by Nikki Winter
Before he knew it, they were entering the higher end of Albemarle County pulling into the driveway of one of the most immaculate houses he’d ever seen. Julian’s heart thumped hard in his chest as he finally realized that he’d seen this house before. In pictures. Aiyanna’s pictures.
He gripped his brother’s shoulder before he could leave the truck. “Havan—”
Havan shook his head. “Just trust her okay?”
Nodding, he climbed out and headed up the cobblestone walkway. Julian was just a few feet away from the double doors when the right one swung open, revealing a grinning Lalani.
She whistled low. “Damned if you don’t clean up well, cowboy.”
Havan’s shoulder slammed into Julian’s almost knocking him off the porch just so the big idiot could stand in front of her. “What about me?”
Julian decided it was best not to laugh in Havan’s face when Lalani gave him a once over and then a simple shrug, stating, “You look okay.” With that, she grabbed Julian’s hand and pulled him through the door.
“Lalani—”
“No, I’m not telling you what she has planned.”
His brother snorted behind him and Julian sighed but continued to follow. By the time they reached the patio door he was so nervous that it felt like someone kept stopping and starting his heart.
Lalani stopped and looked at him. Squeezing his hand, she simply said, “Trust her, okay?”
Julian frowned. “Why does everyone keep saying that?”
Havan popped him in the back of the head. “Don’t question, just do it.”
“Mommy I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can.”
Aiyanna shook her head, wringing her hands. “No, I can’t. I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
Evelyn snorted. “You’re going to be just fine.”
“What if he says no?”
“Then,” John said as he and Dastan came and both wrapped an arm around her. “We’ll take him out front and beat him until he says ‘yes.’”
That finally pulled a smile out of her. “I’m gonna tell you the same thing I told Daddy and Elan. No physical assaults on Julian.”
John stomped his foot. “You’re ruining our lives.”
“Um…I think Julian’s going to take your lives if you don’t stop touching his woman,” Evelyn whispered, gesturing over Aiyanna’s shoulder.
Turning slowly as quiet fell over the backyard, she took a deep breath when her gaze finally connected with his. He was scowling but she was used to that look by now. Julian took tentative steps down the patio and toward her, his gaze bouncing between Aiyanna and their mix of family and friends.
She’d spent the day setting up paper lanterns and nicely set tables along with preparing food, hoping that this would turn into a celebration very soon.
Julian’s smile looked nervous and shaky. “Hermosa…what is all of this?” He waved a hand around as everyone stood in various spots, focusing in on them.
Aiyanna exhaled and held out a hand. He took it without hesitation. “This is actions speaking louder than words.”
His expression told her that he was more than a little confused but he didn’t say anything.
“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking over the past few days.”
“I could tell,” he said, softly rubbing his thumb between her eyebrows.
Smiling, she took his hand and kissed the back of it. “Do you know what I realized?”
Julian shook his head.
“I realized that before you ever opened your mouth to say the words, I already knew you loved me.” Aiyanna caught his gaze, held it and forgot everyone else for the moment. “This whole time you’ve been showing me. Every single thing you did, you did it unselfishly and just for me.” She linked their fingers. “You hunted me down in my office just to see me face to face when anyone else would’ve simply called.” Julian grinned and Aiyanna could hear scattered chuckles. “You wouldn’t lay a finger on me for a month just so I would know without a doubt that I was more than just another conquest to you. You do your best to make me smile when I’m snarling, make me laugh when I’m about to set something on fire, and you make me feel like I’m your whole world some days.”
He cupped her cheek. “That’s because you are.”
Aiyanna resisted the urge to cry. Not now, maybe later. She had something she needed to ask. “I understood your need to hear me tell you that I love you but I didn’t get it until now. The words were important because I haven’t exactly taken leaps and bounds to show you how much you mean to me.”
Shaking his head again, Julian said, “You don’t have to. I know—”
She placed her fingertips over his mouth. “Just let me get this out before I lose my nerve okay?”
He nodded.
