by Unknown
“If it was anyone else I would be creeped out, but because it’s you, I’ll let it slide. It’s kind of cute actually,” I say, gravitating closer to him.
I move my hands up towards his face, running my fingers through his hair. He sighs loudly, blatantly enjoying the attention. He moves his hands down to my waist, pulling me closer against him. I inhale, loving the scent that can only be his.
“I missed you, baby,” he whispers to me, squeezing me gently with his calloused fingertips.
“I missed you too. I had fun, but not as much as I would have, had you been there,” I say seriously.
He looks at me fixedly, a proud look on his face.
Did he really think that I wouldn’t miss him at all? That I would actually look forward to my last night of so-called freedom?
“How about I show you just how much I missed you? I still owe you a thank you, unless you forgot,” I say tongue in cheek.
He chuckles softly, obviously amused by my offer.
“How about I show you, Emma? It’s all about you tonight,” he says throatily.
“Well, in that case, what are you waiting for?” I say smartly.
“Not a thing,” he says smirking, reaching for my hand. “Are you ready?”
I smile broadly, more than ready.
“Born ready,” I say matter of fact.
“We’ll see about that,” he replies mischievously, guiding me into the bedroom.
Chapter 16: The Big Day
I wake up to the sound of music, a soft and melodic combination. I blink my eyes several times, stretching my tender muscles. Damn, I ache in places I didn’t even know I could! I guess going out last night, combined with Aiden’s overly enthusiastic welcome-home, really took a toll on my body.
I’m finally able to take in my surroundings, when I notice two things: Aiden is not next to me in bed and it looks as if it’s dark outside. Did I really sleep all day and am just now waking up? Yeah, I guess this is my body’s way of telling me that I needed to recoup.
I yawn loudly, as I swing my legs over the bed and onto the hardwood floor. I walk out into the living room, the volume of the music heightening. Hmmm…the record player is on but no Aiden in sight. I wonder where he could be. I don’t think he left the house, because he’s too protective to leave me alone.
As I start to head out the front door to make sure his bike and truck are outside, I hear the back door slide open. I freeze, hoping that it’s only Aiden.
Before I can turn around, my muscles relax and my fingers unclench at the sound of Aiden’s voice. Thank God!
“Baby, what are you doing? I thought you were still asleep,” he says nervously as he walks over to me.
When he reaches me, I latch onto him, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck.
“I just woke up, and you weren’t in bed. I figured you were still here, but I wanted to make sure. When you came in from out back, you scared the shit out of me,” I say breathlessly.
“Shhh, Emma. Everything is fine. I will never leave you alone. Don’t ever be afraid that something will happen to you again. I’ll protect you. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up. I kind of had some things I needed to take care of,” he says clearing his throat.
I squeeze him, assuring him that I’m okay now.
“Oh yeah? Like what?” I ask curiously.
“Just gimme one more minute, and I’ll show you,” he says smirking.
I arch my eyebrow at him, releasing my grip. I wonder what it is that he has to show me.
He turns away from me, going to the back door once again, closing it behind him. I ruffle my hair, anxiously awaiting his return.
A little over a minute later, he returns with a thoughtful look on his face. Before I can ask him about his expression, he goes over to the record player and grabs another album, dropping the pin onto the newly chosen vinyl.
I hear a familiar tune coming from the speakers, recognition dawning on my face. He must have gone into my iPod and found out this is one of my favorite songs. No One’s Gonna Love You by Band of Horses floats through the room, causing my heart to quicken.
He looks at me smiling, an all-knowing look in his eyes, as he reaches out his hand towards me. I walk over to him, placing my hand in his palm, a dazed expression on my face. He threads his fingers through mine, his warm skin a welcome contrast to mine. I follow him through the back door, my eyes trying to adjust to what I’m seeing before me.
White lights are strewn all across the deck, almost like a canopy of luminosity above us. Candles are everywhere, carefully outlining the trail of red rose petals trailing down the steps of the deck. I look farther down the beach near the water, and I see Leo standing in the sand, wearing a fancy suit of all things.
My breath hitches as I look at Aiden, hoping that I’m not imagining what I think the surprise is.
He moves his left arm toward my face, brushing my cheek with his scarred limb. I’ve noticed that he’s barely worn the prosthesis anymore, not since my attack, and I’m proud of him. I think that he doesn’t wear it as much, to be true to himself and show me that he’s not afraid of hiding the truth anymore.
I look into his eyes, seeing so much love and emotion behind them. My eyes start to water, unable to control every feeling rushing through my body. Everything that I have ever done or that was ever done to me, means nothing compared to this moment. I would do everything all over again, knowing that it would bring me here. Everything was worth it just to see this look on his face. He was worth it.
