by Jessi Gage
She stepped up to take Emmett’s hand, and Maxi fluffed the sweeping bustle she’d created from the former train. Another hand appeared in front of her. She turned to smile at Jilly, who held out her hand for the bouquet of orange lilies Maxi had thrown together that morning. Her little sister had returned from Peru two days ago and had been tirelessly helping her and Maxi pull this wedding out of their butts ever since.
It was September 3rd, nine loooong days since what she and Emmett referred to as “the unpleasantness,” and just eighteen days since she’d met him. He surrounded both her hands with his as they took their places in front of a fidgeting Nick.
Jilly and Maxi flanked her, Jilly as her maid of honor and Maxi as her bridesmaid. Theo, who hadn’t taken his eyes off Maxi since he’d arrived, stood by Emmett as his groomsman. Nick was the unofficial officiator as well as the best man. Ali fluttered around taking pictures and casting adoring looks at Nick.
Emmett’s mom had come with her new husband, and his dad stood a few feet away with Lisa and her husband Rob. Lisa had an arm in a sling, but otherwise looked like a tanned and lean goddess in a coral sundress. Rob had a military buzz cut and looked hot and lethal in a patrol uniform complete with standard-issue gun-toting utility belt. He was technically on duty, but Emmett’s dad had approved his stopping by for the ceremony, and seeing as Montgomery Herald was chief of police, no one was going to argue with his call.
Best of all, Grandma Nina was in a wheelchair beside Betty and Joe McIntyre. Her grandmother and Betty were both beaming at her. Joe was adjusting his tie.
Some of the smiles aimed their way were more cautious than euphoric, but Jade didn’t mind. She was just glad everyone most important to them had been able to make it given such short notice. It was as close to perfect as she could have asked for under the speedy circumstances.
Nick cleared his throat and got them started with a minimum of verbal stumbling. When it was time to say their vows, he nodded at her, letting her know it was time for her little speech. She and Emmett had agreed they would each say a little something they came up with themselves before Nick took them through the traditional vows—minus the obey part, which was just stupid, in her opinion, and something she could never hold to even if she wanted to.
She felt the gazes of their attendants and guests settle on her like a weight of expectation. For some reason, that made her feel a million times more vulnerable than when she took off her clothes for strangers.
The urge to hyperventilate tightened her rib cage, but Emmett winked and whispered, “No pressure, babe. It’s only the most important speech you’ll ever make.” The twinkle in his eye told her he was rooting for her, despite his teasing words.
He thumbed the sparkling diamond on her left hand while she gathered her courage and took a cleansing breath. She could do this. She’d been working on her vows since Emmett’s romantic second proposal a week ago today. She knew the words inside and out, because she felt them inside and out.
Squeezing his fingers, she began. “If you’d asked me eighteen days ago, if I’d be married to the guy who sweeps my street by the end of the summer, I’d have said, ‘No freaking way.’ If you’d asked me if I thought he was cute, that’s another story. I’d have said, ‘Oh, yeah, baby.’”
Everyone laughed on cue.
Emmett’s eyes crinkled. He rubbed his thumbs over her knuckles.
She grinned at him. “Because you’d have to be blind not to think this guy is a complete knock-out.”
Behind Emmett, Theo slid his sunglasses on and put his hands out in his best Stevie Wonder impression. That got another round of laughs.
“But contrary to what my former coworkers think—” She cleared her throat and shot a playful glare Maxi’s way. “I’m not doing this for the great view. I’m doing it for the free lawn care. Just kidding, just kidding,” she asserted over more laughter.
Emmett laughed too, throwing his head back and letting it rip.
As the chuckles faded, she captured Emmett’s gaze and spoke just to him. “I’m doing it for love. I’ve spent my life running from things that hurt me or scare me, and a friend helped me see that even though I haven’t known you long, you’re the one I can always run to. You’re the one who will always have my back. Being with you, I never have to be afraid again, because if life gets hard, you’re going to face it with me. You’re a good man. Good to the core.” She sneaked a look at Grandma Nina, who winked. “So, I’m grabbing on, and I’m not letting go. I love you, Emmett, and I’m so glad I can finally stop running and just…be. With you. Forever.”
