by Jenika Snow
I’d just lost my virginity to the girl I loved. I covered her body once more, my cock hardening again. “And I’m not nearly done with you yet.”
Cora
Exhaustion settled into my bones, but it was the good kind of tired, the kind that had me content and smiling. I looked over at Xavier, my big, strong man lying beside me, his body dwarfing mine, making me feel so feminine. I reached out and ran my fingers along his body, his skin smooth, his muscles flexing beneath my touch.
“Hey,” he said, his voice thick with the post arousal we’d just shared.
“Hey back right at you,” I said and shifted so I could look into his eyes.
“I love you,” he whispered and I closed my eyes, pleasure and contentment, and happiness, filling me.
“I love you, too.”
For long seconds we stayed like that, lying beside each other, not speaking, not even breathing. But it was perfect.
“Cora—” He said my name softly. I felt like right now would be some heavy stuff. “Where do you want to go from here? How do you want things to play out?” He sounded nervous.
I didn’t even need to think about it. I didn’t need to hesitate in answering. “I just want you, Xavier. I want you in my life forever.” I pressed myself closer to him and sighed, feeling right at home. But he moved away from me suddenly, and I worried I’d said something maybe I shouldn’t have.
No, that can’t be. He loves me. He wants me just as much as I want him.
I watched as he moved off the bed and went to his jacket, which was on the floor in a pile. His back was to me so I couldn’t see what he was doing. I pushed myself up on the bed and wrapped the sheet about my body, my heart racing. And then he turned around and I saw what he held.
A small black velvet box.
I knew what that was, knew exactly what was about to happen. I felt my eyes widen.
And then he got down on one knee in front of me, opened the box, and displayed the diamond solitaire ring. My breath caught and I covered my mouth with my hand, looking between him and that ring, feeling tears well up in my eyes.
“Cora Rose McKenzie. I have loved you since I was a kid, since I knew that no one else in this world mattered more to me than you did.” He was tearing up, and my heart was racing as I cried, as happiness welled inside of me. “I held onto this ring for so long, wanting to propose long ago, but knowing I had to make something better of myself, knowing I had to better myself so I could provide for you, so I could make a life for us.” He wiped away the tears he shed, his grin wide. “I want us to be endless, Cora. I wanted to propose when we were younger, to give you myself in all the ways that counted.”
I cried and laughed, so damn happy.
“Marry me. Make me the happiest man. I love you more than anything, more than the whole entire fucking world.” He took the ring out of the box, gently held my hand up, and slipped it on my finger. I stared down at the diamond, my vision blurry from my tears.
“Will you marry me, Cora?”
I was nodding before he even finished. “Yes. I love you, more than anything else.” I wrapped my arms around him, my weight and momentum having him topple to the ground. He held me tightly, both of us laughing, my love for this man so much I couldn’t even breathe.
“There’s nothing in this world worth living for without you by my side,” he whispered against my hair. “Nothing, Cora.”
“It’s you and me, Xavier. You and me.”
Epilogue One
Cora
One year later
I exhaled, my nerves strung tight, butterflies moving in my stomach. I stared at myself in the body-length mirror, the white, gauze and lace gown I wore nothing fancy, but perfect for the person I was, perfect for the person I was going to marry today.
Xavier, my soon-to-be husband.
“You ready?” Carly asked from behind me, her smile wide. I looked at her reflection and nodded, forcing myself not to cry.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Today I would marry my best friend. Today I would finally start the rest of my life with Xavier. I inhaled and exhaled once more before turning and looking at her. She looked beautiful, too, with her hair piled high on her head and her dress this soft blue color.
“I’m calling it now,” she said.
“Calling what?”
“Xavier crying like a little baby when he sees you.”
I couldn’t help but smile and duck my head.
I headed out of the dressing room, and stood behind the closed double doors that would lead me into the main room and the altar.
Carly stood beside me, the one person who would walk me down the aisle, the only family I’d had for a long time, not counting Xavier, of course. With my mother and father out of the picture for far too long, I hadn’t even thought about asking them to attend. Truth was I didn’t want them here. I didn’t want them taking in this memory. I pushed them out of my thoughts. There was no time for that negativity today, not on my wedding day.
And then the double doors opened and the Wedding March played. My heart jumped into my throat as I saw Xavier standing just feet from me. Asher, Cash, and Trevor stood beside him. The pews were filled with friends, people we considered family, had grown up with.
I started walking down the aisle, my hand shaking, my knees threatening to buckle. And when I was a foot from Xavier, his grin wide, tears reflected in his eyes, I started crying myself. They were happy tears of what would happen in the future, of finally being with my best friend, the only person I’d ever been so in love with I’d gladly give up my own life for him.