“Emma, I love you. I know I tell you that all the time, but I just want you to know how much. These past few months have been the best and most difficult of my life. Seeing you hurt and in pain changed something in me. It made me realize that life is hard and unbearable at times but finding someone to share it with is the most important thing. You made me want to be the best version of myself, baby. Without you, I’m nothing. You brought me to life and showed me that no matter what happens during the day, I have you to come home to at night. I don’t ever want to be apart from you. I may have jumped the gun and planned all of this behind your back, but I wanted to surprise you. I know how difficult it has been for you lately, and I admire you so much. I wanted you to know that being my wife is so much more than just a ring and a piece of paper binding us together. It means that I’ll always be here and that I’ll never stop loving you. All I want is to make you happy and be the husband that you deserve. I know that we have our pasts that make us who we are, but they don’t define us anymore. You’re my future. Will you marry me, Emma? Officially, that is?” he says smiling.
I beam broadly at him, wiping away a few stray tears that managed to escape.
“Of course, Aiden. No matter how many times you ask me, I will always say yes. I’d be an idiot to say no,” I say chuckling through the tears. “I’ve made so many mistakes in my life, Aiden. Meeting you and agreeing to be your wife was the best thing I ever did. I would relive every horrible moment in my life if it meant being here with you. I realized I can conquer anything with you next to me. I don’t want to spend another second without you as my husband. As much as I loved Jeremiah, I did the wrong thing by marrying him and cheating us both out of love. I didn’t really believe in love until you practically made my heart beat right out of my chest.”
“Emma, c’mere,” he says wrapping both his arms around me as he kisses my forehead.
“I love you,” I say into his chest.
“I love you too,” he murmurs back, resting his chin on my head.
I mentally shake myself, trying to get my shit together. I’m glad we said what we did to each other and not in front of Leo. I wouldn’t want him to hear all of our sappy talk. Yeah, embarrassing.
Wait, I just realized that Leo is here. Is he going to perform the ceremony? It would be kind of weird and random for him to be standing on the beach in a tuxedo just for shits and giggles.
“Is Leo here to marry us?” I ask confused.
“Yeah
, awhile back I asked him to take classes online to become an ordained minister. I wanted to ask you to marry me months ago, as you know, that way somebody we know could do it. I don’t know about you but I didn’t want a stranger to be with us when it happened. It seemed too private and personal, and Leo is one of few people I trust. He was happy do it, plus he says that being a business owner and an ordained minister makes him feel accomplished and well-rounded. He wanted bragging rights,” he says smiling.
“Well, I’m glad you got him to do this for us. Everything you did here is so beautiful and perfect, Aiden. It’s more than I imagined it would be. Thank you,” I say looking up at him.
“You’re more than welcome, baby,” he says brushing my hair behind my ear. “Now, if you’re ready, I think we should go down to the beach and make it official.”
“Okay. Let’s get hitched!” I say enthusiastically.
Aiden chuckles by my obvious delight, threading his arm through mine as he walks me down the steps toward the beach. We stop in front of Leo, and I see that he has a wide grin across his face, his blue eyes twinkling.
“It took you two long enough. I was worried that she changed her mind,” Leo says chuckling as he looks at Aiden.
“If that were the case, I would’ve had to carry her down here and force her to marry me,” Aiden says laughing.
“Hey!” I say playfully slapping his arm.
“Well, Leo went through a lot of trouble to get his license. It’s the least we could do,” Aiden says smartly.
“Okay, kids. It’s time to start the vows. Do you have the rings, Aiden?” Leo asks.
He nods his head and Leo clears his throat, obviously taking this marriage thing very seriously. Wow, I’m impressed. This is like a legitimate ceremony. I’m excited to see the rings Aiden picked out for us. He really took this entire thing to heart and I’m touched.
Aiden and I face each other, his right hand holding mine as I hold his left arm.
"Aiden Crowe, do you take Emma Blackwell to be your wedded wife, to live together in marriage? Do you promise to love, comfort, and honor, to keep her for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health? And forsaking all others, be faithful only to her so long as you both shall live?"
“I do,” Aiden says to him but looking directly at me.
"Emma Blackwell, do you take Aiden Crowe to be your wedded husband, to live together in marriage? Do you promise to love, comfort, and honor, to keep him for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health? And forsaking all others, be faithful only to him so long as you both shall live?"
“I do,” I say, my voice slightly quivering.
I watch Aiden produce the rings, admiring the shiny, silver exterior. He hands me the one meant for him and I squint, noticing the beautiful scrawl on the inside of the band.
Emma Evermore
“Repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed,” Leo says, looking at Aiden.
“With this ring, I thee wed,” Aiden repeats, slipping the cool, smooth silver onto my finger.
I look down at it, noticing the familiar style to my engagement ring.
“With this ring, I thee wed,” I say placing the ring on Aiden’s calloused hand.
“By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” Leo says.
Aiden looks deeply into my eyes, as he leans down towards my face. He gently places his warm, firm lips against mine as my heart races. I run my hands up his shoulders and into his hair.
I hear a voice being cleared in the background and a murmured, “I think I’m not needed anymore for the night. Have fun, kids.”
Aiden smiles against my lips, wrapping his arms around my waist and lifting me up against him. He kisses the breath right out of me, as I hook my ankles around his lower back. I feel him walk us backwards toward the house, but I make sure not to break contact with his mouth. As much as I’m curious as to where we’re going, nothing will stop me from kissing him senseless.
He turns us around and places me gently on top of a blanket on the ground, his lips never leaving mine. I notice that he’s taken me to the very spot underneath the deck where he seduced me only months ago. I think this is my new favorite spot. It holds some very nice memories.
