Beautiful Ever After: Beautiful Illusions Duet Book 2

by Cates, Georgia

  “I swear that I will love you beyond the final beat of my heart. And I will never hurt you.”

  I pull Lou close and place a kiss on the crown of her head. “I know.”

  Trust doesn’t come easy after the things Mina did to me, but I believe Lou when she says that she’ll never hurt me. I believe her when she says she’ll love me forever.

  Just as I will love her forever.

  14

  Caitriona Louden

  It’s after eight o’clock when I wake and Hutch is still beside me in bed. “Good morning, mo maise.”

  “Good morning.” I stretch and yawn, covering my mouth with my hand because I know I must have morning breath. “What are you doing still in bed?”

  “I like watching you sleep. And I don’t get to do it often enough because I always have to get up and get ready for work.”

  “You need to learn how to sleep in.” I’m a pro at it. I should teach him how.

  “Believe me. I’m trying.”

  “Leaving your position at the Lochridge firm would be helpful.”

  “I’ll be leaving soon enough. That’s why I’ve decided to spend what little time I have left there tying up loose ends with my clients. I don’t want them to be affected because of what’s happening with me.”

  I’m ready for Hutch to part ways with those horrid people, but at the same time I dread it because I know all that it will encompass. It turns my stomach into a bunch of knots.

  I lean over and press a kiss to the side of his mouth. “I have to get up.”

  He ignores my words and pulls me against him. “It’s Saturday morning and we don’t have Ava Rose sprawled out between us. I don’t think you have to do anything but stay in this bed with me.”

  “I wish I could, but we’re going out for breakfast and then my wedding dress entourage and I are hitting the boutiques.”

  “Without Rachel?”

  Is that supposed to be a serious question? Rachel would not miss this for the world. And if she couldn’t make it, I’d reschedule. It’s that simple.

  “Of course, Rachel’s coming. I texted her last night. She can’t make it for breakfast, but she’s meeting us at the bridal boutique.”

  Hutch trails his fingertips down my arm. “Ah, my bride is going wedding-dress shopping. I suppose that means I have to let you leave the bed.”

  “It does if you want me to have a gown to wear on our wedding day.”

  I’m at the mercy of in-stock dresses. We don’t have time to make a special order.

  “I do want to see you in a wedding dress, but I also want to see you wearing nothing on our wedding night.”

  “As if wearing nothing would be something new.”

  Hutch is so weird. I buy sexy, pretty things, and I don’t get to wear them for more than two seconds before he’s taking them off me.

  “I happen to like it when you wear nothing.”

  “Oh, I know.” There’s zero confusion about that on my part.

  “You never told me where we’re getting married.”

  I suppose I should have consulted with Hutch about that. Oops. “A small castle in Perthshire and it is absolutely stunning. It has its own small chapel where the ceremony can take place. Looks like it would only seat around two dozen. Very intimate.”

  “Sounds perfect for us. What kind of dress are you looking for today?”

  I wish I was one of those girls who had been looking at bridal magazines since she was twelve. Because I have no idea what I want. “I don’t have any certain style in mind. I’m open to trying anything.”

  “I have one request I’d like you to honor.”

  “Anything.”

  “I would like it to look like a wedding dress and not like the latest trend on a fashion show runway.”

  I didn’t expect Hutch to care one way or another about my dress. “What do you picture in your head when you imagine me walking toward you?”

  “I see you wearing a long white dress and a veil. You look like a bride, not a fashionista trying to make a statement.”

  In other words, he doesn’t want me to look like Mina. I’m okay with that.

  “You want me to look like a traditional bride?”

  “Exactly.”

  “I understand. And I have a request I’d like you to honor as well. We’re getting married in a castle and I think it’s only fitting for you to wear a formal kilt outfit with the Hutcheson tartan. The sporran, the kilt hose, the flashes—all of it.”

  “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t want me to wear it.”

  “Did you wear it the first time?”

  “No. I wanted to but Mina thought it was too traditional and outdated. She said that it didn’t complement her wedding gown.”

  That feels like such a missed opportunity to me. “I’m glad you didn’t wear it. I want our wedding to be different.”

  “No worries. The most important part of our wedding is you, and you couldn’t be more different. You have no idea how damn thankful I am for that.”

  Hutch’s hand comes down and I yelp when it lands on my butt. “Get up, mo maise, and go find your dress before I give in to my urge to flip you onto your back and keep you in this bed all day.”

  * * *

  I look at dress number one in the mirror as I stand on the platform, and I’m immediately reminded of my first day with Cora.

  I’m damaged. Something’s missing inside of me. A piece of me is not here.

  That’s the first time I ever openly admitted that to anyone. But that part of me is no longer missing. I found it and so much more in my love for Hutch and Ava Rose.

  Rachel gets up from the sofa where she and the Hutcheson women are sitting and walks closer, studying me. “I think it’s beautiful, but your expression says that you think otherwise.”

  Rachel has the ability to read me like a book.

  “Hutch wants to see me wear something traditional. I don’t think a mermaid is the right silhouette.”

  “Too sexy?” the sales associate asks.

