KATE: MADISON KATE #4

by James Tate

  I couldn't fight my smile but still shook my head. "Don't change the subject, Sunshine. What's going on with you?"

  His smile turned almost apprehensive, and he let out a sigh. "I wanted to give you something." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, velvet box. A fucking ring box. What the fuck?

  "Arch—" I started to say in a panic, but he just shot me a lopsided smile and handed me the envelope that he'd pulled out with the ring box.

  "Just read the letter," he told me in a gruff voice, running a hand through his hair anxiously.

  I wrinkled my nose in confusion, one eye still on the ring box in his other hand, but I did as he asked and opened the envelope. With one more suspicious look at him, I tugged the letter out and unfolded the linen-textured paper.

  My gaze lowered from Archer's stupidly handsome face and started taking in the elegant, flowing handwriting of the letter. The first thing that became totally apparent: It wasn't written by Archer. I'd seen his handwriting, and it was a far cry from the neat, looping cursive on the page.

  It was addressed to me, and it only took a couple of words to realize it was from Archer's grandmother. I read another sentence, then glanced up at Archer with a frown.

  "Have you read this?"

  He shook his head. "No. She was pretty clear with me, that letter is for your eyes only."

  Relieved, I bit my lip and turned my attention back to the letter. Line by line, word by word, Constance D'Ath reached through the page and wrapped me in her arms, in her love, and in her approval. It was hands down the most heartfelt thing I'd ever read, and by the time I reached the end, my cheeks were wet and my vision blurry.

  "Baby girl," Archer breathed, "don't cry." He gently dabbed my cheeks with a fabric handkerchief, and I let out a short laugh.

  "Sorry," I groaned, taking the handkerchief from him. "Fuck, I've messed up my makeup, haven't I?"

  The corner of his mouth hitched in a half smile. "Nah, you still look like a fucking angel."

  I rolled my eyes and dabbed underneath them to try and clean up what was likely a mascara mess. Yep, sure enough, black smudges came away on the handkerchief. "Fallen angel, more like."

  Archer's smile spread wider. "My favorite type."

  The ring box still in his hand caught my attention once more, and I nodded to it. "So, are you going to show me what's in the box?"

  His gaze dropped down to it as he turned it over in his fingers thoughtfully. Then he cleared his throat. A faint blush crept up his neck, which was starting to freak me right the fuck out, but then he opened the box.

  My breath caught. "Holy shit."

  "Kate," Archer said in a soft voice, his gaze capturing mine despite the gorgeous, sparkling diamond ring in his hand. "I know everything that's happened has been just all kinds of fucked up. I messed things up from day one, and I'll probably spend forever trying to make up for it. Hell, I want to spend forever making up for it because that’ll mean we’re together..." He trailed off, but my throat was so tight I couldn't have said anything even if I had words to say.

  Archer drew another deep breath. "I'm not asking you to marry me."

  A smile tugged at my lips. "Because we're already married. Yeah, you skipped that step."

  His eyes flashed with some deep, painful emotion. "I did. But this might be as close to a real wedding as you'll ever let me have, and..." He trailed off, his gaze dipping to the ring. "I dunno. I guess I wanted to make it more real. I don’t want to put some cheap costume jewelry on your finger, Kate. Not today, not ever." He pinched the delicate ring between his way-too-big fingers, making it look comical as he offered it to me.

  I bit my lip, my pulse racing, but I didn't flinch as he slid it onto my finger. It was a perfect fit. Of course it was.

  "This came from my great-grandmother." Archer’s thumb stroked over the glittering diamonds as he gripped my fingers tight.

  I drew a long breath, feeling the weight of his gift. This had nothing to do with today's fake wedding and everything to do with us. Just us. Archer and me... and our unconventional marriage.

  "What are we calling this, then?" I wet my lips as his gaze met mine once more.

  He gave a one-shouldered shrug. "Fuck if I know. I just want my family ring on your finger, Princess. Don't ask me to analyze it any more than that."