He moves my legs wider apart, placing his hands under my ass, exposing me. He thrusts against me as we both moan, the pressure of him almost unbearable. I claw at his back, practically tearing off the fabric of his shirt in the process. I want it off as soon as possible! I need to feel his skin, the perfectly imperfect flesh underneath my fingertips.
He obviously senses my distress, as he removes his hand from underneath me. His lips leave mine as I look up into his eyes, a starved look on his face. He maneuvers his shirt off, almost immediately returning to my mouth. His tongue dances with mine, invading my mouth like he owns the place.
“I want you, baby. But we can’t. I promised I wouldn’t touch you until you were fully healed,” he murmurs reluctantly against my mouth.
“Ugh, you touched me last night! Why can’t we go all the way right now?” I pout, pulling away from his lips.
I inwardly smile, remembering his tongue plunging into me last night.
“I couldn’t help myself. I needed to remind you who you belonged to, Emma,” he murmurs.
I freeze beside him, wondering if I’m being paranoid. Could he be referring to Colin and if so, how did he know that we talked last night?
“Aiden, what…” I say.
“Emma, let’s not talk about it. I don’t care about anything except you and me right now. Nothing else matters. Let’s just lie here and hold each other,” he says softly.
I nod at him, my heart contracting painfully within my chest. The fear of losing him because of what almost happened between Colin and I, causes me to lose my breath.
“Promise me that you’ll never leave me, that we’ll never be apart. That it’ll be you and me against the world,” I say, curling up against him.
“No matter what, I won’t leave your side, Emma. You didn’t see the inside of your ring, did you?” he asks me.
“No, I just saw yours. It said Emma Evermore,” I say curiously.
He turns to his side, fishing around in his pants pocket. He produces his phone, the screen lighting up as he touches it.
“Take it off and read it, baby,” he says to me, holding the phone light.
I twist the band off of my hand, already hating the loss of it.
I put it under the light, moving it from side to side to see the engraved silver. I smile broadly by its words, still shocked by how in tune Aiden and I are. Just when I think he can’t get more perfect, he blows my expectations out of the water.
Aiden Always
Those two words are all I need to know that everything will be okay. Nothing can tear us apart. I’ve always known that deep down but it’s nice to have it solidified on my wedding band. It’s something that I will always wear and cherish because I know how much love is behind it.
“Always,” I whisper to him as my eyes start to feel heavy.
I feel him move his arm underneath my head, cradling me against him.
“Always, Emma,” he murmurs as I close my eyes in relief.
Chapter 17: Beginning of the End
One Month Later…
I empty my stomach into the guest bathroom toilet, trying not to wake Aiden. Jesus Christ! Projectile vomiting two days straight can only mean one thing. I smile through the sickness, excited to tell Aiden about the welcomed news.
The past month has been the best of my life. I’m almost fully healed now, even though Aiden acts like I’m high-priced porcelain. I can’t say that I mind being taken care of, it’s just that it’s frustrating when it comes to s-e-x. I have to convince Aiden that he won’t be too rough and hurt me. He always caves in, eventually, and I am able to have my way with him. All the positions and places we have sex never gets old. I like mixing it up and obviously my persistence has
paid off, because I’m ninety-nine point nine percent positive I’m pregnant.
It’s our one month anniversary tonight (yes we’re one of those couples who celebrates everything!) and I want to surprise him with the news. I’ve convinced him to leave the house without me tonight and buy groceries for our romantic dinner. He’s still worried and paranoid about leaving me alone, but I told him that he has to let me take care of myself at some point. We still have an alarm system, and he recently took me to the local gun range to teach me how to shoot a gun. I dare someone to try something. This bitch is packing heat. Well, not heat exactly but a nice hand gun that will maim any intruder.
I throw up once more before I wash out my mouth in the sink with cold water, erasing any traces of what just happened. I brush my now jaw-length hair, ready to make my appearance back in our bedroom. Last time I checked, Aiden was conked out after a long Skype session with his record label partner in Los Angeles.
I walk out into the hall and freeze, seeing Aiden rubbing his eyes in the doorway to our bedroom.
“What are you doing up so early?” he asks yawning.
“Girl stuff,” I say casually, not wanting him to get suspicious.
“I missed you,” he says walking over to me.
Damn, I hope I don’t smell bad from throwing up. Yeah, that would not be cute if he caught a whiff of that. Plus, my surprise would be blown.
He reaches me, pulling me into his arms. I wrap mine around him, his bare chest pressed up against me. I can feel the heat of him through my t-shirt, so happy that I get to wake up to this every morning.
We hold each other when the phone rings suddenly, an oddity for this early in the morning.
“Fuck! I was just enjoying myself. Whoever is calling, it better be fucking worth the interruption,” he says smirking at me.
“I’ll just be back in bed waiting for you. Hurry,” I say to him sweetly.
Being wrapped up in bed with him sounds so amazing right now. Plus, standing in an upright position is not helping my stomach. I’m starting to feel queasy again, and I don’t want to alarm him. Maybe if I lay down it will pass.