crash into the ground at hundreds of miles per hour. The balloon gets a leak, we float down. Big difference.”
I exchange a look with the pilot and officiant and shake my head. “Probably best not to tell him.”
A flame roars above us and we’re off. The view above Lake Tahoe is breathtaking and I spend a moment taking it all in, lost in the beauty of the nature that surrounds us.
“Are you ready?” the officiant asks.
Floating over Lake Tahoe, with the Sierra Nevada mountains behind us, we exchange vows. It’s a moment I’ll remember for the rest of my life. The sparkle in Justus’s eyes when I said I do, the emotion in his voice when he did the same.
After we’re pronounced man and wife, he stands behind me, his arms wrapped around my waist, his chin resting on my shoulder, as we watch the scenery unfurl below us.
“It’s so beautiful,” I breathe.
“Almost as beautiful as you,” he murmurs.
Turning to face him, I cup his face, and place a light kiss on the dimple in his cheek. “I’ve never been this happy. I didn’t think it was possible.”
His hand wraps around mine and he holds it against my chest. “I feel the same way.” He fingers a lock of my hair. “I quit the club.”
“What? Why?” I’ve never given him any grief over stripping.
“I don’t need it anymore. It used to make me feel good, knowing that those women wanted me. It’s all I hoped for when I was young, for someone to want me. But it wasn’t real. I was just a fantasy to them. You want me, and that’s my fantasy. A family.”
God, this man can make me want to tear my hair out one minute and completely devastate me the next.
“I love you, Justus. I’m so proud to be your wife, your family. I didn’t realize how much I wanted a family until now.”
“So, I’m going to knock you up with a brood of little Justus’s, right?”
Giggling, I turn back to face the mountains. “How many is a brood?”
“You know, five or six. Whatever you want.”
“Hmm…I love the thought of a little Justus running around, getting in trouble for saying inappropriate things to the girls at school, but I have another idea I want to run by you.”
“Yeah? Because I think we need a little Sadist too, who will probably get suspended for fighting the boys.”
“Yeah, we could totally ruin kids with our blood. Maybe we should adopt from the foster system. You know, after we have a few years by ourselves.”
He’s silent for a long minute until I turn to face him. Swallowing, he looks like he might cry. “Would you really want to do that?”
“Of course. If there’s one thing you’ve taught me it’s that blood doesn’t make a family. Love does. We could help a boy or girl who is struggling like you and Hannah struggled. And you’d know how to help them because you know what they’re going through.”
I’m pulled into his arms and we stay that way, wrapped up in one another as the balloon slowly descends to the ground.
A cheer goes up as we’re greeted by our friends who have all turned out for the wedding.
Mom is the first to rush up and congratulate us, hugging me and then Justus. “My little girl is married! And I have a son-in-law.”
“A stripper son-in-law,” Jeremy quips, giving Justus one of those one armed hugs men are so proficient at.
“Not anymore. I quit,” Justus replies, shoving him.
“Oh! I didn’t get to see you perform!” Mom exclaims, and everyone laughs.
“She’s Sadie’s mother all right,” Zoe remarks.
As we walk away from the balloon, I notice Doug falling back to talk to Justus. “What was that about?” I ask when Justus catches back up to me.
“Just guy talk.”
“Doug is taking classes to be a paramedic, and he’s actually holding a job,” I tell him, amazed.
“I may have had a little talk with him last time we visited.”
His arm slides around my shoulders as we continue. “About what?”
“Growing up. Being a man. It’s hard to grow up without a father figure, but that’s no excuse. He needed somebody to light a fire under his ass.”
I beam up at him. “You’re going to be a great father.”
“Yep. Our kids are going to be lucky little fuckers to have parents like us.”
Laughter shakes my body. God, I love him. I take a moment to glance around at all of our friends, laughing and joking together. Justus’s sister and my mother, both miraculously healthy and making plans to get together in the future.
I meant what I told Justus earlier. I’ve never been so happy. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re missing until you find it.
And sometimes that happiness is wrapped up in a sweet, goofy, gorgeous, exotic dancing package.
THE END
Acknowledgements
I hate writing acknowledgements because I know I’m going to leave someone out. So many people help me make my books the best they can be, from readers
to bloggers and promoters. So please know if I don’t mention you I really appreciate everything you do to help me and other Indie authors.
That being said, I’d like to thank Lissa Jay, Chantal Baxendale, Susan Rollinson, and Kim Ginsberg for beta reading, sometimes at the last minute, and saving me from embarrassing plot holes and ridiculous mistakes. I want to say thank you to few readers who always take the time to review, share and promote my books. Teresa Hall, Pauline Moonsamy, and Michele loves books Jones, I’m pointing at you.
The beautiful cover was made by Ally Hastings. She’s my go-to hunk hunter. Thank you so much, Ally.
Thanks to the members of the S.M. Shade Book Group for loving my books as much as I do (sometimes much more than I do) and sharing them constantly. Love you girls.
Last, but not least, thanks to all the book bloggers and page owners who make it possible for Indie authors to get their stories out there. We couldn’t do it without you.
There’s no way I can list the numerous blogs and pages that have reviewed and shared my books, but I want to call attention to one crazy blogger in particular, who rants and raves over the books she loves in the best way. Melissa Teo, you cost me a damn fortune with your book recommendations. Don’t ever stop.
You can find her blog and group here.