  I swallowed a laugh but couldn't wipe the grin from my face. "Well, it's stunning. But—"

  "I know," he cut me off with a shake of his head. "I know. When this is all over, I swear I'll personally file our divorce papers, if that's what you still want. But in the meantime..." He gave another small shrug. "In the meantime, just let a man hold out hope that you might not want that."

  My brows shot up, and a rush of something surged through me. But it wasn't panic like I'd have expected. More like... I didn't even know. Excitement? Was that weird? Ugh, everything about us was weird, so be it.

  "I... don't even know what to say," I finally admitted after sitting there with my eyes locked on his for way too damn long.

  His lips slanted in a half smile. "You don't need to say anything, Princess. I just want you to know I'm in this one hundred percent. I love you more than I even knew I was capable of, and I—"

  "I love you too," I whispered, cutting him off.

  His eyes widened. "What?"

  "You heard me."

  "I don't know that I did. Say it again."

  I rolled my eyes, and his fingers tightened around mine. "I said I love you too."

  The smile that lit his face was an image I immediately banked into my memory. It was a smile I never, ever wanted to forget. He looked at me like I'd just changed his whole damn life, and it gave me all the fuzzy feelings.

  "What, that's it?" he teased, tugging me by my hand and bringing me closer to where he knelt. "No extended declarations of how I'm the light of your life?"

  I squinted at him. "Don't push it, Sunshine." He smirked, and I couldn't help but add, "You already fucking know you are."

  "Yeah, but it's something different to hear it from your lips, Princess." His other hand wrapped around my waist, and he pulled me closer still, until my ass was just barely on the edge of the sofa and my knees—covered in lilac silk and tulle—bracketed his body. "It's officially my second favorite sound from your lips."

  My brows quirked up in curiosity. "Only your second favorite? What's better than me telling you that I love you?" He shivered slightly as I said those three words again, and it made my heart race. Fucking hell... these boys were the best addiction that I never wanted to quit.

  "You wanna know?" He released my fingers and brought his hand up to cup my face. His own lips hovered just an inch away, so close I was dying to kiss him. Still, I also wanted to play his game because Archer's games always ended well for me.

  So I nodded as much as his grip would allow. "I wanna know."

  "Well then, I better show you," he replied with a wicked grin. He closed the gap between us, his lips meeting mine in a kiss so tender it made my heart ache, and I let out a small moan. Then froze.

  "Wait, was that it?" I asked, jerking away from him.

  Archer grinned and shook his head. "Not... quite." He found the hem of my skirt and started bunching it up. His hands trailed up my legs. "But it was close."

  I groaned, licking my lips in anticipation. "Steele is gonna be back any second." But I didn't exactly protest when his fingers found the satin thong I was wearing under my gown.

  Archer just threw me a wicked smirk. "So? He can watch. I bet he gets off on that shit, too." His fingers hooked my panties aside, then stroked along the length of my aching pussy. Fucking hell, if he left me all keyed up and twitchy before this wedding, I'd kick him straight in the balls.

  "He'd be more likely to wanna join in," I murmured, then gasped as Archer's fingers pushed into me. Thank fuck, he wasn't messing around. "Oh shit," I breathed, grabbing his wrist tight.

  "Close," he chuckled, his fingers pumping into me as his thumb found my clit a
nd teased circles. I moaned long and low as I dropped my head back and rode his hand. I was already riding the endorphin high of the whole "I love you" situation, so making me come wasn't exactly going to be difficult. I was already halfway there even before his lips dropped to kiss my chest.

  "Arch," I gasped as he pushed the fabric of my dress aside to expose my breast. His lips seized my hard nipple, and his fingers pumped between my lips, building my orgasm with alarming speed. It only took a few moments more, and then I was done for. My climax hit hard, and I moaned out his name while my pussy tightened around his fingers.

  He snickered, his breath teasing my damp flesh as he tugged my dress back over my tits. "That is my favorite sound off your lips, baby girl. When you moan my name mid-orgasm. Nothing fucking sweeter."

  I groaned, watching him with heavy-lidded eyes as he brought his fingers to his mouth and sucked them. Why was that so fucking sexy? Whatever the reason, it sent a shudder straight through me, and my breath caught.

  "Holy shit," I whispered. "I need you, Arch."