His eyes sobered as she spoke, and his gaze touched hers with exquisite softness. His face reflected back the love she felt times a hundred. Her heart felt so full.
It was Emmett’s turn. He cleared his throat with a thick sound that revealed how touched he was. “My whole life, I’ve been looking for the one girl I’d be able to love forever, the one person I could be best friends with and do life with and never get tired of. I was focused on who she’d be, how she’d make me feel, how she’d fit into my life, and how much I’d love her. And I was scared to death that when I found her she wouldn’t be enough for me. It took meeting you to realize my focus was in the wrong place.”
He squeezed her hands. “I met you and all of a sudden, I saw it’s not about finding The One. It’s about being The One. I met you, and I found myself wanting to be the guy you needed. I wanted to fit into your life. I wanted to be the one you’d want to do life with and the one you’d never get tired of.” He took a breath that shook a little. “You’re the first woman I’ve ever met who makes me wish I were a better man.”
She wanted to interrupt him and tell him he was the best man she knew, and she’d known it from the moment she met him, but he didn’t give her the chance.
“I met you, and suddenly the spotlight was on me, and it revealed there was some work to be done. But you loved me anyway. And because of that, I gave you my heart. Completely. For the first time, I’m not afraid of what the future holds.” He grinned at her. “With you, I know I can make my own future.” She recognized the words from when he’d proposed to her the first time, when she’d been nothing but a shadow in an angel’s custody. She started to tear up. She didn’t know how he’d done it, but Joshua had found a way for her to remember all that had happened when she’d been nothing but essence in the abyss. Those memories were such a gift. “I’m not afraid to promise my love to you,” Emmett went on. “You’re a part of me. Now and always. I love you.”
The rest of the ceremony passed in a happy blur. They exchanged wedding bands, passed around hugs, assured Emmett’s dad they’d be over for a barbeque soon, planned a trip to Philly to visit his mom, and posed for pictures. She’d even gotten to throw the bouquet over her shoulder. She thought Maxi had caught it, but couldn’t be sure since she’d tossed it while Emmett had been striding to his truck with her in his arms.
They hadn’t planned a reception. They’d both known they would be eager to high-tail it up to the Essex Resort in Burlington. Thankfully, the resort had a room available despite the short notice. It wasn’t a honeymoon suite, but the online brochure said it was a stylish room with a gas fireplace, jetted soaking tub-for-two, and a king-size bed. She would have been happy with a tent and a sleeping bag, but Emmett had insisted she get a real honeymoon to go along with their real wedding. As she’d spent the last several days learning, what Emmett wanted, Emmett had a way of charming out of just about anybody…especially her.
During the hour and a half drive, they laughed about the ceremony and talked about their plans to turn Grandma Nina’s house into a bed and breakfast. She got lost in thinking about which room she wanted to remodel first when she noticed Emmett had been quiet a while. She peeked over the rims of her sunglasses to find his jaw rigid and his eyes boring holes through the windshield.
“What are you thinking about over there, Mr. Serious?”
He glanced her way, and a slow grin curved his mou
th. “I’m thinking about what I’m going to do to you tonight, baby girl.”
Gulp.
Lust slammed into her. She pressed her thighs together, needing that tiniest bit of friction to ease the empty ache building between her legs. Would her husband seduce her or would he fall on her like a wild beast? She kind of wanted the beast. She wouldn’t blame him one bit if he took her right up against the wall the second they shut the door behind them in their room.
He’d waited a long time for this night. And then some.
He’d done it for her, so she could have the wedding she’d always wanted. As an added benefit, she’d begun to understand a little about the kind of control he’d had to develop to keep his vow alive all this time. Waiting was damn hard.
Thank God it was almost over.