  “I think so.” I wave my hand over the top of the dress. “And I think I need more coverage in the bust area.”

  “No mermaids. No sweetheart necklines. That’ll be helpful because it eliminates a large portion of our stock dresses.”

  The salesclerk returns a moment later with a few dresses draped over her arm. “These may not be what you’re looking for but I want to try each one so we’ll know which way to go on the silhouette.”

  Mermaid and trumpet? No.

  A-line and modified A-line? No

  Sheath? No.

  Ball gown? I wouldn’t have thought so but a ball gown is the only silhouette that I’ll consider for our castle wedding.

  The sales clerk approaches the platform with several plastic bags draped over her arm. “This will be easier now that we’ve narrowed down the silhouette. This one arrived a few days ago. It’s a lot of dress. I’ve not seen it on anyone, so I don’t have an opinion about it yet. Do you think it’s worth trying?”

  Regal. Timeless. Understated.

  “I absolutely want to try on this dress.”

  I step into the gown and the consultant begins the daunting task of fastening the five thousand buttons up the back. “Sorry. It’s going to be a minute.”

  “It’s okay.”

  My back remains turned to the dressing room mirror while she fastens the buttons. I don’t want to ruin my first impression by seeing it before it’s buttoned up all the way

  “All done. Let’s turn you around and see what you think.”

  Ivory. Full baroque lace overlay. Queen Anne neckline. Long sleeves.

  Perfection.

  I wondered how I would ever be able to choose one dress with so many to pick from but the wondering is over. When you know, you know. “This is it. This is my dress.”

  “You think so?”

  “Oh yes. One hundred percent.”

  “Do you want to put on a veil so your family can get the full effect?”


  “Please.”

  I study the image in the mirror while I wait for the consultant to return. The longer I look at myself in the dress, the more I fall in love with it.

  “Here we are, dear. A tiara and veil for the princess who wears this regal gown.”

  She places the silver crown on top of my head, and I can’t believe how much I love the way it looks with the dress.

  “Do you like it?”

  “I love it. It’s perfect.”

  “I’m surprised the length is all right. I thought it would be too long, but it’s perfect when you step into the heels. I don’t think it’ll need any alterations.”

  I don’t point out how tall my heels are. “I think that’s a good indication that this dress is the one.”

  “You could be right.”

  The consultant opens the dressing room door and I call out, “Everyone has to close their eyes.”

  “You didn’t make us close our eyes for the others,” Clarissa calls back.

  I take my place on the platform. “Okay. Open your eyes.”

  Rachel. Clarissa. Sara. Shannon. They all gasp at the same time.

  “Come on, people. I need to hear your thoughts.”

  Rachel holds up both hands with outstretched fingers. “It’s ten out of ten for me.”

  Clarissa nods slowly. “I love it.”

  “It’s a stunner,” Sara says.

  “It’s fab. You look like a princess,” Shannon says.

  “It’s the one, right?”

  Four yeses overlap at the same time.

  “This is my dress.” And it’s more perfect than anything that I could’ve hoped for.

  This is what I’ll be wearing on the happiest day of my life. The day that I become Mrs. Maxwell Paden Hutcheson.

  15

  Maxwell Hutcheson

  Lou has been working nonstop for the last month on our wedding. Even with the help of my family and Rachel, it’s still been a ton of work for her. Neither of us had any idea what it would take to pull together even a simple wedding in such a short amount of time.

  We’ve reserved the use of the entire castle for the next three days. Everyone who will be attending our wedding tomorrow is staying at the castle tonight. And an interesting night it is going to be.

  Clarissa Hutcheson has put me in the room farthest from Lou. She insists that we can’t sleep together the night before our wedding or even see each other again until she enters the chapel and walks down the aisle. But it’s an hour until midnight, technically not the day of the wedding yet. And I want to see my bride-to-be.

  It’s been a busy day. Everyone has gone to bed and the castle is finally quiet. Thank fuck. I thought they’d never settle down for the night.

  I lightly knock on the door of the bride’s room. A moment later she opens the door and smiles, lifting one of her brows. “What are you doing?”

  “I want to see you.”

  Lou leans out the door and looks down the hallway. “Your mom would be livid if she knew you were here right now,” she whispers.

  “Why do you think I waited until everyone has gone to bed to sneak into your room?”

  “You’re sneaking into my room? That sounds so naughty.”

  “Not near as naughty as the things I want to do to you.”

  “Is that supposed to convince me to let you in?”

  Is she really thinking of turning me away? “Come on, Lou. I haven’t been with you in days because you’ve been so busy with the wedding. I’m craving you.”

  “It’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding.”

  I hold up my wrist, pointing at my watch. “We have an hour until it’s our wedding day, and I want to spend every minute of it with you.”

  She shakes her head and looks upward, murmuring something that I’m pretty sure is a profanity beginning with an F.

  “Please, Lou. I’ll make it worth your while.”

  She sighs loudly and opens the door. “Hurry up and get your ass in here before Clarissa patrols the hallway and sees you.”

  The door closes and I grab her around the waist, pulling her against me. “Mrs. Hutcheson.”