  One of his brows flicked up in silent question, but we didn't have time to discuss it. Instead, I just grabbed up an armful of my long skirt so I could turn around to kneel on the sofa with my hands on the back of it.

  Arching my neck to look back at him, I let a teasing smile play over my lips. "Quickly, Sunshine. If your dick isn't inside me in three seconds, I'm taking this ring off."

  It was safe to say I'd never seen him undo his pants faster. Two seconds later, my panties were ripped clean off and I screamed as he filled me up in one hard thrust. My fingers tightened on the velvet back of the sofa, and I arched my spine to push against him. We were on borrowed time already, and I wanted to feel him come. I needed it.

  "Fuck yes," I moaned as he fucked me, his hands gripping my hips where my wedding dress was all bunched up. He let out little grunting pants with every thrust, and I grinned at how much I craved that sound from him too. "Harder," I begged him, "faster, Arch. Fuck me like you own me."

  Magic. Fucking. Words. His control snapped. He gripped a handful of my perfectly curled hair and tugged it tight as he rode me hard. Every stroke, every slap of skin made me cry out, and I could already see stars.

  My moans of encouragement were coming more and more breathy, my hands gripping the back of the sofa tight to prevent us both tumbling over. Archer released my hair as my climax started to build, brushing it over my shoulder to expose my back, and I smiled.

  He slowed, then stilled within me.

  "Princess," he growled in a husky voice, trailing a finger down the top of my spine. "What is this?"

  I grinned wider, wiggling my hips to remind him what we were still in the middle of doing. He took the hint and started moving again, but this time it was slow. Gentle. Fucking loving as his finger traced the new ink on my spine.

  "What does it look like, Archer?" I teased as I rocked on his cock, chasing my orgasm.

  He let out a deeply masculine rumble and leaned forward to trace that small tattoo with his lips as his hands closed over mine. "It looks like you tattooed an arrow on your skin, Kate." His hips rolled, his thick shaft pumping all too leisurely in my desperate cunt. "Why would you do that?"

  I let out a small laugh, loving how heavily he leaned on my hands. "Because, idiot," I panted, "I fucking love you. That's why."

  He let out a soft moan, and his hips bucked a bit faster, making me shudder as my orgasm built up again. "I fucking love you too, Princess," he confessed, then bit me.

  I cried out, and he took that as his cue. I came so hard my ears rang and my vision went spotty, and I knew he joined me right there. His fingers laced together with mine on the sofa, and I couldn't stop staring at the way his huge, inked hand gripped mine as we came. The glittering, diamond D'Ath ring bit into his skin, and a smear of blood marked my pale flesh, but that in itself couldn't have been more perfect if it'd been scripted.

  Someone cleared their throat, interrupting us before Archer even pulled out of me. I turned my face to smile at Steele.

  "Hey Max," I greeted him, licking my lips.

  He glared at the two of us. "You have no idea how thin my self-control is right now, Hellcat. Don't look at me like that."

  Archer snickered a laugh as he tucked himself back into his suit pants, then smoothed my dress back down.

  "I better get cleaned up," I murmured with a faint blush as I climbed off the sofa and felt the slickness between my legs.

  Steele rolled his eyes but tossed me a packet of wet-wipes left behind by my makeup artist. "I should have come back in five minutes like I said." He crossed over to me when I was done with my speedy clean up and ran his fingers through my curls to tidy them somewhat. He swiped a thumb under my left eye and his brow furrowed. "Have you been crying?" His accusing gaze shot to Archer, who raised his hands defensively.

  "Don't look at me like that, shithead. It wasn't me."

  "It was Connie," I assured Steele. "She wrote me a very sweet letter."

  He still frowned but jerked a nod and gently pushed me to sit so he could help me strap my gun into the thigh holster included with the weapon. "Alright, everyone is in place. Arch, you better go." Steele nodded to the door. "I'll stay with MK until the last possible second, then we're at go time."

  Archer nodded his understanding, then stooped to kiss me possessively. "Stay safe, baby girl," he murmured. "I love you."

  I bit my lip, but he was gone before I could reciprocate the sentiment. Steele just arched a brow at me.