“And I kept thinking, what could I possibly do to finally show him that he’ll never, ever have to worry about losing me?” Holding out one hand, she waited for Lalani to place a small velvet box in her palm. “And finally, I had an epiphany.” She watched him gulp as she let go of his other hand to open the small box. “The only thing that came to mind would be giving myself to you for the rest of our lives because I know I’ll never ever find anyone who makes me as happy as you do.” Taking the diamond encrusted platinum band out, Aiyanna asked the question that she was dying to know the answer to. “Julian Alejandro Almanza, will you marry me?”
He was laughing before she even finished, his eyes twinkling as he stared at her. “This is so backwards.”
“No, this is me showing you how much I love you. So what’s your answer, Cowboy? I don’t have all night and I’m sure I can find plenty of men this side of the east coast to—” Before she could get the rest of her statement out, Julian had her off her feet, his lips pressed to hers in front of God and family, once again telling her without words everything she needed to know.
Epilogue
Three years later…
“Oh God, Oh God, Oh God…”
Julian relished in every chant that left his wife’s mouth as he pulled his hips back and tunneled his cock deep into the awaiting warmth beneath him. His strokes were slow, measured. He was determined to draw out her pleasure as long as possible, despite the fact that he felt like his balls would explode if he didn’t come soon.
“Julian…please…” Her nails raked down his back, causing him to shudder. If she did that again, he would be done. Instead of telling her that, he grabbed her wrists and pinned them over her head.
Aiyanna tried getting out of his grasp but he wasn’t letting go; too focused on every expression that crossed her beautiful face. His wife. It was a chant that had reverberated through his head and heart from the moment he’d first seen her walking down the aisle towards him today. Every step she took would forever be engrained in his memory. His wife.
She had chosen him. Julian had never felt more whole than the moment it was announced that she was now Mrs. Almanza. And now he would spend the rest of the night showing her exactly how much he needed her.
“You’re…torturing…me…” Aiyanna panted beneath him.
He chuckled low but didn’t pick his pace up any; deciding that this time she wouldn’t have her way.
“Okay, I’ll make you a deal,” she tried to reason.
Julian quirked a brow and kept up his slow, steady thrusting. Her pussy felt amazing clenching around him.
“You give me what I want, now,” Leaning up, Aiyanna nipped his chin. “And all this week, you can have every one of your raunchy sex fantasies fulfilled.”
Mouth twitching, he retorted, “I’ll take your request into consideration.”
That just wasn’t the answer Aiyanna wanted to hear which inevitably meant she had to take things into her own hands. Grinning wickedly, she pressed her lips to Julian’s ear and whispered exactly what she would let him do to her…in Spanish. She knew those impromptu lessons that he’d been giving her over the past few years or so would come in handy.
When he paus
ed and stared down at her for a moment, mouth slightly agape, she knew she had him. It was confirmed when he said, “Okay, you win.”
Julian gripped her hips and rolled over so that she was on top. In one swift thrust, he pushed his hips up and brought her down, bumping right against her spot while simultaneously rubbing her clit. That was enough to cause her to explode and she felt it when he emptied himself inside of her.
Aiyanna dropped forward, resting on his chest, and feeling every hammering beat of his heart. It was comforting.
“Do you know how much I love you?” she asked softly as she closed her eyes.
He ran one large palm down her back as he kissed the top of her head. “Yes.”
That one word was spoken with so much conviction that it brought tears to her eyes. “Don’t ever forget that, okay?”
Arms tightening around her, Julian simply replied, “Never.”
And that was the last word Aiyanna heard leave his lips before she drifted off. She didn’t need anything else to make this day perfect, having gotten everything she could ever want was more than enough.
Julian was more than enough. And the fact that he knew and understood that, could finally see himself the same way Aiyanna saw him, made her happier than she’d ever been.
Nikki
Nikki Winter
When Nikki wrote her first story in the tenth grade, she knew without a doubt she was destined for greatness. Now if she could just convince everyone else…
Buckling down, she’s taken the time to polish what she refers to as her “writing superiority.” She hopes that the tales she has created grab the readers’ attention, and make them devoted slaves to her will fans. If you want to let her know just how absolutely, positively awesome she is, you can always e-mail her at [email protected], friend her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/people/Nikki-Winter/100002445230428, or follow her on Twitter as @NikkiWinter19.
Table of Contents
Title page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Epilogue
Nikki Winter