Booksmacked https://www.facebook.com/BookSmacked
B.A.N.G. https://www.facebook.com/groups/BookSmackedBangers
Stalking Links
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More by S.M. Shade
The Striking Back Series
Everly
The first time I met Mason Reed, we were standing naked in a bank, surrounded by guns.
That should have been a warning.
An MMA champion, trainer, and philanthropist, but not a man who gives up easily, Mason is trouble dipped in ink and covered in muscle.
Growing up in foster care, I'm well aware that relationships are temporary, and I do my best to avoid them. After a sheet clenching one night stand, I'm happy to move on, but Mason pursues me relentlessly. Sweet, caring, protective, and at times, a bossy control freak, this persistent man has climbed inside my heart, and I can’t seem to shake him.
After saving me from a life threatening situation, he’s also won something much harder to obtain. My trust. But does he deserve it? Is his true face the one he shows the world? Or is his charitable, loving manner only a thin veneer?
This book contains sexual situations and is intended for ages 18 and older.
US Link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UEVPO5G
UK Link http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00UEVPO5G
AU Link http://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B00UEVPO5G
Mason
From the moment I saw her, I wanted her in my bed.
I should've stopped there.
Everly Hall burst into my complicated life and changed it forever. I'm a fighter, but I had no defense against this beautiful, stubborn woman.
Now, I stand to lose everything I have, everything I am. My secrets are dangerous, and put more lives at stake than my own. I intended to tell her in time, but my time is up.
Everything rests on Everly.
This is the conclusion of Mason and Everly's story.
Contains violence and sexual situations and is intended for adults 18 and older.
US Link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZDT5A1M
UK Link http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00ZDT5A1M
AU Link http://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B00ZDT5A1M
Parker
Hit it and quit it.
One and done.
Hump and dump.
That has been my philosophy on relationships for the last seven years. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a bad guy. I'm always upfront and truthful with the women I date. I don't promise them anything but a good time.
I could've gone on happily sleeping my way through the major metropolitan area if it wasn't for her. The dark haired beauty who haunts my days and keeps me awake at night. Strong and sweet, she makes me reconsider everything I believe about love.
Too bad she's completely off limits.
I've never been good at following the rules.
US Link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016YGYTFU
UK Link http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B016YGYTFU
AU Link http://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B016YGYTFU
Alex – An M/M Romance
Ninety- two days. Thirteen weeks. That’s how long it’s been since I lost my love, my best friend. It’s been everything I can do to drag myself out of bed and get back to work, but I know Cooper would want me to move on. I think he’d even be happy if he knew who I want to move on with. The target of my affection, though, may not be so thrilled about my choice.
He’s straight. Or he thinks he is.
A womanizer of the worst kind with a face and body that keeps a steady stream of willing women at his door, he seems happy to work his way through the entire female population. But there’s no mistaking the way he looks at me when he thinks I’m not paying attention.
One way or another, I’ll show him what he really wants.
This is book four of The Striking Back Series, but can also be read as a standalone novel.
Intended for 18 years and older. Contains sexual content, including sex between two men.
US Link http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B8RIV7C
UK Link http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01B8RIV7C
AU Link http://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B01B8RIV7C
All that Remains – An MMF Menage Trilogy
Box set link
US Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CYSG3YW
UK Link https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01CYSG3YW
AU Link https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01CYSG3YW
Separate books
The Last Woman, All That Remains: Book One http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HYO0AHI
When Abby Bailey meets former model and actor, Airen Holder, in a darkened department store, romance is the last thing on her mind. A plague has decimated the population, leaving Abby to raise her son alone in a world without electricity, clean water, or medical care. Her only priority is survival.
Traumatized by the horror of the past months, Abby and Airen become a source of comfort for one another. Damaged by her past and convinced Airen is out of her league, Abby is determined to keep their relationship platonic. However, Airen is a hard man to resist, especially after he risks his life to save hers.
When a man named Joseph falls unconscious in their yard, and Abby nurses him back to health, everything changes. How does love differ in this new post-apocalyptic world? Can three unlikely survivors live long enough to find their place in it?
This is the first of the All that Remains series and can also be read as a stand alone novel. It contains violence and sexual situations and is recommended for ages 18 and older.
Falling Together, All That Remains: Book Two http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NY31EWS
In the aftermath of a global nightmare, Abby Holder is living her dream. Married to the love of her life, Airen, and surrounded by friends and family, it seems she's found her happily ever after.
But the struggle of living in a post-plague world is never ending. When circumstances take Airen far away, she's faced with the devastating re
alization he may be lost to her forever. Broken-hearted, she turns to Joseph, her best friend and the only one who understands her pain. After all, he loves Airen too.
The sound of a car horn in the middle of the night changes everything, leaving Abby caught between the two most important men in her life. After surviving the worst the world could throw at them, Airen, Abby, and Joseph must face the most brutal human experience...true love. Can they overcome the betrayal, the hurt feelings, and jealousy to do what's right for the ones they love?
Their circumstances are far from ordinary. Perhaps the answer is extraordinary as well.
This book includes sexual scenes between two men and is intended for ages 18 and older
Infinite Ties, All That Remains: Book Three http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RO923XM
The more you look to the future, the more the past pursues you.
Abby, Airen, and Joseph have fought and suffered to come together. All they want is to move forward and raise their family with the love they never had.
Unfortunately, the re-appearance of former friends and enemies complicates their lives, threatening to expose closely guarded secrets. With a vital rescue looming, their relationship isn’t the only thing at risk. Can they let go of the past in order to hang on to a future with each other?