  "You ready for this, Hellcat?"

  I nodded, firm. I was more than ready for this.

  32

  The second Alyssa gave Sampson and I the nod to say it was go time, I almost keeled over. The processional music had just started playing, and a thick knot of emotions choked me. It wasn't some cheesy wedding march by Bach. It was Steele's song for me, played by a string quartet.

  What the fuck?

  These boys were piling on the sweet gestures as though this were a real wedding. It was tripping my nerves out, and my arm was trembling in Sampson's.

  "Don't worry, Miss," he murmured at me under his breath. "Your boys got me all strapped up in Kevlar. If anyone shoots, you go down and I'll cover you, got it?"

  I jerked a nod. I couldn't tell him that I wasn't even remotely worried about getting shot, I was shaking because my heart was too fucking full of love.

  The faces of the guests were totally anonymous, almost all planted there. Of course we’d made excuses for Constance and Ana not to come; there was no way in hell we would have risked them being caught in the crossfire. Samuel was dead, Cherry had been told she wasn't welcome, and Bree was still in the hospital. Aside from our security team, I recognized no one, and that was exactly how I wanted it.

  I held my breath almost the entire way down the chapel aisle. It wasn't a huge venue, which played into our "intimate guest list" bullshit, but I was torn between wanting to soak up the sound of Steele's music being played by the string quartet and remaining alert for any assassination attempts. The plan should safeguard me from long-range attacks, though. I had to trust in the plan.

  Still, my palms were sweating as Sampson delivered me to the end of the aisle where my groom waited, looking sexier than I'd ever fucking seen him. Maybe that was helped by the fact that I was equally in love with his two best men, both sharply dressed in tailored suits that made my inner submissive pant with desire.

  The three of them stared at me like they were seeing me for the first time, and it was a feeling I never wanted to get used to. It made gooseflesh break out all over my skin and my chest tight, but I couldn't stop fucking smiling.

  Fucking hell, MK, this is an ambush, not a real wedding. Pull it together!

  Our celebrant started droning on with his canned-wedding-speech crap, and I totally tuned him out. My attention was all for my boys. My gaze ate the three of them up, and everything else faded into the background. Not the smartest move when we were actively expecting som
eone—or several someones—to try and kill me today, but... too fucking bad. Like Archer had said, this may be the closest we ever come to a real wedding, so why not make the most of it?

  I had faith in our plan. It was airtight.

  Yet as the ceremony progressed, I started getting uneasy. Archer's brow was furrowed, too, as he held my gaze, and I could sense he was just as concerned. They should have tried something by now. All our intel on the four hitmen who'd taken my contract while the listing had still been active suggested each of their standard MOs was to take an easy target. That's exactly what we were giving them. Yet... nothing had happened.

  Not a single person had tried to attack throughout the ceremony. Not one. No one had even attempted to interrupt the whole bullshit wedding, and I soon found myself tripping over vows that I hadn't remotely prepared to say.

  I made the best of it, though, meeting each of my guys’ eyes with each line of those trite, well-worn wedding vows. Because regardless of who I was already legally married to, I was in it for the long haul with all three of them. I hoped they all knew that.

  "...may now kiss your bride." The celebrant's declaration shocked me. I gasped as Archer threaded his fingers into my hair and claimed my mouth in a searing kiss that I felt all the way to my toes.

  "What the fuck is going on?" I whispered against his lips, letting the fall of my pink curls hide our faces from the clapping fake-guests. "What went wrong?"

  "I have no idea," he murmured back, his thumb stroking my cheek. "But I'm kind of glad it did."

  And just like that, the chapel exploded.

  Not metaphorically. A goddamn fucking bomb detonated and took the entire back of the chapel off. Archer threw himself over me, guarding me with his body even as he pulled his gun from his underarm holster. Gunfire rang out from every damn angle, and my gut churned with anxiety. Something had gone seriously wrong with our plan.

  "Stay down," Archer barked as he lifted his weight off me somewhat.

  I didn't argue, just scrambled to shelter behind our dead celebrant as Archer stood and started shooting at one of our attackers. One of our many attackers.