  “Not yet but almost.”

  “This will be our last time to fornicate.”

  I love the sound of her girly giggles. “I’m going to miss fornicating with you.”

  “You won’t. Our sex life is only going to get better after we’re husband and wife.”

  “You know what? I think so too.”

  I press my lips to hers and she laces her fingers through the back of my hair, pulling me closer and kissing me hard. Because we’ve no time to waste, I grip the hem of her nightgown and tug upward. Next goes her knickers and then my clothes.

  “I don’t know how many times we’ve done this, but I still feel flutters in my stomach every time you’re this close to me. Will it always feel like this?”

  “I hope so.” I don’t want our passion to ever fade away.

  Lou’s arms go around my shoulders and I grip the backs of her thighs, lifting her. She wraps her legs around my waist and I carry my almost-wife to the bed, gently lowering her to the mattress. Pushing stray hairs away from her face, I look at her eyes. “I’m so lucky to have found you.”

  She reaches up and caresses the side of my face. “I’m the lucky one.”

  When I finish kissing her, I move lower until my mouth is between her breasts. I palm one on the underside and suck her hard nipple into my mouth, swiping my tongue back and forth over it. I scrape the hard pebble with my teeth and she moans, which urges me on. And when her breath sounds like gasps, I do it again, making her breathe even harder.

  I love the sexy sounds she makes when I’m teasing her. And the more I tease, the louder they become. That’s something I would normally love to hear but we must be mindful of those sleeping in the rooms next to us. “Not so loud, Lou. Someone is going to hear you.”

  She squirms beneath me. “How am I supposed to be quiet when you’re doing all that to me?”

  My mouth moves lower and hovers over her pubic arch. “Find a way, mo maise. You can do it.”

  I press my nose against the top of her slit. “I get to have this for the rest of my life.”

  “I’m glad you like it because you don’t get to have any others.”

  “I don’t want any others. Ever.”

  I place my fingers on the inside of her thighs and push them apart. “Do you want my mouth on you?”

  Her hand rests on the top of my head, stroking my hair. “You have no idea how much I want your mouth on me.”

  Moving lower, I tongue her in one long, slow stroke up the center. When it hits her clit, her body jolts like she’s been seared. “Like that?”

  “I love it. And it doesn’t matter how many times you lick me, it gets me every time when the tip of your tongue hits my clit.”

  I love that I’m able to do that to her. And I also love that I’m the only man who has ever put his mouth on her this way. “You always taste so damn good. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to get enough of you.”

  “I hope you never get enough.”

  Her legs fall farther apart and she rocks up and down against my mouth. Pushing two fingers inside her, I use my tongue to circle that sensitive nub because I know that’s what she loves.

  “Uhhh… damn Hutch.”

  She grips the covers on the bed with her fisted hands and her back arches off the bed.

  “Uhhh… damn.”

  One of her feet lands on my shoulder, her toes digging into the meaty flesh, and her legs quiver on each side of my head.

  “Shit… Hutch… I’m coming.”

  Ah, damn. She’s being so fucking loud. I know someone is going to hear us.

  There’s no question about the moment her orgasm ends because she becomes limp as a wet noodle. She’s sprawled out in her exultant state with closed eyes and a subtle smile on her face. It satisfying to know I’m able to give her this kind of pleasure—and that she wants
it from me.

  Only me.

  Sex is uncomplicated with Lou. No games. No tit for tat. No using it as a weapon. It simply is what it is—an honest and true physical expression of the love we share. And I’m thankful for that.

  Her legs are toneless and have fallen down so I push them up, planting her soles flat on the bed. I crawl over her and lower my body to hers. “Don’t you dare go to sleep on me.”

  “I’m not. I’m just super relaxed.”

  “Did you take some kind of medicine to ease the wedding jitters?”

  “I don’t have wedding jitters.” She giggles “I’m relaxed because of that orgasm. It was amazing.”

  Orgasms do have a calming effect on the body. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

  I lift my head, noticing an enormous ornate mirror propped against the wall. No doubt it’s for a bride to get a full view of herself since this is the designated bride’s room. But I have another full view in mind.

  “Turn over.”

  She flips over and her eyes meet mine in the mirror. “Ohhh.”

  “Aye.”

  I lower my body and press my front to her back, watching myself kiss the side of her neck. “What do you think?”

  “I’ve never watched myself have sex.”

  “Neither have I.”

  “Feels naughty.”

  “Aye, it does.”

  I slip my hand around her waist and lift her hips off the bed. I don’t tell her so but this is something I could really get into. I’m very turned on by the idea of watching myself fuck her. It’ll be like getting a glimpse of ourselves doing porn.

  I grasp her hair in my fist and pull, tilting her face upward. “I want to see your face while I fuck you.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Yes, sir? Fuck. Hearing those two words come out of her mouth while she’s on her hands and knees waiting for me to fuck her feels like a whole new avenue opening up, one that needs to be explored.

  Placing my cock at her wet entrance, I watch her face in the mirror, especially her eyes, as I slowly push inside of her. I never get to see her expression when I’m behind her so this is new. And it’s hot.