Chapter 34
“Oh, my God,” Jade sighed. Her eyelids fluttered closed, and her pink tongue came out to swipe her pillowy lower lip. She was radiant. And sexy. And everything Emmett had ever wanted. And she was all his.
“I mean, oh my gosh,” she corrected herself, dipping her fork into another bite of lavender-infused crème brulée. “This is so good. Taste this.” She lifted the fork to his mouth and slipped it between his lips.
It was good, but he had a different dessert in mind. Anticipation had been building since the drive up to Burlington and all through their two-hour, five-course dinner at the resort’s restaurant. Come to think of it, it had been building for the past ten years, but a more specific, soul-deep yearning to fully claim his bride had been pooling in his groin since he’d said “I do” and carried her to his truck.
When they’d arrived at the resort, his little vixen had shoved him against the wall and invited him to ravish her with a kiss so hot he’d almost forgotten how he’d planned to take it slow and start making up for all the mistakes he’d made with her. But he’d managed to resist, no thanks to the outfit she’d slipped into for dinner, a tight, knee-length black skirt with a slit that ran the entire length of her right thigh and that sexy little green top he’d discovered in her closet. The top displayed a tantalizing length of cleavage just begging for a licking.
He’d been fighting the urge to stare at her gorgeous body all night and was dying to take her up to their room, but he couldn’t bear to rush her though the meal. She’d savored each morsel of her filet mignon and julienne potatoes, each sip of her wine, and now each delicate bite of their shared dessert like no one had ever bought her a fancy dinner before. With a pang, he realized maybe that was the case.
“Live it up, hon,” he told her, taking the fork to feed her. “You deserve all of this and more.” He wouldn’t deny his girl a single second of pleasure tonight, not even if his dick throbbed on the edge of pain every time she moaned over a tasty mouthful.
He fed her a few more bites of crème brulée before signaling the waiter for the check. By ten o’clock, he was slipping the keycard into their fifth-floor room and carrying her over the threshold. He took her straight to the bed.
“Finally,” she said when her back hit the fluffy comforter. She grabbed him and pulled him into a series of hot little kiss nips. “It’s about time we consummate this marriage.” She clawed her skirt up her legs and spread them so he could settle between.
“Mmm, tempting,” he said as he nibbled her neck. “But there’s something I want to do first.”
She groaned. “Haven’t we waited long enough? We’ve been married more than a week, and you’re still a virgin!”
“Patience,” he chided.
“Easy for you to say. You’re the one who’s been practicing restraint all these years. It’s kind of a foreign concept to me.”
Chuckling, he hauled her to the edge of the bed and tugged on her hands until she was sitting up. He knelt between her smooth, tan knees, his face level with the black satin of her panties.
“Oh,” she said, and her pupils dilated. Her hair tumbled over her shoulders, and the flowery scent of her shampoo mixed with the faint musk of her arousal. “Why didn’t you say so? That’s a delay I can put my stamp of approval on.”
He kissed the inside of her knee, loving teasing her. “Oh, we’re going to get to that. Believe me. But that’s not what I had in mind.”
She arched her eyebrows, waiting. A smile played at her mouth.
She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever laid eyes on, and he would get to look at her and love her every day for the rest of his life. He was more thankful than he could say. But he wanted to try and say it anyway.
God had given him this amazing woman. God had helped him keep his vow all this time. Emmett was as eager to give thanks as he was to end the era-o’-virginity.
“I want to pray with you,” he said, taking Jade’s hands and toying with her wedding ring. “If you don’t mind.”
Her eyes went round with surprise, but she nodded and said. “Yeah. I don’t mind. Go ahead.” She bent forward to wrap her arms around his shoulders and press her cheek to the top of his head.
He held on around her slim waist, burying his face against her belly, and spoke to God like he did every day, only out-loud, so she could hear. He thanked Him for bringing her into his life and for keeping her safe through demonic attack. He prayed God would help him be a good husband. He prayed God would bless their marriage. He ended by praying that one day he would have the privilege of seeing his wife come to love God as much as he did.