He took my hand and pulled me in close, and Carly stepped to the side. I stared into Xavier’s eyes, falling more in love with him in that very moment. He cupped my cheeks and leaned down, kissing me and having the crowd chuckle because he just got right to it.
“Who the hell can wait until after the vows are said to do this?” he whispered against my mouth. I smiled and laughed. And then we turned and faced the officiate, and in that moment I knew what perfection was.
In that moment we started the rest of our lives together.
Epilogue Two
Xavier
One year later
I paced the hallway, my nerves fucked up, the fact Cora was in the hospital room messing with me. I wanted to be in there, but when they explained the epidural part, I knew I would’ve passed out. Just imagining her in pain, knowing that this was only going to get worse before we had our little boy, made me so fucking on edge.
Just watching how uncomfortable she was from the contractions alone were enough to have me wanting to tear shit down, to do anything in my power to make her feel better.
I ran my hand over my hair, breathing out roughly, seeing nurses and hospital staff looking at me a little nervously. I probably looked like I was about to fucking snap. I felt like it.
Cora got pregnant shortly after we got married, and to say that we were both over the fucking moon was an understatement. We hadn’t used protection, and in fact had been trying. I’d wanted her knocked up. I’d wanted her big with my child, wanted to know that I’d put my seed in her and it took.
Maybe it was barbaric, but I didn’t give a fuck. Cora was mine. She was my wife, and soon to be the mother of my first child. And we’d have more babies, hell yeah we’d have more. I wanted a house full of little ones; girls who looked like Cora with bright blue eyes and long blond hair.
My heart was beating so hard it was painful. I was sweating, the droplets forming on my forehead as my nerves and anxiety took root.
The hospital room door opened and I pushed away from the wall, my spine ramrod straight. I was worried, even though I knew I really had nothing to worry about. Cora was in good hands, that I knew.
The anesthesiologist left, and the nurse came out shortly after, smiling and gesturing for me to go back in. When I saw Cora I breathed a sigh of relief that she looked comfortable. She gave me this drowsy smile and I was by her side a second later, reaching for he
r hand and cupping it in mine.
“You feeling better?”
She nodded and I felt the tension in my shoulders leave slightly. I sat in the chair beside her bed, continuing to hold her hand. I did that for hours, watching her sleep, continuously looking at the monitor, seeing her contractions and thankful she didn’t feel them.
And then the nurse came in again and checked her, and after that it was a flurry of action.
“Everything okay?” I heard the panic in my voice.
“Everything’s fine. She’s just ready to start pushing,” the nurse said.
My heart started beating double time and I looked over at Cora. She was smiling, excitement on her face. She was so strong, so damn strong.
I don’t know how long it was, but it seemed like everything happened so fast. One moment they were telling her to push, and the next I was hearing the tiny little cry of our son. I felt tears well up in my eyes as they placed him on Cora’s chest. She was crying and I reached out and ran my thumb along her cheek, brushing away the tears. I felt wetness track down my cheek and wiped it away with the back of my hand. I didn’t care if I seemed weak, or that men “weren’t supposed to cry.” This was the happiest day of my life.
I looked down at our son, Garrison, and couldn’t help but grin. He had a tuft of blond hair, and I reached out and ran my finger along his cheek, even afraid to touch him because he was so fragile. I leaned in and kissed Cora, so damn proud of her.
“I love you,” I whispered against her lips.
“I love you too,” she said. And then Garrison decided to whimper, the sweetest sound I’d ever heard. I pulled back and we both chuckled. He already had us wrapped around his little finger.
And as I stared at my wife and our son, euphoria settled inside of me. I didn’t know what heaven was like, but I was pretty damn sure I was already in it.
The End
Happily Ever Alpha Kindle Worlds is based on the bestselling Until Series by Aurora Rose Reynolds. Every single author included in the world has been hand-picked by Ms. Reynolds.
Some of the authors have chosen to write about characters or couples that you have met in the series while others have just referred to a place or person from one of the Until books.
Each book is a stand-alone, there is no reading order.
Until You're Mine by Jenika Snow
Until More by S. Van Horne
Until Nox by Layla Frost
Until We Meet Again by K.D. Robichaux
Until Avery by Brynne Asher
Until Arsen by K.L. Donn
Until Leo by Rochelle Paige
Until The Summer by Elle Jefferson
Until Kayla by CC Monroe
Until You by Samantha Lind
Until Sunrise by Sarah O'Rourke
Until Brandon by Natasha Madison
Until I Saw You by Jordan Marie
Until Mallory by Ella Fox
Until Tom by Mary B. Moore
Until Susan by C.P. Smith
Until Rayne by Elle Christensen
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