After he finished, she said, “That was nice. Thanks. But I want to go to church with you some more before I make any big decisions, okay?”
“That’s only fair.” He gazed at her, contentment filling him to overflowing. “But whatever you decide, I’m always going to love you. You know that, right?”
“Yeah,” she said with a smile. “I love you, too. Now, if you’re done with your little to-do list, I’d really like to get laid.” Her nails pricked his scalp with delicious pressure, and she pulled him into an open-mouthed kiss. Her legs went around his waist as he pushed her back onto the bed. Her skirt bunched around her hips. The heels of her strappy shoes pointed at the ceiling.
He almost lost it right then. The wet heat of her mouth, the crush of his hard chest to her perfect breasts, her damp crotch grinding his erection—was there any more blissful place to be? Not on Earth. He was sure of it. He would come in a minute just from kissing her like this.
He broke the kiss, panting, and managed to shackle her wrists above her head with one hand. He cupped between her legs with his other hand and lust shot through him at the feel of her soaked panties. The memory of that night with Mercy tried to poison his happiness, but he forced it away. There was no room for the past here tonight. Jade deserved his full attention. She deserved all of him. He planned to give her every inch of what she deserved, and more. Which meant, she would need to let him drive or their first time would be over in thirty seconds flat. “I’ll be in charge this first time.” He left no room for negotiation in his tone.
“But I thought you might want, you know, someone with a little experience to…you know…”
He didn’t give her a chance to figure out how to end that well. Instead, he took her mouth in a passionate kiss and dipped his fingers into her panties. Her slick folds tempted him to delve inside, but he skimmed up to her firm little clit to rub her rough and fast while he made love to her mouth with his tongue. She gasped and writhed beneath him and clutched at his shoulders. In less than a minute, she cried out with her first orgasm.
Oh yeah. That was hot.
“God, Emmett! God!” she shouted, her voice gone raspy and her breath coming fast. Her eyes half closed with satisfaction then widened as she realized what she’d said. “Sorry,” she breathed, biting her lower lip.
He released her hands and kissed one palm. “It’s okay,” he said, proud he could speak past the urge to drive himself deep inside her. “I like knowing I can make you lose control.” His own control was hanging by a thread, but he’d had lots of practice riding that fine edge between des
ire and indulgence. His own indulgence would come. But first, he would make sure his wife got to come. Again and again.
She lazily plucked at his shirt buttons as her lips curled in a slow, catlike smile. “I guess I’m in good hands with my virginal husband.”
“You have no idea, sweetheart. I’ve had a long time to plan this night.”
* * * *
Jade quivered with anticipation as Emmett took his sweet time undressing her, strategically kissing, licking, and stroking in all the right places to drive her crazy with need. He paid special attention to her breasts, devoting long minutes to tasting, squeezing, and suckling each one.
He ran his work-roughened hands over her ribs and hips, igniting her with delicious friction. He nibbled her sensitive collarbones and up and down the tender insides of her arms. He tongued her bellybutton piercing until a fiery path of desire linked the little peridot gem directly to her pulsing vagina. There was no part of her body he didn’t stimulate with the patience of a man who had been denying himself for a decade. Or maybe it was the insatiable curiosity of a man whose only intimate experience with a woman’s body was in his imagination. If that was the case, she applauded his imagination.
“Take these off,” she said for the third time, grabbing the waistband of his pants. She’d been aiming for his zipper, but he kept shifting out of reach. An hour had passed since they’d arrived at their room, and he still had his pants on. She was completely nude and throbbing with aching emptiness. “I need you inside me, baby.”
“Like this?” he asked, and he slid the tip of a finger just inside her.
“No, you big tease. Give me this.” She grasped him through his pants. He was long and thick and hard as granite, and he moved at her touch.
“Not yet,” he said. He was grinning at her, but his eyes were intense. He wanted her in a bad way.